Uncle Meat is the sixth album by the Mothers of Invention, and seventh overall by Frank Zappa, released as a double album in 1969. Uncle Meat was originally developed as a part of No Commercial Potential, a project which spawned three other albums sharing a conceptual connection: We're Only in It for the Money, Lumpy Gravy and Cruising with Ruben & the Jets.
The album also served as a soundtrack album to the film of the same name, which Zappa eventually finished and released direct-to-video in 1987.
The music is diverse in style, drawing from orchestral, jazz, blues and rock music. The Uncle Meat album was a commercial success upon release, and has been highly acclaimed for its innovative recording and editing techniques, including experiments in manipulation of tape speed and overdubbing, and its diverse sound.
Background
Frank Zappa, who had been interested in film since high school, decided to develop a film vehicle for the Mothers of Invention, titled Uncle Meat. The film would combine elements of science fiction and road stories inspired by the band's sexual escapades.
Recording
For the recording sessions, Zappa worked at Apostolic Studios in Manhattan employing an unusual and innovative 12-track machine built by Scully. Zappa included a large number of overdubs, playing unconventional instruments through studio effects, and speeding up or slowing down recordings for artistic effect.
By the time the album was released, Lowell George had joined the band, and has his name listed in the inside cover despite joining after the album was recorded. George and bassist Roy Estrada would go on to form the band Little Feat in late 1969.
Music and lyrics
Uncle Meat featured a variety of music styles, including orchestral symphonies, free jazz, blues, doo wop and rock and roll.
In addition to the studio recordings, Uncle Meat featured live recordings made at the Royal Albert Hall, including a recording of Don Preston playing "Louie Louie" on the Albert Hall pipe organ, at the end of which Zappa announces it as having been performed by the "London Philharmonic Orchestra". The doo wop-influenced "Electric Aunt Jemima" refers to Zappa's guitar amplifier, equating it with the advertising character Aunt Jemima. although the instrumental's prelude, a free jazz improvisation over a rhythm section playing in a 5/8 time signature, occurs much earlier in the album. Six variations of the melody appear as the album's finale, with the first establishing its simple melody, the second being a Fender Rhodes Electric Piano solo by Preston, the third showcasing a saxophone solo by Motorhead Sherwood, and the fourth featuring Bunk Gardner playing a soprano saxophone through various electronic effects that emulate the sound of a contrabassoon doubling his solo lines. Two more variations conclude the piece, which include a live recorded performance featuring a saxophone solo by Ian Underwood and then finally ending with a version with sped up gongs, overblown saxophones and other instruments.
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Retrospective reviews of the album are "kind", AllMusic writer Steve Huey writes, "despite the absence of a conceptual framework, the unfocused sprawl of Uncle Meat is actually a big part of its appeal. It's exciting to hear one of the most creatively fertile minds in rock pushing restlessly into new territory, even if he isn't always quite sure where he's going."
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| title4 = King Kong Itself (as played by the Mothers in a studio)
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| title5 = King Kong II (its magnificence as interpreted by Dom DeWild)
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| title6 = King Kong III (as Motorhead explains it)
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| title7 = King Kong IV (the Gardner Varieties)
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| title8 = King Kong V (as played by 3 deranged Good Humor Trucks)
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| title9 = King Kong VI (live on a flat bed diesel in the middle of a race track at a Miami Pop Festival...the Underwood ramifications)
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Personnel
Musicians
The Mothers – at the time of this recording were:
- Frank Zappa – guitar, low grade vocals, percussion
- Ray Collins – swell vocals
- Jimmy Carl Black – drums, droll humor, poverty
- Roy Estrada – electric bass, cheeseburgers, Pachuco falsetto
- Don (Dom De Wild) Preston – electric piano, pipe organ, tarot cards, brown rice
- Billy (The Oozer) Mundi – drums on some pieces before he quit to join RHINOCEROS
- Bunk (Sweetpants) Gardner – piccolo, flute, clarinet, bass clarinet, soprano sax, alto sax, tenor sax, bassoon (all of these electric and/or non-electric depending)
- Ian Underwood – electric organ, piano, harpsichord, celeste, flute, clarinet, alto sax, baritone sax, special assistance, copyist, industrial relations & teen appeal
- Artie (With the Green Mustache) Tripp – drums, timpani, vibes, marimba, xylophone, wood blocks, bells, small chimes, cheerful outlook & specific inquiries
- Euclid James (Motorhead/Motorishi) Sherwood – pop star, frenetic tenor sax stylings, tambourine, choreography, obstinance & equipment setter-upper when he's not hustling local groupies
Special thanks to:
- Ruth Komanoff – who plays marimba and vibes with Artie on many of the tracks, and
- Nelcy Walker – the soprano voice with Ray & Roy on "Dog Breath" & "The Uncle Meat Variations".
Uncredited:
- Pamela Zarubica as Suzy Creamcheese
- Buzz Gardner – trumpet and flugel horn (name appears on back cover along with Lowell George).
Only on the CD version, also uncredited:
- Phyllis Altenhaus, Rodney Bingenheimer, Aynsley Dunbar, Francesca Fisher, Lucy Offerall, Meredith Monk, Janet Neville-Ferguson, Linda Ronstadt, Stumuk, Haskell Wexler, Carl Zappa, guys from Alabama – dialogue on the film excerpts
- Frank Zappa – Synclavier on "Uncle Meat Film Excerpt Part I"
- Massimo Bassoli – vocals on "Tengo na minchia tanta"
- Tommy Mars – keyboards on "Tengo na minchia tanta"
- Scott Thunes – bass on "Tengo na minchia tanta"
- Chad Wackerman – drums on "Tengo na minchia tanta"
Production
- Frank Zappa – producer
- Cal Schenkel – package design
- Herb Cohen – business production
- Lou Lindauer – equipment
- Richard Kunc – engineer
- Jerry Hansen – engineer
- Mike – tapes
Charts
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! Chart (1969)
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