Frank Zappa's music encompasses so many different styles, intents, and career phases that it would be pointless to single out any one album as his best. Nevertheless, Hot Rats would have to be among the albums on the short list of finalists for that distinction. It was the eighth album produced by Zappa and was released in October of 1969. This album features music in the jazz-rock idiom and was Zappa's first without The Mothers. More than a few Zappa fans believe that the jazz-rock idiom was Zappa's most successful style, both as a composer and a performer.

One of the marvels of Hot Rats is that it offers the best of both compositional genius and improvisational genius. There's plenty to like, here, whether you're primarily into great performance art or magnificent musical composition. Moreover, the improvisational elements are so well integrated into the compositional frameworks that it is not always possible to know when a section has been written out in detail by Zappa and when it is being created freely in the moment. The lead performers on this album are Zappa himself (guitar, octave bass, and percussion) and Ian Underwood (piano, organus maximus, flute, clarinets, and saxes), who each appear in all six tracks. Other talented musicians are featured in particular tracks, as indicated below in the track descriptions.

There are six tracks in this album – each one very high quality, which is something of a rarity among Zappa albums, which often include weak tracks mixed in with good ones. The tracks were not only remasterered for the CD release but also remixed. One track was extended by four minutes and some of the tracks sound significantly different when comparing the original vinyl recording with the CD. That poses a problem for longtime fans of Zappa who would generally prefer to hear the piece as they've heard it for years, rather than remixed. Zappa obviously preferred the remixed versions, but his fans sometimes disagree. Here's a list of the six tracks, with the vinyl (LP) and CD (CD) timings compared:

1. Peaches en Regalia – LP: 3:58; CD: 3:37
2. Willie the Pimp – LP: 9:25; CD: 9:16
3. Son of Mr. Green Genes – LP: 8:58; CD: 8:58
4. Little Umbrellas – LP: 3:09; CD: 3:04
5. The Gumbo Variations – LP: 12:56; CD: 16:55
6. It Must Be a Camel – LP: 5:18; CD: 5:15

TRACK ANALYSIS:

Peaches en Regalia is quite simply one of Zappa's premiere compositions. Zappa's son Dweezil included the piece in his 2006 international tour called "Zappa plays Zappa," which I was privileged to attend this fall at the Providence Center for the Performing Arts in Providence, R.I. Dweezil's selection of this piece was a bit of payback, in a sense, given that Zappa had dedicated the original album to Dweezil, Bub, and Gil. This piece has also been played by symphony orchestras, was featured in some of Zappa's live tours, and was later recorded again on the album Fillmore East released in 1971. This magnificent piece is akin to a work by Prokofiev entitled The Love of Three Oranges Suite as well as Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite and Ballet, except that the idiom is jazz rather than classical. There are sprightly little melodic lines that are worked through an incredible series of variations and richly embellished with ornamental flourishes. This piece is an instrumental tour de four that utilizes, at one point or another, drums (provided here by Ron Selico), bass (Shuggy Otis), guitar, octave bass, keyboards, violin, flute, clarinet, and mandolin. Underwood provides some magnificent work for this piece on both the saxophone and the organ.

Willie the Pimp is the only track on this album that includes a vocal line (provided by Captain Beefheart, with his easily recognizable raspy voice), but it is nevertheless primarily an instrumental piece. After a powerful opening riff courtesy of Sugarcane Harris on the electric violin, the vocal part enters early in the piece and lasts about two minutes. The rest of the track's nine minutes consists of instrumental improvisation. The vocal line successfully establishes the "scene" and tone of the piece, which is the life of a sleazy pimp hanging out in some back alley. The bulk of the piece is an extended improvisation by Zappa on the guitar, with some highly distorted wailing sounds as well as greasy, sleazy licks in keeping with the track's theme. This is a very strong track.

The third track, Son of Mr. Green Genes, is a variation on a track that first appeared on Uncle meat, called "Mr. Green Genes." It employs the same basic melodic line as its namesake track, which then serves as a platform for some inspired improvisations. Ian Underwood is featured here on the sax, various other woodwinds, piano, and organ, but the highlight of the piece is a brilliantly creative excursion by Zappa on the guitar. Paul Humphrey provides some strong backing for this piece on the drums. This is a great track if you enjoy a good improvisational jam session.

After all of the dramatic intensity of the preceding tracks, Zappa next winds it down a bit for the fourth track, Little Umbrellas. The primary influence here is still jazz, but Zappy also resorts here to some of the style of classical electronic and atonal music, with which he had previously experimented in Weasels Ripped My Flesh and some other albums. The opening and closing portions of this track have an exotic Persian slave dance kind of sound while the middle section has a bit of an eerie Sci-Fi thing going. Underwood is impressive here on the woodwinds and brass, providing multiple tracks overlaid by Zappa to create a veritable ensemble.

Next is the album's tour de force track, The Gumbo Variations, either twelve or sixteen minutes in length, depending on whether you encounter the LP version or the CD version. The rhythmic backdrop for the piece is provided by Paul Humphrey on the drums and Max Bennett on the bass. This track is primarily an improvisational showcase. Underwood takes the first crack at the theme on his saxophone, which alternately howls, meows, and seemingly speaks in tongues. Sugarcane Harris then takes over on his electric violin. This is great stuff for violin lovers, with lots of distorted, wailing kinds of sound emanating from Harris's instrument. Zappa himself provides the topper with some pure magic on his electric guitar. Finally, Bennett on bass and Humphrey on drums get short opportunities to strut their stuff before the piece comes to a rousing finale. Another great track for fans of improvisation!

The last track, It Must Be a Camel, returns to the idiom of the fourth track, featuring free-floating atonal instrumentation that many listeners will associate with Sci-Fi films. This is great stuff but will appeal less than other tracks to those coming to Zappa mainly through either rock or jazz. Underwood and Zappa each provide some subtle, low-key contributions. Jean Luc Ponty contributes nicely to this track on the violin.

I had forgotten how much I liked this album but was newly reminded of its merits by listening to it twice through in preparation for this review. Although released way back in 1969, it's as fresh and modern today as anything you're likely to hear that's newly composed or performed. This is timeless music, some of which, at least, audiences will still be enjoying a century or more from now. If you're into jazz-rock fusion music, you won't do any better than Hot Rats.

****************************************************************************************************

You can quickly link to my other Zappa CD reviews at:

A Frank Zappa Categorical Discography & Top Choice Lists

You can check out my reviews of Zappa-related books at:

The Real Frank Zappa Book
Ben Watson: Frank Zappa – the Complete Guide to his Music
Barry Miles: Zappa – A Biography

Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Listening