University of Virginia Library

'Hot Rats, Live Dead'
Await Public Praise

By Bruce Heflin

Frank Zappa and Jerry Garcia
have probably had as large an
influence upon the contemporary
hard rock scene as any two
individuals could have, yet to the
"straight" world their talent lies
very much undiscovered.

"Hot Rats" and "Live Dead" are
the latest releases of Zappa and The
Grateful Dead, respectively, and
while these two albums represent
some of the finest recorded performances
of both, they have generally
been overlooked by both the press
and public.

Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention
will be remembered as
being lewd, crude and ugly, which
they were; and as brilliant musical
and social satirists, which is true as
well, and certainly more relevant.
These factors, however, tended to
overshadow the Mothers' music,
which was a very competent exploration
of jazz, classical, electronic,
and rock tunes. The creative force
for all of the Mothers' ventures was
Zappa, with his slashing wit, innovative
composition, and superlative
guitar work. He disbanded the
group last year, as he became tired
of unappreciative audiences and
what he felt was the general musical
obtuseness of his public.

Solo Effort

"Hot Rats" is the first solo
effort by the scourge of Bow Tie
Daddy America, and he has kept
Ian Underwood from the old group
on keyboards and reeds to compliment
his writing and playing. Other
"sidemen" of note are Shuggy Otis,
the fifteen year old wonderboy, on
bass, Jean Lue Ponty on violin, and
Captain Beefheart, vocals.

The album is all Frank Zappa,
though. He wrote all of the
material, produced the recording,
and his playing is little short of
amazing. He is the man who first
made extensive use of the wah-wah
pedal (yes, even before Hendrix)
and utilizes it superbly on cuts such
as "Willie The Pimp," a flowing,
absorbing number. His solo on
"Son of Mr. Green Genes" is
explosive and at times had me
convinced that he was the finest
guitarist that I have had the
pleasure of being knocked out by.

Some Dead Weight

The Grateful Dead, like The
Mothers, have never shown the
alacrity for hype that so many
groups fall prey to, yet they have
been playing together and creating
longer than any San Francisco
group now in existence. From Ken
Kesey's Acid Tests to Owsley and
finally Woodstock and beyond, the
Dead has been an innovative and
intricate part of what heavy music
is about. Their live performances
are memorable events, and it seems
peculiar that the group has not
succeeded in capturing that excitement
on record.

"Live Dead" is their latest
attempt in producing an album
comparable to their concerts, and
nearly succeeds. "Saint Stephen,"
"The Eleven," and "Turn on Your
Love Tight" are as driving and
potent rock as will be found
anywhere. Jerry Garcia's guitar
breaks lift and push the group's
sound, which is firmly supported
by Phil Lesh's bass and two
drummers. "Dark Star" is long,
perhaps too much so, but features
some inventive styling by Garcia,
while "Death Don't Have No
Mercy" and "Feedback" are sonorous
and dull.

Overall, the album fails to quite
fulfill the promise of a live effort
by the Dead, is enough good
material for a one record set, but as
it is, there is some dead weight that
needs paring.