Strange Attraction of Sheik Yerbouti
Frank Zappa’s 1979 Sheik Yerbouti made its way into my CD changer again. Oh, boy. Frank, Frank, Frank.
The lyrics on this album make MTV’s Jackass look like highbrow humour. With “jokes” (more like head-shakers) about tampons and “poop shoots”, titles like “Broken Hearts Are For Assholes” and “I Have Been In You”, Zappa really does top all his previous adolescent epics.
But the musicianship is among the best I’ve heard. He provides some really challenging material for his band, both instrumentally and vocally. There is a funny Dylan impression on “Flakes” among other interesting characters in what has the sound of a rock opera in many ways. Here is a more lengthy take on the album with some good song by song information.
on January 24th, 2006 at 1:39 am
Okay, this probably doesn’t belong here, but I was just viewing your link to UNH and was wondering the difference between “on going” and “in progress” … isn’t that one and the same? =)
-RAMrozi (posting while he should be sleeping and not so sickly (unsober) like)
on January 24th, 2006 at 11:12 am
I Have Been In You. I can’t say that I’ve ever been a serious Zappa fan (he’s always been more of a novelty to me), but that sounds like a song worth listening to.