Waka/Wazoo

Product Information

Rehearsals started for the album recording sessions sometime in late March/early April and once the material was honed to his satisfaction, Zappa and crew decamped to Paramount Studios where recording began on April 10, 1972. By the end of the month, Zappa, who handled production, guitar and conducting duties, had recorded the bulk of two albums, the jazz-influenced Waka/Jawaka(intended by Zappa as a sequel to Hot Rats), recorded with a lineup of six to nine musicians, and the epic and ambitious jazz-fusion masterwork, The Grand Wazoo, recorded with a larger ensemble ranging from eight to as many as 20 musicians. T HE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In 1972, following the aftermath of being pushed off stage at the Rainbow Theatre in London by a crazed attendee, Frank Zappa found himself recuperating for months in his home in the hills of Los Angeles. Although he was confined to a wheelchair and in immense pain, his work ethic could not be tamed, and he would end up having one of the most prolific years of his hugely prolific career. BLU-RAY AUDIO DISC PRESENTS ORIGINAL ALBUMS IN IMMERSIVE DOLBY ATMOS, 5.1 SURROUND SOUND AND HI-RES STEREO MIXES Finally, during the album recording sessions at Paramount Studios, FZ worked with George Duke on some of Duke’s solo material. These demos were produced by Zappa, who also played guitar.

Waka/Wazoo” is a Comprehensive 4-CD + Blu-ray Audio box set celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Mothers Of Invention/Hot Rats/Grand Wazoo experience from 1972. Mastered By [Hi-Res Stereo]: Robert Hadley ( Blu-ray Audio), Sangwook "Sunny" Nam ( Blu-ray Audio), Doug Sax ( Blu-ray Audio) INCLUDES COMPLETE, UNRELEASED “PETITE WAZOO” PERFORMANCE FROM WINTERLAND BALLROOM, 1972 AND ZAPPA-PRODUCED GEORGE DUKE DEMOS Rehearsals started for the album recording sessions sometime in late March/early April and once the material was honed to his satisfaction, Zappa and crew decamped to Paramount Studios where recording began on April 10, 1972. By the end of the month, Zappa, who handled production, guitar and conducting duties, had recorded the bulk of two albums, the jazz-influenced Waka/Jawaka (intended by Zappa as a sequel to Hot Rats), recorded with a lineup of six to nine musicians, and the epic and ambitious jazz-fusion masterwork, The Grand Wazoo, recorded with a larger ensemble ranging from eight to as many as 20 musicians.

Stories We Want You to Read

Joann Caldwell McNab - woodwinds ( "Think It Over (The Grand Wazoo)", "For Calvin (And His Next Two Hitch-Hikers)") Tony Duran - slide guitar ( "Your Mouth", "Big Swifty", "Think It Over (The Grand Wazoo)", "For Calvin (And His Next Two Hitch-Hikers)", "It Just Might Be A One-Shot Deal"), vocals ( "It Just Might Be A One-Shot Deal"), rhythm guitar ( "Blessed Relief") Initially when the Frank Zappa deluxe box titled “Waka/Wazoo” was announced, I was not fully convinced that it would make it into fans hands. Thankfully it has arrived and has surpassed expectations in multiple ways that are revealed in this review.

Also, an important note of warning as you start to explore this disc: the 96 kHz, 24-bit Stereo (original album) mix is set significantly louder than the surround mixes. So if you are switching in real time between the different options (as I frequently do), be sure to lower your volume settings accordingly before switching to it! That is a disc mastering issue which probably should be fixed for subsequent pressings. Produced by Ahmet Zappa and Zappa Vaultmeister Joe Travers, the comprehensive 4CD + Blu-Ray Audio set boasts unreleased alternate takes of almost every composition recorded during the album sessions, Vault mix session outtakes and oddities, and also includes the full final show of the 10-piece tour, recorded at the famous Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco on December 15, 1972.

Companies, etc.

In 1972, following the aftermath of being pushed off stage at the Rainbow Theatre in London by a crazed attendee, Frank Zappa found himself recuperating for months in his home in the hills of Los Angeles. The Waka/Wazoo Box Set features a complete historical run-down of the entire project, featuring alternate takes of almost every composition recorded during the album sessions, along with Vault mix session outtakes and oddities. Matrix / Runout (Disc 4): 4859464 [2 x Universal Logo] AM83838-01 manufactured by optimal media GmbH In celebration of half a century of this pioneering phase of Zappa’s peerless career, Zappa Records/UMe will be releasing Waka/Wazoo, a five-disc multi-format box set that features a complete historical rundown of the entire project, on December 16th, just ahead of what would have been the Maestro’s 82nd birthday. Produced by Ahmet Zappa and Zappa Vaultmeister Joe Travers, the comprehensive 4CD + Blu-Ray Audio set boasts unreleased alternate takes of almost every composition recorded during the album sessions, Vault mix session outtakes and oddities, and also includes the full final show of the 10-piece tour, recorded at the famous Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco on December 15, 1972. Additionally, the collection includes a set of demos for George Duke’s solo material that Zappa produced and played guitar on during the album recording sessions at Paramount Studios. Although Duke would go on to re-record the compositions for his own albums, the versions with Zappa have never been officially issued until now.

During this time, he managed, among other things, to assemble an ensemble that quenched his thirst and desire to work with a large “Electric Orchestra.” Ultimately, he contracted a 20-piece group for recording sessions and an eight-city tour. Shortly thereafter, a scaled down 10-piece configuration, now popularly known as the “ Petite Wazoo” toured for almost two months. After all was said and done, Zappa finished the experiment with two albums in the can — Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo — plus two tours and an archive of show masters in his vault. It was a monumental feat for a guy with a cast on his leg and a conductor’s baton in his hand. The TrueHD 5.1 surround mix is impressive, with good use of the rear channels and discrete placement of instruments taking full advantage of the enhanced soundscape. The mix places the listener in the center of the band for an up-close, intimate experience. With expansive orchestration, these albums are most uniquely suited within the Zappa discography for the surround sound treatment, and those who prefer surround on the more aggressive end of the spectrum should be more than satisfied with the immersive audio here. Note, however, that The Grand Wazoo is at a much lower volume than Waka/Jawaka for reasons unknown. (TSD isn't currently equipped to play the Atmos mix.)

On The Go

In fact, Zappa was able to bring together a 20-piece ensemble, comprising mainly musicians he was unfamiliar with – such as brass/woodwind players Sal Marquez, Malcolm McNab, Kenny Shroyer and Earle Dumler, alongside more familiar faces like drummer Aynsley Dunbar, bassist Alex “Erroneous” Dmochowski and keyboardists George Duke and Don Preston. In a contemporaneous interview, Zappa commented: “It’s a group you’ve never seen before – 20 pieces including six reeds, six brass, two concert percussionists, one drum set, one electric bass, two guitars, keyboard and synthesizers, and an electric cello. It’s really nice. The only names people will recognize from past associations will be Ian Underwood on keyboard and Ruth Underwood playing percussion one. Most of the people who are on the Waka/Jawaka album are in this group. We’ll probably be billed as The Mothers . What we really have here is an electric symphony orchestra…” Bob Zimmitti - percussion ( "Think It Over (The Grand Wazoo)", "For Calvin (And His Next Two Hitch-Hikers)")