Editing Frank Zappa (section)

===Business breakups and touring===
{{see also|Zoot Allures|Zappa in New York|Studio Tan|Sleep Dirt|Orchestral Favorites}}
In 1976, Zappa produced the album ''[[Good Singin', Good Playin']]'' for [[Grand Funk Railroad]]. Zappa's relationship with long-time manager Herb Cohen ended in May 1976.<ref name=chron76>{{cite web |url=http://www.donlope.net/fz/chronology/1976-1980.html |title=Zappa chronology 1976-1980 |work=donlope.net |access-date=December 17, 2021}}</ref> After Cohen cashed one of Zappa's royalty checks from Warner and kept the money for himself, Zappa sued Cohen.<ref name=lafp77>{{cite web |url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1977-12_LAFP.htm |title=Zappa takes aim for the New Year |first=M. B. |last=Kleber |work=Los Angeles Free Press, December 30, 1977 |access-date=December 1, 2022}}</ref> Zappa was also upset with Cohen for signing acts he did not approve.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|250}}<ref name=valleynews>{{cite web |url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1977-12_The_Valley_News.htm |title=Frank Zappa – A Would-be Chemist Who Turned to Music |first=Rip |last=Rense |work=The Valley News, December 30, 1977 |access-date=December 17, 2021}}</ref> Cohen filed a lawsuit against Zappa in return, which froze the money the pair were expecting to receive from an out-of-court settlement with [[MGM Records|MGM]]/[[Verve Records|Verve]] over the rights to Zappa's early [[Mothers of Invention]] recordings. The MGM settlement was finalized in mid-1977 after two years of negotiations.<ref name=dmreg77>{{cite web |url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1977-09_The_Des_Moines_Register.htm |title=Zappa presents 'zircon-incrusted' concert season |first=Jim |last=Healey |work=Des Moines Register, September 24, 1977 |access-date=January 31, 2022}}</ref> Litigation with Cohen also prevented Zappa having access to any of his previously recorded material during the trials. Zappa therefore took his personal master copies of the album ''[[Zoot Allures]]'' (1976) directly to Warner, while bypassing DiscReet.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|253, 258–259}} Following the split with Cohen, Zappa hired Bennett Glotzer as new manager.<ref name=melmak77>{{cite web |url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1977-01_Melody_Maker.htm |title=I'll give the Queen a backstage pass |first=Chris |last=Charlesworth |work=Melody Maker – January 1, 1977 |access-date=July 4, 2022}}</ref>

By late 1976, Zappa was upset with Warner over inadequate promotion of his recordings and he was eager to move on as soon as possible.<ref name=mumedia>{{cite web |url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1976-12_Music_Media.htm |title=The Frankness of Zappa |first=Scott |last=Hopkins |work=Music Media, December, 1976 |access-date=January 20, 2022}}</ref> In March 1977, Zappa delivered four albums (five full-length LPs) to Warner to complete his contract: ''[[Zappa in New York]]'' (a 2-LP set), ''[[Studio Tan]]'', ''[[Sleep Dirt]]'' and ''[[Orchestral Favorites]]''.<ref name=valleynews/> These albums contained recordings mostly made between 1972 and 1976. Warner failed to meet contractual obligations to Zappa, and in response he filed a multi-million dollar breach of contract lawsuit.<ref name="Collage77">{{cite web |url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1977-12_Collage.htm |title=Frank Zappa Interview |first=Michael |last=Branton |work=Collage, December 1977 |access-date=April 9, 2022}}</ref> During a lengthy legal debate, Warner eventually released the four disputed albums during 1978 and 1979, ''Zappa in New York'' having been censored to remove references to guitarist [[Punky Meadows]]. Following the split with Warner, Zappa reconfigured the four disputed albums, along with some other material, into a quadruple album called ''[[Läther]]'' (pronounced "leather") and negotiated distribution with [[Phonogram Inc.]] for release on the new [[Zappa Records]] label. ''Läther'' was scheduled for release on [[Halloween]] 1977, but legal action from Warner forced Zappa to shelve this project.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|261}}

In December 1977, Zappa appeared on the [[Pasadena, California]] radio station [[KROQ-FM]] and played the entire ''Läther'' album, while encouraging listeners to make tape recordings of the broadcast.<ref name="slaven03"/>{{rp|248}} The album integrates many aspects of Zappa's 1970s work: heavy rock, orchestral works, and complex jazz instrumentals, along with Zappa's distinctive guitar solos. ''Läther'' was officially released posthumously in 1996. It has been debated as to whether Zappa had conceived the material as a four-LP set from the beginning, or only later when working with Phonogram.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|267}}{{refn|group="nb"|When the music was first released on CD in 1991, Zappa chose to re-release the four individual albums.<ref name="watson05"/>{{rp|49}} In the liner notes to the 1996 release, Gail Zappa states that "As originally conceived by Frank, ''Läther'' was always a 4-record box set."}} Gail Zappa claimed in 1996 that ''Läther'' was Frank's original intention.<ref>Interview with Gail Zappa in the 2020 film "Zappa" produced by Alex Winter</ref> However, Zappa himself stated in an October 1978 radio interview that "''Läther'' was made out of four albums. Warners has released two of them already and they have two more that they're probably gonna release."<ref name=CFNY>{{cite web |url=http://www.donlope.net/fz/radio/1978-10-02_CFNY_Toronto.html|title=CFNY Interview |work=donlope.net |year=1978 |access-date=December 17, 2021}}</ref>

Although Zappa eventually gained the rights to all his material created under the MGM and Warner contracts,<ref name="watson05"/>{{rp|49}} the various lawsuits meant that for a period Zappa's only income came from touring, which he therefore did extensively in 1975–1977 with relatively small, mainly rock-oriented, bands.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|261}} Drummer [[Terry Bozzio]] became a regular band member, Napoleon Murphy Brock stayed on for a while, and original Mothers of Invention bassist [[Roy Estrada]] joined. Among other musicians were bassist [[Patrick O'Hearn]], singer-guitarist [[Ray White]] and former [[Roxy Music]] keyboardist/violinist [[Eddie Jobson]]. In December 1976, Zappa appeared as a featured musical guest on the [[NBC]] television show ''[[Saturday Night Live]]''.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|262}} Zappa's song "[[I'm the Slime]]" was performed with a voice-over by ''SNL'' booth announcer [[Don Pardo]], who also introduced "Peaches En Regalia" on the same airing. In 1978, Zappa served both as host and musical act on the show, and as an actor in various sketches. The performances included an impromptu musical collaboration with cast member [[John Belushi]] during the instrumental piece "The Purple Lagoon". Belushi appeared as his [[Saturday Night Live Samurai|Samurai Futaba]] character playing the tenor sax with Zappa conducting.<ref>Zappa, Frank, 1978, ''Zappa in New York'', Liner Notes.</ref> However, he earned a ban from the show after the latter episode because he had done what producers called "a disastrous job of hosting" (Zappa reportedly did not get along with cast and crew in the lead-up to recording, then told the audience he was simply reading from cue cards).<ref name="banned">{{cite news|last=Robinson|first=Anna|title=Why Frank Zappa was Banned from SNL|date=April 14, 2022|work=Grunge |url=https://www.grunge.com/832481/why-frank-zappa-was-banned-from-snl/}}</ref>
[[File:Frank Zappa in Toronto, Sept. 24 1977.jpg|thumb|left|Zappa in Toronto, 1977]]

Zappa's band had a series of Christmas shows in New York City in 1976, recordings of which appear on ''[[Zappa in New York]]'' and ''Läther''. The band included Ruth Underwood and a horn section (featuring [[Michael Brecker|Michael]] and [[Randy Brecker]]). It mixes complex instrumentals such as "[[The Black Page]]" and humorous songs like "Titties and Beer".<ref name="lowe"/>{{rp|132}} The former composition, written originally for drum kit but later developed for larger bands, is notorious for its complexity in rhythmic structure and short, densely arranged passages.<ref>{{cite thesis |url=http://etd.lib.fsu.edu/theses/available/etd-04122004-114345/unrestricted/zappathesis3.pdf |first=Brett |last=Clement |title=Little dots: A study of the melodies of the guitarist/composer Frank Zappa |type=Master's thesis |publisher=The Florida State University, School of Music |pages=25–48 |date=2004 |access-date=December 29, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216111952/http://etd.lib.fsu.edu/theses/available/etd-04122004-114345/unrestricted/zappathesis3.pdf |archive-date=February 16, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.richardhemmings.co.uk/001/research/zappology/saddaughter.html|first=Richard|last=Hemmings|title=Ever wonder why your daughter looked so sad? Non-danceable beats: getting to grips with rhythmical unpredictability in Project/Object|publisher=richardhemmings.co.uk|date=2006|access-date=October 3, 2016|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081012123657/http://www.richardhemmings.co.uk/001/research/zappology/saddaughter.html|archive-date=October 12, 2008}}</ref>
{{Listen|type=music|filename=Zappa_BlackPage1.ogg|description=One of Zappa's complex, percussion-based compositions featured on ''[[Zappa in New York]]''.|title="The Black Page Drum Solo/Black Page #1" (recorded 1976, released 1978)|pos=right}}

''Zappa in New York'' also featured a song about sex criminal [[Michael H. Kenyon]], "The Illinois Enema Bandit", in which Don Pardo provides the opening narrative. Like many songs on the album, it contained numerous sexual references,<ref name="lowe"/>{{rp|132}} leading to many critics objecting and being offended by the content.<ref name="lowe"/>{{rp|134}}<ref name="lowe"/>{{rp|261–262}} Zappa dismissed the criticism by noting that he was a journalist reporting on life as he saw it.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|234}} Predating his later fight against censorship, he remarked: "What do you make of a society that is so primitive that it clings to the belief that certain words in its language are so powerful that they could corrupt you the moment you hear them?"<ref name="HighTimes1980">{{cite news|last=Swenson|first=John|title=Frank Zappa: America's Weirdest Rock Star Comes Clean|date=March 1980|work=[[High Times]] |url=https://afka.net/Articles/1980-03_High_Times.htm |via=afka.net}}</ref> The remaining albums released by Warner without Zappa's approval were ''[[Studio Tan]]'' in 1978 and ''[[Sleep Dirt]]'' and ''[[Orchestral Favorites]]'' in 1979. These releases were not promoted and were largely overlooked in midst of the press about Zappa's legal problems.<ref name="lowe"/>{{rp|138}} The 1991 CD releases of these albums marked the first time they were issued with Zappa's full approval.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://fzpomd.net/biffyshrew/lather.html|title=Father, I have a confession to make...|website=fzpomd.net}}</ref>