Frank Zappa Sleep Dirt CD

Personnel includes: Frank Zappa (guitar, keyboards, percussion); Thana Harris (vocals); Bruce Fowler (trombone); George Duke (keyboards); Ruth Underwood (marimba, vibraphone, percussion); Dave Parlato, Patrick O'Hearn, James Youman (bass); Chester Thompson, Terry Bozzio, Chad Wackerman (drums).
Digitally remastered by Bob Stone.
Personnel: Frank Zappa (vocals, guitar, keyboards, percussion); George Duke (vocals, keyboards); Thana Harris (vocals); James "Bird Legs" Youman (guitar); Napoleon Murphy Brock (saxophone); Bruce Fowler (brass); Ruth Underwood (keyboards, percussion); Chester Thompson , Terry Bozzio, Chad Wackerman (drums).
Audio Remasterer: Bob Stone.
Recording information: 1974-1976.
Unknown Contributor Role: Frank Zappa.
Arranger: Frank Zappa.
Sleep Dirt was never conceived as a stand-alone album. Five of its seven tracks were suppose to appear on the ill-fated 1976 box set Läther; three had been recorded for Zoot Allures but were shelved after Zappa decided to trim it down from a double to a single LP; finally, three had been written as part of the abandoned musical Hunchentoot. Zappa pieced the album together from these various discarded parts. "The Ocean Is the Ultimate Solution" (one of the leftovers from Zoot Allures) is now considered to be one of his finest instrumental rock pieces. Upon its original release, this LP was Zappa's first 100 percent instrumental record. On the CD reissue, the three Hunchentoot songs, "Flambay," "Spider of Destiny," and "Time Is Money," were given their vocal parts back (performed by Thana Harris). As infuriating as this was for purists, these latter versions are undeniably closer to what the composer had in mind. The same does not apply to Chad Wackerman's new drum tracks for "Regyptian Strut," recorded in the midst of the infamous tamperings of such classic LPs as We're Only in It for the Money and Cruising With Ruben & the Jets. A strange mixture of the gloomy atmosphere of Zoot Allures and more theatrical (even cabaret-like in the case of "Flambay") writing, Sleep Dirt is somewhat sweet and sour. There are strong guitar solos, but the whole thing lacks panache (and the cover artwork is truly awful). This item remains more for the completist than the newcomer. ~ François Couture
The material on this album originally was intended to be part of a four-record set called Läther, prepared for release in 1977. Then Frank Zappa got into a disagreement with his record company, Warner Bros., and Läther was split up into several different releases as part of a contractual agreement. The results were dumped on the market during 1978 and 1979, while Zappa moved on to his own record label. Sleep Dirt consists of miscellaneous tracks recorded between 1974 and 1976, including "Flambay," "Spider Of Destiny," and "Time Is Money," songs that apparently were part of an unissued Zappa musical/rock opera from 1972 called Hunchentoot. They are sung by soprano Thana Harris. It's impossible to say what the entire work would have been like, but this album is little more than musical fragments. ~ William Ruhlmann
Always a prolific, restless artist, Frank Zappa was constantly recording. The songs on his 1979 release SLEEP DIRT, which stem from as early as 1974, were originally intended for release on a planned four-platter package, but when the record company balked, they were eventually issued separately. Drawing on the talents of such stalwart accompanists as George Duke, Ruth Underwood, and Terry Bozzio, SLEEP DIRT is an intricate, multi-textured record. Initially all instrumental, the CD version was released with soprano vocalist Thana Harris on three tracks.
SLEEP DIRT opens with "Filthy Habits," a minor-key, somewhat Spanish-sounding workout. The stately, keyboard-dominated "Flambay" follows, with tinkling marimbas and lyrical bass work, sequing into "Spider of Destiny." These are not so much songs as compositions, mini-operas composed of distinct, often skewed melodi