Philly '76: "a kick-ass band"

We are still waiting to get the new Zappa album in the mail. Some US fans have already received it. One of the regular visitors on the Radio Dupree blog did send us this comment: "Typography and art design/layout is weak... but the few pictures are great. This is a kick-ass band. Not disappointed so far."

Philly '76 is a live recording featuring one of the bands that Frank sort of neglected on his You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore series and otherwise too. It is hard to understand what made Frank choose the material for You Can't Do That On Stage. A lot of the songs on the six double cd sets are great, but many fans thought that Frank picked far too many recordings from the 1984 tour and the Flo & Eddie band (1970-71)....and almost nothing from much more exciting touring bands as the '73 band with Jean-Luc Ponty and the fall '76 band featuring the dynamic female vocalist Lady Bianca. Few fans got to hear Bianca since she left the band after just a few weeks on the road, so this is a long time "want".
Yes, there are some high expectations here, and if anyone of you guys and gals at www.zappa.com ever read this, we would like to express thanks for the Philly discs.
Thank you for the Buffalo album too, maybe a little too much compression on that one but this is a hot show.

And while we're at it let us just get the opportunity to list the other most wanted releases, as Radio Dupree sees it:
1. A 1973 live recording featuring the Jean-Luc Ponty band. How about one of them Australian shows? FZ:OZ II? This must be one of Frank's best bands ever, with keyboardist George Duke and violinist Lean-Luc Ponty. Lots of great instrumentals. Or why not release one of the 1973 shows where Frank tried out a new lead vocalist...Kin Vassy and Sal Marquez. (They did not hang in too long but would be interesting to hear.)
2. Ritz, New York City November 17, 1981. This is one of the big ones! Wouldn't it be cool to hear it just the way it sounded when it was broadcast on the radio...really fat sound. Monster suite of The Drowning Witch/What's New In Baltimore/Moggio. The 50's type song This Is My Story linked with a great grooving reggae version of Whipping Post. We recall some of this material was on a bootleg called Toxic Shock...gave us goosebumps in the early 80's.
3. A live album from the Bongo Fury tour (spring 1975). We would like to hear the funky version of Let's Make the Water Turn Black, Willie the Pimp, Debra Kadabra and some other Beefheart madness and the unreleased song Portuguese Lunar Landing.

Meanwhile...where is that mailman?