First off, all groupies must bow down. Secondly, did I see some Harrisburg action? Ha-cha-cha you don't see that every day! Didn't know they came through in '71 but I was just thinking about '74 since the farm show is running now.
"...PLUS FULL FINAL SHOW AT RAINBOW THEATRE IN LONDON NEWLY MIXED BY EDDIE KRAMER..." Eddie Kramer? Does anyone else find this a bit random?
I see it from another point of view: -They wanted to release the complete show. To do that they HAD to do a brand new mix of the whole thing. -They also wanted to reissue the original single LP as it was (with FZ's mixes and edits). -They found a few "original FZ mixes" of some outtakes. Mixing the old mixes (for the old tracks and outtakes) and some new mixes (of the newly found multi track tapes) would make no sense and make for a strange release. Puting out TWO versions on vinyl, one remixed, another one not remixed, wouldn't be viable imho. Therfore they opted for the most reasonable solution: -Put out the whole show completely remixed. (on cd in the box) -Reissue the original Lp as is, with some FZ mixed outtakes for good measure. Makes sense to me. Anyway, another fine archival release from the team, with many hours of unheard recordings. We are indeed incredibly lucky to live these last years, as Zappa enthousiasts. May that magic era and flow of great releases goes on as long long as possible.
Talking about those "exclusive to the vinyl" FZ mixes, I suppose all the performances are in the box, but some are different mixes on the vinyl, right? Anyway, 5 versions of Billy is a good enough reason for me to get in this!!
If the versions of "Billy" and "King Kong" there are FZ mixes, it wouldn't surprise me if he also edited them and combined stuff from different shows. All of the basic performances should be in the CD box though.
The release policy of ZFT in recent years has been just fantastic! Maybe an extra pair of stinky rubber gloves I could have lived without, but what the heck... If they continue this way, by the end of this year we'll see the Waka / Wazoo box, and next year The Complete FZ Down Under '73. That would be just about it with my wish list. Only The Vaultmeister knows, but he's not telling
Given that 1971 produced 2 live albums, it's a shame the rest of the Pauley Pavilion show isn't being released as part of this - great setlist too. Wonder what the story is there?
Joe has hit another grand slam. All 6 discs are chock full of music (each over 70 minutes). Since this follows a similar 70’s box perhaps we can get a similar set for each year? I’d love both the mentioned Wazoo box plus a couple of 72 concerts plus the early 70 studio material and a Hot Rats concert cd. Never too much Zappa music.
Great announcement, and I’ll be getting all (except the download) of it. One can never have too much Zappa, especially on vinyl. And…. Looking forward to every single Billy the Mountain. Awesome release and I can’t wait to hear the entire shows.
It's a testament to the excellent way the ZFT puts these sets together, in that they always sound good and feel robust and complete in their way. Because as with many, the Flo and Eddie era is my least favorite Zappa era, yet I'm excited for this. I too first heard Fillmore East when I was around 13 (though it was the late 80's), and was delighted at the time by its unrelenting obscenity. But unfortunately I've never warmed to the sound of this band or its recordings, or much of the material - I think a lot from this period is Zappa's weakest work as a writer. Just Another Band From L.A. is my very least favorite FZ album. But hearing these shows in their entirety is a no-brainer, I've got to. Shocked about the Rainbow ending being included - not excited to hear that terrible part, but I do love the idea of hearing the final show of that entire era. What a horrendous event; but I'm glad that, at least for my tastes, FZ somehow emerged out of the ashes with better music and musicians through the rest of the 70's than (IMO) he'd ever had before (with some exceptions.) I see post-71 Zappa as taken a true leap in quality, from his guitar playing, to the sound of his records and live recordings, to the quality of his sidemen. But again, that being said, I look forward to hearing every note here, and perhaps a fine production here will help me appreciate the era even more, for more than historical value
It would have been neat to have Mark or Howie add their comments on things. I just hope they are both well.
Mark's book was very disappointing when it came to Frank. I expected lots of fun stories or tales on developing the music and rehearsing. We got nothing except hearing that Frank had a groupie with him the whole tour, then took her home with him and Gail eventually threw her out. Do I friggin care?
If we consider other anniversaries, a 40th anniversary of Ship Arriving Too Late To Save A Drowning Witch that includes the Chalk Pie album (or unreleased portions of it) would be nice. Next year, I would definitely like to see a 30th anniversary Yellow Shark box, complete with concert and documentary videos.
I'm looking forward to this. Lots of music I already have, which makes makes me want the songs I don't have even more. Will be ordering the cd version from a site that will open and check for correct discs before shipping them my way. Just thought I would mention, I have multiple official releases and two bootlegs of Yoko squawking her way through the encore. Guarantee this will not be a highlight. I guess one more mix, remix, Zappa version, Lennon version or whatever won't hurt. Sure would be nice to have a release that claims 'Yokos mic wasn't working on our tape' version. Now that would be a revelation!
Bless you Ahmet and Joe. FIVE Billy The Mountains?!! Good grief. I’m in for the box and Fillmore vinyl…not so sure about Rainbow vinyl. To the gripers..c'mon Man…these are mixes intended for vinyl…most likely for a potential double version of the LP. If you must have it digital..do it yourself or find it. Maybe if this box was smaller they’d have found room to include those mixes on CD but really it’s not even remotely a deal breaker for me. But I get it…as a (near) completist I will need to hear it and luckily I enjoy vinyl. I get it that some don’t. The Rainbow “finale” is a surprise inclusion. Though a separate “line mix” is only mentioned for the Fillmore tapes, perhaps something similar existed for the Rainbow. I wouldn’t be surprised Frank overlooked a tape like that if he had the 16 tracks…or maybe he was fibbing in the Stage #3 liner notes. I do notice the Rainbow “fall” doesn’t appear to merit its own track. Maybe the producers perversely decided to keep it included as part of the performance of “I Want To Hold Your Hand”. If so, that's possibly one hell of a serious Beatles cover. Also. Praise to the ZT for the press release, chock full of info and a tracklist. My only minor oh so minor quibble would be the lack of individual track times listed. I just want more info to fetishize. But it can wait! And..I got to hand it to Joe for keeping this one under wraps. After listening to the last Zappacast I was convinced we'd never get this material…and with a bit of sadness, I accepted that. But then today…Surprise!..and more. as for the Pauly Pavillon tapes…are they really lost?…what with the excerpts out there…I guess they could be old mixes and that’s all that remains…we'll see!!!,
A eyewitness report I remember reading was that they had finished "I Want To Hold Your Hand" and FZ was putting down his guitar when he was attacked. If so, it makes sense that they didn't make a separate track for the incident.
All be all over all three, though as previously mentioned by others, the vinyl only tracks are a big bummer.