Author: Peter Podbrežnik
Artist: Zappa, Frank
Label: Rykodisc Records
Released: 1973
Rating: 5/5
“Over-Nite Sensation” was yet another in a long line of dramatic stylistic about-faces in Frank’s incredibly rich and turbulent career, setting a new milestone in his invention of unique, inimitable, mostly avant-garde-satirical and highly complex forms of popular music. After two jazz rock fusion masterpieces, “Waka/Jawaka” (1972) and “The Grand Wazoo” (1972), and after recovering from a serious injury inflicted by an unhinged concertgoer that forced him into almost a full year off the stage, the legendary composer decided at that point to rebuild his backing band The Mothers Of Invention and record an album that could hardly have been more different in style from either of its predecessors. Had it come from anyone other than Zappa, it would have been a real shock to the system. Here he completely dropped his flirtation with complex jazz rock fusion and waded into much lighter, more melodic hard rock waters. He’d eyed those waters a few times already (most obviously on “Chunga’s Revenge“, 1970), but never to the extent he does on “Over-Nite Sensation”, which is packed with witty guitar riffs, plenty of backing harmonies, punchy rhythmic shifts and guitar solos spiced with bluesy melody, the kind you’d usually associate with the heavy rock tradition. As usual, he backed up this new musical adventure with his trademark sense of social satire and (self-)irony, which earned him a reputation (or a bashing, depending on how you take his music) as the father of so-called comedy rock.
The dream team of the freshly rebuilt Mothers Of Invention was made up of a few of Frank’s old cronies, led by keyboard wizard George Duke, French violin virtuoso Jean-Luc Ponty, the all-round Ian Underwood on woodwinds (a returnee and the only original member of The Mothers Of Invention), his better half Ruth on percussion and Sal Marquez on trumpet, along with some new faces, headed by Ralph Humphrey on drums and the Fowler brothers on trombone and bass guitar. And you can’t overlook the many splendid guest (backing) vocalists, led by Tina Turner and her backing group The Ikettes (she lent her backing vocals to most of the album’s tracks and really shone on the closing and most beloved song on the record, “Montana”; for reasons unknown, her name never made it into the original album credits), Kin Vassy on backing vocals, who also worked with Elvis Presley and Kenny Rogers over the course of his career, and Ricky Lancelotti, who contributed his raspy, passionate screeching to “Fifty-Fifty” and “Zomby Woof”. Most of the lead vocals were handled by Frank himself, whose sarcastic, mocking and deliberately a bit annoying voice usually works best on tracks full of toilet humor, of which this album has plenty. The lyrics of most songs on “Over-Nite Sensation” are brimming with all sorts of sexual and social allusions, while the political satire is obvious only on “Fifty-Fifty” and the closing “Montana”.
Musically, “Over-Nite Sensation” is one of the most accessible and least complex albums in Frank’s career, with lots of shorter songs, which of course still come with the usual musical challenges, and the simplicity of the individual arrangements is often deceptive. This was the record where Frank first proved he could make an album that reaches a wider audience, one that only a few years earlier had no ear for his many slapstick experiments. Believe it or not, the album even saw noticeable commercial success on the American charts when it came out and became Frank’s first gold record. For such a wildly versatile musician with a steady and fiercely loyal following, it was only a matter of time, and the lack of the usual biting political satire, which had put off many people from digging deeper into the Zappa musical multiverse, certainly helped too. That fact alone speaks to how unusually accessible “Over-Nite Sensation” is, a record that, besides witty and creative hard rock passages, also throws in the occasional dash of funk, progressive rock with a jazzy arrangement streak, and a pinch of a few other genres. The album also contained a boatload of live favorites, led by “Camarillo Brillo”, “I’m The Slime”, “Dirty Love”, “Zomby Woof” and “Montana”, which over the years became regular or occasional building blocks of Frank’s shows.
The opening bars of the (by Frank’s standards) outrageously easygoing “Camarillo Brillo” already announce that this album is radically different from the earlier comic-majestic big-band jazz rock fusion epics. At its core it’s laid-back hard rock with a jokey lyric full of sexual allusions. The title also contains a parody of the California town of Camarillo, which rhymes with Brillo, the name of a company that makes cleaning supplies. Frank’s sophisticated swapping of bluesy chords and the witty, creative use of woodwinds in the background are the key ingredients of one of the best and most beloved of the more melodic creations of his career. You can also pick up a Mexican flavor in the vibe of the song, especially in the playful verse about a Mexican poncho. On “I’m The Slime”, opened by a short but mischievous solo, comes the first social satire on the album (aimed at certain “entertaining” TV programs). The woodwinds in the background, the many guitar effects and the scattered rhythm give the composition a hugely comic undertone. Frank’s narrative vocal, deliberately sounding like some perverted social outcast, gets extra charm from the superb female backing vocals of Tina Turner and The Ikettes in the chorus and the jokey woodwind section. The song is extended at the end by a recognizable, slapstick Frank guitar solo.
“Dirty Love” is another of the shorter, melodic, hard-rock-flavored tracks, and with its catchy, instantly recognizable chorus it has grown over the years into one of Frank’s most beloved classics. The punchy rhythm line is backed by an outrageously funny lyric in Frank’s vocal delivery and rich backing vocals. Excellent stuff. On “Fifty-Fifty” the untamable Ricky Lancelotti steps up as the madman screamer, contributing one of the most recognizable vocals in Frank’s entire discography. Frank himself keeps him company on the choruses. Besides the slapstick vocals, this track is a real treat for all fans of instrumental virtuosity. George Duke takes the first solo spot on synthesizer (Duke was generally one of the leading pioneers of synth use), followed by Ponty with a gourmet violin solo, and finally Frank barges in with one of those “pants-ripping (or even better, bra-ripping)” guitar solos of his. The closing woodwind section, which joins the rowdy guitar passages at the end, sounds especially superb. This excellent composition just bursts with mischief and untamed passion the whole way through, and Lancelotti deserves most of the credit for that.
Next up is another slapstick treat, “Zomby Woof”, which, besides punchy hard rock guitar passages and a mighty use of drums, also contains plenty of jazz elements through its complex use of woodwinds and keyboards. The excellent chorus with the female backing vocals, which kicks in after every complex, scattered, jazzy instrumental section, is especially thrilling. Here too the ever-passionate Lancelotti snarls on lead vocals, sometimes sounding almost like some insatiable wolverine or glutton (he deliberately tries to sound evil but ends up grotesquely funny). Frank’s spacey guitar solos, recognizable from a mile away, which further enrich the song, hardly need a mention. Definitely another of the album’s highlights. On the hugely entertaining “Dinah-Moe Humm”, which wittily mixes elements of funk, jazz and hard rock, the listener is surprised in the middle by a pretty juicy section that ranks among the most sexually provocative in Frank’s career. In the first part, he treats us to one of his funniest vocal performances, bordering on rap (some ten years before the term even appeared). He also throws in a few naughty jokes with erotic outpourings that are almost on the verge of the machismo of a special disciplinary committee for assessing the special talents of selected groupies. Then comes a rather juicy “bedroom dialogue”, where you hear percussion supposedly simulating the shaking of bedroom furniture, instructions and sighs of pleasure (I sincerely hope these aren’t actually recordings of recreational activities with Gail Zappa, but “only” a “chat” with one of the Ikettes). Of course, neither the first nor the last demonstration of this kind of toilet humor, which won him at least as many followers in his career as it lost him.
The closing “Montana”, one of the most beloved and recognizable pieces of Frank’s career, with Tina Turner and her Ikettes once again actively involved, was just the cherry on top of this excellent album. The lyrics are a parody of the commercialization of private farming and tell of some dimwit who daydreams about moving to Montana, where, besides tilling the land, he could build a big business growing silkworms, i.e. producing silk. Structurally it’s the lightest song on the album, and the lyrics are delivered in Frank’s manner in as jokey a tone as possible. The superb female backing harmonies, especially in the chorus and at the end, are finger-lickin’ good, and the drum intro is excellent too. After the first chorus comes a longer and pretty complex guitar solo. Despite its apparent accessibility and all-around melodiousness, it’s really yet another rather complex composition, structured in a highly unusual way. The use of vibraphone and the occasional goofy backing harmonies add to the comedy. Still, nothing tops the superb ending, when Kin Vassy joins Frank and the women in the backing vocal harmonies, and with his “yip-yi-yay” choruses gives the song that fitting cowboy flavor typical of the old Wild West, where Montana lies. Supposedly Tina was so thrilled with the final version of the song that she invited her then-husband, the notorious Ike Turner, to the studio to hear it, and after a minute of listening he declared, in his typical style, “what the hell is this shit?” Maybe that’s one of the reasons why Ms. Turner wasn’t credited on the album. A real shame, because that detail would surely have added to the album’s commercial success even more.
“Over-Nite Sensation” is still one of the most accessible and beloved works from Frank’s endless musical treasure trove, and without a doubt another masterpiece from this indestructible genius, one that belongs on the shelf of every well-off household. With it, Frank stepped into his commercially most successful period. Even in the late 60s, when he and his band of the time were seen across the USA as dangerous outcasts and provocateurs, if not outright revolutionary elements (a reputation he kept among the American (and Russian) far right all the way to the end), any major commercial success would have been a one-of-a-kind sensation for him. It was also an incredibly creative period, in which he made, in a short span of time, several key albums of his unbelievable and extraordinarily prolific career.
Lineup
Frank Zappa – guitar, vocals on all tracks except “Fifty-Fifty”
George Duke – synthesizer, keyboards
Bruce Fowler – trombone
Tom Fowler – bass guitar
Ralph Humphrey – drums
Ricky Lancelotti – vocals on “Fifty-Fifty” and “Zomby Woof”
Sal Marquez – trumpet, vocals on “Dinah-Moe-Humm”
Jean-Luc Ponty – violin, baritone violin
Ian Underwood – clarinet, flute, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone
Ruth Underwood – percussion, marimba, vibraphone
Kin Vassy – backing vocals on “I’m the Slime”, “Dinah-Moe-Humm” and “Montana”
Tina Turner and the Ikettes – backing vocals (uncredited)
Production
Frank Zappa
Track list
1. Camarillo Brillo (3:59)
2. I’m The Slime (3:34)
3. Dirty Love (2:58)
4. Fifty-Fifty (6:09)
5. Zomby Woof (5:10)
6. Dinah-Moe Humm (6:01)
7. Montana (6:35)
Running time: 34:25
