Di alcune vicende, pubbliche e private, che riguardano Zappa si può venire a sapere leggendo la versione dei fatti (e misfatti) datane recentemente da Moon Unit, sua figlia maggiore, in Earth to Moon (White Rabbit, 2024), ora disponibile in italiano come Terra chiama Luna. Un viaggio folle e sincero con un padre di nome Frank Zappa (Mondadori, 2025). Non tutto propriamente splendido, e l'autrice non nasconde sfide, difficoltà e traumi affrontati anche solo nello scriverne: "I set out to humanize my father in a way his fans have never seen before and to ask the questions: What happens when the person you want to belong to you alone belongs to his art, himself and everyone else? Is genius worth the collateral damage? I used to say having Frank for a father was a bit like having Jesus as a dad – only I viewed his fervent flock keeping our lights on as my competition, and was outraged by the ones filling our earthly father’s coffers with unlimited blowjobs. Some of the surprises for me in writing the book were empathy for the villains in my life and for myself, along with the mortifying exposure and dismantling of faulty understandings and outdated beliefs. This memoir is a rock ‘n’ roll odyssey examining much of what broke me and broke me open growing up an inimitable icon’s daughter. There was no ghost writer. I was the sole ghost hunter. Personally and professionally this was the most difficult and ambitious thing I have done so far. If you are a fish-out-of water, black sheep, fly-on-the-wall, path-cutter, survivor, loner, or life lover, I hope it speaks to you in some lasting and beneficial way."

https://moonunit.com

Molte novità - una cinquantina tra inediti, rarità e versioni alternative - sono invece annunciate nelle edizioni da anniversario di One Size Fits All, album di Zappa che nel giugno 1975 precedette solo di qualche mese l'uscita con Beefheart, Bongo Fury. Brani divenuti immancabili in concerto (per esempio Inca Roads, Florentine Pogen, Andy e San Ber'dino), immagini di copertina indimenticabili di Cal Schenkel (soprattutto la mappa stellare sul retro, criptica e rivelatrice allo stesso tempo), lavoro di minor resa commerciale rispetto al precedente Apostrophe (’) ma di impatto sonoro superiore. Fu la prima volta che per le registrazioni multitraccia Zappa ebbe modo di utilizzare un 24 piste. E fu l'ultima volta che fu speso il nome Mothers of Invention, anche perché in quell'occasione tra infortuni, assenze, sostituzioni, tensioni e conseguenti abbandoni il gruppo andò davvero a rotoli. Cinquant'anni fa.

https://www.zappa.com

Chi tra i beefheartiani è rimasto deluso dalle poche novità contenute nelle recenti ripubblicazioni in formate deluxe di Clear Spot e The Spotlight Kid ha di che consolarsi con Trout Mask Replica Replica, una versione di Trout Mask Replica realizzata qualche mese fa dai cinque fratelli Minnick di Detroit, The 180 Gs, quale ultimo capitolo di una loro serie che li ha visti capaci di riprodurre a cappella - con precisione all'inverosimile - intere opere di Negativland, Cardiacs e Residents. 

A chi gliene chiede il motivo, uno di loro, David, sa come rispondere: "Why attempt an a cappella version of Trout Mask Replica is an excellent question (and one I kept asking myself every time I faced a section of music that seemed impossible to decipher or recreate). The 180Gs’ “thing” is making a cappella versions of albums which seem impossible. Part of the intent is to invite the question “Why?” and then only to answer it with “here it is; it exists”. After covering Negativland, Cardiacs and The Residents, Trout Mask Replica seemed to be the next (and probably last) logical step. The Gs make tribute albums of super-iconoclastic records and act as if it’s a normal thing to do. When I first considered the idea, it was so ridiculous and impossible that I found it too compelling to resist. Just the mere idea of an accurate a cappella version of Trout Mask Replica made me start giggling. Also, while it was extremely challenging, it was a ton of fun to make. For five and a half years I never had to ask myself “What should I work on?” whenever I had free time.

Trout Mask Replica is a unique record by any standards. None of the patterns or structures one finds in other rock/blues/pop/classical music are present on this album. It makes up its own rules from the ground up. Because of this, it took a while to decide how to approach it. Most “rock” (even complex or experimental rock) music can be paraphrased to some degree. If you recreate the chords, melodies and rhythms of a typical “song” it’s possible to change/add/delete a lot of elements without losing its soul. I finally decided that Trout Mask Replica had to be covered as accurately as possible; note for note, all the intentional and unintentional tempo changes, all of the parts where the instruments and vocals aren’t in sync with each other: it all had to be there. The soul of Trout Mask Replica resides in the perceived incongruence of the parts, the wild abandon with which is was executed and the complicated layers which don’t point to particular chord progressions (or to a few simultaneous chord progressions). This album could not be paraphrased without losing what makes it special.

I knew there was far more to this record than meets the ear on a surface level and wanted to find out what made it tick. I was not disappointed and now have an incredibly higher level of respect for this album and the band that created it. As it turns out, it has a lot in common with the music of Cage, Feldman, Berio, Xenakis and other composers I love. Also, the album has a huge cultural and historical significance. The short answer, however, is 'I just wanted to see if it was possible'. I was rarely convinced while working that it was."

https://davidminnick1.bandcamp.com
https://www.beefheart.com/the-180gs-trout-mask-replica-replica

Lo spassoso manuale pratico di Alan Jenkins, titolare dell'incomparabile Cordelia Records, che già nel 1994 (e ancor prima nel 1990) aveva consigliato e anche ammonito giovanotti di varie e belle speranze circa le gioie e i dolori nella vita di un gruppo pop - pur poco conforme agli standard - torna disponibile in edizione rivista e aggiornata alla luce delle mutate condizioni di contesto tecnologico, economico e socioculturale dell'industria musicale : How to be in a Pop Group.

https://mybook.to/AlanJenkins-HowTo

L'immagine di oggetti e utensili di casa bellamente disposti in piano poteva forse meritare la prima di copertina, tanto è immediato (e geniale) il richiamo a quella, celeberrima, di Ummagumma. Invece, per coerenza, è sul retro. E non è l'unica allusione ai Pink Floyd: Household Objects (and sundry massed gadgets).

After Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd were casting around for a new concept. What they came up with was to make an album using only household objects - but allowing manipulation and musique concrete techniques. They made a start and then abandoned the project. Now William Hayter and Barry Lamb - who brought you Miniatures 2020 - have decided to give it another go, commissioning a wide range of artists to scour their houses for sounds and organise them into compositions. Some pieces work because you can recognise the sources, others because you can't. Many participants assemble small orchestras of objects, a few stick to just one thing (water or, an egg-slicer) and always the objects are meticulously listed. Some contributors here are well known (The Residents, Steve Beresford, Mark Hewins etc.) others are not, making this also a sampler of new voices. It's informative, left-field and a bone fide curiosity and comes in a beautifully designed and illustrated package, with a 32pp booklet elucidating each track, a series of great art collages and a foreword by Nick Mason. 

https://tinyurl.com/HHobjects

Pubblicazioni sempre di pregio e di rilievo sono quelle della polacca Fundacja Słuchaj, che in questo periodo festeggia dieci anni di attività con una serie di offerte in cd a prezzo amichevole: in primo piano Ivo Perelman, Nate Wooley, Martin Küchen, Sylvie Courvoisier, John Butcher, John Edwards, Dominique Pifarely, Michel Doneda, Lê Quan Ninh, Alexander von Schlippenbach, Charlotte Hug e Tyshawn Sorey. E tra la più recenti uscite spicca uno splendido solo di Paul Rogers, Peace and Happiness.

https://fsrecords.net

Anche la Confront Recordings di Mark Wastell sforna titoli a tambur battente, diffondendoli in formato digitale via Bandcamp e, pur se in tiratura limitata, anche in cd: tra quelli più recenti si segnalano Ephemeral Locations di Udo Schindler con Paul Rogers, Live at Cafe Oto del quintetto Wunderkammer con Jan Bang e David Toop tra i componenti, l'immaginativo Clastic per opera di Cheryl E. Leonard, Tom Djill e Bryan Day riuniti con nome Euphotic e Poznań: Appropriate Density con John Butcher, Phil Durrant e Wastell ripresi dal vivo in Polonia lo scorso ottobre.

https://confrontrecordings.bandcamp.com

Procedono a ritmo spedito le pubblicazioni curate dall'eccellente Jazz in Britain, e non si tratta solo di documenti amorevolmente recuperati da epoche passate: a fianco di importanti inediti che arricchiscono le storie ufficiali - con qualche retroscena - di Tony Coe (The Buds of Time), Kenny Wheeler (The Endangered Species), Paz (Variation and Creation) e Geoff Castle (Impressions of New York) ci sono infatti lavori di recentissima realizzazione tra cui il debutto di Neil Charles (Dark Days, in quartetto con Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders e Cleveland Watkiss sui testi di James Baldwin) e lo splendido ritorno di Larry Stabbins con Paul Rogers e di nuovo Mark Sanders nel trio Sarost (Aurora, registrato pochi mesi fa, a gennaio). Tutto disponibile anche in cd tramite Bandcamp.

A not-for-profit organisation, whose aim is to collect, curate, preserve, celebrate and promote the legacy of British jazz musicians. The archive collects, curates and preserves off-air and other recordings of British jazz performances. The organisation publishes books, vinyl, CDs and downloads, working in partnership with musicians and their families.  

https://jazzinbritain1.bandcamp.com

Mai ripreso dopo la sua uscita in LP nel 1973 - fu il secondo dei titoli in catalogo della storica etichetta Cadillac voluta da John Jack e Mike Westbrook - torna ora in cd Original, eccellente duo di Stan Tracey e Mike Osborne, con audio restaurato e apparato grafico quanto più possibile fedele a quella prima edizione.

Original was the second release by Cadillac Records in 1973 and came about through the involvement of Mike Westbrook with the label - Osborne was of course the fiery alto player in Mike’s groundbreaking Concert Band and came to Cadillac with a duo recording with legendary pianist Stan Tracey. John Jack snapped it up! Reissued for the very first time, remastered from the original tapes and available digitally.

https://stantraceymikeosborne.bandcamp.com/original

Una rapida occhiata al reparto novità del WestbrookJazz è sufficiente per capire quali e quante iniziative si prospettano nelle prossime settimane per Mike e Kate Westbrook, tanto sul fronte delle pubblicazioni di importanti documenti discografici, molti dei quali inediti, quanto sul fronte delle apparizioni dal vivo. Con almeno due date certe per l'autunno: la Band of Bands di nuovo in scena a Torquay (il 23 novembre) e il Westbrook-Blake in versione corale a Londra (il 20 dicembre). E un nuovo brano consegnato a Marcus Vergette per la sua tenace campagna per far restaurare le campane della chiesa di Highampton carissime a una comunità che per la prima volta le sentì suonare nel XIV secolo.

https://www.westbrookjazz.co.uk/mikewestbrook/news.shtml

T.V.? Mais Oui!