Day Tripping: December 21

Don’t eat the yellow snow

Born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1940, Frank Zappa didn’t spend much time in one place. His father Francis was a chemist and mathematician who worked in the Arsenal chemical warfare facility for the US Army. Because their home was close to the armory that stored mustard gas, they always had gas masks on hand.

As a child, Frank suffered from asthma, sinusitis, and earaches. As a treatment, a doctor injected radium pellets into both his nostrils which Frank later claimed could have contributed to his cancer.

The family moved to California when Frank was twelve where he learned his first instrument, the drums. Around that time, he began building a record collection that included R&B, doo-wop, and modernist classical pieces from Stravinsky and Edgard Varese.

Frank Zappa never took music lessons. Yet, while in high school, he was composing classical pieces. He sought out Varese personally first by telephone and then by mail. The composer had also invited Zappa to visit him in New York, but Varese died before Frank ever got there.

Varese returned a note detailing his latest work with percussion themes. Thrilled by this letter, Frank began collecting Varese’s compositions on vinyl. Spurred on by his interest in the avant-garde, Frank also conducted pieces with the school’s orchestra.

By the end of high school, Zappa had also taught himself to play guitar which he switched to full time with his next band. Then, disillusioned with the conventions of education, he left his first year if college and moved to Los Angeles.

“Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible.”

To earn a living, Frank took a job with an ad firm and wrote music for low-budget films. He also wrote songs for established bands until he teamed up with his school friend, Captain Beefheart to record as the Soots. Nobody signed up for the record, so Zappa carried on to new horizons.

Through the rest of his prolific musical career, Frank Zappa pushed the boundaries of nearly every genre. His mantra was satire, and it didn’t which form, he mocked it.

Yet, he largely went underappreciated for his musical mastery, especially on guitar. Witnessing a Frank Zappa guitar solo in a live setting was often a fifteen-minute creative journey. Every solo was improvised, and every solo was magical.

Zappa never liked when his band members used drugs, but he was a staunch supporter of decriminalization. He left a legacy of 60 albums, 40 of which were published posthumously. His music ranges from comedic rock to modern classical, and everything in between.

Today is:

Celebrate Short Fiction Day —A long time coming. Please allow a shameless plug.

Musical Ride

Fans of the King are aghast when Elvis Presley met with President Richard Nixon at the White House in 1970. The rock and roll singer who was once seen as unfit for family viewing asked to meet Nixon to discuss his perceived threat to America; hippies.

Elvis had already sent Nixon a letter espousing the view that drug abuse was a communist plot. He also shares the view that rock music and especially the Beatles are part of the threat to America and Democracy. Ironically, it was Presley who died of a prescription drug overdose.

Gone But Not Forgotten

One of the Kings of the Blues, Albert King influenced several of rock’s greatest guitar players. The original left-handed guitar player also became known as the Velvet Bulldozer. Albert King died in 1992 at 69.

Notable Births

1937 — Jane Fonda: “We’re not meant to be perfect. It took me a long time to learn that.”

1948 — Samuel L. Jackson: “The best advice that was given to me was that I had to be 10 times smarter, braver and more polite to be equal. So I did.”

K. Barrett Maria Rattray Maryam Merchant Dr. Mehmet Yildiz Tree Langdon Myriam Ben Salem Phil Truman Chelsea Mandler MAT Terry Mansfield Hollie Petit, Ph.D. Terry Trueman Dr. Preeti Singh John Gruber Bill Abbate James G Brennan ScienceDuuude Marcus Liam Ireland Claire Kelly Noorain Hassan, BMS Amy Pierovich David Acaster Nora Thewriteyard David Perlmutter Joe Luca Holly Kellums Michael Burg, MD Lucy Dan Dave Logan

All previous Day Tripping entries are available at the following links:

The Story Of Day Tripping Through History What’s Past Is Often Present

A comprehensive directory for Day Tripping