Frank Zappa - The Grand Wazoo (Remastered) (1972/2022)

"Waka-Jawaka" and "The grand wazoo" were recorded during the same sessions. For "Waka/Jawaka" the set-up of the band is mostly like a smaller jazz combo. That this album can occasionally sound as a big band nevertheless is due to the frequent overdubbing. Sal Marquez for instance gets credited for "many trumpets" during "Big swifty". "The grand wazoo" can be more truly using a big band, a band with which Zappa also made a short tour. In full the band ultimately involved twenty members. Both 1972 jazz albums have extended solos as well as large composed sections. Several blocks are relatively stable in their use of keys. More like "King Kong" than the modernistic "Uncle Meat main title" and the "It must be a camel" examples from the preceding sections. "For Calvin" on the other hand is very versatile. Despite of the quality of these albums, Zappa has not become well known as a jazz arranger.

"Like its immediate predecessor, Waka/Jawaka, The Grand Wazoo was a largely instrumental jazz rock album recorded during Frank Zappa's convalescence from injuries sustained after being pushed off a concert stage. While Zappa contributes some guitar solos and occasional vocals, the focus is more on his skills as a composer and arranger. Most of the five selections supposedly form a musical representation of a story told in the liner notes about two warring musical factions, but the bottom line is that, overall, the compositions here are more memorably melodic and consistently engaging than Waka/Jawaka. The instrumentation is somewhat unique in the Zappa catalog as well, with the band more of a chamber jazz orchestra than a compact rock unit; over 20 musicians and vocalists contribute to the record. While Hot Rats is still the peak of Zappa's jazz-rock fusion efforts, The Grand Wazoo comes close, and it's essential for anyone interested in Zappa's instrumental works." (Steve Huey, AMG)

Tracklist
1. The Grand Wazoo (13:19)
2. For Calvin (And His Next Two Hitch-Hikers) (6:06)
3. Cletus Awreetus-Awrightus (2:56)
4. Eat That Question (6:41)
5. Blessed Relief (7:59)


Frank Zappa - Waka/Wazoo (2022)