Läther [BOX SET]

Frank Zappa

Product Details

• Audio CD (September 24, 1996)
• Original Release Date: September 24, 1996
• Number of Discs: 3
• Format: Box set
• Note on Boxed Sets: During shipping, discs in boxed sets occasionally become dislodged without damage. Please examine and play these discs. If you are not completely satisfied, we'll refund or replace your purchase.
• Label: Zappa Records
• ASIN: B0000009TT
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #24,152 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
Recorded in 1976, this mythic three-CD opus finally sees the light of day to the joy of Zappaphiles. It almost goes without saying that there's a wealth of silliness, grotesque humor, and freeform genius in these three hours of wacked-out tunes about muffins, prunes, geese, and the legendary Illinois Enema Bandit. Abandon all logic ye who enter here--an all-too-rare warning at a time when Zappa still rates as a lone wolf howling against conformity. --Jeff Bateman

From the Label
Almost 20 years after its intended 1977 release, this previously unissued four-LP box set (now on three CDs) is now commercially available for the first time. With its mix of live rock performances, orchestral works, musique concrete, jazz compositions, guitar improvisations, sci-fi musicals, cartoon soundtracks and enema bandits, LÄTHER is a veritable smorgasbord of Zappa delights. As Simon Prentis, Zappa's semantic scrutinizer and LÄTHER liner note writer, observes, "Were it not for the characteristically incongruous twists lurking in the background, it would be hard to credit that so much music executed in so many different styles (and with such precision and panache) could be the work of one composer."

Produced by Zappa in 1977, LÄTHER (pronounced leather) features unreleased tracks, unreleased versions of familiar tunes and alternate mixes and edits of tracks that appeared on four separate albums in 1978 and 1979 (ZAPPA IN NEW YORK, STUDIO TAN, SLEEP DIRT and ORCHESTRAL FAVORITES). In addition to LÄTHER's two hours and 40 minutes of music, the staff at Zappa's recording studio, the Utility Muffin Research Kitchen (UMRK), has unearthed four nuggets from the Zappa vault and assembled them into a 20-minute bonus at the end of the program, bringing the total listening experience to three hours.

Legal hassles with Warner Bros., Zappa's record company at the time, prevented the original release of LÄTHER. Stories vary, but according to Gail Zappa, Zappa conceived LÄTHER as a four-album box set which Warner Bros. declined to release. The label then thwarted Zappa's attempts to release it elsewhere by threatening legal action. It was then that Zappa reluctantly reformatted some of LÄTHER's material into separate albums, and delivered them to the record company in an effort to fulfill his contractual obligations. Zappa alleged that Warner Bros. refused to pay him for the material, so he declared them in breach and the lawsuits began.

Zappa took matters into his own hands in December 1977 by playing the entire work on Pasadena's KROQ radio station and instructing listeners to tape it. He said, "This is Frank Zappa as your bogus temporary disc jockey making it possible for you to run your little cassette machine and tape an album which is perhaps never going to be available to the public at large." He was right. Until now.

The unorthodox radio broadcast, plus a few reviews of LÄTHER that found their way into the press at the time, helped to solidify the album's reputation as a masterpiece and made it the stuff of legend. "Ingenuity, poise, and audacity are stamped on all the compositions like a hallmark," says Prentis in the liner notes. The breadth and depth of musical virtuosity in evidence on LÄTHER makes it not only a top request from Zappa fans, but an important missing piece in the recorded history of one of modern music's most inspired and original composers.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Magnum Opus Interruptus, November 10, 2001

By	Solo Goodspeed (Granada Hills, CA United States) - See all my reviews

The story behind the creation of this collection is almost as legendary as the man who created it. Suffice to say, it was originally intended as a 4-disc vinyl release, ran into some complications, and was delayed by a mere 20 years. These complications resulted in Frank Zappa's suing a VERY LARGE RECORD COMPANY for about 3 million, the material being released across about 5 albums (three of them against his wishes), and, in an act of revolt, Frank's broadcasting of the album in its entirety on LA's KROQ, during which he actually encouraged listeners to record it.

Until RYCODISC's CD version came out around '96, the only way a person could hear the album as Frank had intended was if one could get ahold of the recording of this famous broadcast. Had it been released when it was supposed to, Läther would have qualified as the ultimate work of this sorely-missed musical innovator. Zappa's wildly diverse compositional capabilities are represented more comprehensively here than on any release; from live rock performances to symphonic and chamber works, from dialogue snippets to tape-manipulated musique concrete, this is the full spectrum of pre-digital FZ at the peak of his powers. Nobody could touch this man in the 70s.

As many of the songs were a bit new and rough at the time of these recordings, Frank produced more polished and extended versions in the later albums "Zappa in New York" and "Sheik Yerbouti", so his reticence to release this collection during his lifetime is certainly understandable. However, if you have not yet heard "Studio Tan", "Sleep Dirt" and/or "Orchestral Favorites", you can get them all in one tidy remastered package (without the annoying vocals that were added on "Sleep Dirt") and enjoy them in one seriously eclectic listening.

I'm a firm believer in cheating with Desert Island Picks, by choosing box sets. If I had the choice of one Zappa release to sustain me in isolation, I would not have to think for very long, because Läther has it all. The ultimate FZ representation, hands down.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Zappa's most consistantly inconsistant album, January 24, 2005

By	Chet Fakir (DC) - See all my reviews

Zappa had originally intended this album to be released as a four LP set back in 1977 but Warner Brothers decided not to release it for various reasons I won't get into here. Instead, they got Zappa to divide the original Lather album into four separate albums, often with different arrangements and mixes: Zappa in New York, Studio Tan, Orchestral Favorites and Sleep Dirt, and a few songs found their way onto Sheik Yerbouti too. Warner Bros. also decided not to pay Frank for his work. So Zappa played the entire Lather album over the radio airwaves from which countless bootlegs have been made. Ha ha Warner, you greedheads. So finally, years later we get an official release of Lather, Zappa's magnum opus and arguably his best album and it was worth the wait.

Every style Zappa ever did is on this record... from the stupid: T*tties 'n Beer, to the sordid: Honey, Don't You Want A Man Like Me?, to the sublime: RDNZL, from the idiotic, to the intelligent, to the indescribable. There are ridiculous comedy songs, social satire, bizarre and rocking instrumentals. Some of the comedy/satire like Trying To Grow A Chin or T*tties 'n Beer are puerile, and their power to amuse wanes with each play. Though I still get a big kick out of Punky's Whips, a story of drummer Terry Bozio's infatuation with a picture of Angel lead guitarist Punky Meadows mostly because I remember the poster from Creem magazine. Yeah it was a pretty girly picture, poor Terry;) But the best songs and especially the instrumentals, of which there are a great deal, are among the best things Zappa has ever done and reward repeated listenings. They range from 20th century classical serious, to silly, to jazz, to obscene rock guitar workouts a la Filthy Habits. Lather is all over the map and is utterly amazing. Could anyone not familiar with Zappa realize that one guy wrote all this widely varying material? I don't think they would guess. Anybody who says Zappa is not a genius, or composer worthy of note, or a great guitarist should be forced to sit through this album, it just might change their opinion. So Spike Jones, Edgar Varesse and Jimi Hendrix walk into a bar...

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quite possibly the best intro to Zappa's work, November 1, 2001

By	"flashback8" (Blacksburg, VA USA) - See all my reviews

Greetings. As the subject mentions, I feel this is the perfect introduction to the world of Frank Zappa. A little bit of his orchestral compositions, some amazing guitar work (heck, some amazing instrumental work all around), a healthy dose of sarcasm and irreverence, and that little "something" that made Frank's work so wonderful. Some of my favorites include: the entire first disc, the gloriously overcooked rendition of "Punky's Whips," "The Purple Lagoon," the twenty-minute eccentricity of "Greggery Peckary," and...well, the entire thing! Don't let the price turn you off. This album's the real deal.

Regarding the claim that Ryko screwed up the second disc track listing, this is most likely untrue. There's been some debate, but I believe that Spencer Chrislu (or somebody else in the Zappa camp) claimed when he opened the box for the third record's master tapes, he found what went onto the CD. Apparently, Frank either mislabeled the box or had another version of the album in mind at one point. In any event, this is what Frank played on a radio station many years ago when Warner Bros. stopped its release, so I think it's safe to assume this is the "ultimate" version of the album. Dig in!