Weekend music: Cool Morph The Cat cover

Here's a nice instrumental jazz version of Donald Fagen's Morph The Cat by Italian pianist Stefano Bollani.
It was reorded and released in 2006 on the Jazz Italiano Live 2006 album. An album that was part of a series of albums by different artists given away with the Italian magazine L'espresso.

Zappa Plays Zappa: Two songs and interview

Here's a link to a page with videos of Zappa Plays Zappa playing Keep It Greasy and Baby Snakes during soundcheck in San Francisco December 1 this year. Also an interview with Dweezil Zappa about the new tour and ZPZ.

Frank Zappa birthday bundle 2010

This years birthday bundle is here!
12 Zappa pieces, 5 by Frank, 7 by other people.
We've been listening to the iTunes preview snippets and judging by that we find that the most interesting ones are:

* Treacherous Cretins
FZ live in Paris 1979. Different time signature than on Shut Up'n Play Yer Guitar, here it's in 11/4.

* The Deathless Horsie
Zappa Plays Zappa. Dweezil plays some hot guitar here.

* Jumbo Go Away
FZ live in London 1979.

Happy birthday, Frank!

The Yellow Shark, one of Frank's last projects.
***

Yep, today is Frank Zappa's 70th birthday. A pity he is no longer with us.
Sometimes fans use to speculate about what Frank would have thought about this and that, and how would his music have sounded today if he would still be alive. It's impossible to answer of course, but I say that music lost something when Frank passed away. For me it turned into something a little less interesting.
But it's a great thing that the Zappa Family Trust keeps releasing stuff from the vault (Hammersmith Odeon being the most recent thing), and today we will surely celebrate Frank's birthday. Play his music and tell other people about it.
Radio Dupree is playing as much Zappa as we can today, songs from his more well known albums and some obscure tracks too.
Here is a link to another radio station that will broadcast a programme on Zappa tonight...including the swedish keyboard player Mats Öberg and the Reinecke Trio from Italy.
And here is a nice article from Svenska Dagbladet (practice your Swedish).

Captain Beefheart dies at the age of 69

Ice Cream For Crow (1982) , Don's last studio album.
***

The american musician and painter Don Van Vliet, also known as Captain Beefheart, passed away on December 17.
Rolling Stone reports that Van Vliet died from complications from multiple sclerosis. As a teenager Van Vliet met Frank Zappa, and they used to play music and hang out together. Van Vliet recorded a dozen studio albums between 1967 and 1982, the most well known is probably Trout Mask Replica (1969) which was produced by Zappa. Van Vliet's music was truly unique and included strong elements of blues and freeform jazz. In the early 80's he gave up music in disappointment over the business, and now he could concentrate on his painting carreer which turned out to be quite successful.

Captain Beefheart has passed away

blog.washingtonpost.com: Avant-garde icon Captain Beefheart passes away
telegraph.co.uk: Captain Beefheart dies age 69

Captain Beefheart on Wikipedia

The Captain Beefheart Radar Station

The Odyssey of Captain Beefheart: Rolling Stone's 1970 Cover Story

My Head Is My Only House Unless It Rains by RhinoRecords

"A great, timeless album is more than just an entertainment app"

Producer and artist Don Was on iTunes and the death of lines notes:

http://blogs.metrotimes.com/index.php/2010/12/don-was-on-itunes-and-the-death-of-liner-notes/

Code of Conduct for Moviegoers

From the very listenable film review show on BBC 5 Live; Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo's Film Reviews comes this video illustrating the much needed Code of Conduct for Moviegoers:

Here's a downloadable PDF-version and here are the links to the show's homepage and podcast.

Reminiscing... Padova and Perugia in 2009

Out of focus including some video stills ... but hey, I was there and enjoyed it! And did some reminiscing today some 17 months later and in the middle of winter:

(Photos: Jim Fisk) - Previously published here with some additional ramblings.

Open note to Walter Becker:

Dear Walter,

Please consider updating your excellent homepage.

Google Alerts - although self-inflicted/invited - that combines "Walter Becker" with words like "obituary" and "funeral", cause severe distress to the Radio Dupree staff for those few seconds it takes to decipher the alerts in question:


May we suggest a brief news item along the lines of

-----------------
Busy...
----------------

It wouldn't take that long to post. And even better is that it wouldn't give anything away about whatever new projects are being worked on. Consequently not deriding any elaborate release and marketing scheme being fine-tuned as we type.

Thanks in advance and have a great weekend.

/The Radio Dupree WB section ... fraction ... portion

Rare Pink Floyd 1967 live recording discovered

A very rare live recording by the original Pink Floyd with Syd Barrett will be played in public at the Gyllene Cirkeln club in Stockholm, Sweden in May 2011.
Dagens Nyheter reports that it is a nearly 50 minutes long previously unknown live recording of Pink Floyd's appearance at the same venue in Stockholm on September 10, 1967.
A Swedish sound engineer taped the show on his Revox machine.
The public playback shows will take place on May 3 and 7. Should be a real Pink Floyd fest for the fans, since Roger Waters is playing two Stockholm gigs on May 4 and 5.

UPDATE May 1, 2011: Radio Dupree is attending the May 7 "gig". Watch this blog in May for our reports from before, during and after the show in Stockholm.

Weekend video: 4'33 silence UK Christmas #1 in 2010?

The above video of John Cage's piece 4'33 is to give you a glimpse what might become the 2010 Christmas number one in the United Kingdom. Our question is how it will play on the radio? We promise to add the upcoming recorded version to the Radio Dupree Xmassy playlist! :)

Read more here:
This year's comedy Xmas No. 1 contender: Silent song 4'33"

Gail Zappa answers questions from the fans

Interesting answers to a whole bunch of questions from Frank's fans.

Radio Dupree Top 20 - December 2010

1. Donald Fagen - What I Do - Morph The Cat

2. Frank Zappa - Envelopes - Hammersmith Odeon

3. Frank Zappa - Bobby Brown - Hammersmith Odeon

4. Frank Zappa - Don't Eat The Yellow Snow - Halloween

5. Frank Zappa - He Used To Cut The Grass - Joe's Garage

6. Frank Zappa - Dinah-Moe Humm - Halloween

7. Frank Zappa - Sharleena - The Lost Episodes

8. The Doors - Strange Days - Strange Days

9. Mahavishnu Orchestra - Cosmic Strut - Visions Of The Emerald Beyond

10. Brand X - Cambodia - Do They Hurt?

11. Jethro Tull - Dharma For One - Living In The Past
12. Allan Holdsworth - The Un-Merry-Go-Round (edit) - Metal Fatigue
13. Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention - The Dog Breath Variations - Uncle Meat
14. Pink Floyd - Flaming - The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn
15. Mark King - Clocks Go Forward - Influences
16. George Duke - Seeing You - My Soul - The Complete MPS Fusion Recordings
17. Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention - Eat That Question - Grand Wazoo
18. Frank Zappa - Wedding Dress Song/The Handsome Cabin Boy - Mystery Disc
19. Brad Smith - Speak To Me/Breathe - MOON8
20. The Beatles - Here Comes The Sun/The Inner Light - Love

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Chart compiled by listeners voting
on the songs they hear on Radio Dupree

Last month's Zappa-centric chart (six out of 20 being FZ-songs) got beat good this time around with close to half of the Radio Dupree Top 20 consisting of Zappa. Nine songs to be precise.
Could it be our coverage of the Hammersmith Odeon release has lured a few more Zappa fans to tune in? Whatever reason more listeners listening to Radio Dupree more often is a good thing!

Looking at the rest of the chart there's a distinct retro-feel to it. The number one; What I Do from Donald Fagen's Morph The Cat is the youngest being a "mere" four years and nine months old by now.

As the full contents of Hammersmith Odeon is now hitting our playlist, is it to great a dare predicting Frank Zappa to rule next month as well? Be here in 30 days for the answer, and earlier and often to listen and vote on the songs played.

Mail from Gail

Gail Zappa would respond to 50 fan questions at Zappa.com before Christmas.
One member of the Radio Dupree staff took the chance...and got a response! Cool!
The reply was very short, BUT gives hope!!