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Frank Zappa

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Frank Zappa was born on 21 December 1940 in Baltimore and grew up in California. As a teenager he listened at the same time to Black rhythm and blues, doo-wop and modern composers such as Igor Stravinsky and Edgard Varèse. He first played drums in R&B bands and later switched to the electric guitar, while already writing classical pieces at school.

Music and breakthrough

With his band The Mothers of Invention he made his debut in 1966 with Freak Out!, an album that alternated mocking, seemingly ordinary rock 'n' roll songs with long sound collages. He kept up that idiosyncratic approach for more than thirty years. He released more than sixty albums, including Hot Rats (1969), Apostrophe (’) (1974) and Joe’s Garage (1979), and produced almost all of them himself. He wrote rock, jazz, jazz rock and orchestral works, directed films and designed album covers.

Influence

His music is full of changes of time signature, improvisation and sound experiments, and his lyrics poke fun at American society. Recurring melodies, ideas and characters link his albums to one another. Zappa fought against censorship and was critical of education and organised religion. Unlike many of his contemporaries he rejected drug use. In Europe he had more success than in his own country. He died on 4 December 1993 and was inducted posthumously into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. He is regarded as one of the most innovative and versatile musicians of the twentieth century.

Listening

Listening tip. Listen to The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet, the long closing piece of Freak Out! (1966). Notice how there is hardly a song left: voices, percussion and sound effects together form a collage.

Discography

Studio albums

In School of Rock

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See also

Categories: Artists