Frank Zappa - Over-Nite Sensation
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Free Music Notes for Over-Nite Sensation
Free Music Review: Pass the zircon encrusted tweezers, thanks
Hit: 5 Stars
"Your mind is totally controlled. It has been stuffed into my mold, and you will do as you are told. Until the rights to you are sold." Has there every been a better criticism of televison than "I am the Slime?" Over-Night Sensation is the one album to have if you're not a total Zappa head. It has some of his best known (and great) songs including the silly sexual send-ups "Dina Moe Hum" and "Dirty Love": "Give me some dirty love, like some tacky little pamphlet in your Daddy's bottom drawer." I purchased ONS sometime in the last century when I was fifteen and I got in serious (...) with my Mom for cranking Dinah Moe Hum up in the house with my friends. I don't think she thought it was very funny.I hadn't heard this album in years and just gave a listen, damn if there isn't some fantastic fusion inflected rock to be found there-in. I'd forgotten how creative the music and arrangements are. Great drumming by Ralph Humphries, the excellent keyboards of George Duke, Ruth Underwoods lightning marimba and violin courtesy of John Luc Ponty. Not to mention the marvelous bass and horn players and some of Zappa's most smoking leads ever. What a great tone he has on this album - excellent wah playing (waka jawaka). I love his distorted leads on "Zomby Woof," and of course "Moving to Montana," a song about a gentleman dental floss farmer. Its silly sure, buts its funny and has great instrumental bits and melody. Humor and real instrumental muscle equals essential Zappa.
People have criticised this album for the silly sexual songs, so what, they're funny and freaking grooving. Check out the funky backing track worthy of Sly or '70s period Miles behind the "busy" part of Dina Moe Hum. I recently saw George Clinton and the P-funk alstars and they quoted a lengthy bit of Zomby Woof! So "do as you are told" and buy this album.
"The poodle bites, the poodle chews it. Not a speck of cereal for my dog."
Free Music Review: Often panned as too commercial, it's really a brilliant coup
Hit: 5 Stars
"Over-nite Sensation" was a blatant tongue-in-cheek title for this recording because Frank Zappa knew that was exactly what this recording would become in his catalogue: an overnight sensation. And that's what it did, became Zappa's best selling and most popular album at the time of its release, gathering him an entire new group of fans to both ridicule and entertain. It was also a logical step in Zappa's evolution as both a musician and composer.Often panned by many Zappaphiles as being too commercial, the album nonetheless contains some of Zappa's most brilliant satire as well as some of his tightest compositions. If you are new to Zappa, or are just moderately familiar with some of his tunes, this is the album to begin with. But don't be fooled by the seemingly simple riffs and hooks employed in these songs. As singer Ricky Lancelotti chants on Fifty-fifty: "I figure the odds be fifty-fifty that I just might have something to say!" Because in this album Zappa takes his most succinct stab at popular culture. His satire on America's pop culture was so cunning that he even managed to gain a guest appearance on Saturday Night Live on NBC and played "The Slime", a scathing commentary on the innane content of today's (and yesterday's) television programming. Talk about irony!
But perhaps what makes this recording so exceptional is the tight musicianship of the players, and the exceptional skill displayed by the players. Zappa's guitar solos on Zomby Woof and Montana still give me shivers up and down my spine, and despite being 42, I still have to crank the volume when these tunes come on.
Out of Zappa's entire catalogue, this was his most brilliant and most complete package. He had many other fine recordings, but none quite repeat the brilliance this release had. If I could give it six stars I would, just to set it apart from the others that I rate with five stars.
Free Music Review: Short & Sweet
Hit: 5 Stars
As promised in the title I will keep this review short and sweet (much like this album). A lot of reviewers are going on about how this album showcases all facets of Zappa's musical genius. This is hardly Zappa's deepest album musically or lyrically. A lot of people have said this album includes examples of Frank's "jazz" prowess - which is just STUPID.
This album is Frank's most commercial, to the point, rock/pop album ever released. This album does NOT showcase Frank's most complex arrangements, his jazz majesty or the depth of his varied musical influence.......etc., etc. This is a straight forward rock/pop Zappa album. But there is no shame in that! It is a perfect Zappa album,.....full of well written songs, masterful guitar solo's, humor, satire, catchy riffs and insanely TIGHT musicianship. It is a great listen and very accessible to the new Zappa listener (maybe the most accessible album for a newbie Zappa listener). It doesn't have the jazz prowess or complex arrangements of Hots Rats, Waka Jawaka or The Grand Wazoo,....nor does it have the lyrical brilliance of Joe's Garage or You Are What You Is. But what this album does have is 7 incredibly catchy rock/pop songs that feature incredible musicianship and humorous lyrical content. This and Apostrophe are the perfect starter set for the new Zappa listener. This album is an essential part of any Zappa collection,.....or any rock music collection for that matter. If you love great music and great musicianship than this album should already be in your collection.
Free Music Review: Gonna Be A Mental Toss Flycoon
Hit: 5 Stars
The myth is that if you liked the oldest Zappa albums made with the original Mothers of Invention, you were supposed to hate his stuff from this era. Well, I'm here to tell you that it's nothing but a myth. I love Freak Out, We're Only In It For The Money and all that old stuff, and I love Overnight Sensation too. This album has an interesting mix of theme and execution. The band was fully adept at the genres of guitar-driven rock and avant jazz. The song lyrics were not written to solve the world's problems, but they were instead clear descriptions of the human condition, delivered with cynical, satirical wit.Some of the lyrics from these tunes became essential phraseology for the keepers of the faith, those that locked into this incarnation of Zappa's band. From Camarillo Brillo, it was: "Is that a real poncho or a Sears poncho?" and "We did it till we were unconcho, and it was useless anymore". From Dina-moe-humm, it was: "How 'bout you, Fauna, ya wanna?" and "Sounds like you're chokin' on somethin'." And of course, "Gonna be a mental toss flycoon" from Montana.
Like Eddie said in the first Cruisers movie: "Words and music, Word-man" - and that's what makes Overnight Sensation the album it is. Not the Dylan type poetry, because that wouldn't fit Frank's music in the first place. Nope, it took one as unique as Zappa to write the incredible guitar on Dirty Love and combine it with the sexual perversions of poodle logic, yielding a masterpiece of fusion. The entire album is consistently excellent, completely complete in every way.
Free Music Review: Have enjoyed listening to it for 36 years, and counting.
Hit: 5 Stars
I've been a FZ fan since I was in 8th grade. I originally bought Overnight Sensation on 8-track when I was a high school senior, back in '73, and literally played it to death. Which wasn't too touch when you consider how flaky 8-tracks were. I replaced it with a quadraphonic 8-track version in '76 and bought it again on vinyl when I bought my Technics Quartz SL10 turntable in '79. I copied it onto a series of cassettes until I finally got it on CD in '88. I've purchased it on CD 3 times since then, but somehow the CDs end up missing. As I write this, a new one is waiting in my "Cart" for me to finalize the transaction.
Just for fun I've read some of the negative reviews of this album, which seem to have been written by joyless pseudo intellectual douches. Just the type of person the late Mr. Z targeted... NOT!!!!! I've found this album to be the ideal introductory album for bringing new-found fans into the fold. It's tame enough for younger teens to sample and enjoy, though Dyna-Mo Hum could perceived as be a bit too raunchy, there's still no actual "profanity" on the album. It's amazing to see someone who has grown up under the prevalence of rap, hear I'm The Slime for the first time and identify Frank's brilliant pre-rap "rap".
IMHO there's not really a bad song on the whole album, though I still have my reservations about Montana. It's a solid album and I have thoroughly enjoyed listening to it for 36 years, and counting.