Frank Zappa

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Birth Name: Francis Vincent Zappa

Born: 21 December 1940 Died: 4 December 1993

Country of origin: United States

Height: 6' 0"

Relationship Status: Married

Partner: Adelaide Gail Sloatman

Lists

293 votes

Famous people + cats (186 items)
list by Raquel

Published 15 years, 2 months ago

40 comments

128 votes

Listal's 100 best Music Artists(The Results) (100 items)
list by propelas

Published 13 years, 11 months ago

78 comments

98 votes

Gone, but not forgotten (1954 items)
list by Agent Kermit D. Fonz

Published 5 months, 3 weeks ago

10 comments

95 votes

Poor Celebrity Kids... (39 items)
list by Ranzkind

Published 12 years, 12 months ago

26 comments

63 votes

Arabic Descents (42 items)
list by Mejo ♥♫

Published 13 years, 11 months ago

11 comments

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Frank Zappa Videos

Frank Zappa e Terry Bozzio - Awesome Performance Live .

98 Views

Added 11 years ago

Frank Zappa & The Mothers - Who Needs the Peace Corps ?

85 Views

Added 11 years ago

Frank Zappa on Fads | Blank on Blank | PBS Digital Studios

73 Views

Added 8 years ago

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Photos

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Description: Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by nonconformity, free-form improvisation, sound experiments, musical virtuosity, and satire of American culture. Jazz isn't dead, it just smells funny. Of all the qualities that typified Frank Zappa, perhaps the most striking is that he was a paradox. A workaholic perfectionist rock star who eschewed the hippie culture of the 1960s, deploring its conformism, spurious ideals and drug use, Zappa was not only a brilliant rock guitarist but an orchestral compos Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by nonconformity, free-form improvisation, sound experiments, musical virtuosity, and satire of American culture.

Jazz isn't dead, it just smells funny. Of all the qualities that typified Frank Zappa, perhaps the most striking is that he was a paradox. A workaholic perfectionist rock star who eschewed the hippie culture of the 1960s, deploring its conformism, spurious ideals and drug use, Zappa was not only a brilliant rock guitarist but an orchestral composer, innovative filmmaker, music producer, businessman, iconoclast and perceptive political and social commentator. His oeuvre continually amazes: over 60 albums of music from rock to orchestral, in addition to innumerable films, concerts and other accomplishments.

Zappa began to play drums at the age of 12, and was playing in R&B groups by high school, switching to guitar at 18. After barely graduating from high school, and then dropping out of junior college (where he met his first wife, Kay Sherman), Zappa worked at such jobs as window dresser, copywriter and door-to-door sales,an. With the money he earned from scoring Run Home, Slow (1965) (written by his high school English teacher, Don Cerveris), Zappa purchased a recording studio and, after concocting an allegedly obscene recording for an undercover policeman, spent ten days in jail. Zappa's diverse range of albums (both with the seminal and protean groups The Mothers of Invention and Zappa; as well as solo releases) are renowned not only for their bravura musicianship and satire, but for offending various groups (usually conservatives, both religious and political). The 200 Motels (1971) soundtrack was deemed too offensive by the Royal Albert Hall, which canceled scheduled concerts in 1975; and the song "Jewish Princess" (1979) led to Jewish calls for Zappa to apologize. These, and such events as Zappa testifying before Congress in 1985 against rock music censorship, being appointed by Czech president Václav Havel as his Cultural Liaison Officer or considering running for US president, have unfortunately been Zappa's only real source of mainstream publicity.

Diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1991, Zappa nonetheless continued working at his Hollywood Hills home, until his death on 4 December 1993. His widow, Gail, and children Dweezil Zappa, Moon Unit Zappa, Ahmet Zappa and Diva Zappa, soon released a statement to the press that simply stated: "Composer Frank Zappa left for his final tour just before 6pm Saturday."

Zappa was an American composer, electric guitarist, record producer, and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, electronic, orchestral, and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed album covers. Zappa produced almost all of the more than 60 albums he released with the band Mothers of Invention and as a solo artist. ... (more)

Tags: Fusion (4), Experimental (3), Eccentric (3), Born 1940 (3), Died 1993 (3), Sagittarius (3), Died Aged 52 (3), Humor (2), 80s (2), 70s (2), Progressive Rock (2), Cancer (2), American (2), Deceased (2), Guitar God (2), Prostate Cancer (2), Steve Vai (2), 60s (1), Dweezil Zappa (1), Sting (1)

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Music

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1. Hot Rats

Rating:

8.3

40 own

2. Freak Out!

Rating:

25 own

3. We're Only in It for the Money

Rating:

8.1

26 own

4. Apostrophe (') (1995)

Rating:

8.1

17 own

5. Over-Nite Sensation

Rating:

8.1

13 own

View all Frank Zappa music (117 more)

TV

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1. Saturday Night Live (1975)

Rating:

7.6

1166 Watched

2. The Ren & Stimpy Show (1991)

Rating:

6.5

1176 Watched

3. Miami Vice

Rating:

6.7

352 Watched

4. Today (1952)

Rating:

6.8

99 Watched

5. The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson (1962)

Rating:

8.4

93 Watched

View all Frank Zappa TV (15 more)

Movies

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Top rated

Most recent

1. Fuck (2007)

Rating:

6.8

65 want to see

2. Head (1968)

Rating:

6.9

64 Watched

3. 200 Motels (1971)

Rating:

6.3

32 Watched

4. Mondo Hollywood: Hollywood Laid Bare! (1967)

Rating:

7.9

12 want to see

5. Super Duper Alice Cooper (2014)

Rating:

6.6

18 Watched

View all Frank Zappa movies (11 more)

Movies directed by

Most popular

Most recent

1. 200 Motels (1971)

Rating:

6.3

32 Watched

2. Baby Snakes (1979)

Rating:

10 Watched

3. Does Humor Belong in Music?

Rating:

6 Watched

4. The Amazing Mister Bickford

Rating:

7.3

4 Watched

5. Uncle Meat

Rating:

6.5

4 Watched

View all Frank Zappa movies (1 more)

Movies written by

Most popular

Most recent

1. 200 Motels (1971)

Rating:

6.3

32 Watched

2. Baby Snakes (1979)

Rating:

10 Watched

3. Does Humor Belong in Music?

Rating:

6 Watched

4. The Amazing Mister Bickford

Rating:

7.3

4 Watched

5. Uncle Meat

Rating:

6.5

4 Watched

View all Frank Zappa movies (1 more)

Books

1. The Real Frank Zappa Book (1990)

Rating:

3 own

2. Them or Us

1 own

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slaark added this to a list 3 months, 1 week ago

Favorite Artists (15 person items)

Darth Brutus added this to a list 4 months ago

People I find Inspiring (93 person items)

"I may not fully agree with everything he's said over the years nor do I love every aspect of his personality. I do find him highly inspiring figure, nevertheless. Frank Zappa had this "just do it" attitude where he would just go and take whatever he wanted and get shit done. One thing he taught was that if you're really interested in something, don't go to school but library. Don't ever expect other people to know what you want or need, go do things yourself and get the best things out of your l"

gaucho108 voted for 3 images 4 months ago

Agent Kermit D. Fonz added this to a list 5 months, 3 weeks ago

Gone, but not forgotten (1954 person items)

Agent Kermit D. Fonz added this to a list 7 months, 2 weeks ago

Celebrity Recluses (194 person items)

Green.Tissue.Box added this to a list 2 years, 1 month ago

You named you baby what?!!! (82 person items)

"named his daughter, 'Moon Unit Zappa'. They also have three other children named Diva, Ahmet and Dweezil Zappa."

amongus added this to a list 2 years, 4 months ago

Bandas/Músicos Favoritos (146 person items)

onclelapin posted a image 2 years, 7 months ago

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william maxey 83 added this to a list 3 years, 1 month ago

Music...American Rock Star (151 music items)

Onion Jack added this to a list 3 years, 4 months ago

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (420 music items)

"CLASS OF 1995PERFORMERSFRANK ZAPPA● ROCK ● BLUES ● EXPERIMENTAL ● JAZZ ● CLASSICAL ●● POP ● AVANT-GARDE ● DOO-WOP ●FRANK VINCENT ZAPPA Born: 21 December 1940 Died 4 December 1993 RIAA CERTIFICATIONS- = STUDIO ALBUMS = - ► Gold: 2 ◄KEY SONGSBrown Shoes Don't Make It (1967) - with 'The Mothers of Invention'- selected for 'The 660 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll'Montana (1973) - with 'The Mothers'- selected for 'The 660 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll' "