MAKE A JAZZ NOISE HERE: MODERN JAZZ
When the band performed "Stinkfoot" live its main vamp always got played as in the first bar from the example below, which goes
quite differently from the 1974 "Apostrophe (')" album version. See the "Stinkfoot (1974-8)"
examples from the Halloween section for a detailed comparison. In this case the vamp is used as a concert opener. Zappa
informes the audience that they can register to vote at the concert, and the "great news" of today: Jimmy Swaggart under investigation.
A reason to immediately let the lyrics refer to this during "Stinkfoot". The text is not written out in the example below, but bars 3-5 include
"bring the slippers little puppy, that's a good dog, bring them over to Jimmy Swaggart, that's right, he'll do anything for a good time".
Next is another variant upon "The black page #2" from "Make a jazz noise here", taking this composition a step further
regarding tempo changes, instrumentation and soloing. This "new age" version opens in a very slow relaxed
tempo with percussion embellishments, but later on everybody
accelerates to the original tempo. When you compare this version to the "The black page #1", and the disco version example from my Sheik Yerbouti section,
you can see that everything is played much slower. What used to be the five notes of a quintuplet during two beats, now gets spread out over four bars.
When I first included this example in 2001, I assumed the rhythm had remained a quintuplet, but that's not really accurate. Zappa changed the rhythm too.
The quintuplet with five over four eighth notes didn't become enlarged as five whole notes over four 4/4 bars. Instead it got the division 4+3+3+3+3. This
is one of the reasons why Zappa called version #2 the easy version. The more difficult irregular rhythmic groupings got re-ordered towards more even divisions.
"Fire and chains" begins with a figure that is played in a loop, probably a tape or a synclavier
file being run. It consists of three layers: a sustained A, an A-D chord in the shape of an arpeggio, and
a D-G chord on top of that. The two chords alternate their restarts, but are always sounding together, forming
a stacked fourth. It begins without a meter and a bass pedal. A number of elements must have been rehearsed.
The meter becomes 4/4, and the bass pedal and key become D Mixolydian, but the bass can start with using a number
of different pedal notes first before it settles as D.
"Star wars won't work" begins with Zappa singing, normally and speech-wise, over a synclavier vamp. The subject is the idea, that was brought up first during
the Reagan administration, to construct a missile defense system. It was also the most recent subject that could be included in "The real Frank Zappa book", planned
to be published the next year.
"Make a jazz noise here" is not an overall jazz album as "The grand wazoo", but the executions of pieces as "Big swifty" and
"King Kong" justify its title quite accurately by their inclusion of extraordinary improvised sections. During most tours "King Kong"
would serve as a vehicle for band members to improvise extensively. The theme itself is short and usually gets repeated towards the end.
Here it doesn't. From 1:02 onwards this version might just as well be seen as a separate composition. No reference whatsoever is made
to the thematic material from "King Kong".
"Big swifty" stems from the 1972 "Waka/Jawaka" album with the written themes being dealt
with in the corresponding section. A large part of this composition is improvised with the 1972 and 1988 editions being completely different.
On disc I of "Make a jazz noise here" Zappa returned to some of his sixties tunes, now with a brass arrangement and without lyrics. Below
is the opening of "Let's make the water turn black". It's in C, with altered notes in bars 6 and 9-10. Bars 9-10 are an example of a progression
of chord types, unrelated to a specific scale: Bb, Eb, Ab and G, thus four major triads.
It's another example of Zappa
using a fast reggae or ska rhythm, as he occasionally did during the eighties (see also "The black page (1984)" example from the YCDTOSA section).
The song starts with four bars with the Cadd2 chord, played as an arpeggio. The example begins with the last two of these arpeggio bars.
The guitar/keyboard chords from bar 3 onwards are the same as the ones used in the Songbook Vol. I. The brass arrangement is standard, playing
the lead melody mostly via parallel thirds, every now and then replaced by a fourth. See
"Let's make the water turn black (1968)" from the
We're only in it for the money section for more about this song.
"Make a jazz noise here" is the second live compilation from the 1987 tour. The original recordings of the included tracks turn up elsewhere
in this study. The titles/examples from above are the ones specifically transcribed from the "Make a jazz noise here" version.
Some eight titles from the 1988 tour are included in "YCDTOSA Vols. IV and VI". Compiling this series had started before the 1988 tour took place,
showing that the series wasn't completed at once. The next track is Zappa talking to the audience on St. Patrick's day, inviting some
Irish women on stage to make sexy noises. This to show that the idea, purportedly, that they would be less sexy isn't true.
"Lonesome cowboy Nando" is a continuation of "Lonesome cowboy Burt" from "200 Motels".
The original version is described in the corresponding section of this study. Part of the lyrics and music were newly written for the 1988 tour.
"Lonesome cowboy Nando" combines live recordings from 1971 and 1988 tour.
How the 1988 band played this song in its entirety can be heard on "The best band you never heard in your life" and
"Zappa '88: the last U.S. show". On these CDS the block with new music is included without referring
to the jellyfish subject (see below). See "Lonesome cowboy Burt (Swaggert version)" from the previous section
for its ending as played by the 1988 band. In case of "Lonesome cowboy Nando" the end comes from 1971.
Still more from the 1988 tour got released with the ZFT double CD "Zappa '88: The last U.S. show". It includes a couple
of titles not yet included in earlier CDs, among them "Packard goose". In 1988 this song got performed in the shape of a series
of five tracks:
The 1988 band included a five-member brass sections. Various titles included extended soloing with brass players
taking part, while written music got re-arranged to include a brass section. Often the improvised parts were of an experimental nature,
including Zappa playing samples on his synclavier. It's something you might call modern jazz. It's very well possible that the title "Make a jazz noise here"
was chosen to refer to this as well (see below at the first "Big swifty" transcription for what it is about more literally).
As it comes to the selecting of titles for "The best band you never heard in your life" and "Make a jazz noise here"
Zappa didn't specifically pick the more jazz-oriented pieces for "Make a jazz noise here". "The Eric Dolphy memorial party" for instance
suits the idea of modern jazz very well, but appeared on "The best band you never heard in your life". See the previous section for examples.
Right: Part of the CD cover for "Make a jazz noise here" by Larry Grossman/Art Attack
featuring a night club in a desert landscape (copyright Barking Pumpkin Records).
MAKE A JAZZ NOISE HERE
Stinkfoot (1988)
Stinkfoot, 3:33-4:12 (midi file).
Stinkfoot, 3:33-4:12 (transcription).
This example includes:
- Bar 1: the vamp with Zappa speechwise singing over it.
- Bars 2-5: transitory theme of four bars. In 1988 these bars are played much differently from how they were handled in 1974. Here it's a chromatic bass line with the band
playing major triads and/or improvising over it. Downwards from C to Db during bars 2-4, and then up againg from G# to B (Cb) in bar 5. It's giving plenty of room for the brass
section to participate. The 1974 progression, following the Apostrophe (') guitar book, goes as C-Db-D-Db-C-Db-D-Db.
- Bars 6-9: return of the vamp without lyrics. These four bars aren't present in this manner on "Apostrophe (')".
- Bars 10-12: beginning of the guitar solo. The accompaniment keeps varying the vamp. Other than in 1974 this guitar is more firmly in C Mixolydian.
Stinkfoot, 4:55-5:12 (midi file).
Stinkfoot, 4:55-5:12 (transcription).
This second outtake from the guitar solo contains six bars where you can see how the band can vary its manner of playing and soloing:
- Bar 1: two alterned notes turn up.
- Bars 2-3: Zappa has begun playing parallel fourths. On top of the C-chord by the bass and keyboards, he's extending the overall harmony to C11 (no 9th) by adding F-Bb.
- Bars 4-6: while the keyboard chord progression remains the same, the bass has replaced the basic figure by a melodic line in bar 5.
Zappa starts playing fast, thus fast that it's not possible anymore to transcribe this very accurately.
The black page (new age version)
The black page (new age version), opening (midi file)
The black page (new age version), opening (transcription).
It begins with a sequence of thirds and fourths in bars 1-4. The beginning of this sequence returns half-speed in bar 10-12. This version can be called
the jazz version. The bass is playing like a walking bass. You can also see that the brass players from staff 1 are applying some rhythmic freedom.
The basis, however, remains strict 4/4. This piece was the opener of the first of two concerts at Ahoy, Rotterdam (1987 tour), the first time I had the opportunity
to see a Zappa concert myself. Luckily so, because nobody at that time knew it was also going to be the last chance. After having conducted the band, Zappa again falls in with a strong solo.
The black page (new age version), 3:10-3:43 (midi file)
The black page (new age version), 3:10-3:43 (transcription).
Apparently Zappa had the guitar he used for this solo tuned down to get at least at C2, a third below the standard E2 root of the guitar tuning.
While the "Zappa in New York" versions of "The black page" are heavily embedded in Lydian keys, this goes less for the 1988 version. Bars
1-5 are the end of the written part. No note can be identified as key note, the bass is playing along with the melody.
From bar 5 onwards this piece settles in F major. In his discussion with me Brett Clement disagrees saying "It's Bb Lydian, as all Black page solos
are". I can't verify the latter (I'm not a bootleg collector), nor do I consider it much relevant. If this was the only occasion the bass
followed the figure from above, I still would call it major. The choice of Brett is peculiar:
- Like me he's looking at pedal notes to determine the tonic, the approach that he himself calls vertical.
I'm hearing two alternating bass pedal notes, F and E. With the F appearing first in bar 5, the accompaniment becomes a I-VII
alternation in F. In this bar 5, you've got a downwards figure with the F being the lowest note, held longer as well.
So it's awkward to call the Bb the pedal note. As the opening note of both bars of the vamp, some people might "horizontically" call Bb the tonic, but "vertically" the F definitely takes the weight
of being the tonic. The keyboards and rhythm guitars
are playing lightly in the background during the solo, not following a particular pattern.
- In other instances, like "Watermelon in Easter hay", Brett is also taking the lowest bass note as tonic.
- The chord progression in bars 5-12 is Dm-Gb-F-Gb-F-Gb-F, with the Gb being a chromatic element. Though this isn't decisive
in my study, the "horizontal" chordal approach makes a reading in F more obvious as well.
When yuppies go to hell
For the 1988 tour Zappa took the synclavier with him on stage. To the left an image from the Barcelona concert with
percussionist Ed Mann in the background. "Make a jazz noise here" contains three larger pieces
with combinations of written themes, solo improvisations and synclavier sections. You could see Zappa typing in the parameters
to set off stored music and modulate sampled sounds via the pc keyboard and the keys of the synclavier keyboard. The results
are bizarre collages. "When yuppies go to hell" opens with a synclavier theme made up of a sequence of sustained 5th chords. These chords
belong to varying keys, so the melody as a whole becomes chromatic.
When yuppies go to hell, theme (midi file)
When yuppies go to hell, theme (transcription).
The plain notes of the theme itself are rather simple. They get their special character by sound effects from the catalogue of
the machine, like (de-)crescendo, moving a sound from one type to another and various sampled emotional outbursts
of the human voice. The synclavier theme gets interrupted by written bars for the band with some irregular counterpoint
figures in varying meters. This part is also chromatic. After this little interlude the opening theme returns in another meter
and via 7th chords. Then
you get to the weird sounds collages, solos and little stored composed parts. Above is the opening theme.
Fire and chains
Fire and chains, 0:05-0:37 (midi file).
Fire and chains, 0:05-0:37 (transcription).
In traditional harmony a stacked fourth is an uncommon chord that would need resolution. It got an independent status in modern
music, most notably in Debussy's later works, as well as in jazz circles. Zappa loved uncommon chords as sus2- and sus4-chords,
as well as stacked fourths and fifths, being a set of related chords, that are inversions of each other.
In Brett Clement's 2009 study several examples of a stacked fourth, or quartal chord, are being shown or mentioned. In the
context of his theory he is primarily interested in this quartal chord being played upon the Mixolydian and Dorian tonics, but
"Fire and chains" shows other positions can be relevant too. In the example above you can hear this chord as:
- Bars 2-3, F Lydian, step III (not full scales, but implied in this context).
- Bar 4, G, step II.
- Bars 5 and 16, D Mixolydian, step V (the one that will get the lead).
- Bars 6, 8-9 and 12-14, A Dorian, step I (the one Brett is interested in).
- Bar 7, B Phrygian, step VII.
- Bar 15, C Lydian, step VI.
This initial varying of positions along with, of course, Zappa's soloing contribute to the strength of this solo.
As said, D Mixolydian with the quartal chord being played upon step V, is getting the lead, but at the beginning, as a listener, you can't
have a clue which note will become the tonic. You can also notice that the F# gets altered to F natural frequently, the bass actually starts with it.
Star wars won't work
Star wars won't work, section (midi file).
Star wars won't work, section (transcription).
In between a guitar solo is being played. It's in D Dorian, with 7/8 as meter. This solo is unrelated to the synclavier vamp. The vamp simply fades out when the solo
starts and comes up again at the end of it. The example above is the end of this solo, to be heard between 2:33 and 2:55. The solo ends with Zappa playing a couple
of chords. It must have been rehearsed to let it end like this, because Scott Thunes is playing the final two alternating chords along with him.
They are Dm7 and Em7, thus two unresolving 7th chords. It sounds more like jazz than as rock music in this manner. It's also a sign to let the synclavier vamp come in again
after a few repetitions.
King Kong (1988)
King Kong (1988), section (midi file)
King Kong (1988), section (transcription).
Briefly summarized, the 1988 version of "King Kong" is built up as:
- 0:00 Main theme.
- 1:02 "Diplodocus" intro.
- 1:29 Sax solo.
- 4:07 Smaller solos mixed with synclavier extravaganza.
- 10:53 Trumpet solo.
- 13:11 End.
The example above begins with the last repetition of the "Diplodocus" intro. I'm calling it this way, because this intro would return
under that name on "Trance-fusion". On "Trance-fusion" it stays in the Eb Dorian key as "King Kong" is in, but here it swiftly modulates
to D Dorian. It's also harmonized quite differently:
- Bar 1, beats 1-3: two times I 7th - V 9th and one time I 7th - II 7th. The difference between beat two and the other two beats
is caused by the bass not picking an A too at the end of beat two, but holding the D. As a fast 32nd note the difference is hardly audible.
- Bar 1 beat 4: I 7th - II 7th.
- Bar 2 beats 1-2: II 7th - V- II 7th - I.
At some points it's difficult to distinguish each individual note. It can also be argued that some notes should be interpreted as
incidental harmonic fill-in or as passing notes,
like the A by the bass and the notes in my keyboard staff. Someone else might identify the chords here and in "Diplodocus" from "Trance-fusion"
differently, but things like this conform Zappa's flexibility towards
harmony over and over again.
The CD liner notes don't say who's playing the sax solo. In bars 3-4 from the above example you can see that the sax solo is played
in a chromatic manner, while the bass player maintains the D Dorian tonality. The rhythm guitar remains in D Dorian as well, whereas
the keyboard follows the sax soloist as it comes to altering notes. Because it's improvised, the keyboard player can't know in advance
what the sax player will do, so the whole sounds a bit weird. Diatonic or atonal ... truly a jazz noise, especially when the synclavier
oddities enter the picture. The lizard again, coming soon in a theatre near you.
Big swifty (1988)
Big swifty (1988), 1:06-1:32 (midi file).
Big swifty (1988), 1:06-1:32 (transcription).
The example above contains:
- Bars 1-4: the final theme from the written opening part. Bars 1 and 3 are in E Dorian, bars 2 and 3 evade to G minor.
Below the final chord of bar 4, the bass player plays a B natural, adding a chromatic element.
- Bar 5: transitional bar towards the soloing. The brass section alternates the F and E chords.
The bass starts playing chromatically in the manner of a walking bass, common in jazz.
- Bars 6-8: this bass with voices, among others Zappa saying "Make a jazz noise here", good for the album title.
- Bars 9-14: the trumpet player starts his solo. Both he and the keyboard player are playing chromatically. So this is a modern type
of jazz, atonal jazz.
Big swifty (1988), 6:09-6:33 (midi file).
Big swifty (1988), 6:09-6:33 (transcription).
At 2:54 a block begins with citing themes from classical music, followed by keyboard solos. The classical music you can hear here stems from:
- Lohengrin, prelude to act III, by Richard Wagner.
- Carmen, Habanera theme, by George Bizet.
- One of the themes from the 1812 Overture by Pjotr Ilyitch Tchaikovsky.
At 6:09 another block begins with the horn section
playing a chord per bar. The keyboard solo continues, playing in the background. The chords during the first twelve bars of this section are,
if I'm hearing it correctly:
- bar 1: F-C-D.
- bar 2: Gb-C-D.
- bar 3: F-Ab-C-D.
- bar 4: E-C-D.
- bar 5: D-A.
- bar 6: D#-A.
- bar 7: C#-A.
- bar 8: C#-Bb.
- bar 9: E-A-Bb.
- bar 10: A#-G#.
- bar 11: B-G-A#.
- bar 12: B-F#.
On the album this continues till 6:56. During this whole block the keyboard keeps playing chromatically, nor can the brass chords and bass line be attributed to specific scales
for a longer period. So it remains modern jazz. At 8:11 a block begins with the synclavier taking the lead.
Let's make the water turn black (1988)
Let's make the water turn black (1988), opening (midi file)
Let's make the water turn black (1988) (notes/transcription).
"Let's make the water turn black" is also an example of a
song that is present in Zappa's catalogue in both an instrumental version and one with lyrics. The degree instrumental music is present in Zappa's
output is one of his distinctive features compared to standard pop albums. You've got many entirely instrumental compositions, many compositions
with instrumental sections and songs that have appeared on CD both instrumentally and with lyrics.
Just to mention a few:
- Oh no! (Lumpy gravy vs. Weasels ripped my flesh).
- Tuna sandwich suite/Bogus pump (200 Motels vs. L.S.O.).
- Strictly genteel (200 Motels vs. L.S.O.).
- Sofa #1 and #2 (One size fits all).
- Sleep dirt album (CD re-release vs. Läther/original vinyl version).
On some occasions ZFT releases have shown the existence of both versions where you might not have expected this:
- Think it over/The grand wazoo (Joe's domage vs. The grand wazoo).
- Farther O'blivion/Cucamonga (Imaginary diseases vs. Bongo fury).
- Envelopes (Odeon Hammersmith vs. L.S.O.).
- Amnerika (Civilization Phaze III vs. FZ for president)
The guitar solos are of course by definition instrumental. The effect of the instrumental element in Zappa's music is that half of the examples
in my study are instrumental. Whether a Zappa song has lyrics is partially determined by the feasibility of singing the lead melody.
Also here Zappa could push things to the limits, like the second "Montana" example in my study, the part that Tina Turner and the Ikettes are singing.
The Barcelona concert of May 1988 got filmed for television and broadcasted several times by the Spanish TV entity
RTVE. Below is an announcement from their 2006 program. It says: "Live from
Barcelona the concert given by the composer and guitar player Frank Zappa, May 1988,
as part of his last tour as a rock musician. Frank Vincent Zappa (U.S.A., 1940-1993)
founded the group The Mothers of Invention in 1964, till he dissolved it in 1969, when he started
a long solo career. In 1973 he triumphed commercially with his records "Apostrophe (')"
and "Overnite sensation". Apart from being a musician Zappa also was a composer, who
let himself to be influenced by doo-wop, rhythm and blues and contemporary modern music, thus
his compositions include all modern styles: classic, rock, jazz, reggae, blues. His music
is characterized by the intensive use of instruments that are unconventional for a rock
band, like the marimba or the violin."
Zappa began this concert by addressing himself to the audience in Spanish. Like in 1971 (with some German texts) he read the lyrics phonetically.
Apparently he got sufficient aid, because his pronunciation is good enough for following the message:
"Buenas noches, España. Hola, sonámbulos, disculpe mi pronunciatión, pero he apprendido mi discurso como un loro. Este concierto lo quiero
dedicar a las gentes que hablan y sienten en Español. Trescientos milliones en España, Sud-America y Norte-America, quienes cooperando entre ellos
y salvando sus diferencias podran llegar a ser el tercer poder."
In English: "Good evening, Spain. Hello, night wanderers, forgive me my pronunciation, but I've learned my speech like a parrot. I would like to dedicate
this concert to the people who speak and feel in Spanish. Three hundred millions in Spain, South-America and North-America, who, working together
and solving their differences could become a third power".
Other tracks from Make a jazz noise here
YCDTOSA, 1988 TOUR
Make a sex noise
Make a sex noise, 0:01-0:13 (midi file).
Make a sex noise, 0:01-0:13 (transcription).
The music is subservient to the text. It's just a one-bar bass vamp in D Dorian in standard 4/4, with the band improvising the harmonies.
Towards the end the band is singing "make a sex noise" a couple of times, with the invited women doing their best.
Lonesome cowboy Nando
Lonesome cowboy Nando, 0:00-0:23 (midi file).
Lonesome cowboy Nando, 0:00-0:23 (transcription).
The first two bars from the opening contain the band playing around the I-chord from C Mixolydian. Only in bar 3 you start to recognize the music
from "Lonesome cowboy Burt". In particular at the Genoa concert the lyrics got adapted, so Zappa chose to call this recording an unreleased title in the "YCDTOSA Vol. VI" booklet.
The Nando character from this song is a real-life marine biologist, Ferdinando Boero, who chose
to name a jellyfish species after Zappa. He contacted Zappa about it and Zappa liked it good enough to refer to it in a song.
An article by Boero about the lyfe cycles of this jellyfish, Phialella zappai, is included in Journal of Natural History, Volume 21, 1987 - Issue 2
(published on-line at www.tandfonline.com).
Lonesome cowboy Nando, 3:53-4:11 (midi file).
Lonesome cowboy Nando, 3:53-4:11 (transcription).
This second example is from the part where both the music and lyrics are new. You've got Zappa singing speech-wise over pedal notes, played as parallel octaves.
It can be just a sustained C or it can be a progression of pedal notes, C-F-D-G. Other band members are singing pulsing notes.
It's full of irregular sound effects, that I've indicated in the transcription
for their presence. My midi editor can't represent the sounds these notes make properly.
ZAPPA '88: THE LAST U.S. SHOW
Packard goose (1988)
- "Happy birthday, Chad!" Zappa is inviting the audience to participate in singing "Happy birthday", this concert being held during the 28th
birthday of drummer Chad Wackerman. This track ends with Zappa explaining the set-up of the next title, "Packard goose", as a four-part
suite. During the "Royal march" part there will be a brief appearance of the Long Island Ballet Company.
- "Packard goose pt. I". Apart from detail differences, the vocal part of "Packard goose" is getting played as on "Joe's garage".
An exception is the Mary part, ending with the famous line "music is the best". The following is the end of the "journalism's
kind of scary" part from this song with its last two bars, "wonder what became of Mary?". It goes similar to bars
9-10 from my "Packard goose (1979)" example, as included in the Joe's garage section.
Packard goose pt. I, 2:12-2:36 (midi file).
Packard goose pt. I, 2:12-2:36 (transcription).
Bars 1-2 are in F# Mixolydian. Next Zappa and Ike Willis are singing the Mary lines over a newly composed vamp in 12/8.
This vamp is basically a F#-E alternation. I've notated this as if still being in F# Mixolydian, but there are too many
chromatic notes involved to actually call it that way. For bar 6 Zappa choose for a repitition of a bar upon F# because
of the start of the "information is not knowledge" statement.
- The "Royal march" from "L'Histoire du soldat" (A soldiers tale) by Igor Stravinsky.
- Opening theme from "Piano concerto #3" by Bela Bartok. For both interludes, Scott Thunes is credited as arranger.
These interludes replace the guitar solo from "Joe's garage".
- "Packard goose pt. II". As on "Joe's garage" the vocal part of the song is recommencing after the guitar solo/interlude.
The first 25 seconds are repeating the opening theme, next part II goes its own way.
Packard goose pt. II, 0:55-1:25 (midi file).
Packard goose pt. II, 0:55-1:25 (transcription).
This second example is most of the end of "Packard goose". Bars 1-2 are the last repetition of the "cosmic utensil" line.
Next Ike is singing bars 3-4, accompanied by Ed Mann on marimba, followed by Mike Keneally soloing for two bars. Bars 7-8 contain
the outro theme. Nominally this example is in E, at various points accents can lay elsewhere. In 1988 the song ended with
the progression A-Am-E.
The Packard goose, more commonly referred to as Packard swan, was a hood ornament of the American car producer Packard.
This company was active between 1899 and 1958. Photo posted on Twitter as "Chad's Capture".