FRANK ZAPPA & THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION - Uncle Meat (1969-1995) 2xCD / RM / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Just three years into their recording career, the Mothers of Invention released their second double album, Uncle Meat, which began life as the largely instrumental soundtrack to an unfinished film. It's essentially a transitional work, but it's a fascinating one, showcasing Frank Zappa's ever-increasing compositional dexterity and the Mothers' emerging instrumental prowess. It was potentially easy to overlook Zappa's melodic gifts on albums past, but on Uncle Meat, he thrusts them firmly into the spotlight; what few lyrics there are, Zappa says in the liner notes, are in-jokes relevant only to the band. Thus, Uncle Meat became the point at which Zappa began to establish himself as a composer and he would return to many of these pieces repeatedly over the course of his career. Taken as a whole, Uncle Meat comes off as a hodgepodge, with centerpieces scattered between variations on previous pieces, short concert excerpts, less-realized experiments, doo wop tunes, and comedy bits; the programming often feels as random as the abrupt transitions and tape experiments held over from Zappa's last few projects. But despite the absence of a conceptual framework, the unfocused sprawl of Uncle Meat is actually a big part of its appeal. It's exciting to hear one of the most creatively fertile minds in rock pushing restlessly into new territory, even if he isn't always quite sure where he's going. However, several tracks hint at the jazz-rock fusion soon to come, especially the extended album closer "King Kong"; it's his first unequivocal success in that area, with its odd time signature helping turn it into a rhythmically kinetic blowing vehicle. Though some might miss the gleeful satire of Zappa's previous work with the Mothers, Uncle Meat's continued abundance of musical ideas places it among his most intriguing works. by Steve Huey  
Tracklist:
1-1     Uncle Meat: Main Title Theme     1:55
1-2     The Voice Of Cheese 0:26
    Voice [Uncredited] – Pamela Zarubica
1-3     400 Days Of The Year     6:00
1-4     Zolar Czakl     0:54
1-5     Dog Breath, In The Year Of The Plague     3:58
1-6     The Legend Of The Golden Arches     3:27
1-7     Louie Louie (At the Royal Albert Hall In London)     2:19
1-8     The Dog Breath Variations     1:48
1-9     Sleeping In A Jar     0:50
1-10     Our Bizarre Relationship 1:05
    Voice [Uncredited] – Pamela Zarubica
1-11     The Uncle Meat Variations     4:45
1-12     Electric Aunt Jemima     1:46
1-13     Prelude To King Kong     3:38
1-14     God Bless America (Live at the Whisky A Go Go)     1:10
1-15     A Pound For A Brown On The Bus     1:29
1-16     Ian Underwood Whips It Out (Live on Stage in Copenhagen)     5:05
1-17     Mr. Green Genes     3:14
1-18     We Can Shoot You     2:03
1-19     "If We'd All Been Living In California . . . "     1:13
1-20     The Air     2:56
1-21     Project X     4:48
1-22     Cruising For Burgers     2:17
2-1     Uncle Meat Film Excerpt Part II     37:34
2-2     Tengo Na Minchia Tanta     3:46
2-3     Uncle Meat Film Excerpt Part II     3:51
2-4     King Kong Itself     0:49
2-5     King Kong II     1:21
2-6     King Kong III     1:44
2-7     King Kong IV     6:17
2-8     King Kong V     0:34
2-9     King Kong VI     7:23
Credits:
Design [Package Designed By] – Cal Schenkel
Drums [Cheerful Outlook & Specific Enquiries], Timpani, Vibraphone, Marimba, Xylophone, Wood Block, Bells, Chimes [Small] – Artie (With The Green Mustache) Tripp
Drums [Droll Humor, Poverty] – Jimmy Carl Black
Drums [Some Tracks] – Billy (The Oozer) Mundi
Electric Bass – Roy Estrada
Electric Organ, Piano, Harpsichord, Celesta, Flute, Clarinet, Alto Saxophone, Baritone Saxophone, Copyist [Special Assistance, Industrial Relations, Teen Appeal] – Ian Underwood
Electric Piano [Tarot Cards, Brown Rice] – Don (Dom DeWild) Preston
Guitar, Vocals [Low Grade], Percussion – Frank Zappa
Marimba, Vibraphone [Many Tracks] – Ruth Komanoff
Percussion [Effects] – Jerry Hansen
Piccolo Flute, Clarinet, Flute, Bass Clarinet, Soprano Saxophone, Alto Saxophone, Tenor Saxophone, Bassoon – Bunk (Sweetpants) Gardner
Producer – Frank Zappa
Soprano Vocals – Nelcy Walker (tracks: A5, B3)
Soprano Vocals [Pachuco Falsetto, Cheeseburgers] – Roy (tracks: A5, B3)
Soprano Vocals [Swell Vocals] – Ray (tracks: A5, B3)
Tenor Saxophone [Frenetic Stylings], Tambourine, Choreography [Pop Star, Obstinance], Technician [Equipment Setter-upper - When He's Not Hustling Local Groupies] – Euclid James (Motorhead/Motorishi) Sherwood
Vocals – Ray Collins
Written-By – Frank Zappa
Written-By [Uncredited] – Irving Berlin (tracks: B6), Richard Berry (tracks: A7)