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.
Harry & Rhonda
Frank Zappa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Steve vai (guitar)
Ray white (guitar, vocals)
Tommy mars (keyboards)
Chuck wild (piano)
Arthur barrow (bass)
Scott thunes (bass)
Jay anderson (string bass)
Chad wackerman (drums)
Ike willis (vocals)
Terry bozzio (vocals)
Dale bozzio (vocals)
Napoleon murphy brock (vocals)
Bob harris (vocals)
Johnny "guitar" watson (vocals)
Rhonda: (stage whisper)
Harry, this is not dream girls!
Harry: (stage whisper)
They told me it had c-c-colored folk in it, rhonda, and that's always a sure sign of good, solid, musical entertainment! how was I supposed to know they'd be this ugly?
Rhonda:
They pissed on us, harry! they f**kin' pissed on us! look at my fox!
Harry:
I know, dear...but they pissed on me too...he did say they were incontinent!
Rhonda:
Just smell this! I think we should get out of here before they do something else to us!
Harry:
Oolite.
Rhonda:
What's happened to broadway, harry? used to be you could come to one of these things and the wind would be rushing down the plain or a fairy on a string would go over the audience...but now! har
Ask you: is this entertainment?
Harry:
You're absolutely correct, dear! so far we haven't seen a single good-looking pair of legs...a single sequin-encrusted whatchamacallit ...no firm, rounded breasts! this show is a disaster, rhond
Complete and utter disaster!
Thing-fish:
Mmmm! say dere...hey! umm-hmm! thass right! hey you! you two ugly white folks...over heahhh!
As you know, de presence of carboniferous hard-core unemployables has gen'rally, in de historical past, guaranteed an evenin' of upliftin' frolic and cavortment...it'd be a shame fo y'all t'miss
On dis here one! got some nice chairs fo' ya, rights ovuh heahhh.
Harry & rhonda rise, cross to thing-fish, and sit in the chairs he offers. they are immediately chained to them by the mammies.
Harry:
Uhhh...beg pardon? what's going on here?
Rhonda:
Oh! they're touching me! harry! harry! harry! harry, do something! they're putting chains on me! I'll be stuck to the chair! oh! what'll I do? I'll miss intermission!
Harry:
They're only 'theater chains', rhonda! just some sort of...
Rhonda:
These are real goddam chains, harry, and they're not gonna come off with woolite!
Harry:
I don't mind the way they feel...they don't bother me, honey...relax! go with the flow...
Rhonda:
Harry, you are an over-educated shit-head!
Thing-fish:
Look here, folks...dis only fo yo own protexium! once we gets rollin' heah, things be happnin' all over de place dat could prove dangerous to persons not previously acquainted wit de san quentim
- potatoes!
Rhonda:
I want the wind to come rushing down the plain! I want fairies on a string over the audience! I want real broadway entertainment! feathers! spot-lights! guilt! hours upon hours of guilt! about m
Her! about my father! about brave women, suffering at the hands of infantile, insensitive, dominating men! and what do I get? a potato-headed jig-a-boo with catholic clothes on! incomprehensible
Lips! weak bladders draining through abnorminably large organs! jesus, harry! what the f**k is going on here?
Harry:
Simmer down! if you'll just roll with the punches...and don't rock the boat, I'm sure we'll have a lovely evening at the theater!
Thing-fish:
Thass right! we got fairies on a string fo yo ass jes' a little later! meanwhile, I b'lieves y'all requires some updatement on de co-log-nuh situatium! sister ob'dewlla 'x'! express yo'seff!
The song "Harry & Rhonda" by Frank Zappa is a satirical commentary on race and class in American society. The lyrics document the experiences of an upper-class white couple attending a musical performance featuring black performers. Harry and Rhonda are shocked and offended by the performers' appearance and behavior, including their incontinence, chains, and unintelligible speech. They long for the traditional forms of entertainment they are accustomed to, such as sequined costumes, firm breasts, and guilt-inducing narratives about women and their relationships with men. Despite their discomfort, Harry and Rhonda stay for the entire performance, chained to their seats by the mammies, who serve as a metaphor for the oppression of black women in American history.
Zappa's use of satire in "Harry & Rhonda" is reminiscent of the work of Mark Twain and other writers who used humor to expose the hypocrisies and injustices of their time. The song's cynical tone reflects Zappa's own disillusionment with American culture, which he saw as shallow and materialistic. The lyrics suggest that even seemingly liberal and open-minded people like Harry and Rhonda are unwilling or unable to confront the realities of racial inequality and social injustice in America.
Line by Line Meaning
Rhonda: (stage whisper)
Rhonda is whispering on stage
Harry: (stage whisper)
Harry is whispering on stage
They told me it had c-c-colored folk in it, rhonda, and that's always a sure sign of good, solid, musical entertainment! how was I supposed to know they'd be this ugly?
Harry thought the show would be good because it had colored people in it, but they are ugly
They pissed on us, harry! they f**kin' pissed on us! look at my fox!
Rhonda is angry because they were peed on, and her fur is messed up
I know, dear...but they pissed on me too...he did say they were incontinent!
Harry was also peed on, but he knew they were incontinent
Just smell this! I think we should get out of here before they do something else to us!
Rhonda wants to leave because they might do something worse to them
Oolite.
This word has no meaning, it is only said by Harry
What's happened to broadway, harry? used to be you could come to one of these things and the wind would be rushing down the plain or a fairy on a string would go over the audience...but now! har
Rhonda is disappointed that Broadway is not what it used to be
Ask you: is this entertainment?
Rhonda questions whether this is actually entertainment
You're absolutely correct, dear! so far we haven't seen a single good-looking pair of legs...a single sequin-encrusted whatchamacallit ...no firm, rounded breasts! this show is a disaster, rhond
Harry agrees with Rhonda that the show is terrible
Complete and utter disaster!
This is a conclusion by Harry that the show is a complete disaster
Mmmm! say dere...hey! umm-hmm! thass right! hey you! you two ugly white folks...over heahhh!
Thing-Fish is addressing Harry and Rhonda
As you know, de presence of carboniferous hard-core unemployables has gen'rally, in de historical past, guaranteed an evenin' of upliftin' frolic and cavortment...it'd be a shame fo y'all t'miss
Thing-Fish mentions that in the past these type of people always lead to an entertaining evening
On dis here one! got some nice chairs fo' ya, rights ovuh heahhh.
Thing-Fish has chairs for Harry and Rhonda
Uhhh...beg pardon? what's going on here?
Harry is confused
Oh! they're touching me! harry! harry! harry! harry, do something! they're putting chains on me! I'll be stuck to the chair! oh! what'll I do? I'll miss intermission!
Rhonda is scared because the mammies are chaining her to the chair
They're only 'theater chains', rhonda! just some sort of...
Harry tries to calm Rhonda by saying they're just theater chains
These are real goddam chains, harry, and they're not gonna come off with woolite!
Rhonda is adamant that they are real chains and not the theater's props
I don't mind the way they feel...they don't bother me, honey...relax! go with the flow...
Harry doesn't mind the chains
Harry, you are an over-educated shit-head!
Rhonda is angry with Harry for not being concerned enough about the chains
Look here, folks...dis only fo yo own protexium! once we gets rollin' heah, things be happnin' all over de place dat could prove dangerous to persons not previously acquainted wit de san quentim - potatoes!
Thing-Fish warns the audience that the show could be dangerous
I want the wind to come rushing down the plain! I want fairies on a string over the audience! I want real broadway entertainment! feathers! spot-lights! guilt! hours upon hours of guilt! about m Her! about my father! about brave women, suffering at the hands of infantile, insensitive, dominating men! and what do I get? a potato-headed jig-a-boo with catholic clothes on! incomprehensible Lips! weak bladders draining through abnorminably large organs! jesus, harry! what the f**k is going on here?
Rhonda wants real Broadway entertainment and is angry that this is what they get instead
Simmer down! if you'll just roll with the punches...and don't rock the boat, I'm sure we'll have a lovely evening at the theater!
Harry tries to get Rhonda to relax and enjoy the show
Thass right! we got fairies on a string fo yo ass jes' a little later! meanwhile, I b'lieves y'all requires some updatement on de co-log-nuh situatium! sister ob'dewlla 'x'! express yo'seff!
Thing-Fish mentions that they have fairies later, and introduces a new character
Contributed by Samantha P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.