Zappa's earliest influences were 1950s pop and rock (such as doo-wop and rhythm and blues), and 20th-century classical composers including Igor Stravinsky and Edgard Varèse. His output was divided between adventurous instrumental compositions and succinct, catchy rock songs with ribald, satirical, or comically absurd lyrics. On stage he demanded virtuosity and spontaneity from his musicians, and employed many performers who would later go on to achieve fame in their own rights. He directed and released a number of films featuring himself, his musicians and entourage, including 200 Motels and Baby Snakes.
His career started in 1955. His earliest recordings date from the mid-1960s, and include collaborations with his school friend Captain Beefheart. In 1965 he joined a bar-band called The Soul Giants, quickly dominating its musical direction and rechristening it The Mothers. Their first release (as The Mothers of Invention; the name alteration requested by their record company) was the 1966 double album Freak Out!. The line-up of the Mothers gradually expanded to accommodate Zappa's increasingly ambitious and avant-garde music, but by 1969 he decided to work outside the band structure, focusing on his solo career, and effectively disbanding the Mothers in 1971.
The beginnings of his solo career in the late sixties and early seventies was characterised by a strong free jazz influence, with albums containing little, if any, lyrical content, such as Hot Rats, Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo. Towards the mid-seventies his albums became more rock-orientated, with a combination of Jazz Fusion instrumentation and Rock song structures. This more accessible sound bore reasonable mainstream appeal, especially with the release of the well-advertised albums Over-Nite Sensation and Apostrophe (') (which both went Gold), but Zappa's unpredictably eclectic output never led to solid mainstream recognition. He received uniformly lukewarm reviews from popular music publications such as Rolling Stone throughout his career. In his late seventies' output, the gulf between his humorous songs and more lengthy, complex instrumental music widened, and albums, such as Zappa in New York, Joe's Garage: Acts I, II & III, and Sleep Dirt displayed, by track, both sides firmly segregated.
Zappa saw a second run of success in the early eighties with the release of many albums with predominantly comedic rock songs, but later continued to experiment with virtually every style of music through the eighties, and was productive as ever until his death. His output in this later-career period included two albums of strikingly original classical music with the London Symphony Orchestra, an electronic take on 18th-century chamber music (written by the obscure Italian composer 'Francesco Zappa', no relation), an album of Synclavier compositions (misleadingly titled Jazz From Hell which garnered a Grammy award), a double-CD release of electric guitar instrumental music (the laconically titled Guitar) and a plenitude of official live releases, revisiting fan-favourites as well as showcasing Zappa's talent for reinventing the music of others; his version of Stairway to Heaven becoming a word-of-mouth favourite.
Zappa produced almost all of his own albums, spending many hours in the studio recording and manipulating tracks, and was always at the forefront of emerging technologies; from tape editing, collage, multitrack and overdubbing in the sixties to digital recording, electronic instruments and sampling in the eighties. Conversely, Zappa was also a obsessive self-archivist, recording virtually every one of his live performances, and often using live recordings of new material without needing to enter the studio. The archive of tapes at his family home in Los Angeles continues to be a source of posthumous releases for the Zappa Family Trust. He was also noted as a spotter of talent and his shifting line-up of musicians included Lowell George, Jean-Luc Ponty, Terry Bozzio, Chad Wackerman, George Duke, Mike Keneally, Adrian Belew and Steve Vai, as well as giving Alice Cooper his first break in music and working again with his old collaborator Captain Beefheart when his career was in decline.
In the late 1980s he became active in politics, campaigning against the PMRC's music censorship scheme and acting as culture and trade representative for Czechoslovakia in 1989; and considered running as an independent candidate for president of the US.
His death in Los Angeles, California, on 4th December 1993 came three years after he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
01 the central scrutinizer
Frank Zappa Lyrics
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Desperate nerds in high offices all over the world have been known to
enact the most disgusting pieces of legislation in order to win votes
(or, in places where they don't get to vote, to control unwanted forms of
mass behavior).
Environmental laws were not passed to protect our air and water...
they were passed to get votes. Seasonal anti-smut campaigns are not
an aura of saintliness to the office-seekers who demand them. If a few
key phrases are thrown into any speech (as the expert advisors explain to
these various heads of state) votes will roll in, bucks will roll in, and, most
importantly, power will be maintained by the groovy guy (or gal) who gets
the most media coverage for his sleaze. Naturally, his friends in various
businesses will do okay too.
All governments perpetuate themselves through the daily commission of act
which a rational person might find to be stupid or dangerous (or both). Naturally,
our government is no exception... for instance, if the President (any one of them)
went on TV and sat there with the flag in the background (or maybe a rustic
scene on a little backdrop, plus the flag) and stared sincerely into the camera
and told everybody that all energy problems and all inflationary problems had been
traced to and could be solved by the abolition of MUSIC, chances are that most
people would believe him and think that the illegalization of this obnoxious form of
noise pollution would be a small price to pay for the chance to buy gas like the good
ol' days. No way? Never happen? Records are made out of oil. All those big rock
shows go from town to town in fuel-gobbling 45 foot trucks...and when they get there,
they use up enormous amounts of electrical energy with their lights, their amplifiers,
their PA systems...their smoke machines. And all those synthesizers...look at all
the plastic they got in 'em...and the guitar picks...you name it...
JOE'S GARAGE is a stupid story about how the government is going to try to do away
with music (a prime cause of unwanted mass behavior! It's sort of like a really cheap
kind of high school play...the way it might have been done 20 years ago, with all the sets
made out of cardboard boxes and poster paint. It's also like those lectures that local
narks used to give (where they show you a display of all the different ways you can get
wasted, with the pills leading to the weed leading to the needle, etc., etc.).
If the plot of the story seems just a little bit preposterous, and if the idea of The Central
Scrutinizer enforcing laws that haven't been passed yet makes you giggle, just be glad
you don't live in one of the cheerful little countries where, at this very moment, music is
either severely restricted...or, as it is in Iran, totally illegal.
SCENE ONE
ENTRANCE OF THE CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER
Sometimes when you're not looking he just sneaks up on you. He looks like a cheap
sort of flying saucer about five feet across with a snout-like megaphone apparatus in
the front with two big eyes mounted like Appletons with miniature motorized frowning
chrome eyebrows over them. Along the side of his disc-like body are several sets of
stupid looking headers and exhaust hoses which apparently propel him and punctuate
his dialogue with horrible smelling smoke rings. In the middle of his head we can see
an airport wind sock and constantly twirling anemometer. The bottom of him has a landing
light and three spoked wheels. In spite of all this, it is obvious that the way he really gets
around is by being dangled from place to place by a union guy with a dark green shirt up
in the roof who is eating a sandwich (pieces of which drop off every once in a while
and lodge themselves near the hole where they put the oil in that makes the cheap smoke).
He hovers into view and speaks to us thusly...
CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER:
This is the CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER...it is my responsibility to enforce all the laws
that haven't been passed yet. It is also my responsibility to alert each and every one of
you to the potential consequences of various ordinary everyday activities you might be
performing which could eventually lead to The Death Penalty (or affect your parents'
credit rating). Our criminal institutions are full of little creeps like you who do wrong things...
and many of them were driven to these crimes by a horrible force called MUSIC! Our studies
have shown that this horrible force is so dangerous to society at large that laws are being
drawn up at this very moment to stop it forever! Cruel and inhuman punishments are
being carefully described in tiny paragraphs so they won't conflict with the Constitution
(which, itself, is being modified in order to accommodate THE FUTURE).
I bring you now a special presentation to show what can happen to you if you choose
a career in MUSIC . . . The WHITE ZONE is for loading and unloading only. . . if you
have to load or unload, go to the WHITE ZONE... you 'll love it... it 's a way of life . . .
This is the CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER...The WHITE ZONE is for loading and unloading
only... (etc.)
The prelude to Frank Zappa's "Joe's Garage" sets the stage for a satirical story about how governments throughout the world manipulate their citizens through various means, including legislation and fear-mongering. Zappa suggests that laws are not always passed for the betterment of society but rather to appease voters and maintain power. He highlights the absurdity of a government blaming music for societal problems by painting a picture of a hypothetical speech where the president claims that music is the root cause of all energy and inflationary problems. Zappa also draws attention to the environmental impact of the music industry, a factor that is often neglected when assessing the role of music in society. Ultimately, the prelude introduces the audience to the concept of The Central Scrutinizer, a character who embodies the government's desire to control and limit free expression.
The first scene introduces The Central Scrutinizer, described as a flying saucer-like figure with a snout-like megaphone and exhaust hoses that propel him and highlight his dialogue with noxious smoke. The Central Scrutinizer takes on the role of a narrator for Joe's Garage, explaining his responsibility to enforce laws that do not yet exist and warn the public of potential consequences for everyday activities that could lead to the "Death Penalty" or affect their parents' credit rating. The music is portrayed as a "horrible force" responsible for driving people to commit crimes, and laws are being drawn up to stop it. The Central Scrutinizer presents a special presentation to show what can happen to those who choose a career in music. Ultimately, the scene sets up the absurdity of the government's attempts to control creative expression and the harsh consequences that can arise from disobedience.
Line by Line Meaning
Sometimes when you're not looking he just sneaks up on you.
The Central Scrutinizer is stealthy and can appear unexpectedly
He looks like a cheap sort of flying saucer about five feet across with a snout-like megaphone apparatus in the front with two big eyes mounted like Appletons with miniature motorized frowning chrome eyebrows over them.
The Central Scrutinizer's appearance is unusual, consisting of a small flying saucer with distinctive features and moving eyebrows
Along the side of his disc-like body are several sets of stupid looking headers and exhaust hoses which apparently propel him and punctuate his dialogue with horrible smelling smoke rings.
The Central Scrutinizer has exhaust pipes emitting foul-smelling smoke, which contribute to his strange appearance
In the middle of his head we can see an airport wind sock and constantly twirling anemometer.
The Central Scrutinizer has weather instruments on his head that are constantly spinning
The bottom of him has a landing light and three spoked wheels.
The Central Scrutinizer has a landing light and three wheels on the bottom of his craft
In spite of all this, it is obvious that the way he really gets around is by being dangled from place to place by a union guy with a dark green shirt up in the roof who is eating a sandwich (pieces of which drop off every once in a while and lodge themselves near the hole where they put the oil in that makes the cheap smoke).
Despite his bizarre appearance, the Central Scrutinizer is actually moved around by a union worker in the roof of the building who drops food on the vehicle's oil hole
This is the CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER...it is my responsibility to enforce all the laws that haven't been passed yet.
The Central Scrutinizer claims to be responsible for enforcing future laws that do not yet exist
It is also my responsibility to alert each and every one of you to the potential consequences of various ordinary everyday activities you might be performing which could eventually lead to The Death Penalty (or affect your parents' credit rating).
The Central Scrutinizer also warns individuals of potential consequences from everyday activities that could lead to punishment or affect their family's financial standing
Our criminal institutions are full of little creeps like you who do wrong things... and many of them were driven to these crimes by a horrible force called MUSIC!
The Central Scrutinizer believes that music is a dangerous force that leads people to perform criminal acts
Our studies have shown that this horrible force is so dangerous to society at large that laws are being drawn up at this very moment to stop it forever!
According to the Central Scrutinizer, music is regarded as such a pervasive social threat that immediate action is needed to eradicate it entirely
Cruel and inhuman punishments are being carefully described in tiny paragraphs so they won't conflict with the Constitution (which, itself, is being modified in order to accommodate THE FUTURE).
Laws are being created to impose harsh and unconstitutional punishments to effectively eliminate music
I bring you now a special presentation to show what can happen to you if you choose a career in MUSIC . . . The WHITE ZONE is for loading and unloading only. . . if you have to load or unload, go to the WHITE ZONE... you'll love it... it's a way of life . . . This is the CENTRAL SCRUTINIZER...The WHITE ZONE is for loading and unloading only... (etc.)
The Central Scrutinizer introduces a presentation which aims to dissuade individuals from pursuing a career in music and promotes the designated 'White Zone' as the only permissible space for certain activities
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