Frank Zappa Hot Rats CD

Personnel: Frank Zappa (guitar, bass, percussion); Captain Beefheart (vocals); Jean-Luc Ponty, Sugar Cane Harris (violin); Ian Underwood (clarinet, saxophone, piano, organ); Max Bennett, Shuggie Otis (bass); John Guerin, Paul Humphrey, Ron Selico (drums).
Engineers include: Dick Kunc, Jack Hunt, Cilff Goldstein.
Recorded from August to September 1969.
HOT RATS was digitally remixed in 1987. "The Gumbo Variations" has been extended an extra 4 minutes from the original LP version. All of the tracks have been remixed, and in some cases sound quite different.
Aside from the experimental side project Lumpy Gravy, Hot Rats was the first album Frank Zappa recorded as a solo artist sans the Mothers, though he continued to employ previous musical collaborators, most notably multi-instrumentalist Ian Underwood. Other than another side project -- the doo wop tribute Cruising With Ruben and the Jets -- Hot Rats was also the first time Zappa focused his efforts in one general area, namely jazz-rock. The result is a classic of the genre. Hot Rats' genius lies in the way it fuses the compositional sophistication of jazz with rock's down-and-dirty attitude -- there's a real looseness and grit to the three lengthy jams, and a surprising, wry elegance to the three shorter, tightly arranged numbers (particularly the sumptuous "Peaches en Regalia"). Perhaps the biggest revelation isn't the straightforward presentation, or the intricately shifting instrumental voices in Zappa's arrangements -- it's his own virtuosity on the electric guitar, recorded during extended improvisational workouts for the first time here. His wonderfully scuzzy, distorted tone is an especially good fit on "Willie the Pimp," with its greasy blues riffs and guest vocalist Captain Beefheart's Howlin' Wolf theatrics. Elsewhere, his skill as a melodist was in full flower, whether dominating an entire piece or providing a memorable theme as a jumping-off point. In addition to Underwood, the backing band featured contributions from Jean-Luc Ponty, Lowell George, and Don "Sugarcane" Harris, among others; still, Zappa is unquestionably the star of the show. Hot Rats still sizzles; few albums originating on the rock side of jazz-rock fusion flowed so freely between both sides of the equation, or achieved such unwavering excitement and energy. ~ Steve Huey
Having temporarily disbanded the Mothers Of Invention, Frank Zappa recorded this exceptional solo album. His group was renowned for musical satire, but here the artist opted to showcase his prowess on guitar. Aside from "Willie The Pimp," which features a cameo vocal by Zapppa's old friend Captain Beefheart, the set is comprised of instrumentals. The players, including Don "Sugarcane" Harris, Jean-Luc Ponty, and Ian Underwood, are uniformly excellent, combining to provide a solid jazz-rock platform for Zappa's compulsive soloing. Here the guitarist relishes a freedom which, while acknowledging past achievements, prepares new territories for exploration. As such, HOT RATS was a pivotal release in Zappa's oft-misunderstood career.Rolling Stone (3/7/70, p.48) - "...If you're eager for a first taste of Beefheart or interested in the new approaches to instrumental style and improvisational technique being developed these days, this is as good a place to start as any..."
Entertainment Weekly (12/17/93, p.36) - "...This album, Zappa's first without the Mothers, is his attempt to make jazz appealing to non-fans....lush instrumentals still sound up-to-the-minute. RATS also includes Captain Beefheart singing the epic 'Willie The Pimp.'..."
Q (8/95, pp.150-151) - 3 Stars - Good - "Secure and melodious, this captures Zappa's art as it lost the febrile nature of the early Mothers and ossified....into easy-listening jazz-rock. Nice tunes, though."
Option - Highly Recommended
Record Collector (magazine) (p.105) - 5 stars out of 5 -- "HOT RATS saw Zappa, in his first proper album without the Mothers, perfectly melding jazz and rock....Full of power, this down-and-dirty album delicately fuses both genres successfully."