An ode to Nixon. According to uploader Steve Sparx, this is the debut of the song, from 1973.
Author: thad
Django Unchained
Nobody makes a revenge flick like Quentin Tarantino.
And nobody makes a movie with racists as the villains, while simultaneously having just a little too much fun depicting racism, as Quentin Tarantino.
Frankly I think reviews are a little superfluous. Quentin Tarantino is a known quantity. If you've ever seen one of his movies, you have a pretty good idea whether or not you're going to like Django Unchained. And if you haven't seen one of his movies, go watch Pulp Fiction.
Xmas Values/N-lite
Think I'll take it easy on the blog today -- merry Christmas/Newtonmas/Tuesday/holiday of your choosing.
Anyhow, here's a video made by till593, to Xmas Values and N-lite.
Vai Christmas Card
Not directly Zappa-related, but here's a Christmas card from The1stGunner, featuring a Steve Vai cover of Christmas Time is Here.
And if you're interested in other tangentially-Zappa-related covers of songs from Christmas specials, check out Dweezil and Ahmet performing You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch (which I posted a few months back on Chuck Jones's birthday).
In-Laws
My in-laws do not understand the concept of waiting until I am awake to be as loud as possible.
Loud hammering, from 9 AM to about 10:30. Sleepy now.
Not Only In It for the Money
I thought an article called Frank Zappa's not only in it for the money (By Derk Richardson, Bay Guardian, February 2, 1983) would make a nice counterpoint to that talk about the artist as a businessman.
Guess there's not much to it -- it's another piece about Zappa's appreciation of Varèse, with a sort of rote, more-than-slightly-condescending rundown of his career. Still, it's got some good bits and is worth a glance.
Business
Frank Zappa: Portrait of the Artist as a Businessman, by Rob Partridge and Paul Phillips, Cream, 1972. Courtesy once again of afka.net.
Frank discusses the business side of things. He was certainly a much savvier and more thorough businessman than most rock artists, then or now -- but his comments about what a good deal he has with Warner Brothers are an indication that he still had some hard lessons left to learn; he'd be singing a much different tune a few years later.
Don't You Ever Wash That Thing?
Philadelphia, 1974; uploaded by Whoaduderighteous.
It's a Christmas Miracle!
Gail Simone has been un-fired from Batgirl.
Nice to see DC reversing course on an obviously bad and hasty call. And nice to see that creators and fans do have some pull. Sometimes, anyway.
Advance Romance
Video's tough to watch but audio sounds better than the other live recordings I found. Upload by bongolampos, who says it's from a performance in Stockholm in 1988.