Audio CD review:
Frank Zappa - Broadway the Hard Way

Frank Zappa - Broadway the Hard Way

Band: Frank Zappa Title: Broadway the Hard Way Rating: Release Date: 02 May, 1995 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Elvis Has Just Left The Building 2: Planet Of The Baritone Women 3: Any Kind Of Pain 4: Dickie's Such An Asshole 5: When The Lie's So Big 6: Rhymin' Man 7: Promiscuous 8: The Untouchables 9: Why Don't You Like Me? 10: Bacon Fat 11: Stolen Moments 12: Murder By Numbers 13: Jezebel Boy 14: Outside Now 15: Hot Plate Heaven At The Green Hotel 16: What Kind Of Girl? 17: Jesus Thinks You're A Jerk

Customer Reviews For completists only Of the 3 albums documenting FZ's 1988 tour (along with "Make a Jazz Noise Here" and "The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life") this is the worst. I have to respectfully disagree with all the reviewers praising this album. In fact, I would put it at the bottom end of Frank's entire catalogue. There are a number of reasons why this album is largely unsatisfying. First off is the sound. Frank was always on the cutting edge of musical technology, which means that this and other 80s albums make extensive use of synthesizers and other electronic gadgets from the decade. Oddly enough, this makes the album sound much more dated than his work from the 60s and 70s. The synthetic sound just doesn't carry the same kind of power as analog instruments, and the music sounds rather passionless as a result. Second is the humor. This is Zappa by way of Dr. Demento (in fact, I know that "Elvis Has Just Left The Building" among other songs from this album were staples on the Doc's novelty radio show). Zappa's musicianship and brilliant compositional skills take a back seat to his self-indulgent humor, which isn't even among his best humor anyway. It's not that I disagree with his politics, but I prefer the Zappa that foregrounds music, not jokey lyrics. Remember in 200 Motels when the band complained about having to play "Zappa's comedy music"? Well, this helps you understand them a little better. The music itself is poor in some spots. "Any Kind of Pain" is truly a low-point in Frank's songwriting, a barely tolerable soft-rock "parody" that sounds too much like authentic soft rock! There are some good tracks, however, such as "Stolen Moments" and an excellent solo on "Outside Now. " "Murder By Numbers" featuring Sting is also good fun. But overall, they don't do enough to save this album. The only reason that I own it is because I'm a hardcore Zappaphile and completist. 3 stars is, honestly, a generous appraisal; this would be max 2 stars if it was any other artist but Zappa. Only those who must own all of Zappa's works, or those who are self-professed fans of, ugh, "novelty" music should pick this one up. good, but imperfect - message album Frank's dystopian vision is now reality! This album has his most direct social commentary, and he names names. On one hand, listening to this album in 2005 it makes me sad to think that so many of the issues, if not the personalities mentioned, are still topical today! Oh, Frank! Where are you, now that we need you more than ever! Getting off track a bit, listen to the "Central Scrutinizer" intro on "Joe's Garage" - the bit about enforcing the laws that haven't been passed yet, and about "cruel and inhuman punishments are being described in tiny paragraphs so as not to conflict with the constitution". This has the effect of dating the material. Also honestly the song quality itself is a bit weak. These are all message songs. Stripped of their message they don't really stand up to Zappa's better stuff. I do like the inclusion of "Murder by Numbers" - very topical and humorous (and a good song). Also, this WAS the album that introduced me to "Stolen Moments" way back then. By the way, I remember when I saw Zappa on the '88 tour, the encore was a meddley of Beatles songs with new Swaggart-related lyrics - "Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds" became "Floozie and a Whore With Herpes" - absolutely hilarious! I don't think he ever released that (a great omission). If you ever find that, pick it up!. FZ Journal #33 Although recent study has pushed my listening towards the earlier studio recordings in his career, I have had an interest in re-listening to this (mostly) live album from 1988. Zappa's taste for juxtaposition might be satisfied by my recent interest in this album. The majority of his rock-styled work from this period was recorded live, and in some ways it is the ultimate realization of his vision in that format. The 1988 band was his most virtuosic and exhaustively rehearsed. Rumor has it that by the time they hit the stage, they were well-versed in over 160 songs. This band was able to take the jarring changes in style and tempo that epitomized Zappa's studio work and render them in a live setting, as well as react to Zappa's instinctual whim flawlessly. In the end, the live performances of this group rivaled the best studio productions of any of Zappa's previous bands. This is one of the few recordings containing material that can be attributed to that line up as "original". The later Best Band and Make A Jazz Noise Here albums concentrated on re-arrangements of classic Zappa and cover material with relatively little "new" material. Broadway the Hard Way generally gets its lyric and conceptual inspiration from the political and cultural climate of the late `80's. Some examples of the subject matter are televangelism, supermodels, homosexuality, rap music, Jesse Jackson, Michael Jackson, tabloids, blue-collar workers, and prostitution. Again, Zappa's ability to take snapshots of American life (sometimes with red-eye intact) is disturbingly direct. However, one gets the feeling that Zappa is tempering his message a little to increase its accessibility. To accentuate this message, Broadway the Hard Way is bursting at the seams with musical quotes for the dedicated listener. To cite all of the bursts of melodic material on the album could be an exhaustive endeavor. Themes from Dragnet, Devo, the Beatles, Star Trek, Michael Jackson (again), Frank Zappa ("Dickie's Such an A**h*le"), and a wide range of traditional American patriotic music all pops out at Zappa's request with mind-boggling precision. As an example, trying to cite all of the quotes on "Rhymin' Man" may well result in a scramble for the "pause" and "rewind" button. Of personal interest, I have been curious about the evolution of Zappa's guitar playing after using xenochronus guitar solos in the studio in the years leading up to his formation of the 1988 band. If you consider his work on Hot Rats as a benchmark, the changes in his soloing style show this self-influence. His soloing on Broadway seems both harmonically and rhythmically freer than his `70's work. Especially on "Outside Now" he only seems to take a passing interest in the already loose harmonic environment. However, unlike his xenochronus studio solos, he proves that he is actually interacting with the rhythm section by popping into a more interactive "live" mode periodically. His ability to switch between the two mindsets is effective and impressive. "Hot Plate Heaven" is also a very impressive example of the influence on xenochrony on his live arrangements and his soloing within that arrangement. . . You can see a complete list of all Frank Zappa discography, or go back to the Frank Zappa tabs