Customer Reviews

Take Your Clothes off When You Dance

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For more than a decade alto sax player Ed Palermo has been performing big band versions of his musical hero, Frank Zappa. On TAKE YOUR CLOTHES OFF WHEN YOU DANCE, Palermo mostly sticks to Zappa's classic early period by covering tracks from Zappa's WE'RE ONLY IT IT FOR THE MONEY(1968), including a Latin-styled take on the title tune and a rare vocal on "Mom And Dad/Oh No"; as well as "Pound for a Brown on the Bus" from UNCLE MEAT (1969), "Gumbo Variations" from HOT RATS (1969), and "Dwarf Nebula..." from "WEASELS RIPPED MY FLESH (1970). The most recent Zappa composition is "Moggio," which closes the CD, from MAN FROM UTOPIA (1983).

It's worth noting that with this second release of Zappa compositions from Palermo, Palermo--at 52--is the same age as Zappa when he died in 1993. Palermo's arrangments are always engaging and contain the essence of the originals while putting his own unique stamp on them. As a fan who first fell under Zappa's spell when I heard WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY and UNCLE MEAT when I was in high school, it's refreshing to hear Palermo breathe new life into these songs. [PS: For those reviewers who lament that his first Zappa tribute CD is out of print, according to a recent interview, Palermo says he still has a few available directly through him at edpalermo@comscast.net.]HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

I've been waiting for this record for eight years ... thanks Ed, Carl, Ted, et al., for exceeding my expectations. I reviewed their first record which I think is great ... as Ed writes in his liner notes, it's a shame it's out of print. (Um, hey Ed ... can ya maybe do sumpin' about dat?)

This CD is a rollicking, gymnastic jazz tour-de-force. Although I'm still spinning it, I'm impressed by the production, the excellent musicianship and overall sound of this record. At the risk of being redundant, it's great for Zappa enthusiasts like myself and it's cool jazz sound is totally unlike the vapid "cool jazz sound" found on stupid "cool jazz" radio stations. At the risk of sounding pedantic, this is music for people who like good, complex, well-executed, yet soulful music.

And, most importantly, Ed's passion for FZ's work is more than evident. Thanks for carrying on the legacy ... Frank's digging it big time, I know it!

First off, this CD is excellent. The only complaint I have it that their first release contained a lot more guitar work and it sizzles while still paying tribute to FZ's unique technique.
What I really enjoy about the arrangements is that there are snippets of many other FZ songs contained within. They might be only a stanza or two but Zappaphiles will relish identifying them. The performances are tight yet have an improvisational feel to portions. The audio quality is top notch to boot. I have been listening to this CD non-stop since I bought it and I'm still hearing new things in the songs. I regret that their first CD is no longer in print as I'm sure anyone finding this release enjoyable will really declare the first one a true gem. I wonder how Gail, Dweezil and the rest of the Zappa clan feel when they hear Frank's wonderful music in this jazz environment? I would hope they are as grateful as I am to know that this American composer is still very much alive in this music and still held in awe by those who loved him and his musical genius. Thanks, Ed for keeping the flame burning. I'm making a trip to NYC to hear this band perform this material live--but that's another review.

This is simply great great music. Fun, creative and sophisticated too. Ed Palermo's arrangements of these compositions is fantastic, really fresh, and the band is focused and committed all the way. The solos are well integrated into the music and never seem pointless or meandering. There really isn't a weak track here, everything is strong and memorable, and folks who don't even know who FZ is would like this. Too bad the first disc is out of print as I would have snapped that up immediately without hesitation, especially after hearing this amazing disc. Hopefully it gets re-issued one of these days. I have my fingers crossed for a 3rd installment.

My first impression was that the production is a bit too LA, just like the first Ed Palermo Zappa tribute. There's a few places where it begins to sound a little less inhibited and the eyebrows start to appear. I could play this at a dinner party and the guests who are not very familiar with FZ might not even realise it's his music. Don't get me wrong, it's very well played and I like the way the guitarist sings the two vocal tracks, but it's played in a very clean cut way on the whole and I'm not always sure about the instrumentation choices for certain melodies. Highlights on the Gumbo Variations track are the tenor sax work by guest Dave Riekenberg and the guitar solo by Carl Restivo.

After listening to this album many times through the weeks after it arrived in my letterbox, it has really grown on me. It doesn't take long to cut through the LA production, to find this is a very gutsy album. One criticism I still have is that there could be more obvious use made of the guitar. There seems to be a general reluctance in this department because Zappa was such a unique legend on the guitar, but either way, guitars were often a big part of his arrangements. That's one of the things I like about LeBocal's Memorial Barbecue, the guitar has an unafraid and significant presence and also a deadly violin solo and some very interesting piano work.

Having said that, there are many good solos by various members of Ed's band on this latest offering and his own sax playing is outstanding and all of Ed's arrangements are very well done. There's actually quite a depth and breadth to this album that I just wasn't able to take in on the first couple of listens.

I liked the choice of Toads Of The Short Forest on Ed Palermo's first tribute CD and I particularly like his choice here on his latest one, of Dwarf Nebula. Including some vocals this time was a good idea providing some contrast and I like the choice of vocal pieces, the Mom And Dad/Oh No medley. The title track itself is also a very infectious arrangement.

One track that I didn't like to start with on this album was Sleep Dirt. The original is just two acoustic guitars and has a very distinctive and unique feel, but as a big brass arrangement sounded way too strange to start with. I'm enjoying it now because I've come to see it as a completely different piece with an evocative soprano sax solo providing a nice mood contrast, to the more turbulent tempos of the other numbers on the album.

All in all Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance is definitely worth buying in my opinion and it's still getting significant rotation at my place.

OK. Its fabulous...
The nearly perfect tempo, playing and sound quality were a bit - staggering - at first. But the music selections, playful arrangements, and obvious reverence toward the material shine brighter with each listening. Some of the song choices are surprising and haunting...ie Sleep Dirt. Thank you Ed and Band.

I love zappa. But before I ever heard FZ's work, I was a jazz musician. I've always been a fan of frank's more jazz-influenced work, and this cd is just fantastic. High quality musicianship throughout the album combine with fresh, interesting arrangements that are faithful to the originals but still cool in their own way. If you like frank and you like big band jazz, give this one a try, you won't be disappointed.

This disc contains some really nice renditions of Frank Zappa pieces. In some instances, more palatable than the originals, owing to Zappa's penchant for really abrupt maneuvering or other insertions causing a jarring effect on the listener. I find that Ed Palermo's renditions are much more straight-forward, and therefore more listenable than Frank's own versions.

This music is certainly less likely to be immediately turned off by the folks who automatically smell that Zappa aroma and don't want to give it a try. For those type of uninitiated listeners, this Zappa music is actually listenable.
Ed Palermo plays the tunes very true to the original compositions so that you know you're listening to somebody playing Zappa.

Palermo could almost be credited with co-writing because, as is evidence with Sofa #1, there is an extra section in the middle featuring xylophone and sax interlude not written into the original by Zappa but plays well within the context of the song. Palermo takes just enough liberty with the music to keep it very much Frank Zappa's but puts his own stamp on it as well. I think it is truly an homage to Zappa to add to his music without blatantly changing it.
Paired with Palermo's first Zappa tribute disc, Ed Palermo Big Band Plays the Music Of Frank Zappa, you get some first-rate performances of Zappa music!

To reiterate: This is great Zappa Jazz music which non-Zappa listeners can get fooled into tapping their foot to. Thank you, Ed Palermo for making this wonderful tribute to the Late, Great Frank Zappa! ARF!!

Very nice big band adaptation of Zappa's music. Palermo's effort to build upon what Frank wrote would be appreciated by Zappa afficianados. And people who say they hate Zappa might really like this!

Zappa is a dirty old man in the minds of those who never listened closely. EP Big Band shows Zappa for what he was...a great composer and arranger. Since there will be no more new Zappa, this is a good fix for those still longing for great music that no one else seems to play any more. I'd give the album 5 stars except for the irrelevant ethnic song about America. Sorry folks; I love America when I visit, but this stupid ditty is completely out of context here.