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on May 7, 2007
This is the best Classic Albums episode - right up there with The Band episode IMO. There's lots of vintage footage included that I'd never seen (and I have a so-called comprehensive collection), and wonderful interviews with former band members like George Duke, the Underwoods, the Fowler brothers, Steve Vai, Ralph Humphrey, Dweezil and Gail, and of course the man himself Napoleon Murphy friggin Brock. IMO Ruthie steals the show but they're all good. The whole package tells an amazingly comprehensive story of the 73-74 period with lots of passion and humor.

Dweezil sits behind the board for a number of songs and lets us really dig in and hear the more tender nuances and demonstrates how the combinations of instruments and voices fit together (listen for Tina Turner - wow). I must say the Dweeze gets a little wordy, often talking over the music rather than letting it speak for itself. Small complaint though. There's also snippets of ZPZ rehearsals for the Summer 07 tour (BTW, WHY ARE YOU SKIPPING DENVER THIS YEAR?!?! ')

The highlight for me (and probably many others) are the extended video clips of the '73 ROXY shows. These concerts are considered by some as the 'holy grail' of live Zappa. We know the tapes exist, we know there's been talk of releasing them for several years now, I don't care how grainy they are or even if they're edited poorly... PLEASE OH PLEASE STOP TEASING US AND RELEASE ALL THIS IMPORTANT, PRECIOUS CONCERT FOOTAGE ASAP!!! (are you listening Zappa Family Trust?)

Lastly, the extended and deleted clips are all gems not to be missed.

There are probably other details I'm forgetting, but definitely pick this one up even if you're just a casual fan of FZ. This DVD is an education for olde tyme fans as well, so Enjoy(tm) !
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on May 25, 2007
Throughout his career, Frank Zappa thumbed his nose at commercialism. He never let the marketplace dictate his direction, and his instincts (and taste) almost always ran contrary to whatever was `popular'. In fact, if Frank liked what you were doing, it was a sure sign that you would suffer commercially; just ask Captain Beefheart, or Wild Man Fisher, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, or Alice Cooper in his early days. The name `Frank Zappa' may now be copyrighted and a household name, but few people really ever knew his music. His albums were tailored to appeal to those who were outside of society, so what went wrong with "Apostrophe (`)" and "Over-Nite Sensation" that allowed them to become hugely famous?

For a short period of time in the early seventies, Frank Zappa and the counterculture experienced something akin to acceptance by the media. Perhaps this was due to the huge success of FM radio, or maybe it was the zeitgeist that enveloped the globe after the late-sixties meltdown of hippie culture. Either way, Zappa's music was at a creative peak, and the world was willing to pay attention. "Apostrophe" and "Over-Nite Sensation" followed one another within a year's time, and each of them featured pretty much the same line-up of musicians. They represent his most accessible work, and this `album documentary' tells the story of how they got made.

If you are familiar with Frank Zappa's work, then I highly recommend this DVD. If you are not familiar with Zappa's work, buy each of these albums and then buy this DVD. The information contained herein is invaluable to any fan. I've seen many, many of these `album documentaries', but none come close to the authoritative entertainment of this package. The fun facts alone are outstanding. Did you know that Zappa rehearsed his band six hours a day, five days a week? Show me another band with that type of work ethic. Did you know that the backup vocals were by the Ikettes (with Tina Turner)? Did you know that Zappa has a library of recordings that could rival the Grateful Dead in its breadth?

The editing between live performance (including a killer version of "Montana") and studio analysis is brilliant. Son Dweezil takes us deep into recording analysis, sitting at a mixing board and moving the faders while making insightful observations. The documentary is relatively short - only one hour - but there's another hour of extras that convey just as much information, while focusing on all aspects of Zappa's music, including its topicality, its technique, and its humor. Frank Zappa was a thoroughly unique character, incapable of being categorized or lumped into a box. If you know these albums, you may think you already understand how his mind worked. See this documentary and you'll understand why. In a word, it's astounding.

A Tom Ryan
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on May 2, 2007
This is one great documentary. The Zappa family really went out of their way to make this a fabulous product. It has interviews with the 73' band George Duke, Napoleon, Ralph Humphrey, Bruce Fowler, Ruth! And Ian Underwood, as well as others, the most surprising person to appear was Eliot Ingber. The documentary is fabulous, lots of studio footage, road movies, still photos. Dweezil's enthusiasm is apparent, and his points of interest on the multitrack tapes really demonstrate what gives Franks compositions their depth of character. The bonus material, much like on other DVDs in this series, is as good as the program it self. (Ruth playing St. Alfonzo)

This DVD is highly recommended! I'm sure there won't be any more Zappa albums in this series but if there were I'd buy them with out hesitation.
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on May 20, 2007
Frank Zappa could be summed up with one word "GENIUS". Everything about the man was original, intelligent, inspiring and interesting. I give this DVD **** stars since it really demonstrates FZ's tireless commitment to ORIGINAL music and technical excellence. What is disappointing about the disc is that it doesn't feature enough of the performance footage and interviews with the people who were there. It would have been great to see George Duke actually play some of those incredible keyboard parts! Why not get those musicians together to interact with one another and play some grooves from the albums? Seeing and hearing Ruth Underwood is the highlight of the DVD. She was most insightful. The most disappointing part of the DVD is the inclusion of Billy-Bob Thorton. Could someone tell me why he is in the DVD? Eliminate his segments and add some additional breakdown footage of "Stinkfoot" or "Cosmik Debris" or another live performance and the DVD falls into the five star category. Lastly, we need ROXY and ELSEWHERE on DVD in surround sound! The present day composer refuses to die!
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on May 4, 2007
Wow. I was riveted to this DVD. To see the faces and hear the voices of the band members reminicing about Frank and these two great albums was just fantastic. Kudos to the Zappa family for finding them to make this documentary. You could see it in their eyes how much they respected him and how much they miss him. The scenes with Dweezil behind the sound board were extra special for me. To hear some of the individual tracks off of the masters blew me away. An absolute must have for every Zappa fan. My favorite ( non concert ) Zappa DVD to date!
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on June 26, 2007
The bonus material in this DVD is excellent. There is a great version of Montana with the 73 Roxy band using two drummers (Chester, of course went forward as the one drummer in 74...)the shots of Ruth Underwood and the interview with Ruth is such a treat because her music was such an amazing part of Zappa's music that was never replaced in any of his future bands. The studio analysis was very good but a bit brief in my opinion because there is so much music to analyze in these recordings. The biography parts of the studio analysis/feature were very good and informative and of interest to those not acquainted with Zappa's music. Learn more about Tina and the Ikettes and try not to be turned off by some very dry performances from Zappa plays Zappa. The ZPZ sections were really the only parts that were not excellent (I know they have to sound better than that!) the video is a very interesting piece which is accessible to both serious music nerds and non Zappa fans.
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on April 22, 2009
This is the unedited version of the program shown on VH1 Classic. The only material omitted from the version aired on TV was a more in-depth discussion on "Dinah Moe Hum," for obvious reasons, but it is the same program, nonetheless.

It would be, one would expect, a track-by-track discussion of these two pivotal LPs in Zappa's career, and where there is some discussion of them, it is more a cast of characters telling the viewer what a cut-up Frank was. His wife Gail speaks briefly on his work habits and the burden of doing certain songs he didn't prefer doing over and over and over... while Moon Unit speaks briefly on being embarassed by a lot of his music's toilet humor. But Dweezil, it seems can never tire of talking about, or listening to, his late father's music. He really loved the man, without a doubt. Steve Vai talks about Frank's sensibilities as a composer and performer, Elliot Ingber, guitarist with the original Mothers Of Invention, talks about the music of his time in the band not just being another guitar jam band, and Warren Cucurullo just says what it was like to live in that world.

As for the sessions themselves, several band members from the time give their own thoughts about what it was like making these records, but the final product is far from complete. A lot of the material isn't even mentioned, but as a saving grace, Ruth Underwood (phenomenal percussionist, by the way) uses her marimba to give a brief tutorial about chord structure, and Zappa's approach to it, as well as an impromptu performance of the percussion solo from Apostrophe's "Father Oblivion." She claims afterward to have made a mistake playing it, but it isn't apparent. It's an amazing thing to see, such a complicated line, done with what looks like very little effort, but that's the kind of talent Frank demanded from his musicians.

But, apart from Dweezil toying with the sound board showing how the various arrangements in certain pieces change the piece when accentuated or deleted, there is very little in the way of the music itself. As I said earlier, it's just a bunch of people waxing about how much they liked playing Frank Zappa's music. I'm not sure why, but these interviews include Billy Bob Thornton's thoughts. While what he says is true and obviously heartfelt, I just can't figure why he's even in there. He wasn't on the record, nor was he in the band. Whatever, I just don't get it. At least Alice Cooper, also on this video, got his start because of Frank's efforts.

But, for the real gems, go to "Features," and look for his 1976 appearance on "Saturday Night Live," when the show was worth something, to see him play "I'm The Slime." Also, watch the clip of "Montana," from the show recorded for "Roxy And Elsewhere." It wasn't on the record for some reason, but it couldn't be for lack of good performance. Excellent band. But I got a little sad watching Dweezil's band playing "Camarillo Brillo." They played it well, but something seemed to be missing. Of course, Frank is missing, but it just felt like something was wrong. I can't really explain it, it was like something needed to happen. Whatever it was, they played it well, so maybe it's just me.

The whole thing has some good stuff, it's just not essential.
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on August 17, 2015
A glimpse into the history behind these two monumental albums. I bought them when they came out and have enjoyed for decades. Interviews with Frank, the late George Duke, Steve Vai and many others including Dweezil and Moon. Lots of concert clips from that era and information about how Frank operated, approached writing and expectations of his band. Fairly short, but worth the money.
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on May 14, 2007
This is a well done documentary on THE MAN. The interviews are enjoyable and noteworthy. The bonus features are worth the price. Watching Dweezil at the mixing board going through certain songs and explaining them was informative and enlightening. Watching "Camarillo Brillo" being performed by Dweezil and NAPOLEON MURPHY BROCK was astounding. What made it astounding was the energy and pure musicianship that Napoleon put into it. This guy is as good as he was 30 years ago.

The interviews with GEORGE DUKE were the best on the disc. He came across as much of a fan as he was a member. You could tell he respected Zappa as well as everyone esle involved with these projects. Mr Duke is a true icon in his own rite. He came across so genuine that it leaves no doubt to the viewer just how important Zappa was and is to the world of music.

My only regret to this film is that they should have played the entire "Peaches En Regalia" by STEVE VAI, Napoleon and Dweezil. That had a great sound to it. You get to watch about 30 seconds and then it is gone. Why not include that in the bonus's?

All in all fantastic documentary. THE POINT OF THE BRILLIANCY OF FRANK ZAPPA COMES ACROSS BY DWEEZIL WHILE DECONSTRUCTING "DINAH-MOE HUMM".IT IS WHAT LIES BENEATH THE SILLINESS OF THE SONGS. MUSICALLY THEY ARE LIKE PAINTINGS. THERE IS SO MUCH GOING ON MUSICALLY!!!!

See for yourself and then hear for yourself. You can't be dissapointed.
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on June 14, 2007
To the die-hard frank fan this historical footage will be invaluable. But to regular fans or to the person who may wear an occasional python boot it will be disappointing. Not enough music and to many interviews.
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