Frank Vincent Zappa (born December 21, 1940 in Baltimore, Maryland, United … Read Full Bio ↴Frank Vincent Zappa (born December 21, 1940 in Baltimore, Maryland, United States – December 4, 1993 in Los Angeles, California, United States) was an American composer, guitarist, singer, bandleader and producer. He was one of the most prolific musicians of his time, releasing over fifty albums of original material spanning over a thirty-five year career.

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.

Wait a Minute
Frank Zappa Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Listen to him go!
Wait a minute; we gotta get somethin' real happenin' here
He's in there spendin' thousands of dollars 'n' shit...
We should make this worthwhile
We should
We should get into something REAL
Ho ho LEATHER!
No, man, he's not interested in Leather... shit

That shit's been fuckin' rubbed in the ground Hmmmm

Christ, that's goin' on two tours old now...
We gotta come up with some new shit ...

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Frank Zappa's song "Wait a Minute" are a conversation between a group of individuals trying to decide what to do next. One of the group members suggests that they need to do something real instead of wasting time and money. He expresses his discontent with the current situation and urges the others to come up with something new. The suggestion of using leather as a theme for their next project is shot down since it has been overused and played out on tours. The conversation ends with the group members feeling the pressure to create something new and relevant.

The song probably reflects Zappa's frustration with the music industry and its tendency to recycle old ideas instead of pushing the boundaries with new and innovative concepts. It could also be interpreted as a commentary on the creative process and how difficult it can be to come up with original ideas that can capture the attention of the audience.

Line by Line Meaning

Listen to him go!
Pay attention to what he's saying

Wait a minute; we gotta get somethin' real happenin' here
Hold on, we need to create something that is truly worthwhile

He's in there spendin' thousands of dollars 'n' shit...
He's wasting a lot of money on something that doesn't matter

We should make this worthwhile
We need to make it worth the time, money, and effort

We should
We need to take action to improve the situation

We should get into something REAL
We need to focus on something that is genuine and authentic

Ho ho LEATHER!
This exclamation mocks the idea of focusing on something superficial or trendy (like leather clothing)

No, man, he's not interested in Leather... shit
He isn't concerned with something that is shallow and has no real value

That shit's been fuckin' rubbed in the ground Hmmmm
This idea has been overused and exploited, it's time to move on to something new

Christ, that's goin' on two tours old now...
This idea has been used in at least two tours and is now outdated

We gotta come up with some new shit ...
We need to brainstorm fresh, innovative ideas to make this worthwhile