Frank Zappa Them Or Us CD

Personnel: Frank Zappa, Ray White, Ike Willis (vocals, guitar); Bobby Martin (vocals, harmonica, saxophone, keyboards); George Duke (vocals, piano); Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Napoleon Murphy Brock, Moon Zappa, Bob Harris (vocals); Steve Vai, Dweezil Zappa (guitar); Brad Cole (piano); Tommy Mars (keyboards); Scott Thunes (Moog synthesizer, bass); Patrick O'Hearn, Arthur Barrow (bass); Chad Wackerman (drums); Ed Mann (percussion); Roy Estrada, Thana Harris (background vocals).
Personnel: Frank Zappa (vocals, guitar, keyboards); Ray White (vocals, guitar, background vocals); Johnny "Guitar" Watson (vocals, guitar); Bobby Martin (vocals, harmonica, saxophone, keyboards); Napoleon Murphy Brock (vocals, saxophone); George Duke (vocals, piano, keyboards); Tommy Mars, Bob Harris (vocals, keyboards); Scott Thunes (vocals, synthesizer, mini-Moog synthesizer); Chad Wackerman (vocals, drums); Ike Willis, Roy Estrada (vocals, background vocals); Thana Harris, Moon Unit Zappa (vocals); Dweezil Zappa, Steve Vai (guitar); Brad Cole (piano); Ed Mann (percussion); Patrick O'Hearn (wind).
Recording information: Utility Muffin Research Kitchen, Los Angeles, CA.
Photographers: Steve Schapiro; Steve Shapiro.
Arranger: Frank Zappa.
Released in October 1984, Them or Us is Frank Zappa's last studio rock album (unless one counts Thing-Fish). It contains a little of everything for everyone, but most of all it has that cold and dry early-'80s feel that made this and other albums like The Man From Utopia and Frank Zappa Meets the Mothers of Prevention sound dated pretty quickly. The record begins and ends with covers. "The Closer You Are" is one of those '50s R&B tunes the man loved so much. As for the Allman Brothers' "Whippin' Post," it answered a request from an audience member in Helsinki back in 1974 (go figure). In between one finds the usual offensive lyrics -- the cliché-ridden "In France," the sexually explicit "Baby, Take Your Teeth Out." Crunchy guitars are found in "Ya Hozna" and "Stevie's Spanking" (named after Steve Vai, playing guitar in it, too), arguably one of Zappa's best straightforward rock songs from that period. "Sinister Footwear II" and "Marqueson's Chicken" represent an '80s update of complex instrumental pieces the likes of "RDNZL." "Planet of My Dreams" salvages a bit from the never-produced stage play Hunchentoot (the scenario of which was incidentally published in a book titled Them or Us released at the same time). Finally, "Be in My Video" mocks David Bowie's hit "Let's Dance" and the MTV generation, still in its infancy stage at the time. It's a high-average mixed bag, especially interesting since the reissue packs two LPs on one CD. ~ François Couture
THEM OR US is comparable in many ways to 1981's YOU ARE WHAT YOU IS. They were both double albums later released as a single CD, each featuring a wide variety of styles and containing similar-sounding production (very '80s). If you're a fan of Zappa's thought provoking, impeccably played '80s work, THEM OR US is highly recommended. The album proved to be the last studio recording that actively involved guitarist Steve Vai.
Zappa always had a soft spot in his heart for late '50s doo-wop, and he starts the album off with a cover of the golden oldie "The Closer You Are" (which includes an impressive vocal harmony courtesy of Mr. Zappa himself). But not all of THEM OR US is retro--there is plenty of Zappa's trademark musical dementia to go around. "In France" features one of Frank's musical heroes, legendary guitarist Johnny "Guitar" Watson on vocals, and is one of the album's many humorous tracks (along with "Baby, Take Your Teeth Out," "Frogs With Dirty Little Lips," etc.). The best track has to be the guitar duel "Stevie's Spanking," which features Vai and Zappa's son Dweezil trading off impressive guitar lines at the song's end.