Jazz Articles

Frank Zappa: Hammersmith Odeon

by John Kelman
January 5, 2011

Christmas came early for Frank Zappa fans in 2010 with the release of Hammersmith Odeon on December 21, to celebrate the birthday of the late, great rock guitarist/composer/satirist who would have been 70, had he not passed away in 1993, just shy of turning 53. A three-CD set, culled from a series of early 1978 performances at the famous London venue used as the basic tracks for Sheik Yerbouti (FZ/Ryko, 1979), it's the next best thing to having been there, ...