Category Archives: Frank Zappa

Zappa at the Paris Philharmonie:Report and Some Questions

Posted on September 29, 2018 by Paul Carr

I have spent the last few days at a conference in Paris at the Paris de Philharmonie. Although I have not focused on Zappa’s work for a couple of years, it was great to reconnect again  with friends such as … Continue reading →

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Frank Zappa and Virtuality

Posted on September 4, 2016 by Paul Carr

Well, I am really looking forward to talking about Frank Zappa for the first time in a couple of years this week. I am presenting at a panel as part of the book launch for The Oxford Handbook of Music … Continue reading →

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Frank Zappa and Grand Rights – AGAIN!

Posted on April 29, 2016 by Paul Carr

In 2009, I wrote about how the Zappa Family Trust were using Grand Rights as a way of stopping tribute bands playing the music of Frank Zappa. I eventually ended up doing a major research project on this, interviewing loads … Continue reading →

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Frank Zappa, Popular Music and Politics

Posted on May 8, 2015 by Paul Carr

Having recently returned from a fantastic conference on ‘music and protest’ at the University of Limerick’, it got me thinking about an unpublished Zappa paper that I wrote around 7 years ago. I have copied and pasted the unedited version … Continue reading →

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Zappa and his Legacy: A Request for Decorum

Posted on February 2, 2015 by Paul Carr

Ed Mann has recently been in touch with me regarding my post from last week on ‘Zappa and Censorship’. He has informed me that my post seems to have been totally taken out of context on some discussion forums/Facebook sites. … Continue reading →

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Censorship and Frank Zappa

Posted on January 28, 2015 by Paul Carr

My post the other week about doing a Frank Zappa talk as part of the forthcoming Frank Zappa music festival in Bangor has just taken an unexpected and very disappointing twist. The festival organisers have been told by the Zappa … Continue reading →

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200 Motels: The Programme Notes that Never Happened!

Posted on October 22, 2013 by Paul Carr

Editor ‘Frank Zappa and the And’ For those that are interested, here are the programme notes that never happened! Guitarist, satirist, political activist, music technologist film maker and composer, Frank Zappa (1940-1993) has to be objectively considered one of the … Continue reading →

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Zappa Zappa Zappa Zappa………

Posted on October 15, 2013 by Paul Carr

Well, after my recent promises to stop talking about Zappa – it appears I still have a few things to say. Firstly – I was bitterly disappointed this week to hear that the essay that I had commissioned for the … Continue reading →

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Frank Zappa and Musical Virtuality: The Final Word on Zappa (for a while)

Posted on June 18, 2013 by Paul Carr

Well, after the best part of eight years of trying to understand what makes his music tick – I completed what will be my final piece of work on Zappa for a while. Close on the heels of Frank Zappa … Continue reading →

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Truth and Method: How Can We Be More Objective When Analysing Music

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Paul Carr

I read a review of Frank Zappa and the And this week – and despite its negativity,  it got me thinking about the ways in which our world views impact the ways in which we interpret meaning in music. Being … Continue reading →

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