Customer Reviews

Buffalo

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This new CD is a complete live recording of a concert by Zappa in Buffalo, circa 1980. What a great band, and they're in rare form, great recordings and selections. Unbelievable Zappa guitar solo on "Pick Me, I'm Clean". Steve Vai, Ray White, Ike Willis, and the incredible Vinnie Colaiuta on drums, and other assorted lunatics (Bob Harris, Tommy Mars, Arthur Barrow) round out the musical mayhem. This is the second live recording released posthumously on the Vaulternative label (FZ:OZ is the other one). I remember this tour and seeing the band play (NYC The Palladium), and it is just as much fun to hear now as to have seen it then (but boy, do I wish he was still around now). Putting this CD on brought back a lot of memories and I just eased in to the sounds of the music like putting on an old pair of shoes, nothing new or unfamiliar here, just a lot of great old favorite songs done right. I hope the Zappa Family Trust keep gems like this coming out in the future. If you are a fan of Zappa's music, you will definitely NOT be disappointed with this CD, it clocks in at a little over 140 minutes, with not one bad cut on the collection.

if you were like me and you grew up as a musician in a small town in the late 70s and you heard the kind of racket that fz and vinnie c were whipping up on shut up and play yer guitar-it can change your life. and i remember standing for 2 shows at the stanley theater with my jaw open as they aforementioned 2 dueled it out in outer space. the solos on this album are unlike anything else in the cannon. this is where polyrhytmic heaven is..this is the same show i saw. i have always like mr c the BEST of all the fz drummer and yes they are all monsters..maybe i like terry as well, very very close..but nonetheless there never was a period where there was such an emphasis on the drum/gtr thing in the solos..yes, chad, chester and terry did play out on fzs solos, but not like this...arthur barrow must have had the toughest job just to hold down the fort in this band, but what a band..ive always thought that this was almost fzs version of what the dead tried to do with their free approach to all instruments..fz just limited it to 2 with everyone else largely in support roles..what a ride it is...there was a magic in fz/vc much like tony williams and miles and sun ra..places where chances are taken and rewards are reaped..they are splattered all over this show..
again, its the solos that matter and the best are on pick me im clean, easy meat, andy, and killers, i mean brutal solos on city of tiny lights and torture never stops....it just isnt and has never been and will never be better than this, folks...yes we also get some singalong tunes like dead girls of london and shall we take ourselves seriuosly and we even get the end of the disco era love story called the "real world"..but again, thats not what this is about..its the gtr and drums and the use of space and rhytmic interplay that will leave all guitarists and drummers floating in ectacsy..thank you guys at barfko-the last few things have been better and this is what we need more of ....complete shows!! fz taped em all for a reason......but for me, this is the peak of this trip..maybe one day we can get the fort collins show, etc where they had the tracy lords soundtrack (not gail) on torture.....this is really a sweet sweet release and a good sign concerning the vault

Anytime you have Frank and Vinnie playing together it is wonderful. I am so glad that in December 1980,I went down to Seattle to see them at the Paramount( they played watermellon in easter hay, perhaps the best song ever). Pick Me I'm Clean is out of this world. Andy maybe better. Would have liked more liner notes about the band and pictures of the band together. They have inserted Steve Vai and Bob Harris pictures. Similar to Tinseltown Rebellion, however longer solo's with Frank and Vinnie absolutly out of this world. Buy it today!!

I'm giving this 5 stars without hearing it because of what the other two reviewers said about it. And let me say that I'm darned glad I can pick it up on the Zappa site for $28 rather than getting ripped off by the sellers here!

Well, after getting my $28 copy at the Zappa site, I can now "officially" give the 2 cd set 5 stars. This is a must have for Zappa fans. As the other reviewer pointed out it does have some mean, mean guitar solos and the drummer is right on with them. But, I must mention "Dancing Fool". This is a song that I generally didn't like, though I appreciated what Zappa was saying. Well, done live on this album, I loved it. The storytelling that Zappa did along with it was truly hilarious and he was definitely taking a swipe at drug usage (which if you don't know, he was very much against). I would recommend this to anyone that is a Zappa fan and if it's less than $28 (or equal to that if it is new) feel free to buy it here, though I gotta admit, I'd rather give the money to the Zappa family on this one unless I saw it going for $20 like new here!

Having not heard many of the early 1980s shows, I was absolutely floored when I first heard Buffalo. This is essentially a variation on the Joe's Garage band, with the absolutely otherworldly rhythm section of Arthur Barrow and Vinnie Colaiuta leading Steve, Ray, Ike, Tommy, and Bob through some absolutely astonishing renditions. "Keep It Greasy," for example, is played at something approximating warp speed...the virtuosity is just jaw-dropping. Other standouts include embryonic versions of "Drowning Witch" and "Tinseltown Rebellion".

Pity, then, that the entire thing is compressed to hell and back. This could be inherent in the source or the mix, but the really tinny sound of "Buffalo" (when compared to the relative richness of "Imaginary Diseases" or even the recent "Trance Fusion") really does a disservice to the performances. Worst affected is Vinnie, whose cymbals pulse and distort wildly, and whose performance on the kit is frequently rendered an indistinguishable mess.

Verdict: "Buffalo" is a great purchase, and a great concert, but expect sound quality that doesn't even rise to the level of the hit-and-miss "Stage" series.

I really have to say, I have had this recording since it was issued... but I have recently went back to listening to it since the purchase of the new ZFT live concert release of 'Philly 76'... just to compare this one alongside of the OZ concert release (all available, and if you like Buffalo, you will love those as well)

Anyway, this is a very good sounding recording. Of course there is the one spot in the show where they had to resort to a boot to finish the song.. but that is fine with me... (a case where boots DO come in handy).

There are those in the Zappa community that simply love the drumming of VC. He is all over the place on this recording. Plenty for the Vinny lovers to love.

The song selection for me was very nice. I love the song Chunga's Revenge, and the version on here is just fantastic. I think every FZ fan will be loving on this version.

Most know that Steve Vai started with FZ. This is a good way to get to see how he started out... and how he became such a good guitar player - in the sense of different pacing and time signatures.

The humor is there, as with most FZ recordings... If I ever find myself needing a smile, I always find / dust off some FZ and slap it in whatever device format will play it.

The Tinsel Town Rebellion also sounds pretty nifty, if not a beat slower than it would be when released later on...

I have to say, there are lots to listen tooo...

I can't say enough to make this sound as good as it is, words fail it. Get it. Give it as a gift to a gifthorse.

Mondo