Absolutely Free
Studio album by The Mothers of Invention
Released	May 26, 1967
Recorded	Sunset-Highland Studios of TTG November 15-18, 1966
Genre	experimental rock, symphonic rock, classical
Length	38:29 43:37 (reissue)
Label	Verve
Producer(s)	Frank Zappa, Tom Wilson
Professional reviews
All Music Guide link Robert Christgau (B-) link
Frank Zappa chronology
Freak Out! (1966)	Absolutely Free (1967)	We're Only in It for the Money (1968)

Absolutely Free (1967) is the second album by The Mothers of Invention, led by Frank Zappa. A continuation of the first release, the double LP Freak Out!, Absolutely Free is once again a display of complex musical composition and with political and social satire. Cover of the Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention album Absolutely Free This is an album cover. ... A Studio Album is an album of regular studio recordings. ... The Mothers of Invention were a rock and roll band active from the 1960s to the 1990s. ... May 26 is the 146th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (147th in leap years). ... 1967 (MCMLXVII) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar (the link is to a full 1967 calendar). ... A music genre is a category (or genre) of pieces of music that share a certain style or basic musical language (van der Merwe 1989, p. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Art rock. ... Symphonic rock is a subgenre of rock music. ... Classical music is a broad, somewhat imprecise term, referring to music produced in, or rooted in the traditions of, European art, ecclesiastical and concert music, encompassing a broad period from roughly 1000 to the present day. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Verve Records is an American Jazz record label, founded by Norman Granz in 1956, which absorbed the catalogues of his earlier labels: Norgran Records and Clef Records (founded 1953). ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... Frank Vincent Zappa[1] (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, guitarist, singer, film director, and satirist. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music owned by All Media Guide. ... Image File history File links 4. ... Robert Christgau (2006) Robert Christgau (sometimes abbreviated in print to Xgau), born April 18, 1942, is an American essayist, music journalist, and the self-declared Dean of American Rock Critics[1] His first reviews were published by Esquire in 1967. ... Frank Vincent Zappa[1] (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, guitarist, singer, film director, and satirist. ... Freak Out! is the debut album of Frank Zappa and his group, the Mothers of Invention. ... Were Only in It For the Money is a rock n roll album by Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention. ... The Mothers of Invention were a rock and roll band active from the 1960s to the 1990s. ... Frank Vincent Zappa[1] (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, guitarist, singer, film director, and satirist. ... Freak Out! is the debut album of Frank Zappa and his group, the Mothers of Invention. ...

Like the first album, almost every genre under the sun can be found either being used and performed expertly or being barbed at and musically disemboweled by the performers of the Mothers of Invention, which had been augmented since Freak Out! by the additions of saxophone player Bunk Gardner and keyboardist Don Preston. Look up genre in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Freak Out! is the debut album of Frank Zappa and his group, the Mothers of Invention. ... The saxophone (colloquially referred to as sax) is a conical-bored instrument of the woodwind family, usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece like the clarinet. ... A keyboardist is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. ... Donald Ward Preston also known as Dom DeWilde or Biff Debrie born September 21, 1932 in Flint, Michigan. ...

For this album, the emphasis is more on interconnected movements, as each side on the original vinyl LP composes a mini-suite. It also features one of the most famous songs of his early career, "Brown Shoes Don't Make It," a track which has been described as being "an entire musical compressed down to 8 minutes."

The CD reissue adds a single The Mothers released at the time between where side one would have ended and side two would have begun featuring the songs "Why Dontcha Do Me Right?" and "Big Leg Emma," both described as an attempt to make dumb music to appeal to dumb teenagers.

In his book Necessity Is..., former Mothers of Invention band member Ray Collins claimed that Absolutely Free is probably his favorite of the classic Mothers albums. The Mothers of Invention were a rock and roll band active from the 1960s to the 1990s. ... Ray Collins was born on November 19, 1936. ...

The UK -67 release (Verve VLP/SVLP 9174) came in a laminated flip-back cover, with a Mike Raven poem at the reverse that was not apparent on any other issue.

The title of Brown Shoes Don't Make It was inspired by an event covered by Time Magazine reporter Hugh Sidey in 1966. The reporter correctly guessed that something was up when the normally fastidiously dressed President Lyndon B. Johnson made the fashion faux pas of wearing brown shoes with a gray suit. This story made the news again upon Sidey's death in 2005. Brown Shoes Dont Make It is a song from Frank Zappas 1967 album Absolutely Free. ... (Clockwise from upper left) Time magazine covers from May 7, 1945; July 25, 1969; December 31, 1999; September 14, 2001; and April 21, 2003. ... Hugh Sidey (September 3, 1927 – November 21, 2005) was an American journalist and worked for Life magazine starting in 1955, then moved on to Time magazine in 1957. ... “LBJ” redirects here. ...

Track listing

All songs by Frank Zappa.

Suite No. 1: "Absolutely Free" (1st in a Series of Underground Oratorios)

• 1. "Plastic People" – 3:42
• 2. "The Duke of Prunes" – 2:13
• 3. "Amnesia Vivace" – 1:01
• 4. "The Duke Regains His Chops" – 1:52
• 5. "Call Any Vegetable" – 2:15
• 6. "Invocation and Ritual Dance of the Young Pumpkin" – 7:00
• 7. "Soft-Sell Conclusion" – 1:40

1967 Mothers of Invention Single, bonus tracks for the 1995 Rykodisc CD reissue

• 8. "Big Leg Emma" – 2:31
• 9. "Why Don'tcha Do Me Right?" – 2:37

Suite No. 2: "The M.O.I. American Pageant" (2nd in a Series of Underground Oratorios)

• 10. "America Drinks" – 1:52
• 11. "Status Back Baby" – 2:54
• 12. "Uncle Bernie's Farm" – 2:10
• 13. "Son of Suzy Creamcheese" – 1:34
• 14. "Brown Shoes Don't Make It" – 7:30 (referenced on Pedophilia and child sexual abuse in songs)
• 15. "America Drinks and Goes Home" – 2:46

Brown Shoes Dont Make It is a song from Frank Zappas 1967 album Absolutely Free. ... Pedophilia and child sexual abuse have been important themes of a number of song lyrics. ...

Personnel

• Frank Zappa – guitar, conductor, vocals
• Jimmy Carl Black – drums, vocals
• Ray Collins – vocals, tambourine
• Don Ellis – trumpet on "Brown Shoes Don't Make It"
• Roy Estrada – bass, vocals
• Bunk Gardner – woodwinds
• Billy Mundi – drums, percussion
• Don Preston – keyboards
• John Rotella – percussion
• Jim Fielder – guitar, piano
• Pamela Zarubica – vocals
• Herb Cohen
• Lisa Cohen
• Kurt Retar
• Terry Gilliam – sound effect

Frank Vincent Zappa[1] (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, guitarist, singer, film director, and satirist. ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... In music a singer or vocalist is a type of musician who sings, i. ... Jimmy Carl Black at Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen, October 3, 1968. ... For other kinds of drums, see drum (disambiguation). ... Köçek with tambourine c. ... Bandleader Don Ellis (July 25, 1934 - December 17, 1978) consistently explored the area of unusual time signatures. ... Martin EB18 Bass Guitar in flight case. ... Jim Fielder (born October 4, 1947 in Denton, Texas) is an American bassist, best known for his work as an original member of Blood, Sweat & Tears. ... Terry Gilliam at Karlovy Vary 2006. ...

Production

• Producers: Frank Zappa, Tom Wilson
• Director of engineering: Val Valentine
• Engineer: Ami Hadani
• Remixing: David Greene
• Arranger: Frank Zappa
• Cover design: Ferenc Dobronyi, Cal Schenkel
• Layout design: Frank Zappa
• Cover photo: Alice Ochs
• Cover art: Frank Zappa
• Photography: Jerry Deiter
• Artwork: Alice Ochs
• Collage: Frank Zappa
• Liner Notes: Frank Zappa

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America) Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry. ...

External links

• Lyrics and information
• Release details
• "The Meaning of Cordovans" reporter Hugh Sidey recalls the event when he saw Lyndon B. Johnson wearing the wrong shoes

Frank Vincent Zappa[1] (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, guitarist, singer, film director, and satirist. ... An album is a collection of related audio tracks distributed to the public. ... Freak Out! is the debut album of Frank Zappa and his group, the Mothers of Invention. ... Were Only in It For the Money is a rock n roll album by Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention. ... Lumpy Gravy is the first solo album by Frank Zappa, released in 1968. ... Cruising With Ruben & the Jets is an album by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, released in 1968 (see 1968 in music). ... Uncle Meat, released in 1969, is the soundtrack to Frank Zappas long-delayed film of the same name. ... Hot Rats is an album by Frank Zappa. ... Burnt Weeny Sandwich is an album by Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention, released in 1970 (see 1970 in music). ... 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You Cant Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. ... You Cant Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. ... You Cant Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. ... You Cant Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. ... Civilization, Phaze III is a double CD by Frank Zappa. ... The Lost Episodes is an album by Frank Zappa which compiles previously unreleased material and was posthumously released in 1996. ... Läther is an album by Frank Zappa although its history is complex it was eventually released as a set of three CDs in September 1996. ... Mystery Disc is a compilation album by Frank Zappa. ... Everything Is Healing Nicely is an album by Frank Zappa, postumhously released through the Zappa Family Trust in December 1999. ... Halloween is a live album by Frank Zappa, released in DVD-Audio CD format by Vaulternative Records in 2003. ... Joes Corsage CD A collection of early Mothers recordings newly retrieved from the UMRK vault. ... Joes Domage is a Frank Zappa posthumous album, released on October 1, 2004. ... Joes XMASage is a compilation album featuring music by Frank Zappa, posthumously released in December, 2005. ... Track listing All tracks by Frank Zappa Oddients Rollo Been To Kansas City In A Minor Farther OBlivion D.C. Boogie Imaginary Diseases Montreal Personnel Frank Zappa: Conductor/Guitar/Vocals Malcolm McNabb: Trumpet Gary Barone: Trumpet/Flugelhorn Tom Malone: Tuba/Saxes/Piccolo Trumpet/Trumpet Earl Dumler: Woodwinds Glenn Ferris... Trance Fusion A style of music that incorporates the structure and sound of electronica trance, but is played with traditional rock/jazz instruments allowing for more versatility in a live setting. ... Mothermania The Best Of The Mothers (1969) is a compilation album by The Mothers Of Invention, led by Frank Zappa. ... The Guitar World According to Frank Zappa is a 1987 compilation album featuring guitar solos by Frank Zappa. ... Strictly Commercial is a compilation album by Frank Zappa. ... 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The Mothers of Invention were a rock and roll band active from the 1960s to the 1990s. ...