Frank Zappa's versions of songs by The Beatles, some gorgeous versions of Zappa's own tunes and the sound quality itself are the strong point of this new album.
This 2 CD/4 LP set Zappa '88: The last U.S. Show consists of the entire show at Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, N.Y. 3/25 1988. Well, two songs have been replaced with versions from other shows, since it seems like Dweezil Zappa was not satisfied with his guitar playing on the Nassau Coliseum recording.
On this his last tour Zappa played surprisingly many "covers". Well, for several tours he had played the Allman Brothers' Whipping Post, usually saved for an encore. But here we get several songs that must have come as a big surprise for the audience; A medley of Beatles tunes – Norwegian Wood, Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds, Strawberry Fields Forever – with new lyrics, I'm The Walrus with original lyrics, Ravel's Bolero and Led Zeppelin's Stairway To Heaven, plus a few others.
During this 2½ hours long show we also get classic Zappa tunes as Inca Roads and The Black Page (a "new age" version). But the ones that really make my heart melt are Sofa and When The Lie's So Big. Just beautiful!
Frank had very high thoughts about the abilities of this touring unit, but there were previous bands that were better (i.m.o.). To be honest the '88 band often lacked groove and didn't really "rock", Some of the songs sound over-arranged or over-played, if you know what I mean. Everybody do not have to play all the time.
Let's face it, Frank would never have released a concert in its entirity like this, since besides the songs that sound great we also get to hear the mistakes and the solos that didn't really go anywhere. But on the other hand it's cool to hear how a whole show sounded...AND the sound quality of this album is also better than the previous releases from the '88 tour.
S. Huckle
