Frank Zappa's Crusade – 25 Years And Counting - Revision history

Jason.Kreitzer: This seems to be the only reference about this person.

2021-09-22T18:35:40Z

This seems to be the only reference about this person.

Jason.Kreitzer at 03:46, 26 July 2021

2021-07-26T03:46:36Z

Duncan: Jackson relinked

2021-07-24T09:11:25Z

Jackson relinked

Jason.Kreitzer at 01:19, 24 July 2021

2021-07-24T01:19:41Z

Jason.Kreitzer at 22:22, 21 July 2021

2021-07-21T22:22:13Z

Spider of Destiny at 06:42, 14 November 2020

2020-11-14T06:42:16Z

Spider of Destiny at 14:04, 13 November 2020

2020-11-13T14:04:26Z

Spider of Destiny at 19:14, 14 October 2011

2011-10-14T19:14:14Z

Spider of Destiny at 00:14, 2 December 2010

2010-12-02T00:14:43Z

Duncan: Linked too Patty

2008-07-27T08:07:19Z

Linked too Patty

@@ Line 65: / Line 65: @@
 '''Have you gotten any surprising reactions to the book?<br>
-Well, when I was in Czechoslovakia, at the same time those kids were talking about how the secret police used to beat 'em, a guy stands up in the middle of the crowd holding a copy of my book and introduces himself as [[Zdenek Pecka]]. He works for the U.S. Information Agency – he's attached to the U.S. Embassy in Prague. He's standing there with the book in his hand, saying, ''"I think that the most important work you have done is the work against the PMRC. And I tried to give a lecture to these people about your 'Porn Wars.' and they did not understand it. They like your music very much here but they are not that familiar with your [[politics]], and I think that your chapter on practical conservatism is some of the most cleverest stuff I've ever read."'' And I looked at this guy and I said, ''"I didn't get much sleep last night but I know I'm in [[The Twilight Zone]] now."''
+Well, when I was in Czechoslovakia, at the same time those kids were talking about how the secret police used to beat 'em, a guy stands up in the middle of the crowd holding a copy of my book and introduces himself as Zdenek Pecka. He works for the U.S. Information Agency – he's attached to the U.S. Embassy in Prague. He's standing there with the book in his hand, saying, ''"I think that the most important work you have done is the work against the PMRC. And I tried to give a lecture to these people about your 'Porn Wars.' and they did not understand it. They like your music very much here but they are not that familiar with your [[politics]], and I think that your chapter on practical conservatism is some of the most cleverest stuff I've ever read."'' And I looked at this guy and I said, ''"I didn't get much sleep last night but I know I'm in [[The Twilight Zone]] now."''
 [[Category:Interviews with Zappa]]
 [[Category:1990]]

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 And, obviously, there have to be some test cases that go to the Supreme Court. And if we find out that the Supreme Court, stacked by the Reagan Administration, is still hell-bent on taking our rights away, then I guess there's only one thing to do – take a lesson from the people in Eastern Europe. I mean, if you can get the Communists out of there, certainly we can get the Republicans out of here.
-A dozen years ago, a "downbeat" magazine interviewer asked Zappa it he would ever go on a State Department sponsored tour of the Soviet Union, to which Zappa replied: "If I go to the Soviet Union, it won't be for a long time, I'll tell you. I'm not a Communist enthusiast." As one who believes that a government's worth is directly proportional to the civil liberties it affords its citizens, Zappa has often created in his music sonic scenarios of political and artistic repression. His [[Franz Kafka|Kafka]]-inspired 1967 depiction of "Camp Reagan" can only be called premonitory, and he later cast himself as the Central Scrutinizer, the Big Brother-esque narrator of "[[Joe's Garage]]" – a story whose prescient premise is of a government turned hostile toward music.
+A dozen years ago, a "downbeat" magazine interviewer asked Zappa it he would ever go on a State Department sponsored tour of the Soviet Union, to which Zappa replied: "If I go to the Soviet Union, it won't be for a long time, I'll tell you. I'm not a Communist enthusiast." As one who believes that a government's worth is directly proportional to the civil liberties it affords its citizens, Zappa has often created in his music sonic scenarios of political and artistic repression. His [[Franz Kafka|Kafka]]-inspired 1967 depiction of "Camp Reagan" can only be called premonitory, and he later cast himself as the Central Scrutinizer, the Big Brother-esque narrator of "[[Joe's Garage Acts I, II & III|Joe's Garage]]" – a story whose prescient premise is of a government turned hostile toward music.
 In keeping with the who-would've-believed-it-back-then nature of Eastern Bloc progress, Frank Zappa has recently traveled to both the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia under the aegis of the Financial News Network. Zappa first appeared on and then guest-hosted FNN's "Focus" program, and his views on Soviet-American business opportunity led the broadcaster to send him as a liaison with budding Soviet entrepreneurs.
@@ Line 51: / Line 51: @@
 '''Would you write any special material for them?<br>
-Well, I think that some of the older albums are just as appropriate today – for here and for there – as they were when they were released. "[[Joe's Garage]]" is a good example of that.
+Well, I think that some of the older albums are just as appropriate today – for here and for there – as they were when they were released. "[[Joe's Garage Acts I, II & III|Joe's Garage]]" is a good example of that.
 Throughout his 1988 "Broadway The Hard Way" tour, Zappa provided voter registration materials at every venue, and thus added 11,000 new voters to the rolls. Some of those 11,000 were infants when he first wrote on an album sleeve: "Don't Forget To Register To Vote." And on that tour – featuring songs about [[Jimmy Swaggart]], [[Rhymin'_Man#Notes_About_This_Song|Jesse Jackson]], the [[Iran-contra affair]] and [[C. Everett Koop|Surgeon General Koop]] – the band at times struck up a [[Ray Charles]]-ish version of "[[America The Beautiful]]," ending with a sweet Zappa guitar solo over bluesy choruses of "Sea to shining sea ... " Scratch a staunch First Amendment champion and you may find a patriot.

@@ Line 53: / Line 53: @@
 Well, I think that some of the older albums are just as appropriate today – for here and for there – as they were when they were released. "[[Joe's Garage]]" is a good example of that.
-Throughout his 1988 "Broadway The Hard Way" tour, Zappa provided voter registration materials at every venue, and thus added 11,000 new voters to the rolls. Some of those 11,000 were infants when he first wrote on an album sleeve: "Don't Forget To Register To Vote." And on that tour – featuring songs about [[Jimmy Swaggart]], [[Jesse Jackson]], the [[Iran-contra affair]] and [[C. Everett Koop|Surgeon General Koop]] – the band at times struck up a [[Ray Charles]]-ish version of "[[America The Beautiful]]," ending with a sweet Zappa guitar solo over bluesy choruses of "Sea to shining sea ... " Scratch a staunch First Amendment champion and you may find a patriot.
+Throughout his 1988 "Broadway The Hard Way" tour, Zappa provided voter registration materials at every venue, and thus added 11,000 new voters to the rolls. Some of those 11,000 were infants when he first wrote on an album sleeve: "Don't Forget To Register To Vote." And on that tour – featuring songs about [[Jimmy Swaggart]], [[Rhymin'_Man#Notes_About_This_Song|Jesse Jackson]], the [[Iran-contra affair]] and [[C. Everett Koop|Surgeon General Koop]] – the band at times struck up a [[Ray Charles]]-ish version of "[[America The Beautiful]]," ending with a sweet Zappa guitar solo over bluesy choruses of "Sea to shining sea ... " Scratch a staunch First Amendment champion and you may find a patriot.
 '''Why do you think our government has never approached you to do voter-registration public service announcements?<br>

@@ Line 44: / Line 44: @@
 I think we're just more prudent and number.
-'''How do you feel about the [[George Bush|Bush]] administration's reaction to what's going on in Eastern Europe?<br>
+'''How do you feel about the [[George H.W. Bush|Bush]] administration's reaction to what's going on in Eastern Europe?<br>
 It's totally unacceptable. I think that in the face of such major world events, to have a guy sitting there saying, "Well, we must be prudent," and just making those mincing little motions with his hands and pursing his lips and kind of looking glum when the Berlin Wall comes down. All it shows me is they've got no forward thinking, they got no real foreign policy, and this is something that shouldn't be in a country that has such a superiority complex. A superiority complex is OK if you really are superior and you can back it up with something, but I haven't seen any evidence that the big talk coming out of Washington is backed up by anything. Certainly not by logic.

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:22, 21 July 2021
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−	In the "[[Porn Wars]]" waged by the Parents' Music Resource Center and like-minded legislators, Frank Zappa has shown uncommon valor. His September 1985 appearance before the Senate Commerce, Technology and Transportation Committee categorically challenged the authority, reasoning and goals of the [[PMRC]]. Less than a year later, Zappa gave further testimony, this time before the state legislature of his birthplace, Maryland. His activism on anti-rock issues is tireless, and dominates his interviews both in print and over the airwaves.	+	In the "[[Porn Wars]]" waged by the Parents' Music Resource Center and like-minded legislators, Frank Zappa has shown uncommon valor. His September 1985 appearance before the Senate Commerce, Technology and Transportation Committee categorically challenged the authority, reasoning and goals of the [[Parents Music Resource Center\|PMRC]]. Less than a year later, Zappa gave further testimony, this time before the state legislature of his birthplace, Maryland. His activism on anti-rock issues is tireless, and dominates his interviews both in print and over the airwaves.

	Peculiarly, Zappa albums have never been included on a PMRC hit list of morally impure music. Ever more peculiar because a random sampling of Zappa material proves its obvious sticker-ability: His 1965 excoriation of the Watts riots, "[[Trouble Every Day]]," deserves a "V" for violence; 1974's pusher-bashing "[[Cosmik Debris]]" would surely receive a "D" for drugs; and his 1981 song "[[Suicide Chump]]," which holds teen suicide up to a cynical light, well, you get the picture ...		Peculiarly, Zappa albums have never been included on a PMRC hit list of morally impure music. Ever more peculiar because a random sampling of Zappa material proves its obvious sticker-ability: His 1965 excoriation of the Watts riots, "[[Trouble Every Day]]," deserves a "V" for violence; 1974's pusher-bashing "[[Cosmik Debris]]" would surely receive a "D" for drugs; and his 1981 song "[[Suicide Chump]]," which holds teen suicide up to a cynical light, well, you get the picture ...

← Older revision		Revision as of 14:04, 13 November 2020
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	[[Category:Interviews with Zappa]]		[[Category:Interviews with Zappa]]
		+	[[Category:1990]]

@@ Line 4: / Line 4: @@
-In the "Porn Wars" waged by the Parents Music Resource Center and like-minded legislators, Frank Zappa has shown uncommon valor. His September 1985 appearance before the Senate Commerce, Technology and Transportation Committee categorically challenged the authority, reasoning and goals of the [[PMRC]]. Less than a year later, Zappa gave further testimony, this time before the state legislature of his birthplace, Maryland. His activism on anti-rock issues is tireless, and dominates his interviews both in print and over the airwaves.
+In the "[[Porn Wars]]" waged by the Parents' Music Resource Center and like-minded legislators, Frank Zappa has shown uncommon valor. His September 1985 appearance before the Senate Commerce, Technology and Transportation Committee categorically challenged the authority, reasoning and goals of the [[PMRC]]. Less than a year later, Zappa gave further testimony, this time before the state legislature of his birthplace, Maryland. His activism on anti-rock issues is tireless, and dominates his interviews both in print and over the airwaves.
-Peculiarly, Zappa albums have never been included on a PMRC hit list of morally impure music. Ever more peculiar because a random sampling of Zappa material proves its obvious sticker-ability: His 1965 excoriation of the Watts riots, "Trouble Every Day," deserves a "V" for violence; 1974's pusher-bashing "[[Cosmik Debris]]" would surely receive a "D" for drugs; and his 1981 song "[[Suicide Chump]]," which holds teen suicide up to a cynical light, well, you get the picture ...
+Peculiarly, Zappa albums have never been included on a PMRC hit list of morally impure music. Ever more peculiar because a random sampling of Zappa material proves its obvious sticker-ability: His 1965 excoriation of the Watts riots, "[[Trouble Every Day]]," deserves a "V" for violence; 1974's pusher-bashing "[[Cosmik Debris]]" would surely receive a "D" for drugs; and his 1981 song "[[Suicide Chump]]," which holds teen suicide up to a cynical light, well, you get the picture ...
 '''Have you yet turned up – along with W.A.S.P. and everyone else – on any list of people offended by your music?<br>
@@ Line 37: / Line 37: @@
 No, they've always been illegal. Also, the people that purchased them, or acquired them, or even possessed transcripts of the lyrics were beaten by the secret police. On one of the occasions, when we were doing kind of a question-and-answer thing in a club in Prague, there were two guys who said that they had been grabbed by the secret police and before they were beaten, the guy said, "We are now going to beat the Zappa music out of you." And nobody in the audience seemed too surprised about it, because apparently it has happened to a lot of people.
-And then there was another statement that was made in Czech by one of the guys in the audience at that same time and I had it translated. And what it said was that when the secret police would arrest you, they would question you and the two biggest enemies of the state at that time – which apparently was the '70s – were [[wikipedia:Jimmy Carter|Jimmy Carter]] and Frank Zappa. And I'm going, "What the fuck am I hearing here?"
+And then there was another statement that was made in Czech by one of the guys in the audience at that same time and I had it translated. And what it said was that when the secret police would arrest you, they would question you and the two biggest enemies of the state at that time – which apparently was the '70s – were [[Jimmy Carter]] and Frank Zappa. And I'm going, "What the fuck am I hearing here?"
 And then NPR ran a little thing in the middle of the week – an interview with an East German guy who talked about how if you owned one of my records in East Germany your phone got tapped and they followed you around. So, let's ask ourselves this question: If I'm such a menace to those kinds of systems, then why in the fuck aren't they playing my records on the air in the ''Land Of The Free and The Home Of The Brave?'' Could it be that there's not much difference between one authoritarian regime and another?
@@ Line 48: / Line 48: @@
 '''Does your interest in Eastern Europe have anything to do with musical or business projects?<br>
-Well, when I first went there it didn't, but I think it's turned into something that could probably be worthwhile. For one thing, I've made a record contract, I have made arrangements to have five titles distributed legally in Czechoslovakia for the first time. And the company that's doing it also has the right to distribute them in Hungary, Poland and East Germany. So, what remains of a secret police in each of those states is really gonna get a snootful.
+Well, when I first went there it didn't, but I think it's turned into something that could probably be worthwhile. For one thing, I've made a record contract, I have made arrangements to have five titles distributed legally in [[Czechoslovakia]] for the first time. And the company that's doing it also has the right to distribute them in [[Hungary]], [[Poland]] and East [[Germany]]. So, what remains of a secret police in each of those states is really gonna get a snootful.
 '''Would you write any special material for them?<br>
 Well, I think that some of the older albums are just as appropriate today – for here and for there – as they were when they were released. "[[Joe's Garage]]" is a good example of that.
-Throughout his 1988 "Broadway The Hard Way" tour, Zappa provided voter registration materials at every venue, and thus added 11,000 new voters to the rolls. Some of those 11,000 were infants when he first wrote on an album sleeve: "Don't Forget To Register To Vote." And on that tour – featuring songs about [[Jimmy Swaggart]], [[Jesse Jackson]], the Iran-Contra affair and [[C. Everett Koop|Surgeon General Koop]] – the band at times struck up a [[Ray Charles]]-ish version of "[[America The Beautiful]]," ending with a sweet Zappa guitar solo over bluesy choruses of "Sea to shining sea ... " Scratch a staunch First Amendment champion and you may find a patriot.
+Throughout his 1988 "Broadway The Hard Way" tour, Zappa provided voter registration materials at every venue, and thus added 11,000 new voters to the rolls. Some of those 11,000 were infants when he first wrote on an album sleeve: "Don't Forget To Register To Vote." And on that tour – featuring songs about [[Jimmy Swaggart]], [[Jesse Jackson]], the [[Iran-contra affair]] and [[C. Everett Koop|Surgeon General Koop]] – the band at times struck up a [[Ray Charles]]-ish version of "[[America The Beautiful]]," ending with a sweet Zappa guitar solo over bluesy choruses of "Sea to shining sea ... " Scratch a staunch First Amendment champion and you may find a patriot.
 '''Why do you think our government has never approached you to do voter-registration public service announcements?<br>
@@ Line 66: / Line 66: @@
 '''Have you gotten any surprising reactions to the book?<br>
 Well, when I was in Czechoslovakia, at the same time those kids were talking about how the secret police used to beat 'em, a guy stands up in the middle of the crowd holding a copy of my book and introduces himself as Zdenek Pecka. He works for the U.S. Information Agency – he's attached to the U.S. Embassy in Prague. He's standing there with the book in his hand, saying, ''"I think that the most important work you have done is the work against the PMRC. And I tried to give a lecture to these people about your 'Porn Wars.' and they did not understand it. They like your music very much here but they are not that familiar with your politics, and I think that your chapter on practical conservatism is some of the most cleverest stuff I've ever read."'' And I looked at this guy and I said, ''"I didn't get much sleep last night but I know I'm in [[The Twilight Zone]] now."''
 [[Category:Interviews with Zappa]]

@@ Line 62: / Line 62: @@
 After countless cut-and-paste biographies, in 1989 Frank Zappa published a sort-of autobiography, "[[The Real Frank Zappa Book]]," now available in paperback. Although including several entertaining chapters of biographical and musical anecdotes, much of the book was devoted to a wide range of issues, from record labeling to Star Wars to parenting to the reform of the Internal Revenue Service in a chapter Zappa entitled "Practical Conservatism."
-"[[The Real Frank Zappa Book]]" was edited by Ann Patty, VP and publisher of Poseidon Press, am imprint of ''Simon & Schuster.'' "I think of Frank as truly an extraordinarily intelligent man with really far-ranging interests," says Patty, "If you're gonna do a biography of a rock star, you probably can't get one more interesting than this one ... He gave me a quote once – which I had on my bulletin board for about two years: 'My job is extrapolating everything to its most absurd extreme.' And that, to me, is Frank ... It's a good mission in life."
+"[[The Real Frank Zappa Book]]" was edited by [[Ann Patty]], VP and publisher of Poseidon Press, am imprint of ''Simon & Schuster.'' "I think of Frank as truly an extraordinarily intelligent man with really far-ranging interests," says Patty, "If you're gonna do a biography of a rock star, you probably can't get one more interesting than this one ... He gave me a quote once – which I had on my bulletin board for about two years: 'My job is extrapolating everything to its most absurd extreme.' And that, to me, is Frank ... It's a good mission in life."
 '''Have you gotten any surprising reactions to the book?<br>
 Well, when I was in Czechoslovakia, at the same time those kids were talking about how the secret police used to beat 'em, a guy stands up in the middle of the crowd holding a copy of my book and introduces himself as Zdenek Pecka. He works for the U.S. Information Agency – he's attached to the U.S. Embassy in Prague. He's standing there with the book in his hand, saying, ''"I think that the most important work you have done is the work against the PMRC. And I tried to give a lecture to these people about your 'Porn Wars.' and they did not understand it. They like your music very much here but they are not that familiar with your politics, and I think that your chapter on practical conservatism is some of the most cleverest stuff I've ever read."'' And I looked at this guy and I said, ''"I didn't get much sleep last night but I know I'm in the Twilight Zone now."''
 [[Category:Interviews with Zappa]]