New Frank Zappa releases planned for July

I always thought that the idea of Thing-Fish was really interesting, and in fact the play works for a while until the plot falls apart completely and derives in the usual raunchy stuff for no reason at all that Frank had so much fun with. "Briefcase Boogie" sounds like a bizarre porn movie. Well, maybe that's what Frank was looking for.

 

There have been SOME attempts to perform it on stage!
Look at THIS:

 

One Size Fits All.
Another 5.1 SACD contender.

 

So what tracks are "previously unreleased" on Frank Zappa For President?

 

They planning a Thing Fish deluxe or is that speculation?

 

I think all of them, except "Brown Shoes" (remixed) and "America the Beautiful" (released on one of the Birthday Bundles).

 

still struggling with the fact that both Frank and Gail are gone .... And Ahmet has now proclaimed himself king aka Janie Hendrix

 

....and therefore we can't have it!
(Zappa/Hendrix joint mission statement)

 

I love love love the cover photo of THING-FISH. The rest of it, however, ... Disappoints.

 

OMG I'd go nuts for that to happen.

 

Are you taking issue with upcoming releases?

 

Zappa family have my money if they put out Over~Nite Sensation 5.1 SACD.
I mean, c'mon it's a no brainer.

This poodle will bite.

 

I've loved the vinyl reissues. They've gone back to the analog masters (where available) and have had Chris Bellman cut them. At least they're doing that right.

I still don't know why they don't set up an online download archive or subscription service. I'm sure they could make some money of releasing downloads of Zappa concerts and random bits.

 

Someone on the Zappa.com Forum found THIS LINK:
Frank Zappa: Frank Zappa For President (CD)
Says "Lie's So Big" & "America The Beautiful" were from the shows I WENT TO!!!
Nassau Coliseum - Mar. 25, 1988- Last US show!
Just found my old ticket!
Price of the show....... $18.50!
Edit: oh... plus $2.oo tax......

 

Haven't seen much mention anywhere yet but looks like Hot Rats 8/26/16. Maybe I'm the only one looking forward to this?

 

Hot rats what?

 

Hot Rats vinyl. $29.99. Acoustic Sounds does still have the Classic reissue for $99 if you'd rather.

 

Today I got my copies of The Crux Of The Biscuit and Zappa For President. I'm listening to the extended version of "Uncle Remus" and it sounds amazing. Keep these releases coming, and more frequently, if possible!

 

C'mon Frenchy!

 

And an extended "Apostrophe '" has just knocked my socks off. This is really great.

 

It's up (and cheaper) at Amazon.

 

Noice! Looking forward to Friday!

 

The guy from "Idiot Bastard Son", Andrew Greenaway, GOT HIS ALREADY, TOO!!!
Andrew Greenaway on Twitter: "They're here! .... but I'm off to Zappa Town :-S https://t.co/0U1vbw3NJw"

 

I wonder why FZ for President is so cheap.

 

Some rudimentary notes I made after listening to these releases.
The Crux of the Biscuit is excellent, but it kept me asking for more, and I guess this could have been a double release. It starts with the tentative A-side Frank had initially planned:

"Cosmik Debris": virtually the same from the original album, with an extra horn section bar in the introduction.
"Uncle Remus": splendid extended version of the song with an extra chorus, more Ikettes in the mix and organ solo by George. Frank was so good at editing that you can never tell whether a recording was originally longer or not! I have the sensation the fade out is a bit quicker here than in the album, but I haven't checked.
Down in the Dew: it makes sense, the previous song's lyrics end with the title of this instrumental we all know from Läther. This version is a bit longer and mixed differently. Brilliant piece. It segues right into...
"Apostrophe '": almost four minutes longer than the album version, marvelous. The liner notes are not very enthusiastic about this instrumental or Jack Bruce's performance, but I've always loved both.

This could have been an excellent album side, no doubts about it. This new reléase continues with an excerpt from an Australian interview where Frank talks about the Yellow Snow suite, and then we have a complete performance of it recorded in Australia the day after the one featured in One Shot Deal. It has excellent sound quality, fewer edits (if any, I don't know) than in the aforementioned version, and a better "mar-juh-rene" routine. Essential.
Then we have a different mix (not radically different) of "Excentrifugal Forz" followed by two "Energy Frontier" (which is actually "Down in the Dew" under another title) takes. Excellent outtakes, with flute solos played by an unidentified musician, and one of them with Jack Bruce as the bass player. Then we have "Energy Frontier (Bridge)", which is actually an outtake of "Apostrophe '". Judging from the titles, I guess Frank was planning to put those two pieces together one day, who knows. Anyway, it's worth listening to them, I tell you for sure.
The backing tracks of "Cosmik Debris" follow. This recording features extra guitar parts, no horns, a different solo and some extra snare drum work which might have been overdubbed later. Excellent. This is followed by an alternate take of "Don't Eat The Yellow Snow", which is a very basic backing track with live vocals. Then we have some very short excerpts of alternate studio recordings of "Nanook Rubs It" and then it all ends quite abruptly (too abruptly, in fact) with the marimba figure and the laughs that were inserted at the very end of "Father O'Blivion" in the Apostrophe (') album, and Frank asking to stop the tape.
A great Project/Object volume that, in my opinion, should have been longer. The booklet contains very interesting liner notes and some nice potos.

Now, Frank Zappa for President:
"Overture To 'Uncle Sam'": 15-minute synclavier piece that would have fitted perfectly in Civilization Phaze III. That means I like it. Some parts remind me of "N-Lite".
"Brown Shoes Don't Make It": this is a 1969 remix. Very interesting, the transitions are smoother, and the stereo image is more balanced. Some details of the original, though, are buried. The vocals are higher and more prominent in general. It's fun to compare both versions and find the differences. I'm glad they released this.
"Amnerika Goes Home (Vocal Version): from the Thing-Fish sessions. This is the synclavier version with The Evil Prince (Napoleon) singing. Very nice.
"If I Was President...": Zappa talking politics in 1990 with a 1985 synclavier track behind. What Frank says is really interesting.
"When The Lie's So Big": recorded live in 1988. Very similar to the Broadway version, but as it was recorded on a different night it lacks the "ketchup is a vegetable" line, of course. "Do you believe in the invisible army?" becomes "Is everybody happy?" here. Well, it's a different version, didja get the picture?
"Medieval Ensemble": instrumental 1985 synclavier recording.
"America The Beautiful": recorded during the 1988 tour. This was included in one of the AAAFNRAA releases.

Summing up: a good release.

I hope I haven't bored you much.