Zappa's Hot Rats Sessions on Spotify now

The music on the 6 CD set is now available for streaming on Spotify.

https://open.spotify.com/album/5HtSs1Y0MsCTPHpXBvVS2t?si=o9tUcFuKTrCs3HwWnQN0DQ

The classic Frank Zappa album has been released as a 6 CD set with lots of outtakes and previously unreleased stuff from the original recording sessions.

https://radiodupree.blogspot.com/2019/10/coming-soon-zappas-hot-rats-sessions.html

Rarities from the upcoming Hot Rats 6 CD set

Two tracks from the upcoming Frank Zappa Hot Rats Sessions 6 CD set are now available on Spotify.
The set will be released any day now (December 20) but here we can enjoy two familiar tunes but in a different form than we are used to.

https://open.spotify.com/album/58WGMvTSHZZ2esJrZuHc98?si=9z8EcIVtS4idWHQd_PK-7g

• Dame Margaret's Son To Be A Bride
  (1969 quick mix)
  This piece is actually the basic tracks for the song Lemme Take You To The Beach (Studio Tan 1978). The strange song title seems to refer to actress Margaret Rutherford's adopted son Gordon Langley Hall. He had sex reassignment surgery in 1968 and married a man in the US. 

• It Must Be A Camel (1969 mix outtake)

https://radiodupree.blogspot.com/2019/10/coming-soon-zappas-hot-rats-sessions.html

Adrian Belew and Jerry Harrison on tour with Talking Heads music

40th anniversary. Adrian Belew and Jerry Harrison will take the 1980 Talking Heads album Remain in Light on the road. Jerry Harrison played guitar in the group and ex Bowie guitarist Adrian Belew plays on two Talking Heads albums, one of them the excellent Remain in Light.

Read the full story here:
https://www.loudersound.com/news/adrian-belew-teams-up-with-jerry-harrison-to-tour-remain-in-light

Science: The Beatles 'Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da' is the perfect pop song

The Beatles song ‘Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da’ has been declared the most perfect pop song.

Scientists at the Max Planck Institute came to that conclusion after analysing 80,000 different chord progressions from 700 songs.

The Radio Dupree staff was flabbergasted to read this, since we do not really rate that particular songs as top notch Beatles material.

NME has the whole story: https://www.nme.com/news/music/the-beatles-ob-la-di-ob-la-da-is-the-perfect-pop-song-according-to-science-2566089

Listen to Zappa's Halloween 73 here

Fans report that the new Zappa release has started to reach the mailboxes this week, just in time for Halloween.
You can also listen to the entire set on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/album/06yMFGU576WBYxc4Cdm1uq?si=6rVyBgHiRGW31zhVJTCaTw

One track is also on YouTube (Dupree's Paradise):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nFZQSG6hrPc

Halloween 73 is a four CD set with two shows (including one disc of rehearsals) from 1973, featuring the Roxy band with George Duke, Ruth Underwood and others.

https://radiodupree.blogspot.com/2019/09/coming-soon-zappa-live-in-chicago-1973.html

Donald Fagen on AXS TV today

If you live where AXS TV is available you can catch Paul Shaffer Plus One this evening (8/7c US time) featuring Steely Dan's Donald Fagen. Expect this to happen during the 30 minute show:

Donald Fagen is joining Paul Shaffer to talk about his relationship with Becker, his songwriting process, and even share a few secrets behind their hit, “Reelin’ in the Years”. 

Here's a short teaser:

Coming soon: Zappa's Hot Rats sessions box set

50TH ANNIVERSARY. The classic Frank Zappa album will be released as a 6 CD set with lots of previously unreleased stuff from the original recording sessions.

For years fans have been asking if there are any unreleased recordings from the 1969 Hot Rats sessions. And now we got the answer. 

The box set includes material like mono singles, rare mixes, longer versions of original Hot Rats tracks and promotional audio ads for the LP. 

It includes tracks as the instrumental jam piece Bognor Regis, which has never been officially released but has circulated on the internet for several years.

A track from the box set is already published on YouTube, a different mix of It Must Be A Camel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=4&v=1HP5i4dxZP4

zappa.com: https://store.zappa.com/the-hot-rats-sessions-box-set-preorder.html#product.info.description

Release date: December 20.

Coming soon: Zappa live in Chicago 1973

Yet another interesting Frank Zappa release is on its way. A four CD set with two shows from 1973, featuring the Roxy band with George Duke, Ruth Underwood and others.

zappa.com says: 
"Now for the first time ever, Zappa’s two complete Halloween shows recorded on October 31, 1973 in Chicago, will be released on October 25 via Zappa Records/UMe, just in time for Halloween."

https://www.zappa.com/news/frank-zappas-halloween-shows-recorded-live-1973-auditorium-theater-chicago-be-released-first

Dweezil Zappa's Hot Rats tour set list

Soon it is time for take off for Dweezil Zappa's Hot Rats tour.  And besides the songs on the classic Hot Rats album there will be plenty of more music.
First date is Mississauga, Ontario, Canada on September 3rd. After touring Canada and the US the tour hits Europe in November.

Dweezil has published some cool rehearsal footage on instagram, including a set list. DZ continues to explore his father's music, and has picked up some rare songs for the upcoming shows (as well as more well known ones). How about the instrumental Phyniox (Joe's Camouflage 2014), Brown Moses (Thing-Fish 1984) and Dwarf Nebula (Weasels Ripped My Flesh 1970).

Woodstock festival finally cancelled

The festival that was going to be a celebration of the original 1969 New York State event has now been officially cancelled.

Many artists have dropped out so this may not come as a surprise.

Woodstock 50 had initially booked artists as John Fogerty, Miley Cyrus and Jay-Z.

It was cancelled two weeks before it was planned to start.

Zappa's Orchestral Favorites as 3 CD set

40th anniversary edition.
A 3 CD set of Frank Zappa's Orchestral favorites album will be released in mid August.

It features the remastered original album with a bonus live concert from the Royce Hall event of 1975. It includes a 32 page booklet featuring liner notes by Terry Bozzio and photos from the performances.

DISC 1:
ORIGINAL ALBUM
40th Anniversary Remaster

Strictly Genteel
Pedro’s Dowry
Naval Aviation in Art?
Duke of Prunes
Bogus Pomp

BONUS TRACK:
Strictly Genteel (Keyboard OD Version)
The Abnuceals Emuukha Electric Symphony Orchestra live at Royce Hall, September 18th, 1975

DISC 2:

Show Start/Bogus Pomp Explained
Bogus Pomp
Revised Music for Low-Budget Symphony Orchestra
The Story of Pedro’s Dowry
Pedro’s Dowry
The Story of Rollo
Rollo

DISC 3: 

Black Napkins Instructions
Black Napkins
Dog/Meat
The Players
Naval Aviation in Art?
“Another Weirdo Number”
Lumpy Gravy (Extract)/Improvisation
Evening at the Hermitage
“A Special Guest Artist”
Duke of Prunes
“Absolutely Disgusting”
The Adventures of Greggery Peccary
Strictly Genteel

https://store.zappa.com/orchestral-favorites-40th-anniversary-edition-cd-set.html

Thousands of recordings by great artists lost in fire

The 2008 fire at Universal Studios in Hollywood destroyed so much more than the company first reported. According to The New York Times Magazine, the fire also tore through an archive housing treasured audio recordings, amounting to what the piece described as “the biggest disaster in the history of the music business.”

Read the full story here:

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/11/us/master-recordings-universal-fire.html?smid=fb-nytimes&smtyp=cur&fbclid=IwAR1vMCzAhRZlrw8xc98sTSgEehIRyh4dPJIg_diUK6XXfkc_-uGpqdQyYhM

Classic King Crimson albums now on Spotify

The number of King Crimson albums available on streaming media Spotify has been quite limited, but now most of the classic albums (Red, In the Court of the Crimson King, Discipline and more) can be found there.

https://open.spotify.com/album/0G4xbbwtdfZGV0cLN4y8SP?si=MBXjax1NQcO9mYsjhrdtuw&fbclid=IwAR05V_GRAfoxrxnF-T-jb9ZbFf_8fDU7utyNTXzVCA3Z2NoegMkBFpxfdps

Steely Dan Facebook shutdown

In other Internet news the official Steely Dan page on Facebook with over 900 000 followers and opened in April 2011 has been shut down. People are adviced to go to steelydanofficial.com and sign up for the mailing list to stay informed about the bands whereabouts and plans.

This is exactly the opposite of what happened to donaldfagen.com, that for a few years now has sent all clicks to Facebook and https://www.facebook.com/DonaldFagenMusic/-

However, typing in donalfagen.com this evening sent us to the same steelydanofficial.com site, so … will Donald Fagen's page on Facebook close next?

Steely Dan returns to The Beacon Theatre in October

Photo from the show in 2011 (*)

Yes, Steely Dan will do another set of shows at The Beacon, New York this October.
Six nights between the 15 and 22 with the tried and tested one album a night approach.

This time around the audience can enjoy hearing the following albums played from start to finish: Aja, The Royal Scam, The Nightfly and Gaucho with one night branded Greatest Hits and one called Popular Demand (a thinly disguised Greatest Hits evening).

Tickets go on sale Friday May 3. But if you are an American Express cardmember you can get your tickets Tuesday April 30.

More on the shows here:

https://steelydanofficial.com/#!/news/298361

(*) If you're curious about the September, 2011 show were we took the attached photo - and enjoyed the music - just go here:
https://radiodupree.blogspot.com/2011/09/steely-dan-rarities-night-september-17.html

Zappa bodyguard John Smothers dies

Frank Zappa's bodyguard John Smothers has passed away. Frank's son Ahmet told the news on WNST radio recently.

Smothers (b. 1930) was more than a bodyguard. Besides being an efficient guard he became a part of the folklore around Zappa much thanks to his strong personality and unique language. Zappa even wrote a song about him, Dong Work For Yuda.

Smothers is featured in Zappa's film Baby Snakes which was shot in 1977, and in We Don't Mess Around filmed in Austria 1978 where he also is interviewed. This is how he describes Zappa:

"He's one of the best guys I done worked for.  I done worked for the Rolling Stones, The Beatles, The Beach Boys, Elvis, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sister Soul, Temptations, I done worked for them all in the last 22 years. Frank is about the be- about the best one."

Dweezil Zappa announces Hot Rats tour

Dweezil Zappa announces his Hot Rats tour with several European dates.
In September he will tour Canada and the US (mainly the east coast) and then it is off to Europe. 

Here are some of the European dates (list not complete):

Cirkus, Stockholm, Sweden, November 21
Konserthuset, Gothenburg, Sweden, November 24
Oslo, Norway, November 25
Århus, Denmark November 27
Amager bio, Copenhagen, November 28

London’s Royal Festival Hall, December 4
Manchester’s Palace Theatre December 5
Southampton’s O2 Guildhall December 6
Oxford’s New Theatre December 8
Glasgow’s Royal Concert Hall December 9
Leeds’s Town Hall December 10
Birmingham’s Town Hall on December 11

Review: Premiere of the Zappa hologram tour

How good is the Zappa hologram tour? Here is a link to a review of the premiere night on April 19, 2019 in Port Chester, N.Y.
https://consequenceofsound.net/2019/04/live-review-frank-zappa-hologram-tour-kickoff-2019/?fbclid=IwAR3nauQ1vjLnrlFHCIl7YCJ_Ykv8MXbKLqR6f-RVmy79kKVxf27V3bci0PI

Former Pink Floyd members reunite on stage

What a surprise! Nick Mason and Roger Waters on stage together again. That was what happened yesterday on April 18 at The Beacon Theatre, N.Y.C.

The unexpected moment took place during a concert with drummer Nick Mason's band Saucerful of Secrets.
The person that filmed what happened describes it like this:

...as I was zooming on Nick I just heard the sudden "AAAAHHHH" and noticed out of the corner of my eye a tall black figure cross the stage!

Roger Waters entered the stage. He gave Nick Mason a big hug and performed Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun with Mason and the band.

Since Waters and the other Floyd members have not been on too friendly terms the last decades this must be seen as a historic Pink Floyd moment!

Donald Fagen: The producer. Peter More's "Shoulder"

Seven months ago the Donald Fagen produced album Beautiful Disrepair was released,
Now three more tracks from the recording sessions appear as an EP with the title track being Shoulder:



In this article in Rollings Stone Peter says that Donald Fagen was amazing to work with.

"He really thrives being in the studio and getting the most out of each guy in the room. He's such a fun person to work with 'cause he's so bright and he's so tasteful.
His ears are picking up on all sorts so stuff that sometimes you're not hearing at first -- anything from how he mic'd the drums or the amps to doing harmonies. But there's a certainly sort of ease to it because everybody's having a good time. It was sort of like a crash course in recording music for us."

Record Store Day 2019!

Just a friendly reminder that Saturday April 13 is Record Store Day 2019.

As usual a bunch of special limited  vinyl releases will be on offer. We've found a handful couple of records we'd like to get our hands on. Here's the complete list:

https://recordstoreday.com/SpecialReleases

Download a pdf of the list:

https://s3.amazonaws.com/recordstoreday/2019/2019_RSD_PUBLIC.pdf

Di Leva plays Bowie: Pin Ups changed my life

David Bowie was the artist that inspired the young Thomas Di Leva (now longtime Swedish musician) to get into music. On March 22 Radio Dupree attended one of the shows of Di Leva's Changes tour.

– When I was a boy I saw a record with a remarkable cover in a store. It jumped out and into my heart. It was Pin Ups. I convinced my mom to buy it and it made me pick up the guitar and dare to sing, and so I became an artist, said Di Leva in a radio interview some week ago.

Last year Di Leva performed his 100 percent Bowie programme in a venue in Stockholm. This year he took the show outside the Swedish capital.

It was a surprisingly good show.
Great band and performance.
They opened up with Ziggy Stardust. Powerful, but the lead and backing vocals were a bit out of synch. But from that point the band worked like a well synchronized machine.
Highlights came half an hour into the show with Ashes to Ashes, Fame, Fashion and Let's Dance.

//S.H.

Here are the dates for the Zappa hologram tour

“The Bizarre World Of Frank Zappa” hologram tour will make its debut this April in the U.S. The nine U.S. shows kick off Friday, April 19, with seven European shows in May to follow. 

U.S. dates:

4/19 Port Chester, NY Capitol Theater
4/20 Rochester, NY Kodak Center Theater
4/22 Red Bank, NJ Count Basie
4/24 Long Island, NY Paramount Theatre
4/26 Boston, MA Shubert
4/28 Albany, NY The Palace Theatre
5/01 Wilkes Barre, PA Kirby Center
5/02 Collingswood, NJ Scottish Rite Auditorium
5/03 Baltimore, MD The Modell Lyric

European dates:

5/09 Edinburgh, UK Playhouse
5/11 Gateshead, UK Sage
5/12 Manchester, UK Bridgewater Hall
5/13 Birmingham, UK Symphony Hall
5/14 London, UK The Palladium
5/16 Ostend, BE Kurssal
5/17 Amsterdam, NL Rai Theater

More info here!

Sneak preview of upcoming Zappa In New York set

Wanna hear The Purple Lagoon/Any Kind of Pain from the upcoming de luxe set of Zappa in New York?

Here's the link. Enjoy!
https://open.spotify.com/track/07yIfpo35iCTTpYfffHQAE

Zappa in New York – 40th anniversary edition – 5 CD's
https://radiodupree.blogspot.com/2018/12/zappa-in-new-york-40th-anniversary.html

Happy 50th anniversary – King Crimson!

50 years ago on January 13th 1969, the first rehearsal of the group King Crimson took place.
This first incarnation of the group (yes, it still exists but of course with a different line up) was short lived, however.
They played their first concert in July, released their ground breaking first album In the Court of the Crimson King in October, and was disbanded in December the same year.

Since the first line up of the band, and their classic prog rock debut with the very iconic cover (see above photo) the band has gone through numerous incarnations and changes of musical style. But King Crimson is still working and touring, with guitarist Robert Fripp being the only consistent member.
And they're still a damn good band!

Happy 71, Donald Fagen!

Donald Fagen at the ASCAP Jazz Hall Of Fame ceremony in NYC on June 14, 2010. Performance of "Florida Room", award presentation by Johnny Mandel and Valerie Simpson, and acceptance speech.