Zappa.com

Saw this new book being discussed on Zappateers. It looks like a doozy. I just ordered it up. Surprised I haven’t seen it mentioned on this forum (maybe I missed it) but it sounds like it’s the essential FZ companion. Does anybody have it yet?

It looks great, and as soon as I can afford it, I'm getting a copy also. There was mention of it in the "What book are you reading?" thread, but no real discussion.

I've had it a couple weeks, but it's friggin huge. It'll be a while til I'm through.

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Don't Be Stupid Unless You Want To

Sounds like there's going to be a lot of time on the toilet!

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You're probably wondering why I'm here
(not that it makes a heck of a lot of a difference to ya)

I'd better get a copy for the white house

It seems like it’s the type of reference book that you will want to go back to time and again and something you don’t necessarily need to read front to back.

I agree, especially since its alphabetical rather than chronological. Serious potential for Bathroom Reading jpd, hahaha

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Don't Be Stupid Unless You Want To

Just got it. Wow! What a lot of great information and sources. Really well put together and edited. At first glance no typos or messines that you see in so many “rock books”. Thank you Charles Ulrich for completing this Herculean effort.

I must say I’m also very fond of Greg Russo’s Cosmik Debris book. I haven’t checked out the Scott Parker books yet. Do those have much to add to the story?

It's back in stock @ Amazon. Ordered last night, email says I should have by Saturday.

Jesus yet another FZ reference book I don't need to add to the ridiculous number I already have.



Ordered.....

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hey punk, what are you doing with the constitution in your hand?

You NEED this one!

I ordered it Tuesday.
Amazon said it would arrive July 6.
Just got an e-mail saying it's been shipped, and will be here tomorrow.

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You're probably wondering why I'm here
(not that it makes a heck of a lot of a difference to ya)

Yeah, my White house is overflowing already but I've already told Donald I want it

Received mine today. This book is unbelievably phenomenally excellent!!!

I can say without hyperbole that this is an absolute must. I haven't approached it in any kind of order yet, just randomly opening pages.

Outstanding!

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I can't tell when you're telling the truth.
>I'm not.
How do I know anything you've said to me is...
>You don't.

Good to know, my copy is somewhere between the Amazon and Wellington.....

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hey punk, what are you doing with the constitution in your hand?

Ok I'll buy it...

Anybody past the letter "B" yet?

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Don't Be Stupid Unless You Want To

If by "B" you mean buy, not yet...

I’m not going in alphabetical order. The way I’ve been reading it to open up the chapter corresponding to the album I am currently listening to.

All of the album credits and lyrics are online. What are we left with? Detailed commentary on 1,663 tracks. Charles Ulrich dancing about architecture.

I hope no impressionable young people read any of this book before they get a chance to experience Zappa's music on it's own terms . Music "writers" are always trying to control other people's perspectives. They can't seem to let the art just be.

Why does anyone need a middleman between themselves and FZ's music? I'm not going to relegate Zappa's music to the background while I pay attention to Charles Ulrich. The music speaks for itself.

"Charles's book will be the next best thing to being in the room with Frank."
––– Scott Thunes

As if Zappa spent his time sitting around analyzing his past albums.

Thanks for setting us straight on that Downer.

Geez, it’s a reference book for hardcore fans. He’s not subjecting us to HIS opinions like Ben Watson and others have done in books and commentary. What do you have against Charles Ulrich? You don’t like physical books and only like getting information online?

No newbie is going to pick this book up and base his potential appreciation for FZ’s music on it. Maybe after a number of years of listening he or she might find that it enhances his or her appreciation and knowledge of the subject. This book is certainly optional entertainment though and nobody is going to force you or anyone else to purchase it or look at it.

Zappa obviously spent considerable time analyzing his past work. Ever heard of Conceptual Continuity?

This is such a bizarre criticism because you seem to take Charles's book for the opposite of what it is. It is not a book of Charles Ulrich's opinions or interpretations of FZ's output. Charles hasn't put himself in the book at all, and in no way attempts to serve as a "middleman" between FZ and the listener. It's a purely factual tome, and anyone who cares to really understand where FZ was coming from will find it a treasure trove. It's the Mother lode of conceptual continuity.

The thing is that FZ's music does not speak for itself. His recordings are crammed with obscure references, musical quotes, in-jokes, cross-references, bits of pop-culture that few in 2018 would remember, and so on, and Zappa would have been the first to tell you that the only person who really understood the whole Project-Object was himself. Well, Charles's book will get you about as close as a mere mortal is going to get. Charles was a highly erudite Zappa scholar to begin with, and after spending a decade and a half in serious research, consultation with band members and other Zappa associates, and constant contact with an international network of fans/Zappa nerds (full disclosure: including me, though my contributions were minor) he has come up with an encyclopedia that will enhance the enjoyment and understanding of Zappa's work for anyone who cares to dig below the surface, and sets the record straight where FZ didn't (incomplete personnel credits on albums, inaccurate statements in interviews that have been taken as gospel), and tells the story behind all those names on the album sleeves. If you think that listening to the records is all there is to Zappa appreciation, then maybe this book isn't for you. But if you want to learn where it came from, what it means, and who contributed to building the "output macrostructure," this is an invaluable resource.

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Buy some! Now!
https://store.cdbaby.com/Artist/MichaelPDawson

Thank you!!

Maybe lapsed is busy, but shouldn't there be someone eagerly eating popcorn about now?
Well, this is a book that I'm currently reading and of course I enjoy a healthy deb... awrite downer, finish this up so I don't have you as a devil figure over my shoulder when I'm reading the book tomorrow at lunchtime!

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Charles Ulrich has done an awesome job with this , more detail than a very detailed thing !

And what Shrewnews said .