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.
Dumb All Over
Frank Zappa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ike willis (rhythm guitar, vocals)
Ray white (rhythm guitar, vocals)
Bob harris (boy soprano, trumpet)
Steve vai (guitar)
Tommy mars (keyboards)
Arthur barrow (bass)
Ed mann (percussion)
Motorhead sherwood (tenor saxophone, vocals)
Denny walley (slide guitar, vocals)
David logeman (drums)
Craig steward (harmonica)
Jimmy carl black (vocals)
Ahmet zappa (vocals)
Moon zappa (vocals)
Whoever we are
Wherever we're from
We shoulda noticed by now
Our behavior is dumb
And if our chances
Expect to improve
It's gonna take a lot more
Than tryin' to remove
The other race
Or the other whatever
From the face
Of the planet altogether
They call it the earth
Which is a dumb kinda name
But they named it right
'cause we behave the same...
We are dumb all over
Dumb all over,
Yes we are
Dumb all over,
Near 'n far
Dumb all over,
Black 'n white
People, we is not wrapped tight
Nurds on the left
Nurds on the right
Religious fanatics
On the air every night
Sayin' the bible
Tells the story
Makes the details
Sound real gory
'bout what to do
If the geeks over there
Don't believe in the book
We got over here
You can't run a race
Without no feet
'n pretty soon
There won't be no street
For dummies to jog on
Or doggies to dog on
Religious fanatics
Can make it be all gone
(I mean it won't blow up
'n disappear
It'll just look ugly
For a thousand years...)
You can't run a country
By a book of religion
Not by a heap
Or a lump or a smidgeon
Of foolish rules
Of ancient date
Designed to make
You all feel great
While you fold, spindle
And mutilate
Those unbelievers
From a neighboring state
To arms! to arms!
Hooray! that's great
Two legs ain't bad
Unless there's a crate
They ship the parts
To mama in
For souvenirs: two ears (get down!)
Not his, not hers, (but what the hey? )
The good book says:
("it gotta be that way!")
But their book says:
"revenge the crusades...
With whips 'n chains
'n hand grenades..."
Two arms? two arms?
Have another and another
Our God says:
"there ain't no other!"
Our God says
"it's all okay!"
Our God says
"this is the way!"
It says in the book:
"burn 'n destroy...
'n repent, 'n redeem
'n revenge, 'n deploy
'n rumble thee forth
To the land of the unbelieving scum on the other side
'cause they don't go for what's in the book
'n that makes 'em bad
So verily we must choppeth them up
And stompeth them down
Or rent a nice french bomb
To poof them out of existence
While leaving their real estate just where we need it
To use again
For temples in which to praise our god
("cause he can really take care of business!")
And when his humble tv servant
With humble white hair
And humble glasses
And a nice brown suit
And maybe a blond wife who takes phone calls
Tells us our God says
It's okay to do this stuff
Then we gotta do it,
'cause if we don't do it,
We ain't gwine up to hebbin!
(depending on which book you're using at the
Time...can't use theirs... it don't work
...it's all lies...gotta use mine...)
Ain't that right?
That's what they say
Every night...
Every day...
Hey, we can't really be dumb
If we're just following god's orders
Hey, let's get serious...
God knows what he's doin'
He wrote this book here
An' the book says:
He made us all to be just like him,"
So...
If we're dumb...
Then God is dumb...
(an' maybe even a little ugly on the side)
In "Dumb All Over," Frank Zappa critiques human behavior as a whole, suggesting that we are foolish and "not wrapped tight." He cleverly critiques religious fanaticism, telling us that "religion ain't real" and instructing us to stop using it as a reason to cause conflict. He also criticizes the notion of blindly following what we are told in books (such as the Bible). According to him, if we are all dumb, then God must also be considered dumb, given that he created us in his image.
The lyrics of "Dumb All Over" are full of irony and sarcasm, and they showcase Zappa's ability to critique society in a witty and humorous way. He strikes a nerve on the sensitive topic of religion and highlights the human ability to foolishly follow things without questioning them. He suggests that individuals are simply following their respective religious texts instead of using their own minds to think. In the end, his message appears to be one of making us reflect on our behavior and urges us to think critically about the world around us.
Line by Line Meaning
Whoever we are
Regardless of our identity
Wherever we're from
No matter where we come from
We shoulda noticed by now
It should be apparent by now
Our behavior is dumb
Our behavior is foolish and lacking in intelligence
And if our chances
And if there is any hope for us
Expect to improve
If we expect to make progress
It's gonna take a lot more
It will require a significant effort
Than tryin' to remove
Rather than attempting to get rid of
The other race
People of a different race
Or the other whatever
Or any group of people that are different from us
From the face
From the surface
Of the planet altogether
From the Earth completely
They call it the earth
The world is commonly referred to as the Earth
Which is a dumb kinda name
The name Earth is a poor choice
But they named it right
However, the name is fitting
'cause we behave the same...
Because our behavior is consistent with the name
We are dumb all over
We are foolish as a species
Near 'n far
No matter where we are
Black 'n white
No matter our skin color
People, we is not wrapped tight
We are not all together
Nurds on the left
People perceived as nerdy on the political left
Nurds on the right
People perceived as nerdy on the political right
Religious fanatics
People with extreme religious views
On the air every night
On television frequently
Sayin' the bible
Quoting from the Christian Bible
Tells the story
Contains a narrative
Makes the details
Describes in detail
Sound real gory
Are portrayed in a brutal way
'bout what to do
Regarding how to act
If the geeks over there
If the people on the other side
Don't believe in the book
Do not adhere to the teachings of the Bible
We got over here
Believe in
You can't run a race
It's impossible to hold a competition
Without no feet
Without having any feet
'n pretty soon
And before long
There won't be no street
There will not be any roads
For dummies to jog on
For foolish people to exercise on
Or doggies to dog on
Or dogs to walk on
Religious fanatics
People with extreme religious views
Can make it be all gone
Can destroy everything
(I mean it won't blow up
(I mean it won't explode
'n disappear
And vanish
It'll just look ugly
It will remain and be unsightly
For a thousand years...)
For a long time
You can't run a country
It's impossible to govern a nation
By a book of religion
By following a religious text
Not by a heap
Not even by a lot
Or a lump or a smidgeon
Or by any small amount
Of foolish rules
Of unwarranted and unhelpful regulations
Of ancient date
From a long time ago
Designed to make
Created to influence
You all feel great
To create a sense of achievement
While you fold, spindle
While you damage
And mutilate
And disfigure
Those unbelievers
Those who do not believe in the religion
From a neighboring state
From a nearby area
To arms! to arms!
Prepare for battle!
Hooray! that's great
Hooray! That's fantastic
Two legs ain't bad
Having two legs is not negative
Unless there's a crate
Unless you're in a box
They ship the parts
Those in power send the remains
To mama in
For souvenirs: two ears (get down!)
For loved ones as a keepsake, just the ears
Not his, not hers, (but what the hey? )
Not necessarily a specific person's ears
The good book says:
The Bible teaches
("it gotta be that way!")
(It has to happen that way!)
But their book says:
However, their religious text states
"revenge the crusades...
"Retaliate for the Crusades
With whips 'n chains
'n hand grenades..."
Using violent means"
Two arms? two arms?
Do we have to fight? Do we have to fight?
Have another and another
Have more weapons available
Our God says:
"there ain't no other!"
Our God is the only true God
Our God says
"it's all okay!"
Our God approves of our actions
"cause he can really take care of business!")
"Because he can handle anything!"
And when his humble tv servant
With humble white hair
And humble glasses
And a nice brown suit
And maybe a blond wife who takes phone calls
And when the televangelist preaching about God is plain looking, with glasses and a spouse that answers the phone
Tells us our God says
It's okay to do this stuff
Informs us that God approves of our actions
Then we gotta do it
We must follow God's wishes
'cause if we don't do it,
We ain't gwine up to hebbin!
Because if we don't follow God's orders, we won't go to Heaven
(depending on which book you're using at the
Time...can't use theirs... it don't work
...it's all lies...gotta use mine...)
(Depending on which religious text you're following. Theirs won't work because it's all lies; you must use mine)
Ain't that right?
Isn't that the truth?
That's what they say
That's what we believe
Every night...
Repeatedly
Every day...
Constantly
Hey, we can't really be dumb
We can't truly be foolish
If we're just following god's orders
If our actions are based on religious doctrine
Hey, let's get serious...
Let's be truthful
God knows what he's doin'
God has a plan that he is executing
He wrote this book here
He authored this religious text
An' the book says:
He made us all to be just like him,"
And the religious text states God created us in his image
So...
If we're dumb...
Then God is dumb...
(an' maybe even a little ugly on the side)
Therefore, if we are foolish, then God is foolish, and perhaps not even attractive
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Frank Zappa
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind