The Mothers 1970

The Mothers 1970 is the 116th release of material created by Frank Zappa, and the 54th compiled by the Zappa Family Trust. It compiles material recorded by or performed by Frank's 1970 band, with Frank on vocals and lead guitar, Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan on vocals, George Duke on piano and keyboards, Ian Underwood on organ, keys, and rhythm guitar, Jeff Simmons on bass, and Aynsley Dunbar on drums. Disc 1 features recording sessions for Frank's third solo release Chunga's Revenge at Trident Studios.

Background
Following the moderately successful Burnt Weeny Sandwich and Weasels Ripped My Flesh, both recorded in the late 1960s and released in 1970, the original Mothers of Invention had disbanded. Even though it was a mutated form of the original Mothers, Frank felt it was time for a complete line-up change. He hired the members mentioned above, to form the second iteration of The Mothers (dropping the "of Invention").

When this line-up formed, it was mostly to ride the wave of Hot Rats, a very popular album. In fact, the band was originally just called "Hot Rats" and consisted of Frank, Underwood, Dunbar, Max Bennett, and Don "Sugarcane" Harris. This band recorded the songs "Chunga's Revenge", "Transylvania Boogie", "The Clap", and an 11-minute version of "Sharleena". Over the course of Spring 1970, this "Hot Rats" band mutated into the new Mothers, with Volman, Kaylan, Duke, and Simmons.

Over the course of the summer, the band would record the rest of Chunga's Revenge. The first sessions for Chunga's Revenge are on Disc 1, but not complete. This session was recorded in Trident Studios and produced by Roy Thomas Baker, a famous producer known for his work with many British musicians including Queen. Also here are early versions of "Wonderful Wino" with Frank on vocals and an early version of "Envelopes", a song re-used on Ship Arriving Too Late to Save a Drowning Witch and London Symphony Orchestra, Vol. II.

Songs
The original songs on here include "Red Tubular Lighter", a multi-tracked instrumental including only Frank on guitars and bass and Dunbar on drums (the album also includes an unedited version of the song), "Lola Steponsky", a song about Jewish men and women going to die in gas chambers (cut for obvious reasons), another Zappa/Dunbar recording called "Item 1", and a full band instrumental titled "Giraffe" (take 4 on the album). The three versions of "Wonderful Wino" feature Frank on vocals, the second with an alternate solo, and the third with just Basic Tracks. This version of "Envelopes" is nearly double or quadruple the length of the 1987 and 1982 versions, respectively.

Disc 2 prominently features a June 18, 1970 concert, broadcast live on radio to the show "Piknik" on the Dutch radio station VPRO. Tracks 14 to 18 on Disc 2 capture excerpts from a concert on September 26, 1970 at Pepperland Music Hall in San Rafael, California. Disc 3 captures a "hybrid concert" from shows in Santa Monica, California on August 21, 1970 and Spokane, Washington on September 17, 1970. Disc 4 features cuts from shows in September and October 1970, not really one or two whole, continuous shows. All Discs 2 to 4 were recorded by Frank on his own tape recorder, making the quality better than most bootlegs.

Disc 1 – Trident Studios, London, England
This disc was recorded in one session from the night of June 21, 1970 to the morning of June 22, 1970.


 * 1) "Red Tubular Lighter" – 4:51
 * 2) "Lola Steponsky" – 3:29
 * 3) Trident Chatter – 1:45
 * 4) "Sharleena" [Roy Thomas Baker Mix] – 4:04
 * 5) "Item 1" – 5:47
 * 6) "Wonderful Wino" [FZ Vocal] – 5:12
 * 7) "Enormous Cadenza" – 1:11
 * 8) "Envelopes" – 8:23
 * 9) "Red Tubular Lighter" [Unedited Master] – 9:25
 * 10) "Wonderful Wino" [Basic Tracks] – 4:56
 * 11) "Giraffe" [Take 4] – 8:10
 * 12) "Wonderful Wino" [FZ Vocal, Alt. Solo] – 5:55

June 18, 2020 – Live on VPRO's "Piknik"

 * 1) "Introducing... The Mothers" – 3:52
 * 2) "Wonderful Wino" – 4:54
 * 3) "Concentration Moon" – 2:30
 * 4) "Mom and Dad" – 3:13
 * 5) "The Air" – 3:17
 * 6) "Dog Breath, in the Year of Plague" – 2:09
 * 7) "Mother People" – 2:10
 * 8) "You Didn't Try to Call Me" – 4:21
 * 9) "Agon" – 0:37
 * 10) "Call Any Vegetable" – 7:14
 * 11) "King Kong, Part 1" – 4:31
 * 12) "Igor's Boogie" – 1:09
 * 13) "King Kong, Part 2" – 7:02

September 26, 1970 – Live at Pepperland in San Rafael, California

 * 1) "What Kind of Girl Do You Think We Are?" – 4:26
 * 2) "Bwana Dik" – 2:48
 * 3) "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy" – 2:47
 * 4) "Do You Like My New Car?" – 4:27
 * 5) "Happy Together" – 1:59

Disc 3 – Live Highlights, Part 2: Hybrid Concert

 * 1) "Welcome to El Monte Legion Stadium" – 2:18
 * 2) "Agon" – 0:48
 * 3) "Call Any Vegetable" – 8:28
 * 4) "A Pound for a Brown (On the Bus)" – 4:37
 * 5) "Sleeping in a Jar" – 2:45
 * 6) "Sharleena" – 4:07
 * 7) "The Air" – 3:56
 * 8) "Dog Breath, in the Year of the Plague" – 2:00
 * 9) "Mother People" – 2:05
 * 10) "You Didn't Try to Call Me" – 4:32
 * 11) "King Kong, Part 1" – 4:03
 * 12) "Igor's Boogie" – 1:11
 * 13) "King Kong, Part 2" – 8:28
 * 14) "Eat It Yourself..." – 0:47
 * 15) "Trouble Every Day" – 4:05
 * 16) "A Series of Musical Episodes" – 2:09
 * 17) "Road Ladies" – 3:57
 * 18) "The Holiday Inn Motel Chain" – 2:06
 * 19) "What Will This Morning Bring Me This Evening?" – 2:39
 * 20) "What Kind of Girl Do You Think We Are?" – 3:27

Disc 4 – Live Highlights, Part 3: Various Skits

 * 1) "What's the Deal, Dick?" – 1:25
 * 2) Another MOI Anti-Smut Loyalty Oath – 2:26
 * 3) Paladin Routine, No. 1 – 1:24
 * 4) "Portuguese Fenders" – 2:48
 * 5) The Sanzini Brothers – 1:26
 * 6) "Guitar Build '70" – 5:17
 * 7) "Would You Go All the Way?" – 3:43
 * 8) "Easy Meat" – 5:44
 * 9) "Who Did It?" – 1:16
 * 10) "Turn It Down!" – 4:13
 * 11) A Chance Encounter in Cincinnati – 0:48
 * 12) "A Pound for a Brown (On the Bus)" – 5:58
 * 13) "Sleeping in a Jar" – 2:49
 * 14) Beloit Sword Trick – 1:01
 * 15) "King Kong, Part 1" – 15:23
 * 16) "Igor's Boogie" – 1:13
 * 17) "King Kong, Part 2" – 5:24
 * 18) "Gris Gris" – 8:39
 * 19) Paladin Routine, No. 2 – 1:38
 * 20) "King Kong, Outro" – 1:32

Personnel

 * Frank Zappa – guitars, bass, vocals
 * Mark Volman – vocals
 * Howard Kaylan – vocals
 * George Duke – keyboards, piano, trombone
 * Ian Underwood – saxophones, keyboards, rhythm guitar
 * Jeff Simmons – bass, vocals
 * Aynsley Dunbar – drums