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Posts Tagged Frank Zappa

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December 25, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Frank Zappa: A Very Zappa Birthday (ep)

Frank Zappa A Very Zappa Birthday (ep) UMG Recordings, Inc. Had he still been alive, Frank Zappa would have celebrated his 80th birthday this month. As we know he barely made it into his 50s. As we know from watching any of the clips from the talk show appearances he made in the 1980s he’s […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged 80, 80th Birthday, A Very Zappa Birthday, A Very Zappa Birthday (ep), Album Review, EP, Frank, Frank Zappa, FZ, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron, Zappa ·

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November 16, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Laurel Canyon: DVD

Laurel Canyon Director: Alison Ellwood Canyon Films, LLC / Madman It’s hard to see this as anything more than a boomer circle-jerk: Oooh, we had the best music didn’t we… Laurel Canyon is this near-mythical place in songs, in albums, in bands’ biographies. It is real. It was a place; a place where a large […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged 60s, 70s, Alison Ellwood, Canyon Films, Crosby Still and Nash, Doc, Doco, Documentary, Documentary Review, DVD, DVD Review, Eagles, Film, Film Review, Frank Zappa, Joni Mitchell, Laurel Canyon, Laurel Canyon: DVD, Linda Ronstadt, Madman, Movie, Movie Review, Music, Music Doco, Neil Young, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron ·

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November 12, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

The Vinyl Countdown # 20

Little Feat, Feats Don’t Fail Me Now (1974) I arrived pretty late to Little Feat. Which is to say I knew about them from reading about music for most of my life – and I was interested. And I was particularly interested in theLowell Georgestory (probably via all my Frank Zappa listening at some stage […]
Posted in Blog, The Vinyl Countdown · Tagged 1974, Cold Cold Cold, Feat, Feats Don't Fail Me Now, Frank Zappa, Little Feat, Lowell George, LP, Medley, Medley: Cold Cold Cold / Tripe Face Boogie, Record, Thanks I'll Eat It Here, The Vinyl Countdown, The Vinyl Countdown # 20, Tripe Face Boogie, Vinyl ·

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November 10, 2020 by Simon Sweetman

Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums I Love # 40 – Frank Zappa, “Jazz From Hell”

Frank Zappa, Jazz From Hell, 1986 Almost a trick question really – looking for the crap Frank Zappa albums that are good. His music lives in the vacuum of its cult endorsements. Ask the wives and girlfriends. Ask the bemused best friends of certain music nerds. Ask yourself. Is there an enjoyably Frank Zappa album? […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged “Jazz From Hell”, 1986, 80s, Black Codes (From The Underground), Crap Albums, Frank Zappa, FZ, Instrumental, Jan Hammer, Jazz, Jean Michel Jarre, Miami Vice, Shit Albums, Shit That's Good, Shit That's Good - Crap Albums I Love, Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums, Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums I Love # 40, Shit That’s Good! Crap Albums I Love # 40 – Frank Zappa, Steve Vai, Synclavier, You can support Off The Tracks via PressPatron, Zappa ·

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November 2, 2019 by Simon Sweetman

RNZ Feature: What’s The Buzz With Guitar Solos?

I’m usually on RNZ once a month to have a chat about some new albums. But now and then I present features on the show too. Last year I had nearly an hour to explore the music of George Harrison. I followed that up with a chat about Ringo Starr and played some of his best Beatles drum bits […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged 2pm, Afternoons, Afternoons with Jesse Mulligan, Carlos Santana, Chat, Danny Gatton, Davy Graham, Eddie Hazel, Feature, Frank Zappa, Guitar, Guitar Solos, Jesse Mulligan, Mick Ronson, Music, October, Peter Green, Radio, Radio NZ, Richard Thompson, Ritchie Blackmore, RNZ, RNZ Feature, RNZ Feature: What's The Buzz With Guitar Solos?, Solo, Steve Vai, Talk, Tuesday, What's The Buzz With Guitar Solos? ·

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August 10, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

Steve Vai: Modern Primitive

Steve Vai Modern Primitive Favored Nations Originally released last year as part of the 25th Anniversary package of Passion and Warfare this collection of outtakes and off-cuts, Modern Primitive, now receives the standalone-release treatment, perfect for Vai/guitar fans that didn’t want to fork for “just another copy of Passion and Warfare”.
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Compilation, David Lee Roth, Favored Nations, Flex-Able, Frank Zappa, Guitar, Modern Primitive, Passion and Warfare, Steve Vai ·

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March 30, 2017 by Simon Sweetman

Five Songs For Friday: # 10 – Remembering Old Favourite albums

I guess I do this most weeks – occupational hazard or whatever – but this week in particular I’ve been revisiting old favourites, thinking about albums I liked a lot 5 and 10 years ago, and 20 years ago…and in some cases just 2-3 years ago… I’ll also give an early mention of Goose Snow […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Aimee Mann, Blue Valentine, Elvis Costello, Five Songs, Five Songs For Friday, Five Songs For Friday # 10, Five Songs For Friday: # 10 – Remembering Old Favourite albums, Frank Zappa, Friday, Goose Snow Cone, I've Been Drinking, If You All Get To Heaven, Jeff Beck Group, Joe's Garage, Levon Helm, Mental Illness, My Brave Face, Paul McCartney, Remembering Old Favourite albums, Rod Stewart, Sananda Maitreya, Somewhere, Terence Trent D'arby, The Band, Tom Waits, Up On Cripple Creek ·

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November 8, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Drummers You Just Can’t Beat: # 14 – Vinnie Colaiuta

I first met him (in a musical sense) with the Sting album Ten Summoner’s Tales. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing – the sharp cymbal sound, the crisp snare; the fact that Colaiuta had his head around 5/4 and 7/4 time signatures – playing in 7/8 here on St Augustine In Hell. I think […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Alf, Barbra Streisand, Don Henley, Drummer, Drummers You Just Can't Beat, Drummers You Just Can't Beat # 14, Drummers You Just Can’t Beat: # 14 – Vinnie Colaiuta, Drumming, Drums, Frank Zappa, Herbie Hancock, Jeff Beck, Joe's Garage, Peter Gabriel, Steely Dan, Stewart Copeland, Sting, Ten Summoner's Tales, The Police, Vinnie, Vinnie Colaiuta ·

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April 11, 2016 by Simon Sweetman

Dweezil Zappa: Via Zammata’

Dweezil Zappa Via Zammata’ MRI/Southbound Buried deep in this brand new album by Dweezil Zappa is a song called Just The Way She Is, it’s the record’s penultimate track in fact. And it has hints of Joe Walsh about it, the way it moves from lovely and laconic pop ballad to fiery guitar workout and […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Dweezil Zappa, Frank Zappa, FZ, Guitar, MRI, Southbound, Via Zammata', Zappa, Zappa Plays Zappa ·

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August 2, 2015 by Simon Sweetman

The Best Guitarist in The World # 6 – Steve Vai

No, no, hear me out – Steve Vai is one of the very few from the “Shred Shed” that transcends that silly notion. For a start, he knows when he’s being a ham. I don’t think Joe Satriani has that awareness. The movie Crossroads was so important to me growing up. Not the Britney Spears […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged Best Guitar, Blog On The Tracks, David Lee Roth, Eddie Van Halen, Facebook, Frank Zappa, G3, Guitar, Interview, Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, Phantom Billstickers, Steve Vai, Stuff.co.nz, The Best Guitarist In The World, The Best Guitarist in The World # 6 – Steve Vai, The Guest Guitarist in the World # 6, Vai, Whitesnake ·

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July 29, 2015 by Simon Sweetman

The Best Guitarist in The World: # 3 – Prince

I’ve just started reading a book about the making of Purple Rain (the movie and album) – and I mean just started. I’m only a handful of pages in. The author is gushing about Prince’s guitar playing. I can tell it’s gonna be a good book. But I have this thought – geez, Prince could […]
Posted in Blog, Miscellany · Tagged "Catfish" Collins, Best Guitarist, Carlos Santana, Cornell Dupree, Eddie Hazel, Facebook, Frank Zappa, Guitar, James Brown, Joni Mitchell, Phantom Billstickers, Prince, Purple Rain, Steely Dan, The Best Guitarist In The World, The Best Guitarist in the World # 3, The Best Guitarist in The World: # 3 – Prince, The Rainbow Children, While My Guitar Gently Weeps ·

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April 7, 2014 by Simon Sweetman

Frank Zappa: Roxy By Proxy

Frank Zappa Roxy By Proxy Zappa Records There’s some really cool stuff on this – the latest Zappa release from Zappa Records. Sure, it obviously wasn’t going to come out in his lifetime – although much of it did on Roxy & Elsewhere and, er, elsewhere – but this version of those great shows from […]
Posted in Blog, Reviews · Tagged Album Review, Frank Zappa, Roxy By Proxy, Zappa ·
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