Here's a Zappadan idea that has to be wrong. Feel free to correct me in comments, or add your own list, but be nice, it's not like I presume this to be the list anyone else should agree with. Even Frank had to have his favorites. Choosing ten is very difficult.
The 10 Best (oh, please) Frank Zappa albums:
Freak Out! 1966
Weasels Ripped My Flesh 1970
The Grand Wazoo 1972
Apostrophe(') 1974
One Size Fits All 1975
Orchestral Favorites 1979
Joe's Garage Acts I, II, and III 1987
(I know that was cheating)
The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life 1991
Make A Jazz Noise Here 1991
The Yellow Shark 1993
That was in 2016, and my opinions of some of Frank's output has changed. Joe's Garage has great moments, but is dragged down by considerable misogyny and other banality. Make A Jazz Noise Here is good, but has to be dropped for Burnt Weenie Sandwich, a concise and near-perfect effort. With just a bit more room, Hot Rats would have made it. So, here's my 2023 list:
The Grand Wazoo 1972
Apostrophe(') 1974
One Size Fits All 1975
Orchestral Favorites 1979
The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life 1991
The Yellow Shark 1993
Personaly, i love HOT RATS as much as APOSTROPHE and prefers SHEIK YERBOUTI to JOE'S GARGE in his 80's discography.
ReplyDeleteI think they deserve a place in this top 10, but i am not aware of all the things Zappa did, so this is just MHO.
Hot Rats was very hard to leave off my list. Sheik Yerbouti is less a favorite of mine, but no doubt others would agree with you
ReplyDeleteI'd love for We're Only In It for the Money and Uncle Meat.
ReplyDeleteUncle Meat was on this list in an early iteration. And no one ever did anything quite like We're Only In It For The Money. It's looking like Joe's Garage and Make A Jazz Noise Here might need to be reconsidered! Ten is really just not enough.
ReplyDeleteA top ten is hard but I might have to
ReplyDeleteFreak Out!, We're Only in It for the Money, Lumpy Gravy, Hot Rats, Over-Nite Sensation, Apostrophe, Roxy & Elsewhere, Sheik Yerbouti, Joe's Garage (all three volumes) and You Are What You Is. I would add Zappa in New York and Just Another Band from LA if I had more spots but those are my top then.