“Music is the best.” That’s what the girl on the bus tells us near the end of Frank Zappa’s monumental Joe’s Garage. The triple-album was released in 1979, and still resonates today. Yeah, it’s too long. Yeah, it’s too jokey. Yeah, it’s too prurient. The stuff about the sex robot is pretty dumb. The intermittent narration by “The Central Scrutinizer,” meh. But there’s “Packard Goose,” a deep chills track that takes down critics, punk rock, the government, etc. And right after that, there’s “Watermelon in Easter Hay.” It’s amazing, one of the finest guitar solos in rock history.
Here’s the original on Spotify.
Here’s Frank playing it on his last big tour in 1988.
And here’s his son Dweezil Zappa playing it in 2013.
Happy Easter to those of you who celebrate.
More soon.
JF
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