Author: Tom Casetta

Show 008: The Key to Science is Prog Rock – Playlist and Archived Stream

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This Monday’s Show (July 30th) found the program dusting off recordings that fall into the category of Prog Rock. Lots of windswept guitar histrionics, gushing keyboards, lyrics full of mystical allusions and song and album titles bearing no relation to the music and almost as long as the music itself! Streaming live From 2pm 4pm EST.

Follow the Listen Up! Blog and/or “like” the show on Facebook . Both serve as an addendum and a means to interact with the program.

Playlist (Artist -Title- Album – Year of song)

Opening Theme

Man or Astroman – Maximum Radiation Level – Experiment Zero – 1996

Background Music

Suspiria: The Complete Original Motion Picture Soundtrack performed by Goblin

Gong – You Never Blow Yr Trip Forever – You – 1974

Caravan – Water Wine – In The Land of Grey and Pink – 1971

Genesis – Firth of Fifth – Selling England By The Pound – 1973

Chris Squire – Hold Out Your Hand – Fish Out Of Water – 1975

Khan – Space Shanty – Space Shanty – 1972

Renaissance – Mother Russia – Turn Of The Cards – 1974

King Crimson – Cirkus – Lizard – 1970

Van Der Graaf Generator – Killer – H To He Who Am The Only One – 1970

Matching Mole – O’ Caroline – Matching Mole – 1972

Gentle Giant – Experience – In A Glass House – 1973

Nektar – Desolation Valley/Waves – A Tab In The Ocean -1972

Premiata Forneria Marconi – E’ Festa – Storia di un Minuto -1972

Le Orme – Una Delecezza Nuovo – Uomo Di Pezza – 1972

Camel – Another Night – Moonmadness – 1976

Click on the Mixcloud button to hear the archived stream.

Show 007: Insert Subconscious Title Of Choice Here – Playlist and Archived Stream

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This Monday’s show (July 23rd) is an intoxicating blend of music filled with tributes to those in the music world who have recently departed (Jon Lord, Kitty Wells, Lol Coxhill, Bob Babbitt), some swell now and new sounds, lost gems of yesterday and whatever other tunes accumulate in the hallways of the Listen Up! labyrinth.

Follow the Listen Up! Blog and/or “like” the show on Facebook . Both serve as an addendum and a means to interact with the program.

Playlist (Artist -Title- Album – Year of song) 

Opening Theme

Man or Astroman  –  Maximum Radiation Level  – Experiment Zero – 1996

Background Music

The Space Negros Do Generic Ethnic Muzak Versions of All Your Favorite Punk/Psychedelic Songs From the Sixties

Santa Barbara Machine Head – Rubber Monkey – Blues Anytime Vol  3. – 1968

Deep Purple – Lazy – Machine Head – 1971

The Temptations  – Ball of Confusion – Greatest Hits Vol 2. – 1970

Kitty Wells – It Wasn’t God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels – Kitty Wells Golden Favorites – 1952

Kevin Ayers – May I? – Shooting At The Moon – 1970

The Damned –  Creep  (You Can’t Fool Me) – Music For Pleasure – 1977

Pink Floyd – Candy and a Currant Bun – Arnold Layne/Candy and a Currant Bun – 1967

The Flaming Lips – I’m Working at NASA on Acid (featuring Lightning Bolt) – The Flaming Lips and Heady Fwends – 2012

The Impossible Years – Attraction Gear – Battle of the Garages, Vol. II: America’s Psychedelic Underground – 1984

Father John Misty – Hollywood Forever Cemetery – Fear Fun – 2012

King Tuff – Unusual World – King Tuff – 2012

Comet Gain – The Ecstatic Library – Howl Of The Lonely Crowd – 2011

Dan Kibler – Never Good News – Dan Kibler – 2012

David Neil (Steve Kilbey & Ricky Maymi) – Looking For Myself – The Wilderness Years – 2011

Teenage Fanclub – Planets – Songs from Northern Britain – 1997

The Byrds – Triad – The Notorious Byrd Brothers (Reissue Bonus Track) – 1968

Big Star – Kangaroo – Third/Sister Lovers – 1974

Terry Adams – A Girl Who Loves The Stooges – rhythm spell – 2007

The Kinks – Animal Farm – The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society – 1968

Bob Dylan – I’ll Keep It With Mine – Biograph – 1965

John Cale – Andalucia – Paris 1919 – 1973

Sixto Rodriguez – Crucify Your Mind – Cold Fact – 1970

Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians – My Wife and My Dead Wife – Gotta Let This Hen Out! – 1985

Abby Travis – Rosetta – IV – 2012

Blondie  – Shayla – Eat To The Beat – 1979

Lou Reed – Perfect Day – Transformer – 1972

Cleaners From Venus – Illy Kuryakin Looked At Me – Living With Victoria Grey -1986

Click on the Mixcloud button to hear the archived stream.

Show 006: If You Can’t Beatle Them, Join Them – Playlist and Archived Stream

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This week’s show (July 16th), is “If You Can’t Beatle them, Join Them” as we crisscross geography and time and play songs that sound a lot like The Beatles…but they aren’t. It isn’t Meet The Beatles, it is Repeat The Beatles.

Follow the Listen Up! Blog and/or “like” the show on Facebook . Both serve as an addendum and a means to interact with the program.

Playlist (Artist -Title- Album – Year of song) (Geographic Origin)

Opening Theme

Man or Astroman  –  Maximum Radiation Level  – Experiment Zero – 1996

Background Music

Yellow Submarine film instrumental music

The Bee Gees – In My Own Time – Bee Gee’s 1st – 1967 (Australia)

Ronnie Burns – Coalman – Sixties Down Under – 1967 (Australia)

Bjorn & Benni, Agnetha &  Anni-Frid (ABBA)  –  Santa Rosa – He Is Your Brother/Santa Rosa  – 1972 (Sweden)

Czerwone Gitary – Nie Zadzieraj Nosa – To Walsnie My – 1966 (Poland)

Los Shakers – Rompan Todo – Los Shakers – 1966 (Uruguay)

Utopia – I Just Want To Touch You – Deface The Music – 1980 (New York, USA)

The Kaisers – No Other Guy – Shake Me – 2002 (Scotland)

Peter Berry & The Shake Set – Alright – For Goodness Shake – 2007 (Norway)

Guess Who – Till We Kissed – Shakin’ All Over – 1965 (Canada)

The Sneetches – Love Comes My Way – 1985-1991 – 1989 (California, USA)

The Raspberries – Nobody Knows – Fresh – 1972 (Ohio, USA)

The Spongetones – Now Your Gone – Torn Apart – 1984 (North Carolina, USA)

The Db’s – From a Window To A Screen – Repercussions – 1982 (North Carolina, USA)

NRBQ – A Better Word For Love – Message For The Mess Age – 1994 (New York, USA)

Badfinger – Know One Knows – Wish You Were Here – 1974 (Wales)

Squire – No Time Tomorrow – The Singles Album – 1982  (England)

Chemical Brothers – Let Forever Be – Surrender – 2003 (England)

Justin Heathcliff – You Know What I Mean – Love, Peace & Poetry, Asian Psychedelic Music – 1971 (Japan)

Jim Boggia – Peter Pan – Fidelity Is The Enemy – 2001 (Pennsylvania, USA)

World Party – She’s The One – Egyptology – 1997 (England)

Aerovons – World Of You – Aerovons – 1969 (Missouri, USA)

Lazy Smoke – There Was A Time – Corridor of Faces – 1969 (Massachusetts, USA)

Jade – Wait Till I Come Home – Faces Of Jade – 1970 (Ohio, USA)

Ellie Pop – Sometime Ago – Ellie Pop – 1968 (Michigan, USA)

Sleepy Hollow – Sincerely Yours – Sleepy Hollow – 1972 (Pennsylvania, USA)

The Gants – I Wonder – Nuggets – 1967 (Mississippi, USA)

The Knack – That’s What The Little Girls Do – Get The Knack – 1979 (California, USA)

The Flamin’ Groovies – Please Please Girl – Shake Some Action – 1976 (California, USA)

The Poppees – Jealousy – Jealousy/She’s Got It – 1985 (New York, USA)

The Beagles – Sharing Wishes – Meet The Beagles (Cartoonland, USA)

The Dukes of Stratosphere – The Mole From The Ministry – 25 O’Clock – 1985 (England)

The Gurus – Big Sea – Big Sea – 2003 (Spain)

Klaatu – Sub – Rose Subway – 3:47 EST – 1976 (Canada)

The Rutles – I Must Be In Love – The Rutles – 1978 (England)

Click on the Mixcloud button to hear the archived stream.

Show 005: Big Hair and Plastic Grass – Playlist and Archived Stream

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Dan Epstein was the guest on Listen Up!.  Dan is an award-winning journalist and contributing columnist to Rolling Stone. His latest book, Big Hair and Plastic Grass: A Funky Ride Through Baseball and America in the Swinging ’70s, has just been released in paperback. We chatted about his book, his Rolling Stone column “High and Tight” – where Rock & Roll Baseball experts talk about the national pastime and the worlds where baseball and rock music collide and mesh. There was also dose of sludgy 70’s space rock, and other sounds from the 70’s. A couple tunes about baseball were tossed into the show as well.

You can purchase Big Hair and Plastic Grass: Funky Ride Through Baseball and America in the Swinging ’70s via Amazon buy it from an indie bookseller .

Follow the Listen Up! Blog and/or “like” the show on Facebook. Both serve as an addendum and a means to interact with the program.

Playlist (Artist -Title- Album – Year of song)

Man or Astroman  –  Maximum Radiation Level  – Experiment Zero – 1996

Robert Calvert – The Right Stuff – Captain Lockheed and The Starfighters – 1974

UFO – Timothy – UFO 1 – 1970

Blue Öyster Cult – The Red and The Black – Tyranny and Mutation – 1973

Pink Floyd – Fat Old Sun – Atom Heart Mother – 1970

Captain Beyond – Sufficiently Breathless – Sufficiently Breathless – 1973

Be-Bop Deluxe – Sister Seagull – Futurama – 1975

Amon Düül II – Jalouise – Viva La Trance – 1973

The Sensational Alex Harvey Band – The Faith Healer  – Next – 1973

Iggy and the Stooges – Gimme Danger – Raw Power – 1973

Mott The Hoople – Thunderbuck Ram – Mad Shadows – 1970

The Edgar Winter Group – Sundown – Shock Treatment – 1974

Interview with Dan Epstein

Warren Zevon – Bill Lee – Bad Luck Streak In Dancing School –  1980

The Baseball Project – Fair Weather Fans – Volume 2: High and Inside – 2010

The Skeletons – Take Me Out To The Ballgame – In The Flesh – 1988

The Baseball Project – 1976 – Volume 2: High and Inside – 2010

Bob Dylan – Catfish –  The Bootleg Series Volumes 1–3 (Rare & Unreleased) 1961–1991 – 1976

The Nightmares – Baseball Altamont – Baseball Altamont /Hold On and Pray  – 1985

Roy Harper –  When An Old Cricketer Leaves The Crease – HQ – 1975

Thin Lizzy – Cowboy Song – Jailbreak – 1975


Click on the Mixcloud button to hear the archived stream.

Show 004: Revolution Get Down – Playlist and Archived Stream

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The Listen Up! show has been UPHELD as CONSTITUTIONAL and “Revolution Get Down” went down as planned. So start your Independence Day shindigs off right as we descend into the labyrinth of sound with a wild mix of music from and about the USA.

Follow the Listen Up! Blog and/or “like” the show on Facebook. Both serve as an addendum and a means to interact with the program.

Playlist (Artist -Title- Album – Year of song)

Background Music: Dick Schory- The National Emblem March – Music For Bang Baaroom and Harp – 1958

Man or Astroman – Maximum Radiation Level – Experiment Zero – 1996

The Bellrays – Revolution Get Down – Red, White and Black – 2004

Bruce McCulloch – That’s America – Shame Based Man – 1995

The Blasters – American Music – The Blasters – 1981

Chuck Berry – Promise Land – St. Louis To Liverpool – 1965

Carl Perkins – Tennessee – The Complete Sun Singles – 1956

Vincent – Freedom’s Coming – Freedom’s coming/ I’m losing time – 1973

Ween – Freedom of ’76 – Chocolate and Cheese – 1974

Tim Hardin – Simple Song of Freedom – Simple Song of Freedom/Question of Birth – 1969

The Fleshtones – American Beat ’84 – Bachelor Party OST – 1984

Rory Storm and The Hurricanes – America – Liverpool 1963-1968 – 1964

The Count Five – Declaration of Independence – Psychotic Reaction- 1965

The MC5 – American Ruse – Back In The USA – 1970

The Original Sins – Later Than You Think – Party’s Over -1990

The Dictators – New York, New York – Fuck ‘Em If They Can’t Take a Joke – 1981

Marah – Christian Street – Kids In Philly – 2000

Sufjurn Stevens – The Upper Peninsula- Greetings From Michigan, The Great Lake State – 2003

The Byrds – Hickory Wind – Sweetheart of The Rodeo – 1968

Ryan Adams – Oh My Sweet Carolina – Heartbreaker – 2000

Uncle Tupelo – New Madrid – Anodyne – 1993

Lord Buckely -The Gettysburg Address – His Royal Hipness – 1956

The Skeptics – The Ghost of Abraham Lincoln – Snallygaster -1986

The B-52’s – 52 Girls – The B-52’s – 1979

The Beat – U.S.A. – The Beat – 1979

Redd Kross – 1976 – Third Eye – 1990

Gene Marshall – Jimmy Carter Says Yes – Beat of The Trap MSR Madness – 197?

Joey Welz – Rockin’ In America – single – 1985

The Cramps – Route 66 – Flamejob – 1994

Dead Milkmen – Wisconsin – A Date With The Dead Milkmen – 1983

Jonathan Richman – Parties in the U.S.A. – I, Jonathan – 1992

Phil Ochs – Power and the Glory – All The News That’s Fit To Sing – 1964

Randy Newman – Political Science – Sail Away – 1972

Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings – This Land Is Your Land – Naturally – 2005


Click on the Mixcloud button to hear the archived stream.

Pictogram Rock Posters

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Viktor Hertz, a freelance graphic designer from Sweden, ditched the conventional movie poster model to create an incredible series of posters  combining quirky stick figures and perfectly placed ideograms that very literally illustrate everyone’s favorite albums and songs from a number of music acts.  Hertz’ graphic creations are like an endless game of guess-who, as you comb over the 234 individual pictograms trying to decipher which song titles and lyrics are illustrated in the miniature designs.
More can found here.

Who Freaked The Freaks: The Whose Who Are On The Freak Out! List

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So who were those folks and who are they?  Here you go.

AERNI, DAVE:  Singer. Was “The Rotations” (Heavies) together with Paul Buff, and was also the manager of “The Tornadoes” (Bustin’ Surfboards). Released pre-Mothers of Inventions,  Ron Roman recording of Frank Zappa’s “Love Of My Life.” (overdubbed on Zappa’s instrumental tracks. Credited himself and Roman as co-composers.)

ALLBERG, JERRY:  Probably a misspelling of Jerry Ullberg.   Recorded December or January 1958/59 in an empty classroom at Antelope Valley Junior College in Lancaster, California.

ALLEN, LEONARD:  Boyhood friend of Frank Zappa.

AREL, BULENT: Another modern composer. Works include, Electronic Study No. 1, Sacred Service Prelude and Postlude, Fragment/DAVIDOVSKY: Electronic Study No. 2/USSACHEVSKY: Linear Contrasts, Metamorphosis, and Improvisation-4711

ATLER, BOBBY: Unidentified

BAEZ, JOAN: Folk singer

BAKER, DIANE: American film actress, sex symbol. Appears in “Journey to the Center of the Earth.”

BALLARD, MR.: Mr. Ballard was the high school music instructor at Antelope Valley High. He let Zappa conduct the orchestra a couple of times, let him write music on the blackboard, and had the orchestra play it.

BARBER, DICK: Mothers of Invention’s road manager. Appears in 200 Motels as the Gypsy Mutant Vacuum Cleaner.

BECK, JOHN: A member of The Leaves

BEE, MOLLY: Cute & perky hillbilly singer who was a regular on The Jimmy Dean Show on TV in the 1960s. Was a regular on Pinky Lee and Steve Allen TV shows as well.

BELLI, MELVIN: Flamboyant American defense attorney, who defended Jack Ruby in his trial for shooting Lee Harvey Oswald.

BERRY, RICHARD: Wrote the song Louie Louie.

BOKELMANS, THE: Unidentified

BOULEZ, PIERRE: French conductor/composer. Later conducted an FZ album.

BRIGHAM, SYLVIA: Perhaps an early acquaintance as she holds degrees or certificate from Pomona College (1959).  She performed as soprano soloist with the New York Philharmonic, Berlin Philharmonic, Cleveland Orchestra, Domaine Musical of Paris, and Maggio Musicale in Florence, to mention only a few, under the batons of Pierre Boulez.  Hans Werner Henze, Lukas Foss and Francesco Molinari-Pradella, among others. Her recordings range from early music through Puccini up to avant-garde works.

BROSSMAN, DR.:  Sidney W. Brossman was the first Chancellor of the CA Community Colleges . He guided California’s community colleges as they separated from the Department of Education and the K-12 system to form an independent system of higher education

BROWN, CHARLES: Blues singer. Main influence of Ray Charles.

BROWN, CLARENCE GATEMOUTH: R&B singer and guitarist.

BRUCE, LENNY: Comedian/orator. Performed with the Mothers.

BUFF, PAUL: Original owner of Studio Z. Built a multi-track recorder when such a thing was unheard of.

BUNN, TEDDY: American jazz and blues guitarist of the first half 20th Century.

CAROL: Unidentified

CERVERIS, DON: Zappa’s high school English teacher.

CHEKA, MARK

Manager before Herb Cohen.

COHEN, HERB: Frank’s manager. Artists’ rep & manager a/k/a agent. Handled a number of folk acts at the same time as he handled the Mothers of Invention.

COLLINS, ALBERT: Blues guitarist/singer who at the time was best known for his blues instrumentals.

CORDY: Unidentified

CRAFT, ROBERT: As Stravinsky’s confidante, he was able to document the details of his thoughts and experiences so Igor could just compose. Conducted Varese, Stravinsky, and Webern. Recorded all of Stravinsky’s works in the 1990s with the Orchestra of St. Luke’s.

CROSBY, DAVID: American guitarist/singer. Member of The Byrds.

CRUMP, DADDY-O CURTIS: Unidentified

DALI, SALVADOR: Catalan surrealist painter with a big moustache.

DE CAMP, ROSEMARIE: American TV actress who played Mom on “The Adventures of Dobie Gillis” as well as Bob Cummings’ sister on “Love That Bob.” She also made TV commercials.

DE COVA, FRANK: De Kova, misspelled on the Freak Out list. Played in the TV series “The Untouchables.”

DE SANTIS, JOE: American film actor, usually played tough guys. Played in the tv series “The Untouchables.”

DE WEES, RANDY: Unidentified

DI CARL, GEORGE: Unidentified

DIAMOND, SKIP: Musician. He features as a guest vocalist on Canned Heat’s “Hallelujah” (1969) album.

DIXON, WILLIE: Blues producer, bass player, and writer of a great many classic blues songs (Spoonful, Little Red Rooster, Back Door Man, etc. etc.) Worked extensively with Muddy Waters.

DOBBS, FRED C.: The greedy & amoral character played by Humphrey Bogart in “The Treasure of the Sierra Madre” (1948). Also a  little mid 60’s Sunset Strip club (just down from Ben Franks)

DOLPHY, ERIC: American jazz saxophone/clarinet player. Performed with Charlie Mingus.

DON & DEWEY: West coast R&B duo.

DONNA #1: Unidentified

DONNA #2: Unidentified

DYLAN, BOB: American folk singer. AKA Robert Zimmerman.

ECONOMIDES, JIM: Producer for Capitol records, tried on suits in the studio while telling an engineer to put “more bass” on “Surfer Girl” by the Beach Boys while Zappa was there trying to pitch him his Studio Z recordings.

EILER, SHIRLEY: Faculty of Antelope Valley High School.

EPSTEIN, BRIAN: Manager of the Beatles and some other bands.

EVANS, BILL: Jazz pianist, harmonic innovator, composer. Member of one of Miles classic quintets.

EVY: Unidentified

FEIFFER, JULES: Cartoonist/author beloved by 60’s bohemians.

FERLINGHETTI, LAWRENCE:  S.F. Poet, publisher, author, book store owner City Lights Bookstore. Important west coast bohemian. Published Howl and was therefore involved in censorship court battles.

FLOYD: Unidentified

FORSYTHE, CECIL: Forsyth misspelled on Freak Out list. British musicologist. Published a book entitled “Orchestration” in 1914.

FRANKLIN, JOHNNY: Played with Zappa in the Blackouts.

FREEMAN, ERNIE: R&B musician.

FYLLIS:  Producer Tom  Wilson’s secretary, Phyllis Altenhaus.

GARRET, SNUFF: Noted record producer of the 50s-70s.

GENE & EUNICE: American R&B duo of the 1950s. Recorded the original version of “This Is My Story”.

GORCZYCA, LEONARD: Unidentified

GORDON, BRUCE: Played Frank Nitti in the tv series “The Untouchables.”

GREENE, VERNON: Recorded “The Letter” with the Medallions, one of Frank Zappa”s favorite records.

GREENHOUSE, CARL: Unidentified

GUERCIO, JIM: James William Guercio. Briefly was a member of the Mothers of Invention. Made his name circa 1970 as producer of very big-selling records by Blood Sweat & Tears and Chicago Transit Authority.

GUITAR SLIM: American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter.

GUY, BUDDY: Blues guitarist/singer.

HABA, ALOIS: Composer who experimented with microtonal intervals including not only quarter tones but also fifth tones and sixth tones.

HANCOCK, HUNTER: R&B and rock DJ

HARRIS, JEFF: Unidentified

HIGGINS, CHUCK: R&B sax player.

HOWARD, JOHN TASKER: American musicologist, composer, author, first half of 20th Century.

HOWLIN’ WOLF: American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter.

HUGGY BOY: So. Cal. DJ (and later TV host).

HUSTON, JOE: Unidentified

HUXLEY, ANIMAL: LA Freak related to Aldous Huxley. Actually Aldous Huxley’s granddaughter.

HYPNOTIST, THE: Unidentified

IRWIN, LEW: LA radio newsman of the 60’s, original member of The Credibility Gap, which started as a satirical news radio troupe and mutated into a kind of Firesign Theatre-esque comedy group with Harry Shearer, Michael McKean and David Lander (the first two are two members of Spinal Tap, the last two were Lenny and Squiggy).

IVES, CHARLES: Composer from Connecticut who predicted many ideas typical to 20th century music such as serialism, polytonality, et cetera before they were “popular.”

JAMIESON, BOBBY: Bobby Jameson, an LA freak Zappa arranged both sides of his “Gotta Find My Roogalator” 45 in 1966.

JEEPERS: B-movie talk show host

JOHNSON, LYN: Could would be Lyndon B. Johnson Thirty-Sixth US President 1963-1969.

JOYCE: Unidentified

JOYCE, JAMES: Irish author of Ulysses, which was involved in a landmark censorship case.

JULIAN, DON: R&B singer with the Meadowlarks.

KAGEL, MAURICIO: Contemporary classical composer. He has written some scores that are entirely text. He also has a piece whose score is prefaced by 202 symbols, 150 of which are not in standard usage. Used prepared pianos in some of his pieces.

KAYE, JESSE:  Old-time producer or recording engineer for MGM and Verve. Used to do lots of soundtrack albums.

KEENE, BOB: Owner of Donna/Del-Fi Records.

KIRK, ROLAND:  Unbelievable jazz woodwind musician, composer. Famed for playing multiple wind instruments at once.

KIRKMAN, TERRY: A member of The Association (“Along Comes Mary”).

KOHN, KARL: 20th Century composer. Music professor at Pomona College

KRONHAUSEN, EBERHARD: Author. Wrote THE SEXUALLY RESPONSIVE WOMAN. Art critic and filmmaker, most of whose works concern erotic art.

LABOE, ART: Owner Of Original Sound Records

LAL, CHATUR: Indian tabla player – Ravi Shankar’s accompanist until his death in 1965.

LAUREN: Lived with Zappa and participated in the party tape for which Zappa was busted.

LIGHTNIN’ SLIM: Another American bluesman.

LITTLE WALTER: One of the greats of blues harmonica. Played on many Muddy Waters records.

LOEB & LEOPOLD: Mid twentieth century “thrill killers” famed for cooly plotting unmotivated murder. Probably included for shock/dada value. Better known as Leopold & Loeb

LOVE, PRESTON: Sax player with Johnny Otis show.

LUCILLE: Unidentified

MADEO, JUNIOR: Elwood “Junior” Madeo, leader of the Ramblers, in which Zappa played.

MANN, STEVE: Guitarist who played with Zappa prior to the Mothers. Acoustic fingerpicker who was on the L.A. club scene in the mid-60s playing old blues and ballads, but checked out early thanks to an o.d. There is one album of recordings by him.

MARIO:  Doorman at the Whiskey A-Go-Go.

MATTHEWS, LITTLE ARTHUR: Singer with Johnny Otis show.

MIDDLETON, CHARLES: Old-time Hollywood supporting player who, among hundreds of other roles, played “Ming the Merciless” in the “Flash Gordon” serials with Buster Crabbe.

MINGUS, CHARLES: American jazz bassist and composer.

MORTENSON, VIC: Played drums of Zappa studio tunes.

MULLICK, N. C.:  Nodu C. Mullick, Indian tamboura player.

MURNANE, JERRY: Another of the Zappa high school teachers.

MacGUIRE, BARRY:  Sang “Eve of Destruction,” a protest song.

McNEELY, BIG JAY: Blues Saxophonist.

NARCISO, BARB: Early fan.

NONO, LUIGI: Contemporary classical composer. Integral serialist until 1960. Member of post-Webern school. Communist sympathizer. Wrote puzzle canons. Wrote an anti-American piece called A Floresta. Pointillist.

ORNSTEIN, LEO:  20th Century Russian-American pianist & composer who among many other pieces wrote one called, I kid you not, “Impromptu: A Bit of Nostalgia, for piano.”

OTIS, JOHNNY:  Important west coast R&B band leader, record producer and “talent scout”. Was considered totally authentic while being white. Father of Shuggie Otis who played on Hot Rats. Longtime Pacifica radio show host, and model for Frank’s mustache.

PEPPER:  Unidentified

PERISCHETTI, VINCENT: American composer/conductor of music primarily for symphonic band.

PERRINO, JOE:  Of Joe Perrino and the Mellotones, a bar band Zappa played in.

POLLY, JOE: Unidentified

PRESLEY, ELVIS: Singer.

RANK, J. ARTHUR:  Movie theater mogul. Preeminent British film producer & founder of The Rank Organization, film producers & distributors. Attributed with playing his trademark gong on the Bonzos’ “The Intro and the Outro”.

RAVEL, MAURICE: Early 20th century impressionist composer. Wrote Bolero.

REARDON, LANCE:  Unidentified

REED, B. MITCHELL: Famous west coast DJ. Helped innovate the underground FM radio stations in the late sixties.

REINER, BOB: Member of The Leaves.

REYES, NADINE: Friend from Lancaster, CA

RIVUELTAS, SILVESTER: Mexican 20th-century avant-garde composer. Name misspelled on the list. Should be “Revueltas”

RUDIN, HERMAN:“Untouchables” – Also appeared on “Perry Mason” and “Man From U.N.C.L.E”.

RUDOLPH, LILLIAN: Unidentified

RUTHIE: Unidentified

SABICAS: Spanish Flamenco guitar virtuoso.

SABU: Indian actor who performed in the 1940s films of “The Thief of Bagdad” and “The Jungle Book.”

SACCO & VANZETTI: Labor organizers executed for murder, believed as a left wing cause to have been a frame up. Coupling with the above adds to shock/dada value. Italian-immigrant U.S. factory workers, arrested for the murder of a paymaster, identified as “anarchists” and convicted of the murder, and executed in the 1920s.

SCHOENBERG, ARNOLD:  20th century Austrian composer who popularised serialism. Taught at UCLA.

SCHWANEKAMP, SANDY: A classsmate at Antelope Valley School in Lancaster, California

SESSIONS, ROGER HUNTINGTON: American composer & musical educator – said to have been revered by his fellow composers even as most of his music went unheard by the public.

SHANKAR, RAVI: Sitar virtuoso.

SHECKLEY, ROBERT: Science fiction writer and mystery author.

SHERMAN, KAYE: Zappa’s first wife.

SHERWOOD, JIM: Played saxaphone in the Mothers. AKA “Mototrhead.”

SIMMS, FRANKIE LEE: Texan blues singer. Sims is misspelled on Freak Out list.

SLIM HARPO: American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter.

SMITH, CORDWAINER: Cordwainer Smith–Was the pseudonym that Dr. Paul Linebarger used to write science fiction.

SPECTOR, PHIL: American record producer, noted for using a lot of instruments. This technique is called the “wall of sound.”

STEFFE: Unidentified

STEWART, ALICE: Another misspelling. Alice Stuart was a guitarist with blues influences. Was briefly a member of The Mothers of Invention. Alice played good finger-style guitar, but she couldn’t play “Louie Louie”, so they  fired her.

STOCKHAUSEN, KARLHEINZ: Avant-garde 20th century composer. Known for his use of complex rhythms.

STOKER, BRAM: Author of Dracula.

STRAVINSKY, IGOR: Russian composer. Wrote the Rite of Spring.

STULLA, BILL: Host of So. Cal. children’s show, Engineer Bill.

STURGEON, THEODORE: Great SF author and critic. Author of “Sturgeon’s Law”

SULLIVAN, TIM: Unidentified

TANGUY, YVES: French surrealist

TANZINI, PHIL: Co-owner of the Whiskey.

TAYLOR, CECIL: Modern jazz pianist, composer, writer. Inspired a section of “Monster Magnet”.

THORNTON, WILLIE MAE: Blues songstress, wrote “Ball and Chain” . Wrote “Hound Dog.”

TILLAR, JACK: Misspelling of Jack K Tillar a television and film music composer/editor from 1950’s to 1990’s.

TINY TIM: Ukelele virtuoso. “Tiptoe Through the Tulips.”

TOSI, ERNIE: Vice principal of Antelope Valley High School.

TUFTS, SONNY: Character actor or lead or second lead in a lot of bad movies.

UNCLE ED: Unidentified

VALENTINE, ELMER: Owner of the Whisky-a-go-go in LA.

VARESE, EDGARD: Franco-American composer. Developed musique concrete.

VENET, NICK: Record producer at Capitol.

VESTINE, HENRY: Guitarist of Canned Heat, blues record collector/revivalist. Was contracted as a member of the Mothers at one time; don’t know why it didn’t pan out

VLIET, DON: AKA Captain Beefheart.

WATERS, MUDDY: Preeminent Mississippi Delta-to-Chicago bluesman.

WATSON, JOHNNY GUITAR

American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter.

WAYNE, JOHN

AKA The Duke. American actor

WEBERN, ANTON: Austrian composer. Student of Arnold Schoenberg.

WILLIAMSON, SONNY BOY: Great blues harmonica players/singer.

WILSON, TOM: Record Producer. For a few years in the 60’s the “hot guy” with his name on Mothers, Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel etc. records. A&R man, or staff producer, for MGM/Verve. Produced Freak Out and Absolutely Free, executive-produced We’re Only In It For The Money. African-American.

WIMBERLY, TERRY: Played with Zappa in the Blackouts.

WOLFMAN JACK: Preeminent American disc jockey”

WOODS, DONALD: Leader of the Bel-Aires and author of “The Man From Utopia”.

ZAGON, LEE: Unidentified

ZARUBICA, PAMELA: a.k.a. Suzy Creamcheese.

ZEIGER, HAL: Hal Zeiger (one of the first big promoters of rock entertainment during the 50’s)

ZILDJIAN, AVEDIS: Turkish cymbal maker. His company has been in business over 375 years.

Show 003: The Freak Out! List – Playlist

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On June 27, 1966 The Mothers Of Invention’s debut album Freak Out! was released. In the liner notes, Frank Zappa says: “These People Have Contributed Materially in Many Ways to Make Our Music What it is. Please Do Not Hold it Against them.” … followed by a long list of 179 names . These names include teachers, friends & acquaintances, painters, writers, movie stars, TV & radio personalities, producers, road managers, conductors, composers, singers, songwriters, musicians and more. This show , Listen Up! explored the music created by those rock, jazz, folk, blues and classical musicians and composers that are on the list. Needless to say, time did not permit a full investigation, but a fair sampling of music styles that influenced Zappa and The Mothers of Invention as well as selections from the album Freak Out! itself were celebrated.

Playlist (Artist -Title- Album)

Mothers Of Invention – Hungry Freaks, Daddy – Freak Out!

Pierre Boulez – Étude 1 – Les visiteurs de la musique concréte

Edgard Varèse – Dance For Burgess – Complete Works

Lightin’ Slim – I’m Evil – House Rockin’ & Hip Shakin’ (The Best Of Excello Blues)

Eric Dolphy – Gazzelloni – Out To Lunch

Anton Webern –  Six pieces for large orchestra Op. 6 – Six Pieces for Large Orchestra

Mothers Of Invention – Wowie Zowie – Freak Out!

Dan & Dewey – Koko Joe –  Jungle Hop

Vernon Green & The Medallions – The Letter –  Speedin’

Gene & Eunice – Move It Over – Jump Bump Jive

Mauricio Kagel – Ragtime Waltz for Accordion – Onbekend

Frankie Lee Sims –  What Will Lucy Do (Lucy Mae Blues) – The UK Sue Label Story Vol. 2

Mothers of Invention – Any Way The Wind Blows – Freak Out!

Alios Haba – Nonet no. 1 – Centenary Edition

Bobby Jameson –  Gotta Find My Roogalator – Single

Albert Collins – Thaw Out –  The Cool Sound of Albert Collins

Charles Brown – Black Night –  ABC of the Blues

Bill Evans – Oleo –  Everybody Digs Bill Evans

Roland Kirk – No Tonic Press – Rip, Rig And Panic

Silvestre Revueltas – El afilador, for wind septet – Sensemaya

Mothers  Of Invention – Trouble Every Day – Freak Out!

The Leaves – Hey Joe – Nuggets

Molly Bee – You Win Again –  Swinging Country

Little Arthur Matthews – Bad Bad Bulldog – Dapper Cats, Groovy Tunes & Hot Guitars

Slim Harpo – Buzzin’ – The Excello Singles Anthology

Guitar Slim – Story of My Life –  Sufferin’ Mind

Bülent Arel – Postlude From ‘Music For A Sacred Service’ – Princeton Electronic Music Center 1961-1973

Mothers Of Invention – Help I’m A Rock – Freak Out!

Sabicas – Alegrias – Noches con Guitarra Flamenca

Joe Houston –  All Night Long – The Birth of R’n’B Vol.1

Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown – Okie Dokie Stomp – ABC of the Blues

Richard Berry – Louie Louie –  You Heard it Here First

Edgar Varèse – Ionisation – Arcana, Amériques, Ionisation

Mothers of Invention – Motherly Love – Freak Out!

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Due to technical issues, there is no archived stream for this program.

Show 002: Gotta Get A Record Out – Playlist and Archived Stream

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This show crisscrossed the USA during the years of the late 70’s and early 80’s as bands that just “Gotta Get A Record Out” find their new wave nuggets, power pop platters, garage goober gems, snotty singles and appearances on regional compilations resurrected from that dusty box of time.

Click on the Mixcloud button to hear the archived stream.

Playlist (Artist -Title- Album -Year)
Man or Astroman – Maximum Radiation Level – Experiment Zero – 1996

Green – Gotta Get A Record Out – Green – 1986
The Mosquitoes – Darn Well – Garage Sale – 1985
Nikki & The Corvettes – Just What I Need – Nikki & The Corvettes – 1980
Boys From Nowhere – Beg – Beg/You Can Make It – 1984

The Mumps – Crocodile Tears – Crocodile Tears/I Like to Be Clean – 1977
The Marbles – Red Lights – Red Lights/Fire & Smoke – 1976
Nervus Rex – There She Goes – Nervus Rex – 1980
Tina Peel – Fifi Goes Pop – Fifi Goes Pop/ Weekend Geek – 1979

Slickee Boys – Manganese Android Puppies – Hot and Cool – 1976
The Razz – You Can Run (But You Can’t Hide) – Declaration of Independents – 1980
Dark Side – In The Dark – Battle of The Garages – 1981
The Shirkers – Drunk & Disorderly – Drunk & Disorderly/ Suicide – 1979
Bomb Squad Babies – Potential Suicide – Potential Suicide/ Youth Crimes – 1981

The Left – Youngster of The Force – Hell, It’s The World – 1984
The Plugz – Achin’ – Achin’/La Bamba – 1981
The Zeros – Beat Your Heart Out Beat Your Heart Out/ Wild Weekend – 1978
The Nuns – Savage – Savage/Decadent Jew/Suicide Child – 1978

Abuse – No Money – flexi disc – 1980
The Embarrassment – Sex Drive – Sex Drive/Patio Set – 1980
Get Smart! – Numbers and Colours – flexi disc – 1981

The Spongetones – Shock Therapy – Shock Therapy/(My Girl) Mary Anne – 1983
The Shout – I Won’t Be There – I Won’t Be There/Sha-Day-La- Day – 1982
The Toms – Let’s Be Friends Again – The Toms – 1979
The Scruffs – She Said Yea – Wanna Meet The Scruffs – 1979
Shivvers – Teen Line Teen Line/When I Was Younger – 1980
The Trend – She’s Hi Fi – She’s Hi Fi/Lucky Day – 1981

The Vertabrats – Left In The Dark – Battle of The Garages – 1981
The Last – She Don’t Know Why I’m Here – LA Explosion – 1979
Pylon – Crazy – Crazy/M-Train – 1981

The Impossible Years – Baby Baby – Baby Baby/She’s No Fun – 1981
Suburban Wives Club – Guru Eye – Casual Cat/Guru Eye – 1982
Bunnydrums – Boundaries- Holy Moly – 1984

Bloodless Pharoahs – Nowhere Fast – Marty Thau Presents – 1980
The Viceroys – Dance My Life Away – Back In The U.S.A. – 1982
The Revelons – Red Hot Woman – Marty Thau Presents – 1980

The Tweed – I Need That Record – Perfect Fit – 1980

Click on the Mixcloud button to hear the archived stream.

Worth Repeating: Revolution Now!

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In August, 1966, Greg Shaw helped launch the very idea of rock criticism with his mimeographed publication, Mojo-Navigator Rock & Roll News. A few years later, he started up what was to become the extremely influential network of Bomp! : a magazine, a record store, and a record label, all of which helped sow the seeds of punk and new wave. Over the course of the next four decades, Shaw was an instrumental figure in the careers of numerous musicians and writers. On October 19, 2004, he died from heart failure at the age of 55.

REVOLUTION NOW:
A BOMP EDITORIAL!

by Greg Shaw
Those of you who remember the old Bomp Magazine (1970-1979) know that my editorials were one of the staple features. The topic was usually “the State of Rock and Roll.” In the early to mid 1970s, when music had never been so oppressively controlled by corporate powers, and choice so limited, it seemed insane to believe that we, as fans, could ever have a meaningful voice in what we were allowed to hear, or how it was presented. But we had to try, because we loved rock & roll and didn’t want to let those bastards kill it.

Strangely enough, all the things dreamt of in those editorials came to pass, and sooner than anyone expected. Local bands re-emerged. The great raw sounds of the ’50s and ’60s were reissued (either by major labels under fan supervision, or on fan-made compilations), and had a galvanizing influence on a new generation of bands. Punk Rock was born in the spirit of the ’60s garage explosion, blowing open the doors that the industry had held fast against any fresh breath of rebellion. Vast networks of indie labels, fanzines, radio shows, record distributors and more, scarcely imaginable in 1975, were fully in place two or three years later.

Bomp’s editorials didn’t cause these things to happen, of course; rather, they voiced the need for them, encouraged people to believe in and work for change, and pointed out areas in which progress seemed possible. There was intense resistance from the established order to the kinds of changes we wanted, but amazingly enough, a relative handful of people who shared a common vision were able to make a huge difference simply by doing the right thing at the right time.

I stopped writing editorials 20 years ago, and don’t intend to make a practice of it again. My views are my own, and I recognize that I am of no mind to formulate any grand theories of pop or anything else. Yet I can’t help being struck lately by the similarities between 1975 and today.

  • Item: In both cases the record industry had turned its back on new talent and concentrated on a handful of boring superstars they could count on to sell a huge volume of records.
  • Item: In both times, local music either didn’t exist at all, had no focus, or lacked any kind of scene to take root in.
  • Item: Then as now, audiences had been turned into passive consumers of prefab culture, with no interest in creating anything of their own.

All this could be coincidence. Or it could be a clue that the conditions for a revolution are once again ripe.

There is a misconception about revolution, namely that they are supposed to accomplish something lasting. This is simply not true. What a revolution does is replace an existing order with a new one, which left to itself, will soon become as rigid as the one it replaced.

Revolution is a process, and its main payoff is to add value to the lives of those who participate in it, and improve conditions in general for awhile. When it stops moving, it dies.

The point of a music revolution is not to replace today’s pop stars with a new slate; it is to kick out the jams! Riot in the streets! Do it now! etc. It’s all about direct engagement, and the result of all that activity should be a better time for all, a party that will keep everyone coming back to do it some more. And not only that–”parties” are not radical in themselves. The sense of being more fully alive, empowered, having an impact on your world and your culture, these are the chief rewards. This is what rock & roll at its best can provide–leading to the idea that perhaps rock & roll itself should be seen not as a genre, not as a mere noun or even a verb, but also as a process.

Punk rock was a fantastic thing for those who took part in it, but listening to the Sex Pistols today is not a “punk rock” experience: it is an “oldies” experience. Same for the revolutions of the ’50s and ’60s. The “My Generation” of The Who will be on Social Security soon! The only meaningful revolution is the one that is taking place right now, if at all. There is no other time but now that we can live in, existentially speaking, and we either seize or or we don’t. We can use history to see what other revolutions have looked and sounded like, but we can’t truly know what it is until it’s happening all around us, and we have a personal role to play.

It may be folly to believe you can alter the course of the world, which is inevitably becoming more centralized, more controlled by large money interests, and less free–in terms of mass pop culture, at any rate. Out on the fringes, the Internet is enabling more and more variety, which is great, as long as you’re satisfied with a very small cult following and no money. This you are free to have. But the dream of rock & roll, from Elvis to the Beatles to Nirvana, has been the dream of doing something cool and changing the lives of millions with it. This is a dream each new generation of musicians embraces, for better or worse. And no matter how great the odds seem to be against it, I firmly believe it can happen any time people decide they’ve had enough crap.

Now, there are a couple of things necessary for a revolution. One is that the people be unbearably oppressed. Oppressed we surely are, with only three major record companies now controlling all channels of distribution (even indie records are distributed by a branch of EMI) and desiring nothing more than for us to shut up and buy more Britney Spears and Eminem. But “unbearably”? There are so many other obsessions these days; a kid with a new Nokia cell phone doesn’t have a clue he’s missing the joys of being part of a rock & roll scene. The masses will not rise in the name of something they can’t even imagine.

The other ingredient lacking is some charismatic band to carry the revolutionary banner. There’s been no shortage of overnight sensations in music recently, of course. But whatever their success, acts like Oasis, Radiohead, Beck, or (you name it) have not inspired their generation to “seize the means of production” or whatever it is proletariats are supposed to do. Any such band, I suspect, will need to be a whole lot more subversive than anything we’ve seen before. And probably something incapable of being packaged and sold for a profit!

(In many ways, the Grateful Dead met most of these criteria:
underground till the end, they did create a substantial alternative culture around them. Unfortunately it was not a particularly viable one, and not one that many of us would care to join. But it is a valid example of what I’m talking about, I must admit.) Then there are “paint-by numbers” bands, starting possibly with Bomp alumni the Flamin’ Groovies, who think that by retracing the steps of past heroes, they can launch some new Heroic Age. Much as I have enjoyed some of these bands, their premise has clearly been proven wrong. (If we can’t learn from our own history, we may be condemned to endlessly reissue it…)

And yeah, there’s rap… but among other problems, rap comes out of a completely different cultural vein. I’m talking about a tradition called “rock and roll” that has been invented and re-invented continuously since the early ’50s, going always back to its roots and coming up with something new and more powerful. In my opinion, rap is the belated black response to punk, parallel to it in some ways, and like punk, long past its most creative days. Public Enemy and their ilk were subversive, in their way, in their time. But that revolution died when its heroes grabbed the gold chains rather than holding out for real change. Sure, some cool stuff has gone on in the name of rap, not to mention reggae, techno, the rave scene, and so on, empowering individuals in the context of music culture. Movements have arisen, and changed lives in way I can’t but admire. But all this is a far cry from what rock and roll has done in the past, and from what I expect it to do for me, being who I am. So I address myself to what I believe can be done in the name of Rock and Roll.

An artist who will command the world’s imagination and set it on a new musical course is what’s needed to set off a wide-scale revolution. In their wake, a whole wave of superior bands would be able to follow. But such an artist may or may not appear, like it or not.

Revolution, however, does not need to be as massive as all that. It is a process that begins at the grass-roots level, and needn’t necessarily rise above it. Horizontal growth may actually be what’s called for… (I’ve always maintained that if punk rock had happened on labels like Rough Trade instead of EMI and Warner Brothers, it would not have burned out so soon.) The point of revolution, in this sense, is to be a part of it. That’s where the pleasure comes from–the involvement, the participation in creating something. And this is a revolution we can have–if we want it badly enough to make it happen.

The conditions for it are better now than they have been in quite awhile. Healthy local music scenes are emerging all over, with bands whose vision embraces folk and blues, ’60s pop and ’70s punk, all the elements of the tradition they yearn to be a part of, with intelligence and historical savvy. I won’t mention any bands, but there are some great ones out there all of a sudden (Parenthetically: of course there are always plenty of cool local bands; most of them, however, have nothing to do with any of this, not to knock them.

It may sound vague, but I know the kind of band I mean when I see it, and so will you.) I’ve talked with many in the past year or two and the same ideas keep coming up: there’s something happening here, we’re all a part of it, we don’t know what it is, there’s no marketing slogan, no ad campaign, but it’s real and we can feel it. And that’s the way it ought to be. Right now, there’s no excuse for anyone who loves music not to get out and support the good bands, who are either in your town or coming through soon. Don’t wait to read about it in Rolling Stone; put your ear to the ground.