Napoleon Murphy Brock
Napoleon Murphy Brock (nicknamed "Napi") (23 April 1943) is an American singer, saxophonist, clarinetist, keyboardist and flautist.
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Early life and career
Brock had sung in church choirs from the age of five. At high school he played clarinet before taking to the saxophone. He gained experience from performing in orchestras, jazz bands and marching bands.
Frank Zappa
He was seen performing, in Hawaii, with his six piece band Gregarious Movement by Marty Perellis who informed Zappa that he had found a replacement for Sal Marquez. Zappa went to see him perform and asked to meet him. Brock had never heard of Zappa and declined Zappa's request that he join him on the about to start European tour not least because he, being a jazz fan, had admired the work of George Duke and Jean-Luc Ponty and was in awe of playing with them, and he also felt obliged to fulfil his contract in Hawaii. On his return from the tour Zappa invited him to rehearse with them.
Brock sang songs like Village Of The Sun, Cheepnis, Florentine Pogen and Andy.
Album contributions
- Apostrophe (')
- Roxy & Elsewhere
- The Roxy Performances
- One Size Fits All
- Bongo Fury
- Zoot Allures
- Sleep Dirt
- Sheik Yerbouti
- Them Or Us
- Thing-Fish
- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 1
- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 2
- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 3
- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 4
- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 6
- Frank Zappa Plays The Music Of Frank Zappa
- FZ:OZ
- Quaudiophiliac
- The Dub Room Special
- Unmitigated Audacity
- Piquantique
Video appearances
- Baby Snakes (in the background)
- Dub Room Special
- The Amazing Mr. Bickford (in the background)
- Roxy The Movie
- Cheaper Than Cheep
Later career
Brock was a member of The Grandmothers, Grande Mothers Re:Invented, Project/Object, the Ed Palermo Big Band. He also performed during the Zappa Plays Zappa concerts and received a 2009 Grammy Award for his performance of Peaches En Regalia.
Brock is interviewed in the documentaries The True Story Of 200 Motels and Frank Scheffer's Frank Zappa: The Present-Day Composer Refuses To Die (2000), Frank Zappa Phase II: The Big Note (2002) and Frank Zappa: Pioneer Of Future Music, parts 1 & 2 (2007).
