32 illinoisentertainer.com july 2020
bliss with a fuzzy foundation of midtempo
garage-pop and “Come Together” drum
fills. “Lady is Love” praises the potential
of a precious pearl, perhaps a beloved
daughter. Slettedahl’s melody cribs from
Donavan, while the song’s loping bass
recalls Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots are
Made for Walking.”
` Three tracks including the wry “Cuz
I’m a Lover” feature erstwhile 88 bandmates
Todd O’Keefe on bass and Anthony
Zimmitti on drums, cribbing a rhythm
from the Kinks’ “Picture Book.” The song
also benefits from Danny Levin’s punchy
“Penny Lane”-styled brass.
Given Slettedahl’s tenure, it’s hard to
think of You Know You Know as the debut of
a fresh-faced solo act. Consider him
instead as a fresh-faced veteran, deploying
his refined gifts for cartwheeling pop
melodies and relatable characterizations.
Hopefully, there will be much more to
come–and maybe even a return trip to
Chicago someday. (IG: @keithslettedahl)
– Jeff Elbel
8
Continued from page 28
FRANK ZAPPA
The Mothers 1970
(Zappa/UMe)
This four-disc box celebrates the brief
but memorable seven-month run of the
Mothers of Invention as configured in
1970. This is the stellar combo that produced
the album Chunga’s Revenge, and
includes names familiar to any Zappa fan.
The group features Aynsley Dunbar on
drums, George Duke on piano/keys and
trombone, founding Mother Ian
Underwood on organ/keys and guitar,
and Jeff Simmons on bass and vocals.
Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman of the
Turtles are also presnet as Flo & Eddie on
vocals and percussion, adopting the aliases
to skirt contractual restrictions against
performing under their own names.
Zappa assembled the lineup in May 1970,
and it operated until January 1971 when
Simmons quit during the making of the
film 200 Motels. The set is anchored by a
disc collecting 12 tracks recorded at
London’s Trident Studios on June 21-22 by
then-unknown engineer Roy Thomas
Baker, who would go onto global acclaim
within the decade as producer for Queen
and the Cars. An early mix of the soulful
rock-R&B fusion track “Sharleena” represents
the only song to appear on Chunga’s
Revenge. Baker’s mix pushes the instruments
further forward and crafts a cleaner
sound than the reverb-drenched vocals
that dominate the eventual album version.
The bluesy and boozy “Wonderful Wino,”
co-written by Zappa with Simmons,
would later appear on 1976’s Zoot Allures.
“Wonderful Wino” appears in three iterations.
The “FZ Vocal” version leans heavily
on George Duke’s piano and Zappa’s
acid-rock lead guitar. “My guitar playing
and my wino career are in a slump,” sings
Zappa, before his guitar takes up the conversation
and suggests otherwise. Fifty
years after they were recorded, the twanging
Telecaster and fuzzed-out riffs of
instrumental “Red Tubular Lighter,” the
intricate and carnivalesque avant garde
excursion “Giraffe” (with extended solo by
Dunbar), and an unheard version of
“Envelopes” are brand new to fans. Three
remaining discs gather 58 tracks of highlights
from live shows performed between
June and September of 1970, including
songs, interview clips, stage skits like
“Paladin Routine” and “The Sanzini
Brothers,” and backstage chatter. In addition
to material from Chunga’s Revenge, the
concert set lists draw from the albums
Freak Out!, Absolutely Free, We’re Only In It
For The Money, Uncle Meat, and the thenfresh
Burnt Weeny Sandwich. Much of this
material was sourced from Zappa’s constant
companion, his personal UHER tape
recorder. A Dutch interviewer recalls an
earlier album cover image of a man promising
to make the Mothers as big as the
Turtles. “Well, it helps a lot if you want to
be as big as the Turtles to have some
Turtles in your band,” says Zappa. “Right
on, Frank!,” responds Kaylan off-mic. The
disc proceeds with the full Piknik concert
broadcast by Dutch radio on June 18, 1970.
Highlights include the chugging “Call
Any Vegetable” and jazz-inflected “King
Kong.” The performances are repeated at
shows recorded in Santa Monica and
Spokane. “What’s the Deal Dick” finds
Zappa in discussion with his manager
regarding the concert promoters’ heartburn
over the band’s comical Loyalty Oath
made in response to performance contract
restrictions. This track is followed by
“Another M.O.I. Anti-Smut Loyalty
Oath,” during which Zappa announces a
problem the band encounters “anytime we
play in a socially retarded area.” The
Florida State University crowd cheers
madly as Zappa has his bandmembers
raise their right hands to swear in before
the show, promising not to do the naughty
things. “Portuguese Fenders” and “Guitar
Build ‘70” are song excerpts featuring a
searing Zappa solos. The set also captures
the debut performance of the lurching
“Easy Meat.”
The live material was captured a year
before Zappa began meticulously preserving
shows in high-definition. While the
audio isn’t pristine, it’s highly listenable
and a treat for any fan. **The Mothers 1970
is a worthy time capsule documenting
Zappa’s perpetual quest to break ground
and break rules creatively, socially, and
musically.
– Jeff Elbel
6
THE CHOIR
Last Call: Live at the Music
Box
(Omnivore)
“Sometimes, band reunions remind
you of what initially went wrong,” writes
drummer Jim Bonfanti in the liner notes of
this two-disc collection. “In this case, I am
reminded of what went right!” The
Choir’s brief original run in the late ‘60s
made a lasting impact on regional audiences
that maintained a 50-year cult following
that culminated in Omnivore’s
2018 release of Artifact: The Unreleased