137. Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band | Trout Mask Replica (1969)

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Wikipedia Entry

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Tracks

1. Frownland
2. The Dust Blows Forward 'n the Dust Blows Back
3. Dachau Blues
4. Ella Guru
5. Hair Pie: Bake 1
6. Moonlight on Vermont
7. Pachuco Cadaver
8. Bills Corpse
9. Sweet Sweet Bulbs
10. Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish
11. China Pig
12. My Human Gets Me Blues
13. Dali's Car
14. Hair Pie: Bake 2
15. Pena
16. Well
17. When Big Joan Sets Up
18. Fallin' Ditch
19. Sugar 'n Spikes
20. Ant Man Bee
21. Orange Claw Hammer
22. Wild Life
23. She's Too Much for My Mirror
24. Hobo Chang Ba
25. The Blimp (mousetrapreplica)
26. Steal Softly thru Snow
27. Old Fart at Play
28. Veteran's Day Poppy

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Trout Mask Replica is an incomprehensible album. It's the insane man's "White Album". Most of the songs are based on the blues—a crazed mutation of the blues. The lyrics are impenetrable, perhaps incomprehensible, but at least they are grammatical.

Listen to this album once and it's a noisy mess. However, after some finite number of listenings, the melody and rhythm will reveal themselves and it will suddenly become a masterpiece. I had to listen to it five times for it to happen to me.

I highly recommend this album. This album is essential to own for any music collection to be taken seriously. Every song is worth listening to, but the truly exceptional songs are: Frownland, Dachau Blues, Ella Guru, Moonlight on Vermont, Pachuco Cadaver, Sweet Sweet Bulbs, Neon Meate Dream of a Octafish, China Pig, My Human Gets Me Blues, Well, Sugar 'n Spikes, Ant Man Bee, Orange Claw Hammer, Wild Life, Hobo Chang Ba, Old Fart at Play, Veteran's Day Poppy.

★★★★★★★★★★

135. The Mothers of Invention | We're Only in It for the Money (1968)

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Wikipedia Entry

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Tracks

1. Are You Hung Up?
2. Who Needs the Peace Corps?
3. Concentration Moon
4. Mom & Dad
5. Telephone Conversation
6. Bow Tie Daddy
7. Harry, You're a Beast
8. What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body?
9. Absolutely Free
10. Flower Punk
11. Hot Poop
12. Nasal Retentive Calliope Music
13. Let's Make the Water Turn Black
14. The Idiot Bastard Son
15. Lonely Little Girl
16. Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance
17. What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body? (Reprise)
18. Mother People
19. The Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny

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Note: The cover on the left was supposed to be the album cover of this album with the cover on the right. The reason for the change is explained in the Wikipedia Entry.

We're Only in It for the Money is a satirical album, as the name suggests. The Mothers of Invention take aim at hippies and left- and right-wingers—pretty much anyone who takes themselves too seriously. The songs are a mix of rock and roll and monologue.

Oftentimes, genius and insanity are one and the same. Frank Zappa suffers from that kind of genius. He is so creative and so far beyond the bounds of normal society that he can't take it seriously. Unfortunately, for us mere mortals it's sometimes too hard to take his music seriously.

In a later era, the music on this album would be fodder for Dr. Demento. I think if Frank Zappa had toned down the lyrical satire a notch his music would have been more accessible because the music is beyond reproach.

I do enjoy this album a lot, but it is certainly dated and there's only so much fun to have with mocking a groups of people that you have no connection with. I think it's worth listening to for the music and to get a  taste of Zappa's satire, but this album is definitely more of a historical piece. The stand out songs are Who Needs the Peace Corps?, Concentration Moon, Mom & Dad, Harry, You're A Beast, What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body?, Absolute Free, Flower Punk, The Idiot Bastard Son, Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance and The Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny.

★★★★★★★☆☆☆