Comments on: Music Wars: Part 3

By: Linda B

Linda B — Sat, 29 Nov 2008 05:46:06 +0000

LI … yeah, pretty much. Not my thing.

By: Wolverine

Wolverine — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 05:03:26 +0000

Richard Branson tells a good story about Zappa. Virgin Records was trying to sign him up in the early 1970’s. Unfortunately, Zappa was not too swift in some ways, and the Virgin guys thought it would be great fun to play a little trick on him. They gave him directions to the Virgin recording studio, which was a country house north of Oxford. Only they intentionally gave him some doctored directions.

When Zappa got to what he thought was the country house, he starting knocking on the front door. When no one answered, he started pounding on the door. Finally a very stiff and formal elderly gentleman answered the door and asked Zappa what he wanted. Zappa said he was there to talk about the recording deal and he was damn tired of waiting. And who are you anyway?

The elderly gentleman looked down at Zappa disdainfully and, with a demeaning sniff, intoned: Sir, I am the chief butler. Do you realize that this is Blenheim Palace, the home of the Duke of Marlborough? Zappa just stared and then turned and walked away. He never did sign with Virgin.

Beats me how Zappa could have mistaken a place so absolutely huge and ornate as Blenheim Palace for the Virgin recording studios. Fortunately for all us, he certainly had the musical talent.

By: dans

dans — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 04:06:12 +0000

Jacob, this is the only Weather Report album that I have, Mysterious Traveler.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0G8QxJUVUhc

By: Loudoun Insider

Loudoun Insider — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 23:44:58 +0000

Teen Town!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wDQlSSOXU6A

Jaco at his best.

Marcus Miller funked it up later:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qji84EgLEio&feature=related

By: jacob

jacob — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 23:32:44 +0000

Dan,
I do not have ANYTHING by weather report. This is not a reflection of them. They are a fusion jazz group, that is all I know. I like their sax and keyboard player.

By: Loudoun Insider

Loudoun Insider — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 23:28:52 +0000

onthatnote, stick that note up your ass. To each his own in musical taste.

Zappa is of course a missed musical genius. I always found his guitar playing to be a bit sloppy, but always entertaining. I’ve got several Zappa concert DVDs as well. Phenomenal musicainship all around.

Weather Report was amazing as well, but was never the same without Jaco. I think Joe Zawinul died recently.

By: Cathymac

Cathymac — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 22:34:32 +0000

Wow Joe, A Musicial Elitist!

Color me ignonorant and culturally baren but I like to enjoy my music, not cringe.

Have fun eating turkey tomorrow and listening to your fovorite hits!

By: Brian Withnell

Brian Withnell — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:24:42 +0000

I like the musicianship of GG. It takes talent to pull off what they do (complexity of counterpoint with simplicity–it reminds me of Bach).

By: dans

dans — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:10:30 +0000

Joe, I am older than you, and never been in a cave. To me, Gentle Giant is a big black bear that palled around with a kid named Mark..

Jacob, how about Weather Report ?

By: G. Stone

G. Stone — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:00:50 +0000

Zappa was the father of progressive jazz. Or as we used to say, Jazz worth listening to.
He was also one of the best guitarists on the planet at the time. The stuff he did with Jean Juc Ponty was out of this world.

He was an idiot when it came to naming his kids but what the hell two out three ain’t bad.

By: Joe Budzinski

Joe Budzinski — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:30:50 +0000

At least we are taking the first step in raising the bar.

By: jacob

jacob — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:22:59 +0000

Joe,
Calm down. Not getting hooked on ‘a long way home’ is far more forgivable than many other things.

That American culture has become coarse is something all can share in the blame. Those who coarsened it, and those who sat by and allowed it to happen.

By: Joe Budzinski

Joe Budzinski — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:12:48 +0000

Supertramp?! You people are crazy. My goodness when they say Americans have become historically illiterate and culturally barren they are right. I am as big a Zappa fan as anyone but if you were around int he 1970s and never knew about Gentle Giant you were either living in a cave or young enough to be watching Saturday morning cartoons instead. The latter I will forgive.

By: jacob

jacob — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:11:14 +0000

Gentle Giant was very trippy folk. I am more of a Ponty and Chic Corea fan. Then there is Paco de Lucia and McLaughlin. Maha-Vishnu orchestra is something I have thought about in years.

Thanks for shaking all those memories out of my mental attic Joe. I am now going to go find some LP’s. Wow, I wonder if the record player will work. It has been years.

By: onthatnote

onthatnote — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 18:00:42 +0000

Might be the first time that I have ever agreed with G. Stone. Zappa – right on. Loudoun Insider shows up as his usual arrogant self mistaking questionable taste with male bonding.
For something more recent you might try Phish. Godd Stuff.