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.
Concentration Moon
Frank Zappa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Over the camp in the valley
Concentration moon
Wish I was back in the alley
With all of my friends,
Still running free:
Hair growing out
American way
How did it start?
Thousands of creeps
Killed in the park
American way
Try and explain
Scab of a nation
Driven insane
Don't cry
Gotta go bye bye
Suddenly: die die
Cop kill a creep! pow pow pow
The song Concentration Moon by Frank Zappa is a commentary on the American society and the darker aspects of it. The opening lines refer to the concentration moon, which alludes to the idea of a concentration camp. This is followed by the line "Wish I was back in the alley", where the alley symbolizes the freedom and carefree days. The next verse talks about the singer's friends still being able to run free, maybe alluding to the fact that despite the societal ills, people are still able to live their life to the best of their abilities. The line "Hair growing out every hole in me" symbolizes the complete disregard for societal norms; it can also be interpreted as a symbol of rebellion against the rigid society.
The next verse starts with a rhetorical question asking about how the American way started. The next line talks about thousands of creeps killed in the park, and this is a direct reference to the Kent State shootings in 1970, where four unarmed students were killed by the National Guardsmen. The next line talks about the scab of a nation being driven insane, which is a commentary on how the society is wounded and is causing a sense of madness among its inhabitants. The final verse has a sense of urgency and desperation; the final lines "Suddenly: die die / Cop kill a creep! Pow pow pow" are a symbolic representation that the singer has lost hope and sees no way out of the chaotic society.
Line by Line Meaning
Concentration moon
The moon is full, casting an illuminating light over the concentration camp below.
Over the camp in the valley
The concentration camp is located in a valley, hidden from plain sight.
Concentration moon
The moon remains full, still casting an illuminating light over the camp.
Wish I was back in the alley
The artist wishes to escape from the harsh reality of the concentration camp and be back in the safety of his old neighborhood.
With all of my friends,
The artist misses the company of his friends who are also trapped within the concentration camp.
Still running free:
The singer and his friends used to enjoy their freedom, but now they are prisoners with limited movement.
Hair growing out
Due to neglect, the singer's hair is growing out from every part of his body.
Every hole in me
The artist's body is covered in hair, as it's growing out from every pore and orifice.
American way
The artists questions the validity of the 'American way' in which the land of the free continues to support the existence of concentration camps.
How did it start?
The artist questions the origin of such barbaric practices.
Thousands of creeps
The camp is filled with thousands of people who are considered 'undesirable' or 'creeps' by those in power.
Killed in the park
Many of those deemed 'creeps' were killed by those in power for simply existing in public areas like parks.
American way
The singer questions the logic behind branding this inhumane and cruel way of treating people as the 'American way'.
Try and explain
The singer challenges anyone to explain the rationale behind these horrific acts.
Scab of a nation
The concentration camp is like an open wound, representing the flaws and ugly aspects of the nation.
Driven insane
The artist suggests that the existence of the concentration camp has driven the nation to a state of madness and irrationality.
Don't cry
The artist is trying to stay strong despite the emotional turmoil he's facing.
Gotta go bye bye
The singer has to leave his thoughts behind to face the harsher realities of the camp.
Suddenly: die die
The atmosphere of the camp is unpredictable, and violence can happen without warning.
Cop kill a creep! pow pow pow
The authorities in the camp often use excessive force against those deemed 'creeps' or prisoners, resulting in deaths left unaccounted for.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Pete Simon
Musically, politically and culturally, this album is priceless. NO COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL ! ! ! Mainstream media often tried to lump all facets of our counter-culture into one big happy family. They obviously weren't listening to Mr. Zappa. Yes, there were Hippies, but there were also Freaks; there were many who loved all sorts of music, counter to the Top 40 garbage which ruled the airwaves, but among us there were those who indulged in dope and those who did not. Some saw dope as nothing but trouble; as a tool to control a potentially major social movement. Mr. Zappa was at the forefront of this way of thinking. It comes out clearly on "Flower Punk" and elsewhere on this masterpiece.
When I saw Mr. Zappa and the Mothers play at a "psychadelic dungeon" called "The Trauma" in Philadelphia, during Christmas Week 1967, I remember Frank freaking-out the Hippies in the audience when, during the bands wailing on "King Kong" he stepped to the microphone, raised his hand to arm's length and slowly lowered it. As the band lowered the volume, Frank stepped to the microphone and said in a monotone voice:
"PLEASE TURN OFF THE STROBE LIGHT. WE ARE NOT A BUNCH OF STONED-OUT HIPPIES UP HERE; WE ARE SERIOUS MUSICIANS.................. PLEASE TURN-OFF THE DAMN STROBE LIGHT".
The guys in the sound booth granted Frank's request. People in the audiene were aghast. The only people in the place who found it amusing were two uniformed police officers sitting in the back, who were having the belly laughs of their night.
Frank had made his point.
Pete Simon
Musically, politically and culturally, this album is priceless. NO COMMERCIAL POTENTIAL ! ! ! Mainstream media often tried to lump all facets of our counter-culture into one big happy family. They obviously weren't listening to Mr. Zappa. Yes, there were Hippies, but there were also Freaks; there were many who loved all sorts of music, counter to the Top 40 garbage which ruled the airwaves, but among us there were those who indulged in dope and those who did not. Some saw dope as nothing but trouble; as a tool to control a potentially major social movement. Mr. Zappa was at the forefront of this way of thinking. It comes out clearly on "Flower Punk" and elsewhere on this masterpiece.
When I saw Mr. Zappa and the Mothers play at a "psychadelic dungeon" called "The Trauma" in Philadelphia, during Christmas Week 1967, I remember Frank freaking-out the Hippies in the audience when, during the bands wailing on "King Kong" he stepped to the microphone, raised his hand to arm's length and slowly lowered it. As the band lowered the volume, Frank stepped to the microphone and said in a monotone voice:
"PLEASE TURN OFF THE STROBE LIGHT. WE ARE NOT A BUNCH OF STONED-OUT HIPPIES UP HERE; WE ARE SERIOUS MUSICIANS.................. PLEASE TURN-OFF THE DAMN STROBE LIGHT".
The guys in the sound booth granted Frank's request. People in the audiene were aghast. The only people in the place who found it amusing were two uniformed police officers sitting in the back, who were having the belly laughs of their night.
Frank had made his point.
Limpus Shrimpus
Franks takes on marijuana are outdated.
GreenhouseEffectMusic
THIS IS Rock's "All Star' album ,.... EVERYTHING on it is EPIC !!!!
phoebecatgirl
YEP!
kip murray
Love it..miss Frank
Jeff Portwood
I believe that with this record Zappa is ridiculing hippies. Calling them a bunch of pothead teenagers out to get laid which is true. Then he makes a far more important statement: the government took the hippie movment seriously as a threat.
eoj2495
“I will have a psychedelic gleam in my eyes at all times” - epic
Steve W
I agree. An equal opportunity satirizer--no sides left unscathed if they give up their individual brains to mindlessly be part of a group. Mindlessly following the herd is the enemy of free, independent thinkers.
EeveeMart
He's definitely ridiculing the authoritarians that opposed them too. Seems like he might agree sometimes with hippies regarding societal issues but finds the hippy movement itself superficial and naive. Which... Yeah that's fair.
"I will love everybody, I will love the cops as they beat the shit out of me in the street"
TheTachyon
@Master Paranoid much?