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Audience 9.0 - This is the first of 2 nights at the Auditorium in Chicago (3-3-88). Sting (The Police) does a song with Frank (Murder by Numbers) which makes for an added, rare surprise. -
Early Show - Audience 8.8 - Superb for an audience tape really, the only real flaws are some lack of low end depth and instrument separation but it’s not a deal breaker at all. Late Show - Soundboard 9.7 - So good, I mean it is as if they recorded it for official release. Great mix, great fidelity. -
Early Show Audience 8.8 - Not to be confused with another Chicago ’81, this is from the Uptown Theatre on November 27th, and it’s relatively new to circulation. The sound quality is very good, with especially nice meatiness on drums, and a close, warm guitar tone and presence which makes this one to have in the collection.
Late Show Audience 8.8 - Very similar to the early show, maybe just a touch less defined due to being in a different spot, but at times it’s also just a touch clearer – so this leads me to believe it’s just a matter of where the microphone is at any given time. Must have been a good recorder though, because the sound is good on the low end and the mids, and highs are not excessive but rather kind of toned down in a good way. It’s the kind of recording that you can turn up real loud.
Frank Zappa Chicago 1981
Disc 1 Uptown Theatre Chicago, IL. 11-27-1981 Early show 1. -Treacherous Cretins 2. -Cosmik Debris 3. -You Are What You Is 4. -Mudd Club 5. -The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing 6. -A Pound For A Brown 7. -The Dangerous Kitchen 8. -The Blue Light 9. -Sinister Footwear 10. -Stevie's Spanking 11. -Cocaine Decisions Disc 2 12. -Nig Biz 13. -Tinsel Town Rebellion 14. -Alien Orifice 15. -Teenage Prostitute 16. -Flakes 17. -Broken Hearts Are For Assholes 18. -Yo' Mama 19. -Joe's Garage 20. -Why Does It Hurt When I Pee? 21. -The Closer You Are 22. -City Of Tiny Lights Disc 3 Uptown Theatre Chicago, IL. 11-27-1981 Late show 1. -Zoot Allures 2. -Montana 3. -Easy Meat 4. -Fine Girl 5. -Teenage Wind 6. -Harder Than Your Husband 7. -Bamboozled By Love 8. -King Kong (q: Rite Of Spring) 9. -Sharleena (q: Little Drummer Boy) Disc 4 10. -Drowning Witch 11. -What's New In Baltimore? 12. -Moggio 13. -Dumb All Over 14. -Goblin Girl 15. -The Black Page (q: Fernando) 16. -Strictly Genteel
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CD 1 - Chicago 1973 - Audience 8.2 (10-31-73) ~ Halloween CD 2 - NYC 1973 - Audience 8.6 (11-4-73) -
CD 1 - Audience 8.7 - A good and vibrant sound with maybe a touch of tape noise, but not enough of it to ruin the experience at all. CD 2 - Audience 9.1 - A much crisper and clearer tape than the first set, Both are highly enjoyable, the second set is really well done! -
Audience 8.8 - Someone did their homework on how to capture a great sound on their recording device. Guitar especially, very defined and crisp. Drums are somewhat behind the action but everything is still clearly heard. Good job! -
Audience 8.4 - A weird sound mix on this show, the kick drum is up front, and then vocals, with an indistinct full band behind it all. A recording that lacks a lot of mid range kick, so an EQ boost in that range would help a lot. That all being said, it seems taper did eventually move to a better spot because it gets clearer as it goes, and Frank’s guitar does shine at many intervals as well. Note: Also features a pre show interview with Frank on WGRQ 97 Rock. -
Soundboard 9.3 -
Audience 8.7 - It’s not necessarily a keeper but it is still a very good sounding tape that has maybe a touch more “atmosphere” than your used to. I could hear everything fine, although it isn’t the best in terms of instrument separation – it’s part and parcel sometimes when listening to audience recordings. I still can recommend this one, because it’s good enough that you won’t abandon it and it will sit nicely in your collection. Frank Zappa Vorst Nationaal Brussel, Belgium 1984 Sep 07 Disc 1 01 Audience 02 Chunga's Revenge - introduction 03 More Trouble Every Day 04 Penguin In Bondage 05 Hot Plate Heaven At The Green Hotel 06 I'm The Slime 07 City Of Tiny Lights 08 You Are What You Is 09 Mudd Club 10 The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing 11 Advance Romance 12 He's So Gay 13 Bobby Brown Disc 2 14 Keep It Greasey 15 Honey Don't You Want A Man Like Me 16 Ride My Face To Chicago 17 Let's Move To Cleveland (Kreegah Bondola) 18 Camarillo Brillo 19 Muffin Man 20 Cosmik Debris 21 Filthy Habits 22 Whipping Post Frank Zappa - guitar, vocals Allan Zavod - keyboards, Robert Martin - keyboards, tenor saxophone, vocals Scott Thunes - bass, vocals Ike Willis - guitar, vocals Chad Wackerman - drums Ray White - guitar, vocals -
Audience 8.6 -
Audience 9.3 - Expertly recorded with a keen awareness of level, position, and direction. One of the best of the European Tour! Frank Zappa 1988-04-24 Bremen, Germany Stadthalle Disc 1 01. The Black Page 06:53 02. band introductions 01:27 03. Advance Romance 06:26 04. Any Kind Of Pain 05:59 05. Find Her Finer 02:50 06. Who Needs The Peace Corps? 03:17 07. Stick Together 01:58 08. My Guitar Wants To Kill Your Mama 03:32 09. Willie The Pimp 01:52 10. Montana 04:01 11. City Of Tiny Lites 08:40 ^ Disc 2 12. Pound For A Brown 05:40 13. The Dessicated Number 09:09 14. Cosmik Debris 04:32 15. Cruising For Burgers 08:13 16. Keep It Greasey 04:08 17. Sofa 03:17 18. Bolero 06:09 19. Crew Slut 06:05 20. Joe's Garage 04:08 21. Why Does It Hurt When I Pee? 02:52 22. Peaches En Regalia 02:54 23. Stairway To Heaven 08:48 ________ 01:52:50 -
Audience 8.5 - Slightly more echoey than the early show but otherwise about the same. (Late Show) -
Audience 8.6 (Early Show) -
Early show - Audience 8.3 / Late Show - Audience 8.5 -
Audience 8.8 - I like these kinds of audience recordings where the taper is kind of close to the speakers yet the sound does not distort. It makes for a very realistic and intense sound, closer to what it would have been like in person, rather than the soundboard feed which is not representative of the sound that came out of the PA system. Also, I like the Jean-Luc Ponty period, the jazzy workouts were sometimes incredibly intense and not necessarily traditionally jazzy, but progressively jazzy. This is one such gig. Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention Palasport Bologna, Italy 1973 08 30 Line-up: FZ, George Duke, Jean-Luc Ponty, Ian Underwood, Bruce Fowler, Tom Fowler, Ruth Underwood, Ralph Humphrey Set list: 01 opening 02 Dupree's Paradise 03 band intros 04 Cosmik Debris 05 preamble 06 Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbecue 07 Kung Fu 08 Penguin In Bondage 09 Dog Meat 10 RDNZL 11 Farther Oblivion 12 encore preamble 13 Brown Shoes Don't Make It -
Audience 8.9 - Great atmosphere and really what I would call an "in-the-pocket" live mix. Frank really shines as the band introduce new songs to an audience they hope responds well because these versions are played with some serious intention. Frank's solos are spot on, he's not missing notes or going way off on meaningless tangents and that makes for some spellbinding moments. A very worthwhile listen...a keeper!
Frank Zappa Broome County Arena Binghamton, NY. 1-May 1974 Disc 1 01 Band Intros 02 Cosmik Debris 03 Pygmy Twylyte 04 Idiot Bastard Son 05 Cheepnis 06 Penguin In Bondage 07 RDNZL 08 Montana 09 Dupree's Paradise Disc 2 10 It Can't Happen Here 11 Hungry Freaks Daddy 12 You're Probably Wondering Why I'm Here 13 How Could I Be Such A Fool? 14 I Ain't Got No Heart 15 I'm Not Satisfied 16 Wowie Zowie 17 Let's Make The Water Turn Black 18 Harry You're A Beast 19 Orange County Lumber Truck 20 Oh No 21 Son Of Orange County 22 More Trouble Every Day 23 Camarillo Brillo
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Audience 8.7 - Clear, and a good mix with Frank at the front – performance here is stellar! -
Audience 8.9 -
Audience 8.8 -
Soundboard 9.4 -
Audience 9.0 -
Audience 9.0 - A wonderfully present, atmospheric tape! I can listen to this all day, it’s a great time for the quirky and symphonic escapades they were launching into with Grand Wazoo. Brilliant! Frank Zappa & The Grand Wazoo Orchestra Deutschlandhalle Berlin (West), Germany 9/15/1972 Disc 1 01 intros [3:38] 02 New Brown Clouds [7:48] 03 Big Swifty [16:38] 04 Approximate [14:57] 05 For Calvin And His Next Two Hitch-hikers [8:03] 06 Think It Over (The Grand Wazoo) [21:19] Disc 2 07 Greggary Peccary Preamble [1:25] 08 The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary Part I [2:59] 09 The Adventures Of Greggery Peccary Part II-III [5:48] 10 Dog Meat [5:33] 11 Improvisations preamble [0:44] 12 Improvisations [1:25] 13 Improvisations [17:37] 14 Blues For A Minute [4:36] 15 Penis Dimension [3:26] 16 Variant Processional March (incl. Regyptian Strut) [3:14] 17 ovations [4:20] 18 tune-up [1:49] 19 Chunga's Revenge [6:04] Total time 131.34 min -
Soundboard 9.2 (late show) -
Soundboard 9.5 -
Soundboard 9.2 - There are a couple of cuts throughout but this is pretty darn good, and of course it’s with Steve Vai so there’s plenty of shred. Frank Zappa 1981.11.15 Baltimore, Md The Performers: Frank Zappa - vocals, guitar Steve Vai - guitar, vocals Ray White - guitar, vocals Chad Wackerman - drums Ed Mann - percussion Scott Thunes - bass, vocals Tommy Mars - keyboards Disc 1 (early show)- -Yo Mama
- -Joe's Garage
- -Bobby Brown
- -Love of My Life
- -Zoot Allures
- -You Are What You Is
- -Mudd Club
- -The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing
- -Dumb All Over
- -Dumb All Over (cont'd) - Heavenly Bank Account
- -Suicide Chump
- -Jumbo Go Away
- -Envelopes
- -Ship Arriving Too Late To Save A Drowning Witch - What's New In Baltimore
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Audience 9.6 - Hallelujah! This is just sublime, you get not only a band that sounds completely in lock step with each other (and I mean where even the improvs sound fluid and effortless), but also Frank being on top of his game. His tone, his attack, his feedback, his sound on the tape it’s just a really exceptional capture and performance to elevate this tape to MUST HAVE status. The 88 tour had its share of sleepers, but this is not one of those, by all standards this has to be considered one of the best nights. Frank Zappa 1988-05-08 Wien, Austria Stadthalle Set 1: 01. tuning 00:50 * 02. The Black Page 06:56 03. band introductions 01:15 04. Ain't Got No Heart 01:58 05. Packard Goose medley 07:21 06. Any Kind Of Pain 05:26 07. Cosmik Debris 04:36 08. Inca Roads 08:34 09. Advance Romance 06:39 10. Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbecue 08:44 11. Bamboozled By Love 05:39 12. Bolero 05:44 ________ 01:03:42 Set 2: 01. Eat That Question 02:08 02. Black Napkins 09:09 03. More Trouble Every Day 05:50 04. Penguin In Bondage 04:56 05. Hot Plate Heaven At The Green Hotel 07:37 06. Peaches En Regalia 02:49 07. Stairway To Heaven 09:18 08. Sharleena 08:24 09. Montana 04:05 10. City Of Tiny Lites 08:23 11. Whipping Post 07:32 ________ 01:10:11 ________ 02:13:53 -
Pro Soundboard 9.8 -
Sale!
Frank Zappa "A Collection Of Assorted Concerts 1968-1988" Disc 1 Worcester, UK. Oct 1968 w/ Don Cherry (*). Most likely a mix of two different shows possibly 3-Oct. 1968 and 5-Jun 1969. 1. -Improvisation (including It Can't Happen Here) 2. -Help I'm A Rock - Transylvania Boogie 3. -Improvisation 4. -King Kong 5. -Improvisation 6. -In The Sky 7. -String Quartet (including Oh No - Transylvania Boogie) 8. -Improvisation * 9. -String Quartet (including Transylvania Boogie) Disc 2 November 6, 1970 Fillmore West, San Francisco 01 -Palladin and Hey Boy 02 -Call Any Vegetable 03 -The Sanzini Brothers 04 -Penis Dimension 05 -The Sanzini Brothers 06 -Little House I Used To Live In 07 -Mudshark (with Dr. John references) 08 -Holiday In Berlin 09 -Cruising For Burgers 10 -Easy Meat 11 -Daddy Daddy Daddy 12 -Do You Like My New Car 13 -Happy Together 14 -Who Are The Brain Police Disc 3 Folkets Hus Stockholm, Sweden November 19, 1971 01. -Call Any Vegetable 02. -Any Way The Wind Blows 03. -Magdalena 04. -Dog Breath 05. -Sofa Suite 06. -A Pound For A Brown Disc 4 Kurhalle, Wien, Austria September 11, 1974 Early show 1. -Tush Tush Tush 2. -Tune Up 3. -Stinkfoot 4. -Inca Roads 5. -Approximate 6. -Cosmik Debris 7. -Florentine Pogen 8. -Penguin In Bondage 9. -T'Mershi Duween 10. -Dog Meat 11. -Montana 12. -Tush Tush Tush Disc 5 07. -Sleeping In A Jar 08. -Wonderful Wino 09. -Sharleena 10. -Cruising For Burgers 11. -Mud Shark 12. -Latex Solar Beef 13. -Willie The Pimp 14. -Do You Like My New Car? 15. -Happy Together 16. -I Wanna Hold Your Hand Disc 6 Civic Center Hartford, CT 1977 10 17 1. -City of Tiny Lites 2. -A Pound for a Brown on the Bus 3. -Flakes 4. -Big Leg Emma 5. -Envelopes 6. -Disco Boy 7. -I Promise Not to Come in Your Mouth 8. -Wild Love Disc 7 9. -Titties 'n Beer 10. -The Black Page #2 11. -Jones Crusher 12. -Broken Hearts Are for Assholes 13. -Punky's Whips 14. -Dinah-Moe Humm 15. -Camarillo Brillo 16. -Muffin Man 17. -Bobby Brown 18. -Black Napkins Disc 8 Palace Theater, Los Angeles, CA. July 22, 1984 1. -Intro 2. -Black Page #2 3. -Hot Plate Heaven At The Green Hotel 4. -Dumb All Over 5. -The Evil Prince 6. -Carolina Hardcore Ecstasy 7. -Advance Romance 8. -He's So Gay 9. -Bobby Brown 10. -Keep It Greasey 11. -Honey Don't You Want A Man Like Me? 12. -Carol You Fool Disc 9 13. -Dangerous Kitchen 14. -Chana In The Bushwop 15. -Let's Move To Cleveland 16. -Don't Be A Lawyer 17. -Stick It Out 18. -Truck Driver Divorce 19. -In France 20. -Chunga's Revenge 21. -Improvisation - Chunga's Revenge (Reprise) Disc 10 Orpheum Theater, Boston, MA February 19, 1988 1. -Sound Check - Frank Speaks 2. -The Black Page 3. -Who Needs The Peace Corps 4. -I Left My Heart In San Francisco 5. -Dickie's Such An Asshole 6. -When The Lie's So Big 7. -Planet Of The Baritone Women 8. -Any Kind Of Pain 9. -Jesus Thinks You're A Jerk 10. -Sofa 11. -City Of Tiny Lites 12. -A Pound For A Brown On The Bus Disc 11 13. -The Orange County Lumber Truck Medley 14. -Oh No 15. -Lumpy Gravy 16. -Bacon Fat 17. -Stolen Moments (q: The Black Page) 18. -Trouble Every Day 19. -Penguin In Bondage 20. -Advance Romance 21. -Stairway To Heaven 22. -Strictly Genteel -
Audience 8.8 - An onstage reel to reel recording as were many others that were done similarly on this tour. A good, strong and present recording capturing all the action clearly. Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention 23-May 1969 Lawrence University Chapel Appleton, WI The Mothers Of Invention, November 1968 - May 1969 FZ, Lowell George, Roy Estrada, Jimmy Carl Black, Art Tripp, Ian Underwood, Don Preston, Bunk Gardner, Motorhead Sherwood, Buzz Gardner. 01 Intro & tune-up 1:45 02 Some Ballet Music 7:43 03 Uncle Meat (incl. Drum Duet) 7:13 04 Eye Of Agamotto 8:12 05 My Guitar preamble 0:50 06 My Guitar Wants To Kill Your Mama 3:41 07 Clap & Vomit (incl. Prelude to the Afternoon of a Sexually Aroused Gas Mask, Meditation, audience participation) 6:36 08 Kung Fu #1 (aka The Jelly) 2:23 09 Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbecue (q: Teddy Bears' Picnic, Tea For Two, It Had To Be You, Octandre) 7:41 10 Hungry Freaks, Daddy 3:49 11 'The Duke' preamble 0:58 12 Little House I Used To Live In 5:30 13 Aybe Sea 1:00 14 Transylvania Boogie 2:17 15 Help I'm A Rock (incl. Transylvania Boogie) 4:56 16 King Kong 14:30 17 Igor's Boogie / Little Doo-Wop 2:40 Total time 81.52 min -
Audience 8.7 - Very direct sound, as if taper had great seats, but there’s some background hiss that is not too bad, and the sound is not exactly “full bodied” but it’s pretty darn clear. A good one, and 1977 was not a tour where there is an overwhelming amount of recordings for some reason. -
Audience 8.1 - Do not be dismayed by this sound rating, in fact this has been re-mastered and is vastly superior to all other versions out there. The lineage of this recording was the cause of some confusion for decades – it was believed to have been from Rotterdam but is in fact Amsterdam. Why this show has been overlooked by collectors is beyond me, it’s a marathon concert and should be in the collection. Maybe it was the marginal sound quality of previous versions? Oh well, now we have this. -
Soundboard? I think it could be because there’s no audience noise here. It’s an OK board if it is, but quality is hovering around 8.6 so it is well worth getting.