Search - Frank Zappa :: Zappa Picks - By Larry LaLonde of Primus

THE BEST WAY TO GET INTO ZAPPA

mason williams | bloomington, in USA | 10/28/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"THANKS LER! This comp. can't be beat, sometimes it takes a fan to actually put something together that will appeal to other non-genius types. Most people who love Zappa are not even close to being on the same page as Zappa conceptually. Zappa had a grand plan that us regular folks will never understand. In and around all of the utter weirdness that was his finest art, Frank did a whole lotta a$$ kicking. ((quick history lesson)) I met Ler on the first PRIMUS tour, they were opening for a band that was less than a one hit wonder, they were a no-hit wonder who looked enough like FISHBONE to headline. Anyways this was a million years ago, when LES still had his SPEED METAL dayjob. Me n' LER yammered on and on about ZAPPA, he knew his s#!t. I told him that PRIMUS kinda sounded like a shrunk down sloppy ZAPPA and he said that he'd never been served such a wonderful compliment, even LES stopped chewing on his PIZZA for a second when I layed that one down. Back to the matter at hand... Years go buy, PRIMUS get big, LES and LER get some credibility and thus he gets to hook y'all up. RYKO have been kind enough to include the exact source for each and every tune here so you'll have some sort of idea of what album you want to buy first (also on RYKO, nice marketing boys). LERs choices seem to tie all of Franks blistering rock n' roll ditties together, sequenced to leave you face down in the dirt. Skip STRICTLY COMMERCIAL if you're looking for a good starter kit. Let LER be your new best friend."

A Wonderful Collection!

Michael R. Dearing | Citrus Heights, CA United States | 04/11/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In the liner notes for this wonderful selection of Zappa music, Larry LaLonde says, "I don't know the words to describe how much Frank Zappa's music means to me." I sure wish that I could talk to Larry over a few micro-beers and find out. The way that he put these 19 pieces together makes for infectious listening. I have greatly expanded my collection of Zappa albums and will continue to add to them. So far, One Size Fits All has been the greatest suprise. I am old enough to have been listening to this wonderful album since it's release, but I never knew of it at all! This Zappa Picks is truely great and can be used as a road map to discovering some of the best Frank Zappa music ever!"

Almost left me speechless

Bernardo Quiroga Gomez | 06/17/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Given that some of my friends are big Zappa fans, I fought for years the bugging desire to explore his music, as did not want to spend the fortune it would demand to explore his huge back catalog. So, one day I decided to do something about it, and surfed through the 'net to find what people considered would be the best way to introduce myself to Zappa, without going for any specific studio or live albums. Of the compilations, "Strictly Commercial: The Best of Frank Zappa" was well regarded. However, this title, "Zappa Picks - By Larry LaLonde of Primus," called up my attention, as it only had one track in common with the previous compilation, so I thought they would complement each other well, one by covering mostly FZ's most accessible stuff, and the second covering what a die-hard fan would choose to convert fellow friends. Hence, I decided to buy both titles.



Please note I am totally unfamiliar with LaLonde or Primus, thus he was not a factor in my decision, except for his "Zappa die-hard fan" status.



While I enjoyed "Strictly Commercial," I was STUNNED by LaLonde's compilation. My intuition was right: a true fan picks up material thinking about fit and flow, while at the same time providing the broadest palette possible of the virtues that made the compiler be a fan of the artist in the first place.



This collection was mixed so that the different tracks are segued, and thus, transitions are seamless (as Zappa was used to do with his own albums, from what I have read). You put the CD on, and then you don't realize it's over except for the fact that you need to press play again. Wonderful stuff, beautifully sequenced, carefully chosen. I have the advantage of not knowing the caliber of the omitted material, but what is here is unbelievable.



IMHO, this is better than "Strictly Commercial," despite the absence of the "hits" (of which I was unfamiliar with, any way) I am still recovering from the experience. It is that intense...."