For years and more years I wondered how amazingly cool it would be for Al to do a style parody of Frank Zappa. I just thought that would be the ultimate. I figured it would never happen, because as talented as Al is, I thought that doing a faithful Frank pastiche would be too much work even for him. Zappa's stuff just may be the most difficult rock music for anyone to perform. That's why Frank always had the finest players in the world around him - it was out of necessity. (which is the mother of invention!
)Fast forward to May 20, 2003. That's when Al released his Poodle Hat album. I remember the date because in addition to that CD, I bought a brand new car during the same trip. The Nissan dealership was right across the street from the Tower Records. I drove home in my new wheels, turned on the PC, slotted the disc and went all happy happy while I did other computer things. Initial listenings of new Al-bums have always been nothing less than life highlights.
I get to the last track, called "Genius in France." It's a song about how a really stupid guy goes to France and becomes loved and revered by everyone. It's kicking along, it's got some good moron jokes in it, it's punctuated with some wacky sound effects, hey, cool song. Another great origin-Al tune. Then at around one minute into it, there's a bit with some crazy rapid-fire synth and percussion noises, a duck call and some wailing horns. I think "hey, that sounds kinda familiar..." and then I sit there absolutely stupified as it finally dawns on me - Al is doing Frank Zappa.
I'm going 8-ball bonkers at this point. From then on, it just becomes more and more obvious that it's a Frank tribute. Ooh, there's "Inca Roads." Hey, I recognize that bit from Sheik Yerbouti. Ah yes, the pitch-shifted harmonies! The obligatory booming, low-register talking bit! I'm out of my freaking mind by now.
This song means a lot to me. It is truly one of my treasured musical moments.
YouTube fanvid for "Genius in France" That's Dweezil Zappa playing that opening guitar solo.
This is part of a week-long series on the "style parodies" of "Weird Al" Yankovic.
