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.
Bobby Brown Goes Down
Frank Zappa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They say I'm the cutest boy in town
My car is fast, my teeth are shiny
I tell all the girls they can kiss my heine
Here I am at a famous school
I dressin' sharp and I'm acting cool
I've got a cheerleader here
Wants to help with my paper
And maybe later I'll rape her
Oh God, I am the American dream
I do not think I'm too extreme
And I'm a handsome son of a bitch
I'm gonna get a good job and be real rich
(Get a good, get a good, get a good, get a good job)
Women's liberation
Came creepin' all across the nation
I tell you, people, I was not ready
When I fucked this dyke by the name of Freddie
She made a little speech then
Oh, she tried to make me say when
She had my balls in a vice but she left the dick
I guess it's still hooked on but now it shoots too quick
Oh God, I am the American dream
But now I smell like Vaseline
And I'm a miserable son of a bitch
Am I a boy or a lady, I don't know which
(I wonder, wonder, wonder, wonder)
So I went out and bought me a leisure suit
I jingle my change but I'm still kinda cute
Got a job doing radio promo
And none of the jocks can even tell I'm a homo
Eventually me and a friend
Sorta drifted along into S&M
I can take about an hour on the tower of power
As long as I get a little golden shower
Oh God, I am the American dream
With a spindle up my butt 'til it makes me scream
And I'll do anything to get ahead
I lay awake nights, sayin', "thank you, Fred"
Oh God, Oh God, I'm so fantastic
Thanks to Freddie, I'm a sexual spastic
And my name is Bobby Brown
Watch me now, I'm goin' down
And my name is Bobby Brown
Watch me now, I'm goin' down
And my name is Bobby Brown
Watch me now, I'm going down
Yeah, I knew you'd be surprised
The lyrics to Frank Zappa's song "Bobby Brown" depict the unapologetic musings of a young man who considers himself the American dream. Bobby Brown flaunts his good looks, fast car and shiny teeth, and brags about his ability to charm girls into doing his bidding. He speaks of his aspirations to get a job, become rich and successful, and live the American dream. However, Bobby's lack of self-awareness is exposed when he mentions his encounter with a lesbian woman named Freddie. He proudly states that he overpowered her, but later reveals that he was left humiliated and confused when Freddie had his "balls in a vice". Bobby's subsequent identity crisis is reflected in his choice of clothing and activities, including purchasing a leisure suit and engaging in S&M.
Overall, Zappa's lyrics are a biting commentary on American masculinity and societal expectations of success. Bobby represents the quintessential American male who is focused on wealth, power, and sex, but who is ignorant to the destructive consequences of his actions. Through this song, Zappa challenges society's ideals of success and exposes the need for self-reflection and genuine connection.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey there, people, I'm Bobby Brown
Introducing myself as Bobby Brown
They say I'm the cutest boy in town
People say I'm quite attractive
My car is fast, my teeth are shiny
I own a fast car and have shiny teeth
I tell all the girls they can kiss my heine
I boast to girls that they can kiss my behind
Here I am at a famous school
I'm at a prestigious school
I dressin' sharp and I'm acting cool
I'm dressed sharply and behaving coolly
I've got a cheerleader here
I have a cheerleader with me
Wants to help with my paper
She wants to assist me with my paper
Let her do all the work
I'm allowing her to do all the work
And maybe later I'll rape her
I might sexually assault her later
Oh God, I am the American dream
I believe I embody the American dream
I do not think I'm too extreme
I don't believe I'm too radical
And I'm a handsome son of a bitch
I'm very good-looking
I'm gonna get a good job and be real rich
I plan to get a high-paying job and become wealthy
Women's liberation
The feminist movement
Came creepin' all across the nation
Feminism spread across the entire country
I tell you, people, I was not ready
I wasn't prepared for it
When I fucked this dyke by the name of Freddie
When I had sex with a lesbian named Freddie
She made a little speech then
Freddie made a speech afterwards
Oh, she tried to make me say when
She tried to get me to orgasm
She had my balls in a vice but she left the dick
She had control over my testicles but not my penis
I guess it's still hooked on but now it shoots too quick
My penis still functions but ejaculates prematurely
But now I smell like Vaseline
I smell like petroleum jelly
And I'm a miserable son of a bitch
I'm a sad and contemptible person
Am I a boy or a lady, I don't know which
I'm confused about my gender identity
So I went out and bought me a leisure suit
I purchased a leisure suit for myself
I jingle my change but I'm still kinda cute
I still sound charming regardless of my actions
Got a job doing radio promo
I found employment promoting on the radio
And none of the jocks can even tell I'm a homo
My LGBTQ+ status is unknown to other workers
Eventually me and a friend
A friend and I
Sorta drifted along into S&M
We moved towards sadomasochism
I can take about an hour on the tower of power
I can endure an hour of sexual stimulation
As long as I get a little golden shower
As long as I receive some urine on me
And I'll do anything to get ahead
I'm willing to do anything to succeed
I lay awake nights, sayin', "thank you, Fred"
I'm grateful for the sexual experience with Freddie
Oh God, Oh God, I'm so fantastic
I perceive myself as fantastic
Thanks to Freddie, I'm a sexual spastic
Thanks to Freddie, I'm passionate about sex
And my name is Bobby Brown
I'm named Bobby Brown
Watch me now, I'm goin' down
I'm about to fail or fall
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Frank Zappa
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@theclaw8299
Zappa is a good songwriter, a good composer, a fighter of free speech and a great musician it's sad that he's no longer with us but his music will live on....
@rizzy.rob420
bro rapes
@Tu_ta_lu
I think we know where he stood on this issue
@Dischordalchorous
As long as this plays loud in public places the spirit of Zappa still lives. At least I like to think so..
@deianaf1
sostituisci good con grosso
@jackdouglass1146
Afew years ago I was biking around Baltimore and came across this massive amount of people and thought it was a fair or festival so I asked the crazy looking chicken what was going on and she said they were doing a thing forbher father. I ask who her father was and she comes out with......
Frank Zappa ! I was like....say what! So we talked and she said her name was Diva. Later I got to meet one of her brothers and her mom but the other a guy named Dweziel was jamming the whole day with his band. Just a funny , least expected thing to have happen. And it turns out thr a couple of swredisk artists made a bronze bust and brought it to Baltimore and it was put in front of a library it think in Baltimore. I'm not familiar with Baltimore bit the mayor or governor were there. I did not know that he was from baltimore. Also got a few pics with Diva
@jakethegreat8320
My dad would play this just about every morning when he'd give us a ride to middle/high school. Thank you dad for showing me such great music
@etiennechanson6279
How old is your dad. I guess his memory is full of great songs
@dirtpoor1901
Same lol
@AnaLoveChakra
my dad looked like frank zappa!