Zappa News

Added week-ending 11 May 2025:

• Another brief clip from the Cheaper Than Cheep fillum here. And here's quite a detailed breakdown of it from uDiscover Music. 
• On the latest Rocktails, Ahmet describes the CTC project as 'sort of' his swansong - wonder what that means?
• There seems to be some confusion regarding the zappa.com exclusive release of Cheaper Than Cheep: if you pre-ordered via the Zappa Store or recommended outlets (Recordstore/uDiscover/Sound Of Vinyl) your package should ship on 9 May. Anywhere else (eg. Amazon), the non-exclusive and streaming release date is 27 June.
• A second Cheaper Than Cheep teaser vid here. This one sees Joe Travers unboxing the super deluxe edition.

Added week-ending 4 May 2025:

• Here's another Spotify playlist I recently created, this time highlighting the work of Tommy Mars away from FZ. Features the talents of Warren Cuccurullo, Vinnie Colaiuta, Steve Vai, Arthur Barrow, Jimmy Carl Black, Ed Mann, Walt & Bruce Fowler and many more!
• Cool interview/performance video here with Chad Wackerman.
• After ten years as General Music Director of the Hamburg State Opera and the Hamburg Philharmonic State Orchestra, Kent Nagano is now moving to Madrid, where he has been appointed Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España.
• After Chad Wackerman played along to a drumless Mars Volta song, now Terry Bozzio plays along to a drumless Walking in L A.!
• Messrs Hepworth and Ellen have a word in the ear of Moon Zappa here. Regarding Moon's comment on the "Congress Shall Make No Law..." album, I feel sure that Gail was only joking when she said she now owned the copyright for The Ten Commandments! MZ's memoir is out in paperback this month.
• Joe Travers talks Cheaper Than Cheep (first in a series) here.
• The Idiot has created playlists to accompany the two recent volumes of his Frank Zappa FUQ, featuring songs mentioned or alluded to in the paperback books: Vol. 1 and Vol. 2. Read. Play. Sleep. Repeat.
• The latest in Dweezil's Down 'n Dirty video series features special guest Andy Wood:

Added week-ending 27 April 2025:

• New book, Everybody’s Head is Open to Sound: Writings on Tom Wilson edited by Anaïs Ngbanzo, is available now.
• Here's the formal announcement you've all been waiting for. Cheaper Than Cheep will indeed be released on 9 May. Here's the official trailer.
• Roy Thomas Baker, who engineered The Mothers' sessions at London's Trident Studios in June 1970, recently passed away. He was better known for his work with Queen, however! RIP.
• The original Alice Cooper group has belatedly recorded a follow-up album to 1973's Muscle Of Love. Bonus tracks on The Revenge Of Alice Cooper (due out on 25 July) are reworkings of Titanic Overture and Return Of The Spiders from the band's first two Straight Records albums. Here's a playlist of some of the more recent collaborations between Alice and his old bandmates.
• Mike Keneally has just been added as a special guest of the NDR Big Band when they meet Ensemble Modern in Hamburg this Friday.
• I'm guessing this is an AI generated piece of poop (lacking as it does any real substance): a forthcoming Zappa documentary on Netflix? Proceed with care.
• Wonder what's the countdown for at the Zappa Store? The Zappa cruise or Dunt's book, perhaps? (Er, no: it's the Cheaper Than Cheep 1974 special, obvs.)
• Three years ago we lost Cynthia Plaster Caster. Here's a random FUQ in her memory.

Added week-ending 20 April 2025:

• This clickbait article about Kiss's Gene Simmons calling FZ a failure has casued quite a stir. For those who may not remember, Frank did not sit down and write a song with Simmons, as the article correctly clarifies; you can read about what this alludes to here.
• After the current leg of his Roxpostrophy tour, Dweezil says there will be "no more shows for at least a year" - aside from his June performance with the Metropole Orkest in Eindhoven, obviously.
• Eddie Jobson will come out of retirement to play Cruise To the Edge next March. His band will consist of Marc Bonilla, Mike Keneally and Marco Minnemann.
• Billy Corgan interviews Dale Bozzio here.
• The new Ed Palermo Big Band album, Prog vs. Fusion: A War of the Ages, is now available to pre-order. Looks like a doozy, with Zappa references throughout and a special guest appearance by Mike Keneally. Officially out on Friday (18 April).
• Here's a cool semi-live cover of City Of Tiny Lites by Sheik Yerbouti, featuring Robert Martin.
• Late April Fool's from Joe Travers on Zappacord: "Universal pulled Cheaper Than Cheep because of the leak, all people are getting fired, and they are going after Andrew Greenaway." The real reason for the delay is of course that they want to announce details of the Zappa Cruise first 🙂 
• Scott Thunes has commended Chato on the cover of Number 2 on YouTube, while Chato has said "My band Zapped will also play an arrangement of this song at Zappanale."
• 50 years ago this week, FZ was in court in London. I made a video to mark the occasion:

Added week-ending 13 April 2025:

• Chato and co's cover of FZ's rare composition, #2, premièred on YouTube today (13 April) here.
• Nice article on Pierre Boulez and FZ here.
• Ben Watson talks Hot Rats with Andy Edwards here.
• The Zappa team wants to put together an official Frank Zappa Fan Book, comprising "your words, your photos, your ticket stubs, your crumbling merch, your tattoos, your sacred relics..." This is very reminiscent of something Ahmet tasked me with back in 2018. He mentioned such a book as possibly being included in a 'Beat The Boots' type set from Snapper Records here in the UK. I handed him a draft outline of fan items that I had compiled (see my plea here), with the working title Project Objects: A Zappa Fanthology. It obviously didn't hit the spot so here's hoping they get what they want this time around. Read all about it here.
• Chad Wackerman will not now be on next month's Furious Bongos tour with Robert Martin (he's off playing with James Taylor instead). His replacement will be sometime Banned From Utopia drummer, Joel Taylor.
• Suddenly available: Frank Zappa FUQ Vol. 2!
• The Cheaper Than Cheep footage was captured by five cameras and the multi-track audio has been spiffed-up the same guys who did the recent Waka/Wazoo, ONS and Apostrophe surround mixes (Auger and Gobel). Can. Not. Wait!
• Want to help revive a piece of Zappa gear? The Trident 80B recording console from Frank's UMRK has a new home in British Columbia. Check this out.
  
• Subscribers to the official Zappa channel on YouTube now have a Community where they can chat all things FZ. You can find it exclusively on yer smart phone under the 'Posts' tab.
• Miss Pamela Des Barres is coming back to the UK on 2 May. Join her for an intimate evening in West Hampstead.

Added week-ending 6 April 2025:

• Guitar-whizz Chato Segerer has brought together some fine contemporary musicians - Tyler Bartram (bass), Christian Bjerring (guitar), Filip Fjellström (drums) - to perform the rare and unrecorded FZ composition, #2. It will premiere on YouTube next Sunday (13 April).
• The Furious Bongos featuring Chad Wackerman have a new live album available on Bandcamp. La Petite Tour-ette was recorded on the band's first short tour of Canada in September last year.
• The Ed Palermo Big Band has a new album out of 18 April, titled Prog Vs Fusion: A War Of The Ages. Here's the first 'single' from it, a cover of Yes' Long Distance Runaround (featuring a snippet of FZ). Expect more Zappa alongside music by ELP, Miles, Crimson and more.
• The latest addition to Dweezil's Video Vault series features the recording of female backing vocals for his Via Zammata' album. Viddy here.
• The Paul Green Rock Academy feat. Robert Martin, Ray White & Scott Thunes 'We Love Zappa 2' US tour dates now in the Diary.
• On 25 April, One Shot Deal are celebrating the opening night of Phish’s 3-night Hollywood Bowl residency with an after show gig down the street at the Venue of Hollywood. Tix here.
• More Banned From Utopia dates - in France, Germany, Poland, Czech Republic, Sweden, Netherlands and Finland - in the Diary.

Added week-ending 30 March 2025:

• For those obsessing over an official announcement about Cheaper Than Cheep, it's finally here...sort of. Yes, some actual news in the Zappa Newsletter, by way of confirming that the album is coming. Plus Universal in Spain now has the album available for pre-order here. The only major change from the info we already had in January (see ⬇️) is the slightly earlier release date (9 May).
• The Treacherous Cretins feat. Robert Martin gig in London on 18 April will now take place at 229 Venue 2, rather than The Dome. See you there!
• Shut up and grab yer guitar! Jam along with Dweezil's band here.

Added week-ending 23 March 2025:

• No Dweezil news this week, so I've created a Spotify playlist of some of his guest appearances made with other artists over the years.
• This week's Lovers Of Invention Hootananny vid is Inca Roads.
• Recent interview with Marque 'Marqueson' Coy, Frank's engineer from 1981.
• Zappa.com: "Something is brewing in the Zappaverse. Don't ask questions. Don't expect answers. Just be ready & sign up for the newsletter to stay tuned."
• Part two of last week's Moon interview premières on Sunday here. More Seeff footage to look forward to. Meantime, here is MZ trotting out the same old to Drew Barrymore.
• Watch the Sabbagh Rockin' Teenage Combo in Venice CA 3-16-25 (before the Zappa Freak Out Hot Spots Map presentation, produced by Gerry Fialka) featuring Kahlil Sabbagh & his 16 year old son Kylan Sabbagh on guitar.
• 'Dunt' Sloatman's unauthorized biography, Frankly Zappa, now has a co-writer: Carl Kocis. Sadly, no news on a publication date though.
• A lengthier clip than hitherto seen of the Mothers rehearsing in the Summer of 73 has just surfaced. Check it out here.
• Health update on Robert Martin courtesy of Dr Dot.
• I am shocked and saddened to learn of the passing of Billy James, aka ANT-BEE, due to pancreatic cancer. Billy worked briefly as a copyist for Frank in the early 1980s and wrote Necessity Is... The Early Years Of Frank Zappa And The Mothers Of Invention. We became friendly in the early noughties, when he helped hook me up with Napoleon Murphy Brock and Bob & Thana Harris, and we have remained in touch ever since mainly through the work he did for his Glass Onyon PR company. As a musician, he was principally a percussionist (check out Bill's Private Parts on Steve Vai's Flex-Able) and released a number of albums as ANT-BEE featuring guest appearances by former Mothers - and even made a guest appearance on my 21 Burnt Weeny Sandwiches album. So sad that he's gone way to soon - the guy was younger than me, FFS. RIP Billy.
• The planned European tour by ProgJect (featuring Mike Keneally and bassist Pete Griffin), that was (re-)scheduled to take place later this year, has now been completely scrubbed.
• After going to London's Southbank to hear some FZ last week, I was inspired to make this new Zappa's London video - another to follow in April:

Added week-ending 16 March 2025:

• Buns up! This week's Lovers Of Invention Hootananny vid is Dinah-Moe Humm. 
• Sadly the accounts for zappateers.com show a fourth consecutive year of losses. Unless things change dramatically, 2025 will be the last year for the Zappateers. If you can donate to help out, please click here.
• Watch Chad Wackerman come up with his own drum track for The Mars Volta's Inertiatic ESP here.
• There will not be a "Zappa spielt für Bach" concert in Hamburg prior to Zappanale this year.
• Bruce Bickford's Prometheus’ Garden film was updated last year with a new reimagined score created by 28 artists, who contributed one minute each; these include JG Thirlwell, The Residents, Edley O’Dowd (Psychic TV), Michel Langevin (Voivod), Lee Ranaldo (Sonic Youth) and more. The new version of the film was co-produced by Eric White, who provided the cover art for Trance-Fusion and The Dub Room Special!, and gets its premiere in New York on 22 March at TV Eye in Queens.
• With publication of her memoir in paperback in May, it looks like Moon is gearing up for press blitz, round two. On 16 March, you can see the first of a two-part interview with Antoinette Peragine. This will include footage from Norman Seeff's Zappa family photo shoot that capitalised on the success of Valley Girl (some of which was included in Alex Winter's Zappa documentary). Here's a preview.
• This week's vintage videos from Dweezil's vault have him covering Metallica's Enter Sandman and hunting for an Enema Bandit (the latter uses my photo of Dweezil from 1991 - see original here).

Added week-ending 9 March 2025:

• This week's Lovers Of Invention Hootananny vid is Wet T-Shirt Nite. Hotcha!
• ZERO has another new tune for your ears: Marque-son's Chicken.
• Another live vid of The Furious Bongos with Chad Wackerman, this time performing Inca Roads.
• The latest in Dweezil's video Vault Series sees him performing Ozzy's Crazy Train with Tenacious D.
• Sadly the Z3 can no longer make it to Zappanale in July, which means that the guy who organised the Go Fund Me to get them there is trying to suss out how to get money back to those who contributed. He's hoping they will be happy to part fund replacement acts Dangerous Kitchen and Chato's band Zapped. If you were a contributor, go here for more.
• Another week and another video from Dweezil: this time from a soundcheck in 2012, with some Hendrix-inspired fuzz and feedback.
• New response to a Frequently Unasked Question: "Suzy Creamcheese, what's got into ya?"
• On 22 March, the second 'Freak Me Out, Frank' festival will take place at Sociedade Musical União Paredense near Lisbon in Portugal. As well as home grown bands Diagonal (jazz rock) and Project Z (FZ tribute), Don Preston will also play a solo piano concert. Additionally, the event will see the launch of Edições Fantasma's new Portuguese translation The Real Frank Zappa Book. Tickets here.

Added week-ending 2 March 2025:

• Watch The Lovers Of Invention play Zoot Allures. 
• Here's The Furious Bongos (with special guest Chad Wackerman) performing T'Mershi Duween and Andy.
• Check out track talk with Aynsley Dunbar.
• Dweezil's Down N’ Dirty series continues with a blues-inspired jam: ‘Do You Even Blues, Bro?’
• As some will know, the Idiot has been creating one-off, largely classic rock CD bundles and flogging them cheep from his webstore. The latest ones celebrate Dweezil, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, The Mothers and others. Check 'em all out here.
• Want to learn how our monarch bad-touched Ahmet and naff all about Queen's A Night At The Opera? Go here.
• In the morning of the Dweezil & the Metropole Orchestra concert in Eindhoven on 1 June, Co de Kloet will interview DZ at the Natlab cinema. Following the conversation, the documentary Frank Zappa: Phase II – The Big Note will be screened, with director Frank Scheffer present to introduce the film and provide insight into its creation. The event is already sold out!
• There are no UK dates planned for Banned From Utopia later this year. Mainland Europe dates are in the Diary.
• Guitarist Jay Danley has just released an album called Great Googly Moogly! Music Inspired By Frank Zappa. Check it out on Bandcamp.

Added week-ending 23 February 2025:

• The first two songs from The Lovers Of Invention's Hootananny gig last summer are here: Titties & Beer and The Black Page #2.
• Check out Adrian Zarate's solo rendition of Mr Green Genes here. AZ has other FZ content - check this playlist too.
• Chester Thompson is in a new band with Neal Morse called Cosmic Cathedral. Their debut album, Deep Water, was created largely from jam-sessions, resulting in what Morse calls “prog meets yacht-rock meets The Beatles”. Chester says it's, "One of my favourite projects I’ve ever been a part of!” The album will be released on 25 April, but you can see the band in action here and now.
• The second in Dweezil's video Vault Series features Billy and Ethel....and Ray White! Ray White! Ray White!
• As well as their own website, Treacherous Cretins also have a Bandcamp page where you can purchase recordings they have made with Robert Martin, Ray White, Craig 'Twister' Stewart, Ed Palermo and more.
• Here's a little gift from The Furious Bongos: a live rendition of Inca Roads.
• Celebrate Zappa with Domenic Priore & Dan Konoske as they delve deep into the cultural significance of FZ’s 1966 “Freak Out! Hot Spots!” map on Sunday 16 March at Beyond Baroque, 681 Venice Blvd. Plus live music at 6pm with Sabbagh Rockin' Teenage Combo.
• The Lovers Of Invention will be sharing five new music videos from the best gig you never heard of: Live At Hootanannys August 2024 (actually, I was there). First video out Sunday at 5pm!
• The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band's Still Barking box set includes a DVD featuring the band's 1969 appearance on the Belgian pop music TV programme, Tienerklanken. During the performance, Neil Innes can be heard a couple of times quoting the fuzzy dice bit from Dog Breath. As some of you may recall, Innes once cited The Mothers' We're Only In It For The Money as his favourite album and formed a group dedicated to the comic song called The Idiot Bastard Band.

Added week-ending 16 February 2025:

• And now Dweezil is starting a 'Vault Series' on YouTube, digging through his video archive. In this first episode, we see the first line-up of ZPZ canter through G-Spot Tornado - the song DZ told me "no one in their right mind would attempt to play"!
• Here's a spiffy new version of I'm The Slime by my good friends The Vegetarians.
• Artist Ed Seeman, who paid FZ $2k in 1967 to produce music for a Luden's cough drops television commercial, has sadly passed away at the grand old age of 93. (The sad news was posted on Facebook by his daughter.) Ed also shot around 14 hours of footage of Frank, Gail, Moon and the Mothers in New York, London and Amsterdam, which he sold to Frank: some of this has turned up in a number of fillums, including Uncle Meat (the movie). Ed also provided the cover art for Essra Mohawk's The One And Only album. May he rest in peace.
• Dweezil's Down N' Dirty series continues with a live rendition of The Deathless Horsie from his recent Rox(Postroph)y tour. (Full audio available from his website.)
• More Furious Bongos (feat. Chad Wackerman and Robert Martin) and BEAT (feat. Steve Vai and Adrian Belew) dates in the Diary.
• Save The Date! The next Mosae Zappa takes place 28-30 November 2025 - in Heerlen, where else?

Added week-ending 9 February 2025:

• Dweezil has a live version of Zomby Woof available on in his website, plus you can watch him play the guitar solo from it here.
• Chanan Hanspal talks to Steve Vai about his Zappa bandmates, touring, and transcribing The Frank Zappa Guitar Book - here!
• Ian Underwood made a guest appearance with One Shot Deal this week, performing a piano solo version of The Black Page #2.
• Bill Camarata from the ZappaCast has posted his 1988 interview with FZ here.
• For those who missed out on the annual pre-Zappanale Hamburg church gig, it's now up on YouTube here. It features the wonderful Ensemble Fuse and Napoleon Murphy Brock.
• Read about Scott Thunes' uncommon approach to bass.
• Dweezil is starting a new Down N' Dirty series of videos from his Rox(Postroph)y tour. Firstly, here's an epic 70s solo played on his dad's Roxy SG. There will eventually be a full concert film, plus he's going through FOH mixes so he can add more music to his website ASAP, he says. And here's a rig rundown too.
• Henry Kaiser has put together this memorial for Elliot Ingber, featuring Max Kutner, Mike Keneally, Morgan Ågren and many more.

Added week-ending 2 February 2025:

• I've been titting around writing more stuff for the Frank Zappa FUQ Vol. 2 and I really have to stop. Like the first volume, this paperback book will comprise about 30,000 words over 100 pages, and will be available just as soon as humanly possible. It provides further answers to those Frequently Unasked Questions that only the most rabid Zappa fan gives a crap about. For those who have the FUQ eBook, this new material has already been added for your viewing pleasure (so that's now 60,000 words over 200 hundred pages). I have to focus on another project now, but it's conceivable there will be a third volume somewhere down the line.
• In the latest episode of Rocktails, Ahmet is asked about Frank's orchestral scores and talks about the discovery of new pieces that are being worked on: premieres of these are a long way off though. (Starts around 13 mins and 40 secs in...or go straight here. Later he's asked about the possibility of a live "Z" release, Moon's memoir, Eric Buxton and Flo & Eddie.)
• Amazon in France is showing a 16 May 2025 release date for Cheaper Than Cheep.
• Zappa family mediator Steve Vai seems to dispel the view expressed in Moon's memoir about the lack of time and affection Frank gave his children in this recent exchange.
• Here's Marco Minnemann performing his medley that incorporates The Black Page. 

Added week-ending 26 January 2025:

• NotTimHeidecker on Reddit has compiled this great document detailing The Hires And Fires From The Soul Giants/Mothers Of Invention And Frank Zappa’s Bands.
• New interview with Mark Volman, talking about 200 Motels, Dirty Duck and more here. (My review of Flo's book can be found on this page.)
• That Yellow Snow 50s style vid mentioned below ⤵️ has racked up over 5,000 views in less than a week. I therefore thought I'd demonstrate how easy it is to do such a thing: using free AI software, I created a hip-hop version of Dinah-Moe Humm (why not?) complete with an accompanying video. And here it is. (I should stress that this was a one-off AI experiment.)
• Crack drummer Marco Minnemann has composed a piece around The Black Page #1. Check it out!
• The Idiot talks with Craig Eldon Pinkus, longtime close friend of Frank & Gail Zappa - here.
• Mothers and Magic Band lead & rhythm guitarist Elliot Ingber has sadly passed away - according to his Fraternity Of Man colleague, Lawrence "Stash" Wagner on Facebook - leaving Roy Estrada as the sole surviving member of the Freak Out! Mothers. Here's Elliot talking about working with FZ. And here's a playlist to remember him by.
• Elgar Howarth, who conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra through the score of 200 Motels, had also passed away (on 13 January). A few years ago I asked Tony Palmer, the film's director, how 'Gary' became involved. He told me, "I had used him in something I had done while still at the BBC, and thought he would not be fazed by the shenanigans." Fab fact: Howarth and John Wilbraham both played trumpet on The Beatles' song Magical Mystery Tour. Wilbraham would later object to being asked to speak four-letter words included in 200 Motels, which ultimately led to the cancellation of the planned MOI/RPO Royal Albert Hall concert in 1971.
• Simon Prentis has written a review of The Lovers Of Invention gig we attended in London last week - check it out here.
• Dontcha just love all these clickbaity YouTube vids? Find out if jam bands are all FZ's fault here.
• On 6 March at the Auditorio de Galicia, Santiago de Compostela, Spain, Zappeando will feature music by Ives and Varèse, plus FZ's The Perfect Stranger, Dupree’s Paradise, Dog Breath Variations/Uncle Meat and G-Spot Tornado performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra of Galicia conducted by Peter Rundel.
• I didn't think it would be long before someone used Suno or Udio to generate a Zappa song, 50s stylee - and here it is: Don't Eat The Yellow Snow.

Added week-ending 19 January 2025:

• Very sad to learn that guitarist Mike Miller has passed away. Mike played with the Fowler Brothers, The Grandmothers, the Chad Wackerman Trio, The Outsidemen (with Ralph Humphrey), The Yellowjackets, Banned From Utopia and many more. 
• Robert Martin: "I would to thank everyone who has contributed to the fundraiser Dr. Dot created for me. I'm feeling stronger each day and mending well. Any real touring work is off the table for a while though, until I'm fully healed and back at full strength. I look forward to touring again in a couple of months, starting in April with my UK friends, the wonderful Treacherous Cretins, and extending out to October when Banned From Utopia will do a month long European tour. Stay tuned for further details regarding those and other tours later in 2025. Until I see you again to crank some Frank, every one of you has my abundant gratitude and undying thanks."
• Following on from his sterling work on the AMM All-Stars rendition of Lumpy Gravy, the totally amazing Graham Davis has now made available (for absolutely free) Mint Douche's version of Burnt Weeny Sandwich. Grab it here.
• Watch Chanan Hanspal, Geoff Wills and Andy Edwards discuss whether FZ was a 'proper' composer here.
• The next official release appears to be the DiscReet TV special/Premore shoot from 21 June 1974, titled Cheaper Than Cheep. There will be three versions, including a Super Deluxe edition which will contain the concert on Blu-ray plus two CDs and 3 LPs. Cover image on the right (or down below for those using smart phones). Tracklist:

  1. Intro / Cheepnis - Percussion / “Cheaper Than Cheep”
  2. Cosmik Debris
  3. Band Introductions
  4. RDNZL
  5. Village Of The Sun
  6. Montana
  7. Duke Goes Out
  8. A Visit To The Art Studio
  9. Inca Roads
  10. « Get Down Simmons »
  11. Penguin In Bondage
  12. T’Mershi Duween
  13. The Dog Breath Variations
  14. Uncle Meat
  15. How Could I Be Such A Fool
  16. I’m Not Satisfied
  17. Wowie Zowie
  18. I Don’t Even Care
  19. Let’s Make The Water Turn Black
  20. Dupree’s Paradise Introduction
  21. Dupree’s Paradise
  22. Oh No
  23. Son Of Orange County
  24. More Trouble Every Day
  25. Apostrophe’
  26. Camarillo Brillo
  27. Time Is Money (excerpt) (Bonus)
  28. Echidna’s Arf (Of You) – Incomplete (Bonus)
  29. Art Studio Outtakes (Bonus)
  30. The Amazing Mr. Bickford (excerpt) (Bonus)

• Here's an interesting new take on Moon's memoir. And for those that care, I have added a postscript to my own review here.
• For those with far more patience than I, here's a response to a recent 'FZ sucks' video (which I also didn't watch).
• Regarding the ongoing wildfires in Southern California, it has been confirmed (by Joe Travers on Discord) that all is well with the Zappa Vault. Sadly, occasional Banned From Utopia drummer Joel Taylor has not fared so well: if you're able to help, there's a Go Fund Me campaign for him here.
• Listen to the 'lost' Zappa song performed by Dweezil here.

Added week-ending 12 January 2025:

• Interesting new interview with Dale Bozzio here, covering FZ, Missing Persons and more.
• Here's a new podcast interview with Dweezil in which he talks about What The Hell Was I Thinking, mixing in ATMOS, writing music for TV/film/orchestra, the costs of touring, Punky's Whips, his dad's gear and more.
• Here's an interview with drummer Simon Phillips. 56 mins in he talks about L. Shankar's Touch Me There album, which FZ produced. The musicians he struggles to recall are Dave Marquee (bass) and Phil Palmer (guitar) - the latter of whom I interviewed for a Zappa book project I am currently working on.
• Ever wondered what might have inspired Oh, In The Sky? Check this.
• You may be aware of Amoeba Music's 'What's In My Bag?' series on YouTube wherein celebs are asked what they want to take home from the store. In 2022, Matt Berry (Beef Galore from House Of Fools) scored The Hot Rats Sessions. In its most recent episode, comic actor Bill Hader (one of the cops that befriend McLovin in Superbad) grabs the 50th anniversary edition of Over-nite Sensation, while calling FZ a dick.
• Dweezil has shared a little more of 'the lost Zappa song' on YouTube.
• Congratulations to Chad Wackerman, who got married last weekend!
• As a result of Ike Willis' former manager posting on Facebook that he is ready to get back to work, Ike's daughter has been forced to state, "My dad is in NO WAY recovered, or able to be booked on any show, tour or speaking engagement. Please disregard the information posted. He cannot and will not be booked for anything until his health is determined safe and sound."

Added week-ending 5 January 2025:

• For those with Disney+ in the UK (and elsewhere in Europe), the Summer '82: When Zappa Came To Sicily documentary has recently been added.
• Robert Martin: "Dear Zappa friends and fans. First to say thank you to Dr. Dot for stepping up to help me in this situation I've never navigated before - being in less than perfect health. It sucks! After not so much as a headache or a cold as an adult, I recently ended up in emergency surgery for an intestinal hernia. No worries, they put a fibre mesh patch in me and sewed me back together. Should be good to go for at least another 76 years! Aside from the hole in my belly, it put a bit of a hole in my immediate career path as well, so if you're of a mind to help out, I promise to keep you well supplied with delicious Zappa music for many more years to come. The QR code on the right will take you to an account called MMM/LGNAAA, which is the place you want to be to assist me in that endeavor. Thank you, more than you can imagine! Music Is The Best!" There's also a GoFundMe page if you'd prefer to donate that way.
• Great news: the text for my Frank Zappa FUQ book Vol. 2 is all done and ArtForDinosaurs is happily onboard to illustrate it again. All of the new articles have already been added to the eBook version. The paperback should be ready in a few months.
• The Idiot would like to thank all visitors to this site and wishes y'all a happy 2025. Coming up next year should be some more interesting interviews, at least one new book, and the usual news on upcoming releases and gigs. The Idiot predicts the following for next year: a Zappa/Beefheart album; Ritz 81; an OSFA anniversary box; and a Premore/DiscReet TV special set. Whatever transpires, I'm sure we're in for a good year release wise. Enjoy!
• Zappa alumni play the hits of AC/DC, Cole Porter, Gary Numan, Harry Nilsson, Post Malone, Stevie Wonder, The Kinks and more - here!

Added week-ending 29 December 2024:

• We Be What Am Is - the Zappa Early Renaissance Orchestra's greatest "hits" digital album suddenly available on Bandcamp. 100 minutes of ZERO's best material carefully curated from the band's 7 CDs on Cordelia Records. And as if that wasn't enough, there's a free listening party on 1 January 2025.
• Dweezil has uploaded a new album to his website, called Horny. It features 10 songs performed live with the Norwegian Wind Ensemble. (If you haven't heard their Brass From Utopia album, you really should!)
• Gerry Fialka's nearly ten year old interview with Steve Vai has just been posted on YouTube here.
• Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band's Trout Mask Replica has recently appeared on various streaming platforms, including an instrumental version of Dachau Blues (among other differences). Joe Travers has stated, "This has nothing to do with the Trust, it’s a corrupt illegal upload. Piece of shit."
• Some of you may recall Louise McMonagle's cello version of Republicans. Now here it is with real drums, played by Adrián Zárate.
• In the Zappanale Advent Calendar last week was a Stickmen concert recording from 2014, with a guest appearance by Don Preston. Today (23rd) it's the Grandmothers Of Invention from that same year.
• If you missed the premiere of the Treacherous Cretins feat. Robert Martin at Liverpool's Cavern Club on Saturday, it's available to watch anytime now on YouTube.

Added week-ending 22 December 2024:

• After his amazing rendition of Mo's Vacation (see 👇), here's Filip Fjellström's crack at The Black Page.
• Here's the first part of Dweezil's Making Of A Bad Idea tour diary. The live Q&A that followed it's première had to be aborted due to technical issues, but you can watch what happened here. As you will learn, the prospects for a UK tour are currently very slim.
• Do Dew Zoom Service with Gerry Fialka, Simon Prentis, Lewis Saul, Zach Tabori & Patrick Pagano celebrating FZ's 84th birthday. And talking of Mr Fialka, he's featured on Hans Annellsson's new Q&A album.
  
• There's a new festival taking place in Gelnhausen, Germany next September: Zapparossa. Keep an eye on the website for updates.
• Don't worry about last posting dates for Xmas: the newly updated and massively expanded Frank Zappa FUQ eBook could be in your inbox within minutes. As well as answers to those Frequently Unasked Questions about Frank's family, friends, those he worked with and the significant women in his life, it now includes new articles on Läther, Artis The Spoonman, Roxy By Proxy, Allan Holdsworth and Frank's final days, plus a virtual interview with Ruth Underwood and 15 new random Zappa and related fun facts. Over 50,000 words for the ridiculously low price of £8.50 - no hidden costs. (Price will go up in New Year as I add even more - all of which will be accessible to all who already have the download link and password.) The Idiot is donating £1 for each sale to Prostate Cancer UK. Thanks in advance!
• The @freakout_bookshelf has just posted these lovely words on my Zappa The Hard Way book on Instagram.
• Tyler Bartram breaks down Andy - with help from Simon Prentis - here.
• Dweezil will première the first episode of his new docuseries on what would have been his dad's 84th birthday this Saturday. Here he tells us about it ..as well as his pre-tour panic.
• The Furious Bongos will tour North America in May, with special guests Chad Wackerman and Robert 'Bobby' Martin. Confirmed dates in the Diary - more to follow.
• At 53:14 in the latest Rocktails, Ahmet talks about the omission of Dweezil's guitar solos from The Last US Show album.
• Wolfram Klug and Yassmo' just won best funk album (Speaking To Ray) and best funk song (the album's title track) at the 42nd German Rock & Pop Awards. The album features contributions from Robert Martin and Ray White.
• My good friend Fred Händl has recently posted a couple of videos of solo piano Zappa pieces. Check out his renditions of Son Of Mr. Green Genes and How Could I Be Such a Fool.

Added week-ending 15 December 2024:

• Dweezil has a new song to download/preview on his website here. Man Your Stations is a new experimental rock anthem made on cardboard instruments! The Atmos mix will be on Apple Music with a full video of the performance also coming soon.
• Here's Gerry Fialka's 'Zappa Rant' for December 2024!
• On 27 May 2025, Cassie Kinoshi (of SEED Ensemble, who were to have performed an FZ tribute concert in 2020 until COVID struck - Cassie tells me it still might happen!🤞) will be performing with Ensemble InterContemporain at London's Barbican, celebrating Pierre Boulez’s centenary year.
• A second mention for Zappateer Moggio this week, who has just posted this version of Little House, based on the score that appeared in Downbeat magazine in 1969.
• The Grumpy Veteran examines FZ's concept of 'Fascist Theocracy' here.
• Tickets for the Treacherous Cretins feat. Robert ‘Bobby’ Martin Spring 2025 tour are now on sale! Details can be found on their spiffy new website here. And don't forget to catch the premier of ‘Treacherous Cretins Live At The Cavern’ next week on YouTube.
• The Lovers Of Invention will play PizzaExpress Live in London on 16 January.
• Hope you're still checking the Zappanale Advent Calendar: behind the doors this week were the audio from the Z3 feat. Ed Mann's set in 2015 plus the chance to win senior and camping tix for next year.
• Another date on Banned From Utopia's planned European tour next October has slipped out (see Diary for deets).
• Following the release of The Sea of Emotion, Pt. 1 by Joe Satriani and Steve Vai in April, the pair have announced the formation of a new band together (SATCHVAI) and will release more new music together ahead of a European 'Surfing With The Hydra' tour next year (see Diary for dates).
• Watch the guitar tips Edward Van Halen showed Dweezil here. DZ will be playing Van Halen's Push Comes To Shove on his imminent Rox(Postroph)y tour.
• New ZappaCast with "Hi, I'm" Abby here.
• Following Dweezil and Midget's conversation about the 'lost' Zappa song, Zappateer Moggio has put together his interpretation of it here. And here's the Dweez working up his arrangement...and over here also.
• Suddenly available to stream on Prime Video in the UK: 200 Motels!
• Although there's still no word on when John K. Sloatman III (aka Dunt)'s Frankly Zappa book will be published, the website has been tweaked to emphasise that it will reveal 'what you thought you knew about Frank but didn’t'.

Added week-ending 8 December 2024:

• Hope you're all checking the Zappanale Advent Calendar: behind the doors this week were downloadable audio for complete concerts by The Magic Band, Ed Palermo Big Band (feat. Napi and Candy Zappa) and Jean-Luc Ponty with George Duke. Also, one lucky soul won a ticket for next year's festival.
• Treacherous Cretins has some mighty fine toons on its Bandcamp page - go grab 'em!
• I have just learned that Pamela Zarubica passed away last year following a short battle with a brain tumour. For those who may not know, Pamela lived with FZ in the mid 60s, though she maintained their relationship was platonic. In 1966, just after the release of Freak Out!, she formally introduced Frank to Gail, who he married a year later. Pamela’s voice can be heard on both We’re Only In It For The Money and Uncle Meat, and she was hired to be Suzy Creamcheese for Frank's 1967 European tour. Shortly after that, she married Howard 'H' Parker to enable her to come and live in London, where she sadly died. Her ashes were scattered on the beach in Broadstairs. Here's a video of Pamela reminiscing about The Mothers first UK gig. RIP.
• Freaks in a Mellow Mood, Vol. 2 - Live Acoustic 2003 by Mike Keneally & Bryan Beller is now available here. And here is Mike with Chanan Hanspal in Finland.
• Also on Bandcamp, A Load Of Old Toot!! by the Spanner Big Band (featuring Waka Jawaka).
• Watch Midget Sloatman teach Dweezil a lost FZ song here. I wonder if DZ will now ponder adding music to some of his father's unused lyrics?
• I have just updated and significantly expanded my Frank Zappa FUQ eBook. If you already have access, it's there waiting for you. (If you have misplaced the download link and/or password, just let me know.) The eBook now contains an extra 20,000 words (taking it above 50,000), over an additional 62 pages (making a new total of 173), with guff on Läther, David Bowie, Artis The Spoonman, Roxy By Proxy, Allan Holdsworth, the last days of FZ and more - including lots of new random Zappa & related facts and extra eyebrow-raising girl talk. For those who have the paperback book, all of this new material will be swept up in a Volume 2 sometime in New Year City! Happy Zappadan, you filthy animals.
• All hail, Z.E.R.O.'s 100th recording:  Toccata & Pygmy in D Minor. Watch the video, download the file, enjoy Zappadan!
• Painting The Horse's Nose In The Wrong Place is the new album by Alan Jenkins and The Kettering Vampires. It's a double CD in a six panel cardboard sleeve with 28 songs. It's lyrically hilarious and as bonkers as you might expect from Mr Jenkins. Check it out on Bandcamp - or add a copy to your cart at The Cordelia Record Shop.
• Adrian Belew and Jerry Harrison are bringing their Remain In Light tour to Europe next May/June. Dates in the Diary.
• Another Frequently Unasked Question answered - this time about Allan Holdsworth.
• Banned From Utopia will play next year's Zappa Union (line-up as per Zappanale last year: Chad, Robert, Scott, Ray, Robbie & Jamie, plus special guest guitarist Frode Alnæs). Tickets on sale now.

Added week-ending 1 December 2024:

• Check out the Zappanale Advent Calendar. Behind one of the doors is a chance to win tix for next year's fest.
• Dweezil: "Double Nickels is a mini concert album from the 2024 RoxPostrophy Tour. It features a free version of Inca Roads.The rest of the album is available for purchase a la carte."
• Here Dweezil explores his dad's guitars. He has also been added to a few select North American dates on the 2025 Experience Hendrix Tour next March.
• Here's an interview with Mano Divina, the creative genius behind the Divine Hand Ensemble, who recorded a Theremin-led version of Peaches en Regalia a couple of years back. There's an all-Zappa revue and album in the offing. Check out their version of Cletus Awreetus Awrightus here. And for those of you who may not know, Dave Hartl, the band's accordionist and arranger, produced his own album of all Zappa material on solo piano - check it out here.
• Steve Vai is one of a number of guests on Live At 55 by Chicago & Friends, which comes in a plethora of formats (CD, Blu-Ray, et al). He can be seen and heard playing on Poem 58 and South California Purples, as well as 25 or 6 to 4 among all the other friends.
• Check out Chato Segerer's new band Zapped performing Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance ("wiith a twisted version of the theme as intro") here.

Added week-ending 24 November 2024:

• The Zappa Early Rennaissance Orchestra (aka ZERO) is going to celebrate Zappadan this year by giving a new arrangement away as a free download. This will be the band's 100th track! Stay tuned for deets.
• In the latest Rocktails, Ahmet says he has been talking to Miss Pamela about the re-release of the GTOs' album.
• Former Robert Plant drummer Andy Edwards pontificates about Burnt Weeny Sandwich here. [Warning: contains no mention of the UK Post Office Horizon IT scandal.]
• Scheila Gonzalez will be joining "Weird Al" Yankovic's band for his North American tour next year (from 13 June to 21 September), which I guess means no Dweezil shows happening during that period.
• As well as Scott Thunes, Ray White and Robert Martin, it looks like another alum will be at Zappanale next year. The new festival poster (see either to the right or down below, depending on how you view this page) adds Don Preston. It also shows Z3, despite the Go Fund Me campaign to get them there still having to reach it's target. All in all, a very decent line-up. See you there?
• Dweezil will be performing at the BRIDGE Guitar Festival Eindhoven on Sunday 1 June 2025. He will combine iconic works by his father with his own compositions, including a special version of The Adventures of Dindoo with The Metropole Orkest.

Added week-ending 17 November 2024:

• Saddened to learn that Emile de Jonge (aka Emile Chill) has passed away following a sudden stroke. Aside from playing guitar for ZAPPATiKA he had just completed the AI generated Zappa Galaxy movie. His band mates hope to be able to make it available in due course. May he rest in peace.
• New album by The Vegetarians reviewed here.
• Dweezil and his drummers Ryan and Zach present the Anatomy Of A Solo. 
• The Spanner Big Band's new studio album, A Load Of Old Toot!!, will feature a rendition of FZ's Waka Jawaka. Official release date is 27 November, after which it should be available via Bandcamp. If not, then send an email to spannerhq@gmail.com. Here's the band's live version of Son Of Mr. Green Genes from a few years back to give you a taste.
• Here's an article about Dweezil's daughter, Zola Frank Zappa.
• Wowie Zowie! This site has now had over 150k visitors since March of last year. That's pretty amazing. Now, if each of those individual browsers had bought just one of my Zappa books, I'd be laughing!

Added week-ending 10 November 2024:

• AIIEEE! I have copies of my Frank Zappa FUQ paperback book back in stock, for those interested in the minutiae of Zappa's universe.
• SOCK! And now, Gerry Fialka interviews Bruce Fowler!
• BIFF! More on Napoleon Murphy Brock's 'almost complete' memoir: "I am writing a book about Frank and I, and what we did together, with the other brilliant musical minds of the entire line-up on the Roxy ensemble. I lay out a precise detailed analysis of what we did, and what we were doing. How and why."
• KABLAMMO! Watch Dweezil's new band spontaneously combust in Atlanta, Georgia.
• ZONX! Later this month, Libros del Kultrum will publish Zappa - Obra Lirica Completa: the Frank Zappa songbook, featuring the complete lyrical works in a bilingual edition ("it didn't even exist in English - it took 30 years to wait..."). Edited/translated by Manuel de la Fuente.
• WHACK! After the addition of two new audio treats on Dweezil's website last week, he now says, "I'm doing video editing for the next month before rehearsals start for the January 2025 run of dates. I have a lot of performances from the 2024 Rox-Postrophy tour and previous tours that I will be processing for viewing. I'm also prepping a lot of music to add to the Silver Subscription. Since there has been a lull in additions to the Silver Plan, you can expect a good handful of FREEBIES to close out the year. Also, there will be more..."

Added week-ending 3 November 2024:

• Aristocrat Bryan Beller writes about Arthur Barrow's Zappa audition and more here.
• Diva returns as Ahmet's special guest on Rocktails...to read Tarot cards.
• Full details of the next two legs of Dweezil's North American Rox(postroph)y tour now in the Diary - here's a promo vid: they will apparently be playing 'a lost Zappa song'. Sadly, DZ sez they "don't have any European tour plans yet." Here's an interview Dweezil just did with Lyndsey Parker (who you will recall also interviewed Moon recently; this time she drinks from a Zappa mug rather than an unfeasibly large goblet, though). In the interview, DZ infers there may be changes in the future as regards Zappa releases and his potential involvement; he also says he has no intention of reading Moon's new book. And finally in this week's Dweez news: he has made available live recordings of Heavy Duty Judy and Punky's Whips from the Rox(postroph)y gig in Philadelphia in September.
• Watch Tyler Bartram rattle off a bit of Drowning Witch for Halloween. Scott Thunes commented (on Reddit): "When Frank and Artie overdubbed my impossible-to-get-correct live 16ths, they slowed down the tape for him and they recorded the notes as written. Sped up (back to normal speed) those notes became artificially transposed."
• Peter at United Mutations has written some kind words on my Frank Zappa FUQ book here. I currently have no copies of the paperback left (more on order!), but the eBook is unlimited and perpetually updated!
• John Robins talks about his Zappa obsession on BBC Radio 4 here. 
• Check out The Furious Bongos feat. Chad Wackerman powering through The Black Page and Sofa a few weeks back in Quebec - here.
• Treacherous Cretins feat. Robert Martin UK and Ireland April 2025 tour dates are now in the Diary. The band will also be playing Zappanale in 2025. And to celebrate what would have been FZ's 84th birthday, they will be premiering their 2024 concert with Robert  at the Cavern Club on YouTube on 21 December. Get notified
• BEAT (Belew-Vai-Levin-Carey) tour is coming to your house, if you want it. There will be a global livestream of the band's concert from The United Theater on Broadway in LA on Sunday 10 November. This is a one time only event that will be available for 7 days from the time of the show. Grab your ticket here.
• Another Zappa band for Zappanale next year: the eleven piece Cheap Thrills. Saw them at Mosae Zappa last year and they are most excellent!
• Went to see Moon Unit in conversation with Miki Berenyi at Rough Trade East this week. Their discussion naturally covered similar ground to recent interviews (is genius worth the collateral damage, Earth To Moon written like solving a cold case, social experiment, etc). Moon did though make a point of saying she only had three siblings, even though she couldn't imagine FZ ever stopping to slip on a condom, and also that she hoped Frank's fans wouldn't stop liking his music when they read that he wasn't a great dad.

Added week-ending 27 October 2024:

• Dweezil talks about his Hollywood career, guitars and more here.
• Two more non-Zappa bands for Zappanale next year: Det Skandaløse Orkester and Tō Yō. And but also, Ciardelli-Drago-Strano have just been added. Yay, some FZ! Their Shake Your Duty album is fab - link on the right hand side (or down below if in mobile portrait view mode).
• New album, Reunion Live, by G3 (Joe Satriani, Steve Vai and Eric Johnson) will be released on 31 January 2025.
• Apostrophe 50 ZappaCast here. And here's a new 'official visualizer' video for Don't Eat The Yellow Snow.
• Watch the Mint Douche All-Stars performing Burnt Weeny Sandwich live here.

Added week-ending 20 October 2024:

• Finally a couple of bands that will play some Zappa at Zappanale next year: firstly The BREED (who will also play the music of Pekka Pohjola); and secondly, Paul Green's Rock Academy featuring Robert Martin, Scott Thunes and Ray White.
• Two fans talk about Apostrophe here.
• I have previously mentioned Bradley Morgan's upcoming book, Frank Zappa's America. This will be published by the Louisiana State University Press next Spring. It explores the political messaging of Zappa's music, tracing the means by which he created passionate art that challenges conservativism in its many forms. Over on the right hand side of this page, you will find the book's spiffy cover art.
• Check out Dweezil's touring guitar rig here. (P.S. Tour resumes next January.)
• Current ZappaCast host Bill Camarata has dusted off a 50 year old school project and now presents for your delectation a Cosmik Debris slide-show - here.
• Here's Moon watching an all-girl group cover Valley Girl.
• Now you can playalongascott: check out this Strictly Genteel bass transcription by Pedro Marques.
• Ahmet's cousin, Stanley Jason Zappa, is the special guest on the latest Rocktails podcast, with some interesting stories about Bob and Frank's early years.
• The London Philharmonic Orchestra will takes us on a journey through time and space, with innovative works by FZ, Bohuslav Martinů and Dinuk Wijeratne, next March. Details here.
• After last week's announcement that the Ozric Tentacles would be returning to play Zappanale next year (after a 23 year break!), the festival team has announced four more acts for 2025: Monika Roscher Bigband, Yuval Ron, The Dorf and Silas & Saski. So no Zappa bands yet, but great to have these artists confirmed before Xmas.
• The Idiot has a number of non-FZ CDs for sale - mostly old Mojo magazine cover mount discs, bundled together with a relevant doo-dad, and all going cheap. Check 'em out here.

Added week-ending 13 October 2024:

• The Zappas 'n Travers (and also some others) are pulling one off about a review of Hot Rats that marks it's 55th anniversary. The deep dive video can be found here, there's a 10-minute read transcript here, or there's a 60 second short here.
• Check out Gerry Fialka's brand new 'innerview' with Napoleon Murphy Brock here.
• UMe's October 'From The Vaults' giveaway is unsurprisingly Halloween themed. Check it out/enter here.
• Multi-instrumentalist Zach Tabori, of Dweezil's latest band, has a new live album and concert film out now via all streaming platforms. For Old TImes Sake includes original songs plus covers of classics like Queen's Keep Yourself Alive and the Allman Brothers' Whipping Post. Tabori's band features Bobby Victor, also of the new 'ZPZ'!
• First band confirmed for Zappanale #34 next year: the Ozric Tentacles! First time they've played since my first Zappanale in 2002; somewhere I have a pic of Mike Keneally gyrating to them in the audience.
• Z3 fan Georg Nilius has started a GoFundMe campaign to get the US Zappa cover band to Zappanale next year. He's hoping to raise €7500 for flights and accommodation by 30 November 2024.
• Another UK book tour date for Moon in the Diary.

Added week-ending 6 October 2024:

• Dweezil loves his knob. See him fiddle with it while playing Jimi's Freedom.
• Here Chanan Hanspal analyses The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary. Chanan incidentally was The Mike Keneally Report's special guest at their gig in Finland on 4 October.
• Another Apostrophe 50 interview with box set producers Ahmet and Joe by SDE here. And part two of their 'official' chat here.
• Health update from Ike Willis' daughter on Facebook: "Thank you very much for your continued care, support and positive vibes for my dad. He's near us now and stable, but still on a long road to recovery. We're praying and doing all we can for him and my mother. He's got to do his part now."

Added week-ending 29 September 2024:

• Arthur Barrow: "I am releasing a new composition! It is different from many of my other pieces. It's called A Lovely Time and has a nostalgic, calm, soothing mood to it. It is now on Bandcamp and will soon be available on YouTube, Spotify and the rest. (You can hear it on Bandcamp without having to buy it, BTW.) Hope you like it!"
• Apostrophe is back on the Billboard chart!
• A few years ago, I shared a link to an interesting article about a unique visit made by FZ and the Mothers to Westminster College, Salt Lake City in March 1974. Rick Wood, the author of said article, has recently updated it so I again urge you to check it out. It's here.
• Check out Filip Fjellström's ace live rendition of Mo's Vacation here.
• At the end of this video (of Dweezil's craziest guitar moment ever), we're told the Rox(postroph)y tour will continue in January 2025. Yippee!
• For those of you who have ordered a copy of my Frank Zappa FUQ eBook (previously titled Zappa FUQs), please be aware that since 13 May 2022 there has been a dedicated download link and password that will get you the latest version when used. I am planning to significantly expand the book at the start of 2025, so if you have a link that no longer works or have lost the details provided, let me know and I'll sort it out.
• At the weekend, the good folk of Zappacord got to quiz the ZappaCast team about Apostrophe 50. Keep an eye out for an official 'deep dish' podcast soon.

Added week-ending 22 September 2024:

• Following Jean-Luc Ponty's announcement that he is now retired from touring, he's now flogging some of his violins - including the red Barcus Berry one he played during his tenure with FZ and the Mothers. Full details of the auction can be found here.
• On 12 December, a 'new' special edition of Alex Winter's Zappa documentary will be released in Germany in dual Blu-ray/DVD format. This will include art cards, director/editor commentary and deleted scenes, as per the UK edition from 2021. The only difference seems to be the inclusion of a booklet.
• Next April, the NDR Big Band will meet the Ensemble Modern at a three-day festival in the Rolf Liebermann Studio in Hamburg. NDR will open the festival with Colin Towns' arrangaments of Zappa's music (Hot Licks (And Funny Smells)), while Zappa's "last band", EM, will complete the evening with works that have influenced FZ (by Xenakis, Webern, Varèse and Stockhausen). More details here.
• Dweezil tells Rick Beato what he learned from Eddie Van Halen...and his dad...here. Dweezil will again join the Experience Hendrix tour, starting in October. Full tour dates here, but DZ is not playing them all.
• Don Van Vliet has just been inducted into the Antelope Valley High School Hall of Fame, Class of 2024. He was nominated in the Visual and Performing Arts category. FZ was posthumously inducted in 2015 for his contributions in Music.
• After Roxy By Proxy (2014), Roxy—The Soundtrack (2015), The Roxy Performances (2018) and indeed Zappa/Erie (2022), don't expect a Roxy & Elsewhere anniversary box this year. So what will be the next release? 🙂
• Don Preston's solo piano tour dates are now finalised and in the Diary. Here's a press release.
• Domenic Priore & Dan Konoske will delve into the cultural significance of the "Freak Out! Hot Spots!" map at the Philosophical Research Society in LA on 8 December. Details here.
• Barfko-Swill is back! Yes, old stock is being made available again for those who missed out the first time around. Go here.
• The October Revolution in Jazz 60th Anniversary (ORJ 60) is a five-day interdisciplinary event celebrating the transformative power of free improvisation and collectivity taking place in California in October. Its music director is FZ's nephew Stanley J. Zappa, who will host 40+ improvisors in open rehearsals and performances. See the full programme here.
• Ahmet talks Apostrophe 50 here (to Joe Travers). And over here also (on Rocktails, although there's far more fuck, kill or marry related chat).

Added week-ending 15 September 2024:

• Frank Zappa's America by Bradley Morgan, a book that focusses on Frank's battle against the Religious Right and his prediction of their takeover of the US political system, should be published by LSU Press next Spring.
• Moon Unit will be in conversation and signing books in London, The Hague and Antwerp...and probably elsewhere. See Diary for known details so far.
• Time for a new FUQ - one about David Bowie!
• To celebrate the 50th anniversary of Roxy & Elsewhere this week, I created a Spotify playlist comprising all of the unedited and 'underdubbed' basic tracks - here!
• Apparently sales of Frank's father's book, Chances: And How To Take Them, just went through the roof. Jump on the bandwagon here!
• Following my own book, Frank Talk: The Inside Stories of Zappa's Other People, which featured over 40 interviews with those who knew and worked with FZ (and of course Tony Trombo's Talking Zappa tome), brace yo'seffs for Frankly Speaking: Zappa Tales and Other Stories from the Maestro's Musicians by Basssam Habal. It is a collection of full interviews with the following Zappa alumni: Ray White, Sal Marquez, Lisa Popeil, Bruce Fowler, Jim Pons, Malcolm McNabb, Tom 'Bones' Malone, David Logeman, Robert Martin and the late Ralph Humphrey. Grab a copy here.
• Here's a video chat with Ahmet, Joe Travers and the bloke with the hands (from Classic Album Review), about the 50th anniversary edition of Apostrophe. And here's my Alternative Apostrophe playlist.
• Here's the page missing from the first print run of the UK edition of Moon's memoir:

Added week-ending 8 September 2024:

• Next week marks the 50th anniversary of Roxy & Elsewhere, the release of the 50th anniversary edition of Apostrophe('), the start of the BEAT tour and the end of Dweezil's initial Rox(postroph)y trek - which means I shall be taking my Dweezil FUQ sample page offline. If anyone is interested, the full article is included with 19 Zappa-related others in my Frank Zappa FUQ book: minutes of fun with money from every sale going to good causes. Check them out!
• On the latest episode of Rocktails, Ahmet gives a detailed account of his involvement in the family business, the split, and how ZPZ came to be. Starts 26 minutes in.
• New Don Preston and One Shot Deal dates in the Diary.
• Here Chanan Hanspal talks Zappa with Infrasteff.
• Available next year from Rufus Publications, Wire & Wood: The Guitars Of Steve Vai, a high-end photo book featuring over 100 of Steve’s most famous guitars captured in exquisite detail by Michael Mesker. Details here. And there's a promo vid too.
• Banned From Utopia (with Mike Miller back in for Seahag) will play six Halloween shows at the Baked Potato. See Diary for more.
• If you love Adrian Belew, Steve Vai and King Crimson as such as me, then you'll be as excited as I am about the BEAT tour that starts next week. Here is an interview with Adrian, which includes a few references to his time with FZ, and another with Steve about learning Fripp's parts.
• Bunch of Mike Keneally Euro dates new to the Diary (both in 2024 & 2025).
• Maximum Booking is putting together the next Banned From Utopia European tour - all being well, it will take place in October 2025.
• Good to see former Dweezil band member Adam Minkoff make a guest appearance with the 'new' band at Red Bank, NJ at the weekend. And talking of former members, ex-singer Cian Coey is now in a relationship with long-time bassist Kurt Morgan ❤️

Added week-ending 1 September 2024:

• Check out Gerry Fialka's 'Frank Zappa Rant' here.
• Ahmet's special guest on Rocktails this week is his little sister Diva.
• Tickets now on sale for a bunch of upcoming Pygmy Twylyte gigs here.
• ProgJect (featuring Mike Keneally and Pete Griffin) has had to postpone its tour of Europe in September, including one date in the UK at the 1865.
• UMe is hosting another ATMOS listening party, this time for Apostrophe 50, on 11 September. If you're 18 or older and live within 350 miles of Los Angeles, you could be there!
• Listen to The Mothers (minus FZ and the Underwoods) perform a live jam in Finland on 22 August 1973 (just before the Road Tapes, Venue #2 concerts) - here.
• Looks like Dweezil has offended someone. (FWIW I'm not convinced the red cap and 'don't tread on me' shirt signify Dweezil's support for Trump: if you remember, his cover of I'm Afraid Of Americans substituted 'Donny' for Johnny in the lyrics.)

Added week-ending 25 August 2024:

• Jean-Luc Ponty: "I am now 81 years old and I decided to stop touring and do a rare concert once in a while, work on album remastering/reissues (those which I own and control), doing master classes and perhaps a few more recording collaborations. These rare concerts, remasters/reissues, master classes and recordings will be announced when confirmed, first on my website."
• Mike Keneally will release a live album with Bryan Beller called Freaks In A Mellow Mood, Volume One on Bandcamp on 6 September. It consists of recordings from November 2003, when the pair were "rampaging from music store to music store, playing and singing and talking acoustically on behalf of Taylor Guitars."
• A third Apostrophe 50 teaser track: Penguin In Bondage (live in Colorado Springs).
• Phish's Trey Anastasio talks about how FZ blew his mind here.
• Moon has been back on Rocktails with Ahmet, talking about her new book. (At the time, AZ was only part-way through reading it.) Check it out here. Interesting choice of song to end with!
• The Miserable Husos' set from this year's Zappanale is now available to buy and download from Bandcamp. For those who might not know, the Husos add their own lyrics to FZ's songs - sometimes in German, sometimes Hessian, and oftentimes giving the songs a whole new meaning. Great fun, even if you don't speak German or Hessian.
• Dr Dot has made a video about how she met FZ and how he 'crowned' her.
• Moon has written this bespoke piece for Newsweek, of which she is "so proud".
• The official Zappa YouTube channel has posted a behind the scenes Father O'Blivion short. Hopefully this is a tease for a bigger chunk of unseen footage from the Bolic sessions to coincide with the Apostrophe box. In the meanwhile, I'll take this peek inside the new Vault.
• Lyndsey Parker (who completed Miss Mercy's autobiography after she passed) interviews Moon. This chat reveals where the original title of Moon's book (I Hope You Die...) came from and why the book was dedicated to FZ and not GZ. For those getting the audio version, it seems there's going to be a short delay in it's release.
• Whisky a Go Go 1968 ZappaCast here.
• Tony Levin is about to hit the road with Messrs Belew and Vai in BEAT, and his imminent solo album - Bringing It Down To The Bass - will feature Vinnie Colaiuta and L. Shankar, among many other luminaries.

Added week-ending 18 August 2024:

• Thanks to all those who have already bought a copy of my latest book, Frank Zappa FUQ. I had a 100 cheesy little home-made paperbacks printed - primarily to sell to friends at Zappanale - but still have a few left. And I am now working on a second volume!
• The Zappa Fun Night - with London Zappa Collective, MindFooD and The AMM All Stars feat. Mint Douche - at Springfield Acton Bowls Club has been moved to 19 October.
• Here's the live Washington Post chat with Moon. Shedloads of written pieces have appeared in daily newspapers about Moon's memoir, with The Guardian and the LA Times both publishing two different ones each. Tubular.
• There will a Zappa Night at Festspielhaus Baden-Baden on 7 June 2025, featuring Members of the SWR Symphony Orchestra conducted by Jonathan Stockhammer. Deets here.
• Not only will Ray White be playing with the Stinkfoot Orchestra at the Lodge Room Highland Park on 23 August, but they will once again be joined by Bruce Fowler, Arthur Barrow and Lisa Popeil.
• Frank Sidebottom's Little Box Of Bobbins - Frank's Fantastic Anthology 1985-1993, a recently released 3CD set, includes covers of Captain Beefheart's Mirror Man/Gimme That Harp Boy and Electricity.
• Sort of an update on the long-promised official Zappa biography by Alan Clayson: its title seems to have been slighty modified to Mother Superior: Frank Zappa In His Time, and it could be in the shops late next Spring. So let's keep everything crossed 🤞
• Don Preston: "When I turn 92 in September, I'm going to tour Europe with a 'Solo Piano Tour'." One date in the Diary already.
• Just an observation, but the news page at zappa.com has yet to mention the 50th anniversary edition of Apostrophe. Yes, there are links to pre-order it, but not the usual press release.
• Here's Moon on Marc Maron's WTF podcast. She enters after 18½ minutes.
• Some interesting comments have appeared on social media surrounding Dweezil's Rox(postroph)y tour. Firstly, Napoleon Murphy Brock said, "Just because you can afford to buy a Maserati, doesn't mean you know how to drive it! Where are the genes?" Oof. Then when asked if he had Scott on bass, Dweezil replied with, "No it is Kurt Morgan a fantastic bassist and human. I would never work with Scott Thunes again." Ouch.
• All this talk of Moon's imminent memoir ⬆️⬇️ makes me wonder if we'll ever see John Klein Sloatman III's unauthorised biography (Frankly Zappa), which promises to include stories about "Moon's constant starlet attitude".

Added week-ending 11 August 2024:

• In the Washington Post article mentioned below, Moon and Diva talk about a 'zine' they put together to confront Gail when she showed signs of becoming a hoarder. Moon has now posted some of its pages on Instagram.
• More Moon in The Sunday Times. This article includes a short excerpt from her book, regarding The GTOs.
• Dweezil posted this clip of his duel with Bon Jovi guitarist Phil X during a live performance of Apostrophe on his current Rox(postroph)y tour.
• In this article in The Washington Post, Dweezil's wife is quoted as saying her husband "isn’t interested in spending any time in the presence of his brother. Ever." It will be interesting to see if Moon's memoir goes any way to reconciling the family - here's hoping. Meantime, the Z kids should think twice before being hoodwinked by jokers like the WP again. (Article paywalled for you? Try here.)
• Arthur Barrow has unleashed a fun new ditty on Bandcamp, called To Live.
• Grauniad review of Moon's memoir here. Mine here. Compare and contrast.