KUR reader Mark H. writes in:
Just a little suggestion a friend of mine made about GZ and the ZFT… he says we should cease refering to her as GZ or Gail Zappa and in a petty manner that she deserves she becomes simply “Sloatman”. Try it, it feels good and adds a nice level of disassociation to Frank Zappa. I’m finding I am enjoying his music again… bad taste removed from mouth.
Sloatman. Sloat…man… I’m off to listen to Roxy & Elsewhere!
Isn’t that going a little far? She was his wife after all, and the mother of his children. She remained with him during the long years of marriage, the separations (due to touring, and long hours in the UMRK), and the infidelities (it wasn’t an open marriage as some suggest). And exactly how many Zappa fans were there with him during his darkest hours of the soul when the cancer which had begun in his prostate riddled his entire body? Who cleaned up his piss and shit and puke? Gail did.
Gail Zappa.
Not Sloatman. She earned that name. It is petty to attempt to disassociate her from her husband. I may disagree with her, and how she conducts her business affairs (that’s my opinion), but they are her business affairs to conduct, after all, not mine.
I will enjoy Frank Zappa’s music regardless of whether Gail Zappa runs her business into the ground by alienating every last Zappa fan on the planet. It’s about the music itself and the larger community who enjoy it. We need not attack or vilify anyone to accomplish this.
Now I’m off to listen to my muxtape, http://urbangraffito.muxtape.com:
Frogg Cafe:
*Little House I Used to Live In
*Call Any Vegetable
Mats & Morgan, Kroumata Percussion Ensemble, FZ Memorial BBQ:
*Eric Dolphy Memorial BBQ
*Don’t You Ever Wash That Thing
Project/Object:
*Carolina Hard Core Ecstasy
Banned From Utopia:
*Solitude (1995 Demo)
*Tink/Thirteen (1995 Demo)
Viva Zappa:
*Mr. Green Genes
Avalon All Stars:
*Advanced Romance
*Watermelon In Easter Hay
Bogus Pomp:
*The Torture Never Stops (1995 Studio Demo)
Warren Cuccurullo:
*Thanks to Frank
I took your lead, Barry boy, and looked up some Roxy video on slewtube. Nice stuff. Fun to watch. Surely placed there by sloatman to keep the chatter up. Chatter, chatter, chatter…
…goodnight sloatman, wherever you are!
How about “Frank Zappa´s widow” or just simply “The widow”?
Hm, wasn´t there a film in the 70´s called “Deep Sloat”?
Amendments:
Replacing Frogg Cafe> Don ‘Sugarcane’ Harris:
*Liz Pineapple Wonderful
*Song for My Father
Replacing Viva Zappa & Project Object> The Tubes:
*What Do You Want From Life?
*Smoke (La Vie En Fumer)
@urbangraffitto: “Who cleaned up his piss and shit and puke? Gail did.” – Well, how do you know? Have you been there at this time? Are you getting weak, urban? Think of Eva Braun.
[quote comment=”797″]Amendments:
Replacing Frogg Cafe> Don ‘Sugarcane’ Harris:
*Liz Pineapple Wonderful
*Song for My Father
Replacing Viva Zappa & Project Object> The Tubes:
*What Do You Want From Life?
*Smoke (La Vie En Fumer)[/quote]
Are the Tubes ever gonna release a new album? I’d buy it in a second!
[quote comment=”800″]@urbangraffitto: “Who cleaned up his piss and shit and puke? Gail did.” – Well, how do you know? Have you been there at this time? Are you getting weak, urban? Think of Eva Braun.[/quote]
Weak? Are you equating Gail Zappa with Eva Braun, Roland? That is rather nasty and unnecessary and I really don’t see the analogy you are making, because to extend that analogy, you know exactly who you are aligning FZ with don’t you?
Of course, I wasn’t there in Laurel Canyon when FZ died, but one doesn’t need to be a brain surgeon to figure out who cared for him: his family, first and foremost, and his wife, primarily.
Perhaps it’s my Catholic upbringing (or mind-f#%king) but I need not vilify a person or persons because I disagree with them, or because they’ve injured a friend of mine with their antics.
To do so reflects more upon us as a community don’t you think? Aren’t we above that sort of thing? Or are we just as petty?
[quote comment=”801″][quote comment=”797″]
Are the Tubes ever gonna release a new album? I’d buy it in a second![/quote]
Have you bought/heard The Tubes Wild West Show – DVD (2005) and Wild In London – CD (2005)?
http://www.thetubes.com/cd.htm
@urbangraffito: Well, I meant that it is not necessary the wife, who does the dirty part of the job. A bit far fetched and easily misunderstandable. I didn´t want to align FZ with Hitler. Sorry ´bout this!
We’re talking about a surname people, lighten up.
Nice example of Godwin’s Law though, I must say!
Ok, that’s a find.
However my idea was that FZ was about overlooking, i e thinking beyond pigeon holes like this.
[quote post=”85″]Of course, I wasn’t there in Laurel Canyon when FZ died, but one doesn’t need to be a brain surgeon to figure out who cared for him: his family, first and foremost, and his wife, primarily.[/quote]
Well, you were either there and you know, or you weren’t there and you don’t know.
[quote comment=”824″][quote post=”85″]Of course, I wasn’t there in Laurel Canyon when FZ died, but one doesn’t need to be a brain surgeon to figure out who cared for him: his family, first and foremost, and his wife, primarily.[/quote]
Well, you were either there and you know, or you weren’t there and you don’t know.[/quote]
The last thing I am is an authority on the private life (and death) of Frank Zappa. So, ultimately, yes, you are absolutely correct O’Hoho Heehee, “you were either there and you know, or you weren’t there and you don’t know.”
I don’t know.
I wasn’t there.
Yet another clear case of Urbangraffito opening his mouth and putting his foot squarely in it.
Applause. Applause.
Bravo. Bravo.
[quote comment=”800″]Think of Eva Braun.[/quote]
I think of her all the time…that is, when I’m not listening to the radio edit of “Crazy On You”.
[quote comment=”829″][quote comment=”800″]Think of Eva Braun.[/quote]
I think of her all the time…that is, when I’m not listening to the radio edit of “Crazy On You”.[/quote]
There’s a time and a place to think of Eva Braun. Time: Late at night. Place:(___________)
As I am the troublemaker with my remark above, I repeat what I have wirtten before: It was a far fetched thought, written down too quick , published too quick on this blog – I am sorry about it, I didn´t want to put anybody in trouble with it. I neither wanted to align FZ with AH nor Zappa´s widow with Eva Braun.
[quote comment=”805″][quote comment=”801″][quote comment=”797″]
Are the Tubes ever gonna release a new album? I’d buy it in a second![/quote]
Have you bought/heard The Tubes Wild West Show – DVD (2005) and Wild In London – CD (2005)?
http://www.thetubes.com/cd.htm%5B/quote%5D
Already have ’em! What about a new studio album?
[quote comment=”793″]How about “Frank Zappa´s widow” or just simply “The widow”?
Hm, wasn´t there a film in the 70´s called “Deep Sloat”?[/quote]
Some men might want ‘Deep Sloat’ from Gail..but not me!!! Diva and Moon are a different story!
[quote comment=”842″][quote comment=”793″]How about “Frank Zappa´s widow” or just simply “The widow”?
Hm, wasn´t there a film in the 70´s called “Deep Sloat”?[/quote]
Some men might want ‘Deep Sloat’ from Gail..but not me!!! Diva and Moon are a different story![/quote]
This has got to go down in weblog history, Barry, as one of the sickest posts I’ve ever read. First, a suggestion to disassociate the woman from her late husband, then, suggestions that she is useful for fellatio.
Doesn’t this post reinforce everything that Gail Zappa and the ZFT have been saying about Zappa fans and their web communities?
@urbangraffito: Please keep in mind, that Barry was the one who triggered it: “KUR reader Mark H. writes in: Just a little suggestion a friend of mine made about GZ and the ZFT… he says we should cease refering to her as GZ or Gail Zappa and in a petty manner that she deserves she becomes simply “Sloatman”. Try it, it feels good and adds a nice level of disassociation to Frank Zappa. I’m finding I am enjoying his music again… bad taste removed from mouth.” (quote)
So if you can´t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. Of course my reaction is pure sarcasm. Did you already forget what happened recently because of her. I think, it is pure porn, trying to get more money out of Zappa´s products, especially when it´s covered by “protect and serve the legacy” arguments. This is how I meant it, do I have to explain everything from now on: me / urban or urban / world? Can it be possible, that you are taking things to serious sometimes. I thought KUR means a bit of fun, too?
A possible solution to get out of that kind of FZ fan club discussions is :
– to archive, as KUR did. Thus : creating a data base. OK, with a lot of mayonaise on top of it, i e ambient madness, fun.
– to initiate a site , comparable with http://www.johncage.info/; where musicians , scholars & others can discuss : see “The discussion list “. And where all present day performances of the music are put together, see ” Forthcoming Performances” . I’m aware that this will not happen soon. However it will, be sure. And it will happen to be a European initiatve or a Canadian. As for the US : yes indeed nowadays – notwithstanding many efforts- “high” & “low ” cultures are more separated than ever before.
[quote comment=”848″]@urbangraffito: Please keep in mind, that Barry was the one who triggered it: “KUR reader Mark H. writes in: Just a little suggestion a friend of mine made about GZ and the ZFT… he says we should cease refering to her as GZ or Gail Zappa and in a petty manner that she deserves she becomes simply “Sloatman”. Try it, it feels good and adds a nice level of disassociation to Frank Zappa. I’m finding I am enjoying his music again… bad taste removed from mouth.” (quote)
So if you can´t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen. Of course my reaction is pure sarcasm. Did you already forget what happened recently because of her. I think, it is pure porn, trying to get more money out of Zappa´s products, especially when it´s covered by “protect and serve the legacy” arguments. This is how I meant it, do I have to explain everything from now on: me / urban or urban / world? Can it be possible, that you are taking things to serious sometimes. I thought KUR means a bit of fun, too?[/quote]
Firstly, Roland, Barry may have initiated the post, but he didn’t determine its content: that is the result of the commentators. And, no, I haven’t forgotten “what happened recently because of her.” I just think dwelling upon what occurred, and GZ in particular, is rehashing what has already been hashed (to death, in my opinion). Can it be possible, that I am taking things too serious sometimes? Indeed, that’s true. When I’m serious I am somewhat a stick in the mud. Is this one of those times? Quite possible. I tend to draw the line, personally, between satire and parody, and outright personal attacks. Do some of these comments read like satire or parody to you?
Getting back to Barry’s reason for posting this thread, methinks it has more to do with giving the wider KUR readership a voice, than an intention to hurl more vitriol at the zft camp (but only Barry can answer that).
Let’s overlook another border.
FZ music was a musical compound on its own. The stubborn way. It’s not easy to pigeon hole it. It’s puzzling. Both popular & at the edge.
Exactly the same goes for Berber music.
http://www.al-bab.com/arab/music/music.htm
Anyone interested in writing a text, comparing both?
Don’t laugh.
You’ll see that they actually have more in common than their differences.
Does this happen to be too much far fetched/ ” utopian”? No.
I’d like to suggest referring to “the heirs” or to “Frank’s heirs”. This would helpfully depersonalize the discussion. It would also remind us that there is a group of them who presumably all agree with one another. It would make us remember that they have real legal standing as holders of his copyrights.
And it would allow comparisons of their behavior to that of other composers’ heirs as well as those of other musicians who left large bodies of recordings and other famous people whose images are marketable.
But, alas, the word “heir” is probably not going to make any Frank Zappa fan feel better.
David
Why was Frank not named “Frank Sloatman” when they got married?
This wife-drops-name-when-married is a medieval thing anyway.
Americans take it one step further even: “Mrs. Frank Zappa”. Yeah, right.