Mothers Of Invention - Frank Zappa

Frank Zappa and Ozzy Osbourne

Frank Zappa & "The Mothers of Invention" at the Whisky-A-Go-Go, 1966.

here’s what the girls n i are wearing all fall

Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention Advertise 1969

liner notes to Freak Out!

Zappa

Poster for The Mothers of Invention concert at Deutschlandhalle Berlin (1971).

The Mothers Of Invention - Frank Zappa

Mothers of Invention

Happy birthday to a highly innovative, influential musician and composer, Frank Zappa. Born on December 21, 1940, in Baltimore, Maryland Zappa was a self-taught musician, whose 30-year career embraced a wide variety of musical genres, writing and producing more than 60 albums. Zappa was also an artist, directing films, and creating album covers. Aside from music, Zappa often spoke out about politics and other social issues. From an early age, Zappa was attracted to avant-garde composers like Igor Stravinsky, and Edgard Varèse, doo-wop, R&B, and modern jazz also piqued his musical interest. In his late teens, Zappa started playing the drums, and guitar. In the 1950s Zappa was playing in the Blackouts, later he would join The Soul Giants, morphing into The Mothers on Mother's Day in 1965. It would be the debut of their album "Freak Out" that launched them as The Mothers of Invention. "Freak Out" was a groundbreaking mix of innovative and irreverent musical genres. The decade of the 70s saw Zappa forming new bands with more of a jazz base. Zappa felt like he didn't fit into the rock 'n' roll scene, due to his refusal to join the drug culture. The 70s cultivated Zappa's reputation "as one of the music industry's most accomplished and demanding bandleaders." "Valley Girl" would become a top 40 hit due to his prolific orchestral output. Aside from music, Zappa was a guest speaker on social activism after his Senate testimony about censorship in music. In 1990 Czechoslovakian President Václav Havel appointed Zappa as his cultural liaison officer, however, President George H.W. Bush stepped in and declined the meeting. Afterward, Zappa briefly considered running for president. Frank Zappa had a very interesting life, from composing politically charged and intentionally shocking music to directing films, and even taking a stance in politics. "A mind is like a parachute. It doesn't work if it is not open."

Keith Moon in Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels