Unmitigated Audacity [LIVE]

Frank Zappa

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 16, 1991)
• Original Release Date: July 16, 1991
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Live
• Label: Rhino / Wea
• ASIN: B0000032GO
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #262,915 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Unmitigated Rock, October 28, 2002

By	Grizsly (Yonkers, NY) - See all my reviews

I bought this CD in a heartbeat when I saw the setlist. I, like many, am a BIG fan of the Mothers, and this CD's tracklist is chock full of goodies. I also love Camarillo Brillo, so I figured it was a no brainer.

Ah, but unfortunatly, there is no real warning when you're in the stores - the sound quality is AWFUL. I listened through once, kicked myself for spending the bucks, and threw it in my back seat.

When I had the chance to play it at home, I was in my bathroom shaving when "Oh No" came on, and I actually stopped, walked back to my room, and stood in front of the stereo with a half shaven face dripping with cream. The jam is top notch, right into "More Trouble Everyday," which is the slower version of this song (ala "Roxy & Elsewhere).

I think one reviewer mentioned that the more you hear it, the less attention you pay to the quality of the recording. The quality of the MUSIC is what's important, and after a few songs, you hardly notice the shabby recording, instead becoming lost in the musical brilliance and simply enjoying Zappa's genius.
If you, like me, saw this in a store and bought it without doing research, then got [upset] and decided to see what other folks thought by checking out Amazon.com, do yourself a favor, play it on a good stereo, let it go for awhile, and see if you can catch yourself grooving to the beats. There. See? It wasn't that much of a waste!

Other than that, I can only say to those contemplating buying this that do not own any other Zappa works: No. You need to have a little more understanding and tolerance before you're ready to exhibit true Unmitigated Audacity.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars One Lousy Star?, April 16, 2001

By A Customer

Yes, the sound quality is GOD AWFUL. It's a shame, because this is an amazing show. The line-up is tight(same players as YCDTOSA V2). There's killer versions of some "Freak-Out" tunes, and the version of "I ain't got no heart" on this album is 10 times better than the one on "Tinsletown Rebellion," even with the cruddy sound. You even get an almost complete version of "Oh-no" (it starts at "...all of the fools, all of the hate...") that is similar to the way it appears on "Weasels." Most of the other versions of this song you find on YCDTOSA and "Ahead of their Time" are the instrumental one. So what if it sounds like it was taped from the John at Notre Dame University instead of the stage? If you listen to it enough, you start to pay less attention to the quality and realize how good the band is.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Terrible recording quality/ Amazing band,setlist&performance, August 21, 2001

By	The Sandrat "aspiring without directions" (Lawrence, Kansas, USA) - See all my reviews

I love this album.

However, the recording quality of this disc is simply atrocious. Unmitigated Audacity sounds like it was recorded with one microphone somewhere near the concession stand. Also, some songs that cut out for no apparent reason.

Normally, it would be easy to completely disregard this album as a waste of time and money -- it is from the "Beat the Boots" series after all. Unfortunately, this horrible recording hides an amazing display of music talent.

This is an example of what many considered to be Frank's best band, doing a bunch of early Mother's classics. I've heard that show took place on the tenth anniversary of the formation of the Mothers of Invention, which inspired the performance of so many old classics. It was also Mother's Day, so who knows.

Despite the fact that the disc has many issues, it is still one of my favorite live FZ discs because of the band, the quality of their performance, and the songs that were played.

Hopefully, the Zappa Family Trust will simply release a soundboard version of this show and stop torturing us, but there's a lot of other stuff in the vault that they probably are more concerned about.

While I would easily recommend this to anyone with an interest in the Nepolean Murphy Brock era of the Mothers, it's not a good place to start if you are new to Zappa.

The best live examples of the 1974 band are "Roxy & Elsewhere," or "You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore, Vol. 2." If you liked those two, or are a complete-ist, then buy Unmitigated Audacity.