Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Tush Tush Tush (A Token of My Extreme)
2. Stinkfoot
3. Inca Roads
4. RDNZL
5. Village of the Sun
6. Echidna's Arf (Of You)
7. Don't You Ever Wash That Thing?
8. Pygmy Twylyte
9. Room Service
10. Idiot Bastard Son
11. Cheepnis

Disc 2:

1. Approximate [#]
2. Dupree's Paradise
3. Satumaa [Finnish Tango][#]
4. T'Mershi Duween [#]
5. Dog Breath Variations
6. Uncle Meat
7. Building a Girl [#]
8. Montana (Whipping Floss)
9. Big Swifty

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10941 in Music
• Released on: 1995-05-16
• Number of discs: 2
• Formats: Live, Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .24 pounds

Album Details
This product is manufactured on demand using CD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.

From the Label
Departing from the live-compilation format of YOU CAN'T DO THAT ON STAGE ANYMORE, Volume Two is the only installment to include a complete show -- Sept. 22, 1974, in Helsinki, Finland, to be exact. The APOSTROPHE-era band (with George Duke on keyboards, Napoleon Murphy Brock on sax, Ruth Underwood on percussion/marimba, Tom Fowler on bass and future Genesis member Chester Thompson on drums) had never played better; and this set includes long stretches of brilliant instrumental work on "Dupree's Paradise," "Inca Roads" and "Approximate." Also here is the definitive version of the "Village of the Sun" suite (originally on ROXY & ELSEWHERE) and a long version of "Montana" that keeps threatening to turn into "Whippin' Post."

Customer Reviews

The Incredible Helsinki Concert
From its opening Tush Tush Tush (usually don't want the kids to listen too closely) to the Montana/Whipping Post double speed jam this hilarious concert is incredible.

There are alot of great Zappa recordings... it is hard to choose a favorite. But my preference is for the early 70's sound. (My favorite studio work is HOT RATS.) What makes this double CD so good is that it covers the whole concert and with one of the best bands Frank put and kept together. Also there is the contrast with how the band sounded at the beginning of the tour (as recorded on the excellent ROXY AND ELSEWHERE), and here something like 6 months later. The band knows the tunes inside out, and you get the treat of hearing the uptempo changes they can make, such as the double time version of Village Of the Sun.

Zappa is not always an easy listen (thank God!), he is though one of the best American composers of the 20th century, and his torturous sounds and songs are worth getting through to get the pearls. This concert shows him at one of his finest hours.

A full two-hour show
An unusually small but powerful group--FZ, Napoleon Murphy Brock, George Duke, Tom Fowler, Ruth Underwood, and Chester Thompson--performed in Helsinki September 22nd 1974. The whole concert was captured on tape, and is presented on these two discs without ANY over-dubs, and with clear audio. Since this is the only volume from the YCDTOSA series that features the same group, and performances from only one concert throughout, these two discs naturally have a comforting main thread. This talented group had been playing together for a whole year prior to this performance, and in the liner notes Zappa has pointed out that the band therefore is so comfortable with the material that they could probably have performed it blindfolded, which I do not doubt. The only unrehearsed number here is the Finnish tango "Satumaa", which is a special request for only this particular concert. The band sight-reads the number on stage (very well), and Brock makes an attempt to sing the lyrics to the song. This always cracks me up, as I live in Finland, and am familiar with this song and its lyrics. During this concert is when the idea of playing Allman Brothers' "Whipping Post" was born; it is here requested by an audience member, but neither Zappa or the band is familiar with the tune, and so naturally they do not perform it. Zappa later familiarized himself with the tune, and made it a regular number in his band's repertoire. In the 80's, when he returned to Finland, he announced to the audience "guess what - we now know the song you requested back in '74", and performed it.
YCDTOSA vol.2 has such a perfect balance of humour, great musicianship, and different kind of material, that it certainly is one of FZ's best live albums. It should be of great satisfaction to fans of "Roxy and Elsewhere", which was recorded on various occasions four to eight months prior to this concert.

One of the finest live BANDS ever assembled!
While many Zappaphiles will forever debate about Zappa's live bands, there is no question to this musichead that not only were the '74-era Mothers Of Invention the most accomplished of them all, they were also one of the finest pure BANDS ever!

All the elements of Zappa & The Mothers are here. Frank's unnerving wit ("Stinkfoot"), blistering instrumental passages ("Inca Roads"), complicated & challenging changes performed at effortless clips ("Inca Roads", "RDNZL") and daring humor ("Room Service"). While a good chunk of this material is found on The Roxy & Elsewhere, every version here is easily tighter and superior, especially "Village Of The Sun".

If there is a flaw anywhere in this set -- and this is arguable -- it's the overlong drum/percussion solo, but the Mothers clearly give new meaning to the term "ensemble". It is clear every musician listens to each other in the strictest of conditions and pays close attention to every detail and nuance.

Simulatanously, this edition of the Mothers manages to avoid excesses that would flaw other Zappa backing bands. For example, the '77 & '84 bands are marred by the screeching tones of synthesizers and heavy-metal-ish guitars. The difference between this Mothers and every other Zappa band is clear: The musicians and music both receive the necessary room to breathe.

If you're going to dive into Frank Zappa, probably the most accessible place to start is Hot Rats. However, if you want a crash course on the genius of Zappa and the Mothers, YCDTOSA Vol. 2 is the best place to start.

Not only does this 2-CD set receives my highest recommendation, it also deserves its rightful place among the finest live albums ever!