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.
Magic Fingers.
Frank Zappa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I get so hard now I could die
Oh, the way you love me, sugar,
I get so hard now I could die
Open up your pocketbook,
Get another quarter out,
Drop it in the meter, mama
Open up your pocketbook,
Get another quarter out,
Drop it in the meter, mama
Try me on for size
Ooh, the way you squeeze me, baby,
Red balloons just pop behind my eyes
Ooh, the way you squeeze me, girl,
Red balloons just pop behind my eyes
Open up your pocketbook,
Get another quarter out,
Drop it in the meter, mama
Try me on for size
Open up your pocketbook,
Get another quarter out,
Drop it in the meter, mama
Try me on for size
Do you really wanna please me?
Well, you know I do, babe
Well, tell me why you do it
I really wanna know
Oh, no, no, it wouldn't be right
For me to tell you tonight
You better tell me right away
Or I'll pack up and go!
Don't get mad
It ain't no big thing
You better tell me right away,
Don't you treat me cold
HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT!
Well, there are a lot of reasons why I'd... I'd drag a girl such as yourself back to this... plastic hotel room and... rip you off for spare change to run a... to run a vibrating machine attached to this queen-size, bulk-purchase, kapok-infested, do-not-remove-tag-under-penalty-of-law type bed and... and make you take off all your little clothes... until you were nearly STARK RAVING NUDE! (Save for your chrome-with-heavy-duty-leather-thong Peace Medallion, heh...) And make you assume a series of marginally erotic poses involving... a plastic chair and... an old guitar strap while I... did a wee-wee in your hair and... beat you with a pair of tennis shoes... I got from Jeff Beck
The lyrics of "Magic Fingers" by Frank Zappa are a perfect example of his signature irony and humor. The song seems to be about a man who is being pleased by a woman in a very unique way. He is getting so hard that he could die from the way she is loving him, and every time she squeezes him, he sees red balloons behind his eyes. The woman is also singing to him, asking if he really wants to please her, to which he responds that he does. She wants to know why he does it, but he says that he cannot tell her that night. Then, the woman threatens to leave if he doesn't tell her why he pleases her, and so he describes a ridiculous scenario in which he would rip her off, make her take off her clothes, assume erotic poses, while he beat her with tennis shoes.
The underlying message of the song is about the exploitation of people in general by others who have power over them, and how people can be tricked into accepting what they are given or arranged. Zappa is addressing how shallow society can be and how easily people are willing to sell out to corporations and institutions. The song is a satirical commentary on society's obsession with instant gratification, which is symbolized by the "Magic Fingers," or pleasuring a quick and flimsy fix from their issues in life.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, the way you love me, lady,
I get so hard now I could die
Your love is overwhelming that is making me both physically and emotionally excited.
Open up your pocketbook,
Get another quarter out,
Drop it in the meter, mama
Try me on for size
Use the money as a metaphorical reference to buy the pleasure of Frank's love, and feel his love wrapped around you.
Ooh, the way you squeeze me, baby,
Red balloons just pop behind my eyes
Ooh, the way you squeeze me, girl,
Red balloons just pop behind my eyes
The feeling of your love is so immense that it creates such overwhelming excitement that it causes hallucination.
Do you really wanna please me?
Asking if you are serious about pleasing Frank sexually.
Well, you know I do, babe
The desire to please Frank is genuine.
Well, tell me why you do it
I really wanna know
Asking for the reason behind your desire to please Frank.
Oh, no, no, it wouldn't be right
For me to tell you tonight
Unwillingness to share this information at this moment in time.
You better tell me right away
Or I'll pack up and go!
Demanding the reason to be told immediately, as failure to do so could lead to the end of the relationship.
Don't get mad
It ain't no big thing
Requesting you not to react excessively. As there is no real issue and it is not something worth getting mad over.
You better tell me right away,
Don't you treat me cold
Demanding to be told the reason immediately, and to not be treated with contempt or disrespect.
HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT, HOLD IT!
A sudden interruption in the song and dialogue, and Frank's denial of the things he has said which were inappropriate.
Well, there are a lot of reasons why I'd... I'd drag a girl such as yourself back to this... plastic hotel room and... rip you off for spare change to run a... to run a vibrating machine attached to this queen-size, bulk-purchase, kapok-infested, do-not-remove-tag-under-penalty-of-law type bed and... and make you take off all your little clothes... until you were nearly STARK RAVING NUDE! (Save for your chrome-with-heavy-duty-leather-thong Peace Medallion, heh...) And make you assume a series of marginally erotic poses involving... a plastic chair and... an old guitar strap while I... did a wee-wee in your hair and... beat you with a pair of tennis shoes... I got from Jeff Beck
A satirical commentary on men who treat women as objects, and conversation that is inappropriate and nonsensical, to highlight how ridiculous and disgusting it can sound when expressed openly.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Frank Zappa
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@andythomas706
Its also one of Franks best ever guitar solos! Beautifully contructed from start to finish 'no overdubs', Lets be honest its breathtaking stuff!!
@babkeebabkus8177
@Mouse Fitzgerald it sounds like a kiss song a couple years before kiss existed...hmm
@maryk446
I was just thinking the same as I listened to this song again after many years. My guess is that even guitar greats like Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page were impressed with this.
@masonmcgowan2825
I’VE BEEN IN THE BAND FOR YEARS, AND I KNOW HE’S ALWAYS LISTENING.
@TMrreviews
That’s exactly what he does.
@chaosmos24
Best song from this album/film. This is a perfect parody of rock music, and it does the job better than most examples of its target. Sublime.
@andythomas706
For me this is one of FZ's very best recorded solos. It's SO organic! Interesting that it's pretty much the only appearance he makes in the movie.
@PhatPoodles
You can also see him playing drums in lonesome cowboy burt
@chrismokusiga1597
If you mean studio recorded then yes, you could be right.
@synthonaplinth5980
@Zolar Czakl The only exception would have been that the bass parts were overdubbed as they were too difficult for Martin Lickert.