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.
Planet Of The Baritone Women
Frank Zappa Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
They talk low
'bout stuff they know,
They sing 'oooh!'
And laugh at you
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
If you can't
If you can't
Do it too
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They sing 'li-li-li-li!'
They sing 'lo-lo-lo-lo!'
The man carry purses
Wherever they go
Junior executives.
All in a row,
Watch the baritone women
Do the baritone show
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They sing about wheat;
They sing about corn;
They sing about places
Where women was born
They sing about hate!
They sing about fear!
It seems like they all got
A pretty good ear
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They sing it in harmony
Not often heard
With a big ol' cadenza
On every long word
They keep it as low
As they possibly can,
And sometimes they walk
Like an e-gyp-tian
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They do choreography
Still more unique!
They leave their legs open
Whenever they speak!
They roll their eyes upward.
And over again,
And slam their legs closed
When they sing about men!
Those baritone women!
They are not your friend!
You will make a mistake
If you go there again!
The song "Planet of the Baritone Women" by Frank Zappa is a satirical commentary on the societal roles and expectations of women. Zappa presents a world in which the baritone women, who are usually considered to have a masculine voice, are the dominant figures who sing and speak in low voices. The women possess a vast knowledge about things in the world, and they sing about even the tiniest details of our lives like wheat, corn, and places where women were born. They seem to have a prominent understanding of the emotions of hatred and fear, and they demonstrate their ability to express it in perfect unison.
Zappa depicts the men in this world as junior executives, who are submissive and always carry purses wherever they go. The women's singing is in harmony, and they add an intricate cadence on each long word they sing. They also have a unique choreography and perform it while keeping their voices as low as possible. The baritone women often leave their legs open whenever they speak and roll their eyes upwards while speaking. In contrast, they slam their legs closed whenever they mention men. Zappa uses this song to point out how women are expected to adhere to certain gender norms that limit them from expressing their true abilities and qualities.
Line by Line Meaning
On the plane of the baritone women
In the world of these low-pitched women
They talk low
They speak in a low tone
'bout stuff they know,
About the things they understand,
They sing 'oooh!'
They sing ‘ooooh!’
And laugh at you
And make fun of you
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
Ha-ha-ha-ha-hah!
If you can't
If you cannot
Do it too
Do the same thing
Do it too
Do it too
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
Ha-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They sing 'li-li-li-li!'
They sing ‘li-li-li-li!’
They sing 'lo-lo-lo-lo!'
They sing ‘lo-lo-lo-lo!’
The man carry purses
Men carry purses
Wherever they go
Wherever they travel
Junior executives.
Inexperienced executives.
All in a row,
In a row,
Watch the baritone women
Observe these low-pitched women
Do the baritone show
Perform the low-pitched show
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
Ha-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They sing about wheat;
They sing about wheat;
They sing about corn;
They sing about corn;
They sing about places
They sing about the locations
Where women was born
Where women were born
They sing about hate!
They sing about hatred!
They sing about fear!
They sing about fear!
It seems like they all got
It appears as if they all possess
A pretty good ear
An excellent sense of hearing
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
Ha-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They sing it in harmony
They sing in unison
Not often heard
Rarely heard
With a big ol' cadenza
Using a big cadenza
On every long word
With every long word
They keep it as low
They keep the tune low
As they possibly can,
As low as possible:
And sometimes they walk
And at times they walk
Like an e-gyp-tian
Like an Egyptian
Ah-ha-ha-ha-hah!
Ha-ha-ha-ha-hah!
They do choreography
They choreograph a routine
Still more unique!
Even more one-of-a-kind!
They leave their legs open
They keep their legs apart
Whenever they speak!
When they talk!
They roll their eyes upward.
They roll their eyes towards the sky.
And over again,
And repeat the action,
And slam their legs closed
And rapidly close their legs
When they sing about men!
When they sing about men!
Those baritone women!
Those low-pitched women!
They are not your friend!
They are not your ally!
You will make a mistake
You will commit an error
If you go there again!
If you return to that place!
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Frank Vincent Zappa
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind