Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappawas an American musician, songwriter, composer, record producer, actor and filmmaker. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa composed rock, jazz, jazz fusion, orchestral and musique concrète works, and produced almost all of the 60-plus albums that he released with his band the Mothers of Invention and as a solo artist. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed album covers...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionGuitarist
Date of Birth21 December 1940
CityBaltimore, MD
CountryUnited States of America
I detest 'love lyrics.' I think one of the causes of bad mental health in the United States is that people have been raised on 'love lyrics.
I think love lyrics have contributed to the general aura of bad mental health in America.
I think it's really tragic when people get serious about stuff. It's such an absurdity to take anything really seriously ... I make an honest attempt not to take anything seriously: I worked that attitude out about the time I was eighteen, I mean, what does it all mean when you get right down to it, what's the story here? Being alive is so weird.
I think the anti-smoking business is a yuppie invention-an extension of the concept that "we'll always be young, rich, and healthy.
I think pop music has done more for oral intercourse than anything else that has ever happened, and vice versa.
I think you should leave it up to the parent, because not all parents want to keep their children totally ignorant.
Certification from one source or another seems to be the most important thing to people all over the world. A piece of paper from a school that says you're smart, a pat on the head from your parents that says you're good or some reinforcement from your peers that makes you think what you're doing is worthwhile. People are just waiting around to get certified.
I don't think there's a problem. First of all, I don't think music turns people into social liabilities. Because you hear a lyric
I think that people are entitled to be amused, and entertained. If they see deviations from this classical norm, it's probably good for their mental health.
I think that if you use the so-called "strong words" you'll get your point across faster and you can save a lot of beating around the bush. Why are people afraid of words? Sometimes the dumbest thing that gets said makes the point for you.
I'm more interested in melodic things. I think the biggest challenge when you go to play a solo is trying to invent a melody on the spot.
I think that if a person doesn't feel cynical then they're out of phase with the 20th century. Being cynical is the only way to deal with modern civilization - you can't just swallow it whole.
On a personal level, Freaking Out is a process whereby an individual casts off outmoded and restricting standards of thinking, dress, and social etiquette in order to express creatively his relationship to his immediate environment and the social structure as a whole.
I think the music of the Fifties is really good. I suspect it's much better musically than much of what's available now. Not in terms of production, but in terms of content.