Frank Zappa - Just Another Band From L.A. (1972)
Every day, we are assaulted by the media spectacle that is the war in Viet Nam. There have been loads of anti war / protest songs in the top 10 over the last few years, and it seems like many a young artist, hungry for a taste of fame, is willing to jump on the Viet Nam band wagon. But Viet Nam has thrown a shadow that some of us are having a hard time understanding. It seems like there are no good guys and Bad guys, no Us and Them, no Black and White, just the big bad boogieman of war. Lines are being drawn in the dirt... and god help anyone who steps over them.
"Draft Dodgers" are seen as traitors by some, and hero's by many... but are they really Hero's, or just us, desperately seeking hero's in a world where there is no black and white, only varying shades of grey. It can give you a headache just trying to wrap your mind around it!
Then along comes an album like Just Another Band From L.A., which contains the epic tale of Billy The Mountain. Yes, we think, Frank Zappa will clear things up! Zappa will show us the truth.
Well... Maybe Not!
Although prone to slip into the vernacular, this is a great live album. Zappa is a Musical Perfectionist and a hard driving taskmaster according to some. If he is, it is surely paying off. Just Another Band From L.A. is a sideways glance at the boogie men that live in our closet's.
To find one word that describes it... Incredible? Imaginative? Inspired?
No... Zappa!
Back to Reviews