ScreenshotFrank Zappa is my ultimate problematic fave. His musical influence is powerful enough over me that even though the documentary Freak Jazz, Movie Madness, and Another Mothers (2014) chronicles my least-favorite Zappa era, I still queued it up out of curiosity. It makes for a spirited defense of Zappa’s most divisive lineup, full of articulate interviews about why his controversial artistic decisions between 1969 and 1972 were important, if not revolutionary.
In between the groundbreaking “freak scene” inventiveness of the original Mothers of Invention and the popular “gateway drug” lineup of Roxy & Elsewhere, Frank Zappa assembled his most unlikely group: former Turtles vocalists Howard Kaylan and Mark Volman, jazz keyboard virtuoso George Duke, legendary British drummer Aynsley Dunbar, original Mother Ian Underwood (clarinet and keyboards), and Zappa’s comedic muse, guitarist and bassist Jeff Simmons. Arguably, the most transformative members of this band, in terms of Zappa’s musical aesthetic, were Kaylan and Volman. Their pop star track record, powerful vocal abilities, and comedic sensibilities would propel the reinvented Mothers to new heights of onstage showmanship, while also inspiring Zappa to write new and different material to showcase them. While the output of this band, including their ramshackle cult film 200 Motels, never quite landed with me, the documentary does a nice job explaining how this period of change was a crucial development for Zappa as an artist: thrusting him out of old patterns and in new directions, infusing his music with visual and film art and the “amateur anthropology” elements of recording his bandmates on tour, and wielding his ensemble like instruments in his arsenal. Of course, drawbacks emerged from this period as well: the rockstar excess, crude humor, and misogynystic vibe that materializes here would persist throughout his later career, intensifying and receding in reaction to Zappa’s creative whims and the ensemble’s ever-changing personality.
In the end, though, that may be the key takeaway. By blowing up his own band, Zappa showed himself what was possible, and set himself up for the rest of his career, which would involve decades of constant experimentation and reinvention, restless creativity and a constant stream of remarkable collaborators who would make their mark on his work. That said, the film also does a fine job showcasing the particular strengths and stage magic of this lineup, and sold me on seeking out some of the output from this era that I missed.
