The album's emphasis is on interconnected movements, as each side of the original vinyl LP comprises a mini-suite. It also features one of the most famous songs of frontman Frank Zappa's early career, "Brown Shoes Don't Make It", a track which has been described as a "condensed two-hour musical".
In the book Necessity Is..., former Mothers of Invention band member Ray Collins said that Absolutely Free is probably his favorite of the classic Mothers albums.
The CD reissue adds, between sides one and two, two songs that were featured on a rare Verve single of the time. The songs from the single, "Why Dontcha Do Me Right?" (titled "Why Don't You Do Me Right" on the 45) and "Big Leg Emma", were both described as "an attempt to make dumb music to appeal to dumb teenagers".
The UK-67 release (Verve VLP/SVLP 9174) came in a laminated flip-back cover, with a Mike Raven poem at the reverse that was not on any other issue.
"Plastic People" begins with a mock introduction of the President of the United States, who (along with his wife) can only recite the opening notes to "Louie, Louie". "Louie, Louie" is often interpolated in Zappa's compositions (other examples appear in the Uncle Meat and Yellow Shark albums, among others), and when Zappa first began performing "Plastic People" around 1965, the words were set to the tune of "Louie, Louie".
The title of "Brown Shoes Don't Make It" was inspired by an event covered by Time reporter Hugh Sidey in 1966. The reporter correctly guessed something was wrong when the fastidiously dressed President Lyndon B. Johnson made the fashion faux pas of wearing brown shoes with a gray suit. LBJ flew to Vietnam for a surprise public relations visit later that day.
In the songs "America Drinks" and "America Drinks and Goes Home", Zappa combines a silly tune with nightclub sound effects to parody his experiences playing with drunken lounge music bands during the early 1960s. Other songs recorded soon after that used the same kinds of ideas include "On with the Show" by the Rolling Stones (released in 1967), "My Friend" by Jimi Hendrix (recorded in 1968, released in 1971) and "You Know My Name (Look Up the Number)" by the Beatles (recorded in 1967 and 1969, released in 1970).
It is not unusual to find melodies or scores from other composers within the music of Frank Zappa. Absolutely Free is full of musical references to other compositions and artists, including Igor Stravinsky.
For example, "Amnesia Vivace" begins with a collage of quotations from Stravinsky ballets: first, the band plays the "Ritual Action of the Ancestors" from The Rite of Spring, Part II; then harpsichord and chattering voices evoke the pounding Dance of the Adolescents in Part I, over which sax and Zappa's voice start quoting the bassoon melody at the very opening of the Rite and continue into the lyrical Berceuse (also for bassoon) at the end of Stravinsky's The Firebird. The opening sequence of Petrouchka is quoted in the middle section of "Status Back Baby". "Soft-Sell Conclusion" ends with a version of the trombone melody that opens Stravinsky's "Marche Royale" from The Soldier's Tale.
The "Invocation & Ritual Dance of the Young Pumpkin", in the beginning of the saxophone solo (first cadence) quotes the trio directly from the fourth movement of Gustav Holst's The Planets, Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity.
The melody to "The Duke of Prunes" is the love theme from Zappa's own film score to Run Home Slow.
Plastic People
The Mothers of Invention Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The President of the United States!
"Fella Americans...Doot, Doot, Doot..."
He's been sick!--Doot! Doot!
And I think his wife is gonna bring him
Some chicken soap
Plastic people!
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag
I know it's hard to defend an unpopular policy
Every once in a while--
Plastic people!
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag
And there's this guy from the CIA he's creepin'
Around Laurel Canyon
A fine little girl She waits for me
She's as plastic as she can be
She paints her face With plastic goo
And wrecks her hair With some shampoo
Plastic people
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag
"I dunno...sometimes I just get tired
Of ya honey--it's...ah..your
Hair spray...or something..."
Plastic people
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag
"I hear the sound of marching feet...
down Sunset Boulevard to Crescent Heights
...and there...at Pandora's box...
We are confronted with...a vast
Quantity of...Plastic people..."
Take a day and walk around
Watch the Nazi's Run your town
Then go home and check yourself
You think we're singing
'Bout someone else
But you're Plastic people
Oh, Baby, now
You're such a drag
Me see a neon Moon above
I searched for years I found no love
I'm sure that love Will never be
A product of Plasticity
A product of Plasticity
PLASTIC, PLASTIC PEOPLE--PLA-HA-HA-HA
HA-PLASTIC--You are--your foot--your hair
--your nose--your arms--you suck--you love
--you are--your being is--you're plastic--blah
--blah--blah--blah plastic Peoples
-A prune is not a vegetable
--cabbage is a vegetable; makes it O.K.
--plastic people--plastic People
--you dream about...you think about...you eat
...you are...Ooo-Hoo-Hoo...
purple prancing--plastic People-
Pee-Pee-Pee-Pee-Pee-Peep!
The Mothers of Invention's song Plastic People is a satirical commentary on the superficiality and conformity of American society in the 1960s. The song begins with a mock speech by the President of the United States, who is portrayed as an inept and sickly figure. The lyrics then move on to describe the "plastic people" of American society, who are depicted as artificial and shallow beings. The song's refrain, "Oh, baby, now you're such a drag," serves as a critique of the emptiness of these characters.
The second half of the song introduces a character from the CIA who is described as "creeping around Laurel Canyon," which was a known hotspot for counterculture activity in Los Angeles at the time. The lyrics also describe a "fine little girl" who is as "plastic" as possible, painting her face and ruining her hair with shampoo. The song ends with a call to action, urging listeners to take a day and walk around, watching the "Nazis" run their town before returning home to check themselves and realize that they, too, are plastic people.
Overall, Plastic People is a biting satire that criticizes American society's obsession with consumerism and surface-level appearances. The song's lyrics are delivered in a sarcastic and irreverent tone, showcasing The Mothers of Invention's bold and subversive style.
Line by Line Meaning
He's been sick!--Doot! Doot!
The President has been unwell.
And I think his wife is gonna bring him
Some chicken soap
The President's wife will visit him and bring some chicken soup to aid in his recovery.
Plastic people!
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag
There are people who are inauthentic and insincere, and they are a burden on those around them.
I know it's hard to defend an unpopular policy
Every once in a while--
It's difficult to advocate for and explain an unpopular decision or view.
And there's this guy from the CIA he's creepin'
Around Laurel Canyon
An operative from the Central Intelligence Agency is conducting surveillance in the Laurel Canyon neighborhood.
A fine little girl She waits for me
She's as plastic as she can be
She paints her face With plastic goo
And wrecks her hair With some shampoo
A young woman is waiting for the singer, and she has transformed herself using copious amounts of cosmetics, hair products, and plastic surgery.
Plastic people
Oh, baby, now you're such a drag
There are people who are inauthentic and insincere, and they are a burden on those around them.
"I dunno...sometimes I just get tired
Of ya honey--it's...ah..your
Hair spray...or something..."
Sometimes the singer becomes fed up with their partner, possibly due to the cosmetic and health products they use.
"I hear the sound of marching feet...
down Sunset Boulevard to Crescent Heights
...and there...at Pandora's box...
We are confronted with...a vast
Quantity of...Plastic people..."
The singer hears the noise of people walking down Sunset Boulevard, and they become surrounded by a large crowd of insincere individuals.
Take a day and walk around
Watch the Nazi's Run your town
Then go home and check yourself
You think we're singing
'Bout someone else
The singer implores their audience to spend a day observing the divisive and hateful effects of fascism, and then to reflect upon their own behavior and inauthenticity.
But you're Plastic people
Oh, Baby, now
You're such a drag
There are people who are inauthentic and insincere, and they are a burden on those around them.
Me see a neon Moon above
I searched for years I found no love
I'm sure that love will never be
A product of Plasticity
A product of Plasticity
The singer has spent much time seeking romantic love but understands that genuine affection cannot be forced or influenced by external factors such as appearance or behavior.
PLASTIC, PLASTIC PEOPLE--PLA-HA-HA-HA
HA-PLASTIC--You are--your foot--your hair
--your nose--your arms--you suck--you love
--you are--your being is--you're plastic--blah
--blah--blah--blah plastic Peoples
The singer mocks those who are insincere and inauthentic, critiquing their physical features and behaviors as well as their lack of real substance.
-A prune is not a vegetable
--cabbage is a vegetable; makes it O.K.
--plastic people--plastic People
--you dream about...you think about...you eat
...you are...Ooo-Hoo-Hoo...
purple prancing--plastic People-
Pee-Pee-Pee-Pee-Pee-Peep!
The singer continues to deride those who are inauthentic and insincere, using a series of images and nonsensical statements to highlight their superficial and unsatisfying behavior and presence.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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