New Zappa releases

[alucard]

The price of boxsets is going up and my budget is going down....had bought the Whisky 3CD set, but for the Apostrophe 50th birthday I opted first for a streaming listening...twice...I have an original 70s German Pressing and I think two CD versions one from memory the very first United Mutations coupled with Overnite Sensation...anyway my main audio reference is the vinyl...the remastered record sounds very good , but so does the original vinyl and I have better listening conditions for the vinyl so difficult to compare anyway great record...the bonus tracks on CD 1 are not very interesting...basic tracks and studio run through of the released tracks ...nothing special...very close to the released tracks....I am not interested in the bluray mixes either so these two are fir me personally not of any interest....
The main dish the two (more or less ) complete concerts :
Colorado Springs 21. of march 74...the date does not appear on track announcements and the Zappa website ,but different Zappa dedicated websites mention that date which seems to me correct...it's the Roxy tour and band and the partial Roxy setlist...I didn't compare if Babette was released on the Roxy Boxset...it's very good sound quality but fir obvious reasons not as good as the Roxy multitrack recordings...my favorite tracks 'Dupree's Paradise' and 'Pygmy Twilite' which has a longer interesting ad lib section by George Duke...all the good stuff but no 'Inca Roads' and rather dry and humourless for MotherStandards...I would have personally preferred Goldsboro State College that exists asa 2CDbootleg with very good sound board qualities Zappa himself used two Goldsboro tracks for Roxy and Elsewhere...as an extra 'Inca Roads' from a concert in Salt Lake City (also spring 74) which is interesting
Concert 2 : Dayton Ohio 20.th of November 74 the smaller fall tour band which was also on tour in Europe...as Roxy is the measure for the winter 73/spring 74 tour ...The Helsinki concert is for me the high point of this tour and Zappa must have liked it too obviously...it maybe not the best sonically but it's the best mix of playfulness, good Solos and funny routines....on the Dayton Concert 'Room Service' has no fish with the eyes falling out and serves just as a backing track to introduce the band...it has the Yellow Snow routine but no 'Inca Roads' and as a bonus on CD 5 there's is an isolated 'Inca Roads' solo from Göteborg which has few resemblance with the great Helsink solo...I suppose that Zappa himself isolated it for further use...the bonus tracks on CD 5 are as uninteresting as on CD 1 a Yello Snow single, an Apostrophe TV advertisement, a small Approxinate extract and that's about it...again apart from the Helsinki show I would have preferred the entire Basel show which exists partly as 'Swiss Cheese with extracts from two US 74 fall shows...unless I find a second hand set I will wait...
Concert 2 :

[unclemeat]

I would have personally preferred Goldsboro State College that exists asa 2CDbootleg with very good sound board qualities Zappa himself used two Goldsboro tracks for Roxy and Elsewhere...

If you mean Edinboro '74, it was released on Zappa Erie.

[alucard]

If you mean Edinboro '74, it was released on Zappa Erie.

That's the one, would have made a better extra for the Apostrophe set imo

[JKL2000]

alucard said:

> the bonus tracks on CD 1 are not very interesting...basic tracks and studio run through of the released tracks ...nothing special...very close to the released tracks...


I'm just streaming these now. What are "basic tracks" exactly? Are they used in the actual released version, or are they the same as demos? Or something else.

They seem to have some good rough edges, but maybe those rough edges are also on the released version.

[alucard]

alucard said:

> the bonus tracks on CD 1 are not very interesting...basic tracks and studio run through of the released tracks ...nothing special...very close to the released tracks...


I'm just streaming these now. What are "basic tracks" exactly? Are they used in the actual released version, or are they the same as demos? Or something else.

They seem to have some good rough edges, but maybe those rough edges are also on the released version.

"Basic tracks and studio run throughs" was the only information I've got...like you I listened to the box set on streaming...I am not a specialist, but I think basic tracks are used in the recording studio to form the definitive version ,kind if multiple options to choose from...for me they are more elaborated then Demos.. and they are short and close to what you got in the released Alostrophe version

[pb2015]

Some of those are "basic tracks" (the rhythm section recording their parts before FZ and others overdubbed vocals, solos and instrumental melodies), yes.

[zombywoof]

Thought some of you might be interested in this conversation I had on my youtube channel !



Along the way we discuss DISC 1 of the new boxed set - which contains the new 2024 Bernie Grundman master of the "Apostrophe (')" album as well as a few extras. We also talk about our personal histories with the material, our opinion on the new 2024 master, a detailed track-by-track breakdown of the album, and a summary of the Disc 1 extras.

[AstroProg]

The Colorado Springs live versions of Cosmik Debris and Montana are fantastic. Cosmik Debris morphs into a serious blues song with an out-of-this-world harmonica solo. Montana (one of my Zappa faves) is pretty close to the studio version, but the rapid-fire falsetto part turns into more of a scat singing session.

I will confess, however, that i cheated and listened to it on Spotify!

[Mister Triscuits]

^ That Colorado Springs show is pure joy. The Ohio show includes a breathtaking "Penguin in Bondage" with Frank soloing over about 587 choruses of blues changes and saying something different in each one. I'm not so crazy about the last part of that show, where Frank trots out all the newly minted crowd-pleasers ("Dinah-Moe Humm," "Camarillo Brillo," "Yellow Snow").

[Sterbus]

The Colorado Springs live versions of Cosmik Debris and Montana are fantastic. Cosmik Debris morphs into a serious blues song with an out-of-this-world harmonica solo. Montana (one of my Zappa faves) is pretty close to the studio version, but the rapid-fire falsetto part turns into more of a scat singing session.

I will confess, however, that i cheated and listened to it on Spotify!

Harmonica solo by Jeff Simmons I think

[pb2015]

Harmonica solo by Jeff Simmons I think

Correct

[pb2015]

The Ohio show includes a breathtaking "Penguin in Bondage" with Frank soloing over about 587 choruses of blues changes and saying something different in each one.

At one point in the middle it sounds like he quotes the ending of "Oh No," probably only a coincidental similarity but it catches my attention in each listen.

[zombywoof]

Some buds of mine got together and recorded a long chat about this box and its historical context. It was a long video so we cut it up and plan to release one section at a time. Here's part two which covers the Colorado Springs CO show (discs 2-3).

[zombywoof]

Part 3 of our discussion on this box is out today !



Join my buddies and I - Gavin, Jaco, and Mike as we discuss DISCS 3-5 of the new boxed set - which contains a Fall 1974 concert and Zappa produced extras. Lastly, I briefly touch upon the Blu Ray Disc, which includes the Dolby Atmos mix of the album.