So, you've listened to Frank's complete 62 'canon' records, then all of the posthumous stuff that came out after he passed away, then the bootlegs... and you still want more. But where is there to go from here? The answer isn't too surprising: the solo albums by those who worked in his bands over the decades.
As one might expect, many of the members of Frank's band had creative exploits outside of his orbit. Some of it was after departing from his employ, while in other cases it came about while they were still touring with him. Either way, quite a few of these emerged over the years, and I want to talk about them.
While I don't plan to highlight every albums released by those who have worked with Frank, I added a few additional caveats to focus my search: they have to have come out in Frank's lifetime, from people who toured with him at least once, and they couldn't just be tribute records filled with his compositions; they had to be standalone. And by adhering to these, I managed to separate a handful that are especially noteworthy.
So let's dive in!
After the original Mothers Of Invention broke up, Jimmy Carl Black started his own band, Geronimo Black, named after one of his sons. Along with various other musicians (such as former Love member Tjay Cantrelli) a few other MOI players joined, including Buzz and Bunk Gardner, and future Zappa touring guitarist Denny Walley. Ray Collins also briefly hovered around, but left before they recorded their first and only album in 1972.
The best way I can describe this record is a mixture of bluesy hard rock with a little folk and country sprinkled in. Interestingly, the band was very decentralized in design, so despite JCB being the founder, he wasn't really the frontman, and he only sings lead on the opening and closing tracks (plus the B-side '59 Chevy). The other songs feature vocals from the other members of the band, alongside a pair of instrumental tracks. It actually ends up working out well, as each of them brings a different flavor to their spotlight piece.
It's not a bad album at all, and certainly an interesting release after JCB's tenure in the Mothers, and I'd recommend it for any fans of Frank's 1960s albums. Geronimo Black would break up not long after it came out, but a reformed lineup would morph into The Grandmothers in the 80s, a conglomerate of former Zappa alumni which still continues to this day.
(Recommended tracks: Low Ridin' Man, Let Us Live, An American National Anthem)
George Duke was probably one of the most noteworthy members of the final MOI lineup, and so it's neat that he put out a few solo records during his time in the band. One of the best in my opinion is 1974's Feel, which to me pretty heavily resembles Herbie Hancock's synth-heavy work from around the same time (which is great as I happen to love fusion era Hancock). Most of it's instrumental, though Duke brings out his vocals on a few cuts. Frank even makes an appearance, contributing guitar to two songs. All in all, pretty good.
(Recommended tracks: Love, Feel)
Featuring brothers Walt, Tom, and Bruce Fowler, who all made prominent appearances in Frank's discography (their brothers Ed and Steve Fowler perform on this record as well), Fly On is a pretty solid Jazz Fusion record that only came out in Japan (as a lot of 70s Jazz did). Sort of reminds me again of Herbie Hancock, though also quite a bit of Bitches Brew era Miles Davis. Tight as hell, and pretty fast paced too. Definitely worthwhile for Jazz Fusion enthusiasts.
(Recommended track: Delicate Essence)
This album's especially noteworthy, as every original member of the band Missing Persons worked with Frank in some manner: Terry Bozzio, Patrick O'Hearn and Warren Cuccurullo had all played in his band in the 70s, while lead singer Dale Bozzio had been the voice of Mary on Joe's Garage (even keyboard player Chuck Wild would go on to contribute piano on Thing Fish).
Befitting of the time period, this record is a synth-and-guitar based new-wave mixture, and boy does it hit hard. The band's experience working with Zappa isn't for naught, as they play well together, and Dale Bozzio very much comes into her own as a vocalist. The songs are pretty catchy too, and it's not hard to see how some of them had the potential to be real hits.
Spring Session M was actually the most successful album out of the ones that I listened to for this deep dive, as it saw release on Capitol Records and managed to hit the top 20 in the US. Sadly the group never hit the same success afterwards, and over time steadily fell into obscurity, with Dale Bozzio being the only original member still in the band today. Which is a shame, as this record is absolutely excellent, and a hidden gem in the early New Wave era. Go check it out ASAP.
(Recommended tracks: Noticeable One, Windows, Walking In L.A.)
It seems timely to comment on this album, seeing as Ike recently passed away. His debut album came out on Enigma Records around the time Frank would have begun arranging rehearsals for his final 1988 tour, so the overall production (as well as Ike's vocal performance) is very similar, with a lot of 80s digital reverb.
This record has tinges of new-wave, soul and a few other sounds all at play (for me, it's hard to pinpoint an exact style). It's not a slouch of an effort, with a decent band, and it's interesting to hear Ike's own songwriting efforts, which range from contemporary issues to what I believe are riffs on sci-fi. Ray White, a fellow Zappa bandmember, features heavily throughout, contributing various vocals (Arthur Barrow also apparently co-wrote the CD-only track 'Resolution', which is interesting).
This is a pretty solid record, with plenty of Ike's trademark vocal style, and it's a real shame that it's not more well known. The cover art is pretty kickass too.
(Recommended tracks: Biznis As Usual, Miss You Well, Hollow Earth)
There are other albums made by former Zappa players out there, but these five are the ones that I think are the most interesting and overlooked. If you're still hungry for more, here's a few extras that I'm aware of but haven't listened to in length at the time of writing:
Jeff Simmons - Lucille Has Messed My Mind Up (1969) (features a couple of Zappa originals that he would later do his own versions of)
Jean-Luc Ponty - King Kong: Jean-Luc Ponty Plays the Music of Frank Zappa (1970) (this is a cheat on my part, but it might be the very first album by another musician dedicated to performing versions of Frank's songs, so deserves being highlighted)
Little Feat - Sailin' Shoes (1972)
Don Harris - Sugar Cane's Got the Blues (1972)
Flo & Eddie - The Phlorescent Leech & Eddie (1972)
L. Shankar - Touch Me There (1979) (Dead Girls Of London is especially good)
Steve Vai - Flex-Able (1984)
Patrick O'Hearn – Ancient Dreams (1985)
The Bears - Self-Titled (1987)
Ed Mann – Get Up (1988)
Chad Wackerman - Forty Reasons (1991)
Mike Keneally - hat. (1992)
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