Zappatistas/John Etheridge - Live In Leeds
SKU
23-JAZZPRINT 122
Getting rare and hard to find these days....
John Etheridge-guitar, Steve Lodder-keyboards, Annie Whitehead-trombone, Teena Lyle-percussion, vibes, Ben Castle-saxes, Paul Jayasinha-trumpet, Rob Statham-bass, Mike Bradley-drums.
"As a collector of Zappa and Zappa cover albums I passed this disc by several times, thinking it had little to offer. Boy, was I wrong. This is a great set of high energy, horn driven "jazzappa." The proceedings are mostly vocal-free (vocals being a frequent downfall of Zappa cover projects) with a rocking "I'm The Slime" being the exception. OK, so the guitar solos don't approach those of the master (whose do?) and occasionally the proceedings meander a bit, but this is 100% live-without-a-net Zappa by musicians who obviously care about this difficult music. One of my fantasies is to hear the current Mingus Big Band rip into the Zappa catalog. There are moments on this disc that come tantalizingly close to that sound. Highly recommended from a hard-core Zappa-phile."-S.M. Usery
"Up until now most Zappa-meets-jazz revivals have foundered either because the tunes have intricate structures that mitigate against free-blowing improvisation, or because the musicians lack the the in-your-face musical anarchy and tongue-in-cheek humour of Zappa himself. - more
Faced with the good intentions of most re-creations, there has always been more genuine jazz feeling to be found by going back to Zappa's own disc's like Waka Jawaka. From the first bars of the inevitable, Peaches en Regalia, it was obvious that former Soft Machine guitarist John Etheridge had cracked the problem. With jaunty arrangemants by keyboard-player Steve Lodder, and an all star octet, there was a workable balance between the natty thematic twists of Zappa's melodies and space for the band's soloists to improvise successfully.
This was by no means restricted to Etheridge's own wailing guitar, and on Grand Wazoo trombonist Annie Whitehead slowed down the pace for a raunchy solo before Paul Jayasinha emerged from his curtain of hair to speed things up again with an inventive chorus built on extended trills. Lodder's own keyboard solo was the highlight, working the tone wheel to bend the pitch behind his chunky phrasing.
As the band reached the vocal numbers it was obvious that several of the audience had dusted off their copies of Cruisin' With Ruben and the Jets or Hot Rats as they silently mouthed along with the band.
Anyone who relished Ruth Underwood's percussion contributions to Zappa's original band would have been delighted by Teena Lyle's interludes on vibes and a range of unorthodox idiophones, and drummer Mike Bradley propelled the group along with a perfect feel for 1970's jazz rock. Full marks to the Nottingham Arts commission that set-up the project and its subequent tour, and to Etheridge, Lodder and the band for realising it in so thoroughly enjoyable and unstuffy a fashion."-The Times
Track listing: 1. Harry You're A Beast / Oh No / Theme From Lumpy Gravy
2. Eat That Question
3. Sexual Harassment In The Workplace
4. King Kong
5. Big Swifty
6. Let's Make The Water Turn Black
7. Sofa No. 1
8. I'm The Slime
9. Grand Wazoo
- LabelJazzprint
- UPC825947100527