Editing Frank Zappa (section)

==Musical style and development==
===Genres===
[[File:Frank Zappa 1973.JPG|thumb|Zappa performing in 1973]]
The general phases of Zappa's music have been variously categorized under [[blues rock]],<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://newrepublic.com/article/160383/weird-frank-zappa-documentary-review |title=How Weird Was Frank Zappa? |last=Semley |first=John |date=November 26, 2020 |magazine=The New Republic |access-date=June 26, 2023|quote=It was also the year Zappa and his band, a blues-rock outfit called the Mothers of Invention}}</ref> [[experimental rock]],<ref name="Rosenberg">{{cite book|last=Rosenberg|first=Stuart|title=Rock and Roll and the American Landscape: The Birth of an Industry and the Expansion of the Popular Culture, 1955–1969|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=736Mu91q_fcC&pg=PA179|date=2009|publisher=iUniverse|isbn=978-1-4401-6458-3|page=179}}</ref> [[jazz]],<ref name="Rosenberg"/> [[classical music|classical]],<ref name="Rosenberg"/> [[avant-pop]],<ref name="avanttribeca">{{cite news|last1=Kozinn|first1=Alann|title='Emerging Avant-Pop': From Charles Ives to Frank Zappa|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/11/arts/music/11mons.html|work= New York Times|date=May 11, 2006}}</ref> [[experimental pop]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Landy|first=Leigh|author-link=Leigh Landy|title=Experimental Music Notebooks|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E7zpgjW3-WQC&pg=PA100|date=1994|publisher=Taylor & Francis|isbn=978-3-7186-5554-0}}</ref> [[comedy rock]],<ref name="Comedy rock"/> [[doo-wop]],<ref name="museobit"/><ref>{{cite web|last1=Couture|first1=François|title=Cruising with Ruben & the Jets|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/cruising-with-ruben-the-jets-mw0000196894 |website=[[AllMusic]]}}</ref> [[jazz fusion]],<ref name="semley2012"/> [[progressive rock]],<ref name="semley2012"/> [[proto-prog]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Greene|first=Doyle|title=Rock, Counterculture and the Avant-Garde, 1966–1970: How the Beatles, Frank Zappa and the Velvet Underground Defined an Era|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ELeaCwAAQBAJ|date=2016|publisher=McFarland|isbn=978-1-4766-2403-7|page=182}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=ELeaCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA182 Extract of page 182]</ref> [[avant-jazz]],<ref name="semley2012"/> and [[psychedelic rock]].<ref name="semley2012">{{cite web |last1=Semley |first1=John |title=Where to dive into Frank Zappa's weird, unwieldy discography |url=https://www.avclub.com/where-to-dive-into-frank-zappa-s-weird-unwieldy-discog-1798232804 |website=[[The A.V. Club]] |date=August 9, 2012 |access-date=March 14, 2019 |archive-date=2017-12-22  |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171222052233/https://music.avclub.com/where-to-dive-into-frank-zappa-s-weird-unwieldy-discog-1798232804 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Influences===
Zappa grew up influenced by [[avant-garde]] composers such as Edgard Varèse, Igor Stravinsky, and Anton Webern; 1950s [[blues]] artists [[Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown]], [[Guitar Slim]], [[Howlin' Wolf]], [[Johnny "Guitar" Watson]], and [[B.B. King]];<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.afka.net/Articles/1987-01_Guitar_Player.htm|title=Frank Zappa On&nbsp;... The '80s Guitar Clone|last=Dan|first=Forte|date=January 1987|access-date=March 30, 2016}}</ref> Egyptian composer [[Halim El-Dabh]];<ref name="Holmes"/> R&B and [[doo-wop]] groups (particularly local [[pachuco]] groups); and modern jazz. His own heterogeneous ethnic background, and the diverse social and cultural mix in and around greater Los Angeles, were crucial in the formation of Zappa as a practitioner of [[underground music]] and of his later distrustful and openly critical attitude towards "mainstream" social, political and musical movements. He frequently lampooned musical fads like [[psychedelia]], [[rock opera]] and [[disco]].<ref name="watson96"/>{{rp|13}}{{refn|group="nb"|Among his many musical satires are the 1967 songs "Flower Punk" (which parodies the song "[[Hey Joe]]") and "[[Who Needs the Peace Corps?]]", which are critiques of the late-Sixties commercialization of the [[hippie]] phenomenon.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Producer as Composer: Shaping the Sounds of Popular Music|edition=illustrated|first1=Virgil|last1=Moorefield |publisher=MIT Press|date=2010|isbn=978-0-262-51405-7|page=38|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PZ0R4_Oxr-4C}}</ref>}} Television also exerted a strong influence, as demonstrated by quotations from show themes and advertising jingles found in his later works.<ref name="quotes"/>

In his book ''The Real Frank Zappa Book'', Zappa credited composer [[Spike Jones]] for his frequent use of funny sound effects, mouth noises, and humorous percussion interjections. After explaining his ideas on this, he said "I owe this part of my musical existence to Spike Jones."<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Zappa |first1=Frank |last2=Occhiogrosso |first2=Peter |year=1988 |title=The Real Frank Zappa Book |url=http://pierroule.com/ZappaRealBook/TheRFZBook.htm#8 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220408185245/http://pierroule.com/ZappaRealBook/TheRFZBook.htm#8 |archive-date=April 8, 2022 |url-status=live |access-date=December 4, 2021 |via=pierroule.com |publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|isbn=0-671-63870-X}}</ref>

===Project/Object===
Zappa's albums make extensive use of [[segue]]d tracks, breaklessly joining the elements of his albums.<ref name="segue">{{cite book |title=Frank Zappa FAQ: All That's Left to Know About the Father of Invention |first1=John |last1=Corcelli |publisher=Hal Leonard Corporation |date=2016 |isbn=978-1-61713-673-3 |page=290 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8e7aDgAAQBAJ}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=8e7aDgAAQBAJ&pg=PT209 Extract of page 290]</ref> His total output is unified by a conceptual continuity he termed "Project/Object", with numerous musical phrases, ideas, and characters reappearing across his albums.<ref name="semley2012"/> He also called it a "conceptual continuity", meaning that any project or album was part of a larger project. Everything was connected, and musical themes and lyrics reappeared in different form on later albums. Conceptual continuity clues are found throughout Zappa's entire œuvre.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|160}}<ref name="quotes">For a comprehensive list of the appearance of parts of "old" compositions or quotes from others' music in Zappa's catalogue, see {{cite web|url=http://globalia.net/donlope/fz/quotes.html|title= FZ Musical Quotes|last=Albertos|first=Román García|series=Information is Not Knowledge|publisher=globia.net/donlope|access-date=January 21, 2008}}</ref>

===Techniques===
====Guitar playing====
Zappa is widely recognized as one of the most significant electric guitar soloists. In a 1983 issue of ''[[Guitar World]]'', John Swenson declared: "the fact of the matter is that [Zappa] is one of the greatest guitarists we have and is sorely unappreciated as such."<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.guitarworld.com/gw-archive/frank-zappa-talks-gear-praises-steve-vai-his-first-guitar-world-interview-1982 |title=Frank Zappa Talks Gear, Praises Steve Vai in His First Guitar World Interview from 1982 |magazine=Guitar World |date=April 22, 2011 |access-date=December 10, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151115230030/http://www.guitarworld.com/frank-zappa-talks-gear-praises-steve-vai-his-first-guitar-world-interview-1982 |archive-date=November 15, 2015 |url-status=dead}}</ref> His idiosyncratic style developed gradually and was mature by the early 1980s, by which time his live performances featured lengthy improvised solos during many songs. A November 2016 feature by the editors of ''Guitar Player'' magazine wrote: "Brimming with sophisticated motifs and convoluted rhythms, Zappa's extended excursions are more akin to symphonies than they are to guitar solos." The symphonic comparison stems from his habit of introducing melodic themes that, like a symphony's main melodies, were repeated with variations throughout his solos. He was further described as using a wide variety of scales and modes, enlivened by "unusual rhythmic combinations". His left hand was capable of smooth [[legato]] technique, while Zappa's right was "one of the fastest pick hands in the business."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.guitarplayer.com/artist-lessons/1026/frank-zappa-shut-up-n-learn-his-guitar-techniques--tab--audio/56754 |title=Frank Zappa: Shut Up 'N Learn His Guitar Techniques &#124; TAB + AUDIO |publisher=GuitarPlayer |date=November 23, 2016 |access-date=December 10, 2016}}</ref> In 2016, [[Dweezil Zappa]] explained a distinctive element of his father's guitar improvisation technique was relying heavily on upstrokes much more than many other guitarists, who are more likely to use downstrokes with their picking.<ref name="dweezilimprov" />

His song "Outside Now" from ''[[Joe's Garage]]'' poked fun at the negative reception of Zappa's guitar technique by those more commercially minded, as the song's narrator lives in a world where music is outlawed and he imagines "imaginary guitar notes that would irritate/An executive kind of guy", lyrics that are followed by one of Zappa's characteristically quirky solos in 11/8 time.<ref>{{cite web|author=François Couture |url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/outside-now-mt0006332790 |title="Outside Now" – Frank Zappa &#124; Song Info |website=[[AllMusic]] |access-date=December 10, 2016}}</ref> Zappa transcriptionist Kasper Sloots wrote, "Zappa's guitar solos aren't meant to show off technically (Zappa hasn't claimed to be a big virtuoso on the instrument), but for the pleasure it gives trying to build a composition right in front of an audience without knowing what the outcome will be."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.zappa-analysis.com/shuttxt.htm |title=Shut up 'n play yer guitar |website=Zappa-analysis.com |access-date=December 10, 2016}}</ref>

Zappa's guitar style was not without its critics. English guitarist and bandleader [[John McLaughlin (musician)|John McLaughlin]], whose band [[Mahavishnu Orchestra]] toured with the Mothers of Invention in 1973, opined that Zappa was "very interesting as a human being and a very interesting composer" and that he "was a very good musician but he was a dictator in his band," and that he "was taking very long guitar solos [when performing live]—10–15 minute guitar solos and really he should have taken two or three minute guitar solos, because they were a little bit boring."<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.hit-channel.com/interview-john-mclaughlin-solo-mahavishnu-orchestra-miles-davis/151278 | title=Interview: John McLaughlin (solo, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Miles Davis) • Hit Channel| date=September 22, 2018}}</ref>

In 2000, he was ranked number 36 on [[VH1]]'s ''100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock''.<ref name="youtube.com">{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxm64mApR05CJVCePlmcUFluSZyiAvKZ8|title=VH1 100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock – YouTube|website=YouTube |date=November 6, 2018 |access-date=November 14, 2020}}</ref> In 2004, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine ranked him at number 71 on its [[Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Artists of All Time|list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time"]],<ref>{{cite magazine|title=100 Greatest Artists|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-greatest-artists-147446/frank-zappa-3-86388/ |magazine=Rolling Stone|date=December 3, 2010 |access-date=March 14, 2019}}</ref> and in 2011 at number 22 on its list of the "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time".<ref>{{cite magazine|title=100 Greatest Guitarists|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-greatest-guitarists-153675/frank-zappa-7-155589/ |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=December 18, 2015 |access-date=March 14, 2019}}</ref>

====Tape manipulation====
During recording sessions in New York in 1967, Zappa increasingly used [[audio engineer|tape editing]] as a compositional tool.<ref name="miles"/>{{rp|160}} A prime example is found on the double album ''[[Uncle Meat]]'' (1969),<ref name="james"/>{{rp|104}} where the track "King Kong" is edited from various studio and live performances. Zappa had begun regularly recording concerts,{{refn|group="nb"|In the process, he built up a vast archive of live recordings. In the late 1980s some of these recordings were collected for the 12-CD set ''You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore''.}} and because of his insistence on precise [[Out of tune|tuning]] and timing, he was able to augment his studio productions with excerpts from live shows, and vice versa.<ref name="Mix2003">{{cite web|title=We are The Mothers&nbsp;... and This Is What We Sound Like!|last=Michie|first=Chris|publisher=MixOnline.com|date=January 2003|url=http://mixonline.com/recording/business/audio_mothers_sound|access-date=January 4, 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080308055438/http://mixonline.com/recording/business/audio_mothers_sound/|archive-date=March 8, 2008}}</ref> Later, he combined recordings of different compositions into new pieces, irrespective of the [[tempo]] or [[Meter (music)|meter]] of the sources. He dubbed this process "[[xenochrony]]" (strange synchronizations<ref>{{cite web |first=Bob |last=Marshall |title=Interview with Frank Zappa |date=October 22, 1988 |url=https://www.afka.net/Articles/1988-10_Bob_Marshall_Interview.htm |website=afka.net |access-date=October 18, 2023 }}</ref>)—reflecting the Greek "xeno" (alien or strange) and "chronos" (time).<ref name="Mix2003"/>