It’s already been more than established that the decades from the 70s to the 90s were marked by a boom in the music industry. These musicians and bands caused such an impact that they're talked about even today. They developed new and innovative ways of making music and expressing themselves, while still maintaining quality. These people were important not only for revolutionizing music but also for, a lot of the time, being the voices of many different social movements.
He might not be as iconic as David Bowie, but everyone must have, at least once, heard of Frank Zappa. This American singer-songwriter, rock guitarist, modernist composer, satirist, film-maker, and bandleader was born in Baltimore in 1940. The artist is a self-taught composer and performer known for his extreme versatility in music styles. One day he could be working on a rock song, and in the other, he could be composing for an orchestra.
He was also the leader of the band the Mothers of Invention. They were formed in 1964 and eventually split up in 1975. They were a rock band heavily influenced by styles such as blues, jazz, experimental, avant-garde, doo-wop, and art-rock. Just the fact that they produce experimental and avant-garde music shows the band’s rejection of the status quo and its goal of spreading uniqueness and originality. Just like many other bands back then, their members weren’t always the same. Frank Zappa remained the leader but the band members would change and be substituted by other musicians. That’s another reason why this band was so flexible, new musicians lead to different interpretations and playing styles.
Frank Zappa wrote his songs and lyrics, which he used to his advantage. He was always very vocal and passionate about his ideas. He always fought for his beliefs such as freedom of speech, self-education, political participation, and the abolition of censorship. Unlike many other rock musicians of his generation, he disapproved of drugs but supported their decriminalization and regulation. In his songs, many times masked with satire, he deliberately criticized the American government, the teaching system, and religion.
Even though Zappa is not very talked-about nowadays, he still won many awards and acclamations even after his death. He had a life full of accomplishments, most notoriously being awarded two Grammy awards and a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997, years after his death. He also had the honor of being part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995. This talented man owns possibly the largest discography ever, composed of 119 albums. Thirty-eight of those only being released after his death in 1993.
Tragically Frank died when he was only 52 years old. His death was due to complications caused by cancer. He left this world with a family: his wife, Adelaide Gail Sloatman, and his four kids named Moon Unit, Dweezil Zappa, Ahmet Emuukha Rodan, and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen. The impact that he made in the industry will forever be visible. He always ran away from mainstream and ironically enough, that’s something that we’ll never forget.
Sources:
https://www.musicmagpie.co.uk/blog/2015/05/12/which-bands-and-singers-have-released-the-most-albums/
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