Track Listing

1. Are You Hung Up?
2. Who Needs the Peace Corps?
3. Concentration Moon
4. Mom & Dad - The Mothers of Invention
5. Telephone Conversation - The Mothers of Invention, The Mothers of Invention
6. Bow Tie Daddy - The Mothers of Invention, The Mothers of Invention
7. Harry, You're a Beast
8. What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body?
9. Absolutely Free
10. Flower Punk
11. Hot Poop
12. Nasal Retentive Calliope Music
13. Let's Make the Water Turn Black
14. Idiot Bastard Son
15. Lonely Little Girl
16. Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance
17. What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body? (Reprise) - The Mothers of Invention, The Mothers of Invention
18. Mother People
19. Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #3602 in Music
• Brand: ZAPPA,FRANK
• Released on: 1995-04-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .23 pounds

Album Description
Imported from Japan by Rykodisc.

Packaged in deluxe mini-album jacket sleeves, these 10 classic albums by rock legend FRANK ZAPPA are now available as limited edition Japanese Imports! These packages re-create the original vinyl packaging in miniaturized form!

Amazon.com essential recording
The Mothers of Invention answer the sentiments of the suits, the suburb dwellers, and flower children of the 60's with a big fat raspberry. Considered by many to be the Mothers' (and some would say Zappa's) best album, We're Only in it for the Money deals with harsh subject matter in a seemingly glib and light-hearted fashion (eventually a Zappa trademark), sparing no targets with catchy melodies and high-pitched vocals. Zappa applies the same aggressive studio techniques he did on Lumpy Gravy, creating a jarring collage of sound that still sounds avant-garde today. Highlights from this flawless album are numerous and include the hippie bashing "Who Needs thePeace Corps," the bedroom science of "Let's Make the Water Turn Black," the anthematic "Mother People," and the perfect payoff of "What's the Ugliest Part of Your Body?" Quite simply one of the best rock albums of all time. --Andrew Boscardin

From the Label
This is it, kids: The ultimate stab at hippiedom, the flipside to SGT. PEPPER, the album that didn't leave a single pretense of the counterculture standing. Can it be mere coincidence that the '60s ended within a few years of this album's release?

From its Beatles parody cover design to the lyrical barbs on "Flower Punk" and "Who Needs the Peace Corps?," this was aptly described by Rolling Stone (who picked it as one of the top 100 albums from 1967-1987) as "perhaps the most mercilessly derisive raspberry ever flung at the rock scene by an actual participant therein." The finale, "The Chrome Plated Megaphone of Destiny" still stands as one of the more audacious pieces of composition in the Zappa catalogue.

When WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY first appeared on CD in 1986, Zappa took the controversial step of technically spiffing up the music with new, digitally-recorded bass and drum tracks. Some fans responded with a resounding "Thanks, but no thanks." Here, the original Verve master has been restored.

Customer Reviews

Censored? Not really.
This isn't really a review so much as a response to Zappafreak's claim that this CD is censored. Having just listened to it, I can assure readers that this disc is identical to the original 1968 LP. I'm guessing that Zappafreak is referring to the omission of a few bits that were restored on the heavily remixed and overdubbed version of We're Only In It For The Money that was released in the '80s on a disc paired with Lumpy Gravy. While I agree that it would have been nice to hear these censored portions included (particularly in the album's original mix), I believe that MFSL's primary goal is to restore--to the best of their ability--the *original* album. Therefore, I think it's pretty unfair to accuse these guys of bastardizing Frank's work. In fact, this CD has the same content as the "FZ approved" edition that Ryko released in 1995. And say, I just noticed that the front cover of this version actually has all the black bars removed from the people's faces. How 'bout that?

As for the sound quality, MFSL did pretty good job given the source material. While there is still some noticeable distortion and fuzz here and there, the album certainly sounds crisper and cleaner than the current Ryko version. Whether or not it's worth the upgrade mainly depends on how much of an audiophile you are. The sound quality most likely won't blow you away, but I can't imagine this album sounding any better. I definitely won't be needing my old CD anymore.

Zappa hits the target
Zappa's mocking attack of the "summer of love" and its adherents' bloated self-importance might seem dated to some (I still find it very funny), but the satire of "We're Only in it for the Money" isn't really the point. Its strength lies in Zappa's command in the studio and his ability to piece together a huge patchwork of sounds into one wonderfully varied 39-minute work.

The 1968 release was Zappa's answer to the Beatles' "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," which he lampoons on the cover. The Beatles' work had in turn been inspired by the Mothers' "Freak Out." Whatever the difference between "Money" and the Lennon and McCartney's work, though, the two albums share one similarity: they both surprise with sound. Zappa's work includes patches of melody played backward, spoken words, doo-wop, surf music, hard-edged guitar, and a note held at the end of the tone poem "The Chrome-Plated Megaphone of Destiny," which ends the album and provides Zappa's final comment to the closer of "Sergeant Pepper's," the then-spooky "Day in the Life."

The album nearly unrelentingly taunts the "flower power" generation, but its tones run deep. There is anger at the police, real insight into the gaps between parents and kids, and Zappa's ever-present love of plain absurdity. With the "Chrome-Plated Megaphone of Destiny," he reveals his orchestral sense and his willingness to challenge his audience with a thoroughly free work. Zappa never condescended to his audience.

Zappa's music was always a great leavening agent to the reigning pomposities of the day. "We're Only in it for the Money" sears with satire but also amazes with the sound of surprise.

I Think It's Your Mind
How can a record be bad when it implores you to "Take our Clothes Off When You Dance" ? At the ripe young age of 12, this collection seemingly peeled back the protective skin on my forehead and injected my brain with the fresh breath of reality. It didn't just offend the hippies that thought they were the greatest thing since sliced bread - it attacked nearly every segment of 60's culture and asked us "Are You Hung Up"?

I think Frank Zappa was a very misunderstood artist, which relegated him to the status of a cult legend. But people are still listening and some are learning that he was one of the great musical geniouses of the last century. This disc might not be the most accessible place to start, but if you are looking to expand back into the early part of the catalog, you must find a place for this disc in your collection, if only to find different ways to look at yourself. As Frank said:

"What's the ugliest part of your body?
Some say your nose, some say your toes
But I think it's your mind."