Broadway the Hard Way | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Live album by | ||||
Released | October 14, 1988 | |||
Recorded | February 9 – June 9, 1988 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length |
| |||
Label | Barking Pumpkin | |||
Producer | Frank Zappa | |||
Frank Zappa chronology | ||||
|
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Broadway the Hard Way is a live album by American musician Frank Zappa recorded at various performances along his 1988 world tour. It was first released as a 9-track vinyl album through Zappa's label Barking Pumpkin Records in October 1988, and subsequently as a 17-track CD through Rykodisc in 1989.
This album was compiled from Zappa's last tour in 1988. Most of the songs are satirical of prominent contemporary figures, chiefly in the political sphere, and of current social and political trends. Zappa's individual targets include Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan on "Dickie's Such an Asshole" (written in 1973), Jesse Jackson on "Rhymin' Man", Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker and Pat Robertson on "Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk", and Michael Jackson and his family on "Why Don't You Like Me?". In "Any Kind of Pain" (which Zappa's band had performed as an instrumental in 1976 and rehearsed in 1981, with slightly different melody and lyrics, but was not completed as a vocal work until 1988), he satirises the manner in which an imagined vapid model is exploited and despised by the men who employ her.
The album contains several covers, from the jazz standard "Stolen Moments" to the Police song "Murder by Numbers" (with a guest appearance by Sting). "Outside Now" is from Joe's Garage , and "Why Don't You Like Me" can be easily recognized as a remake of Zappa's 1970 title "Tell Me You Love Me." "Rhymin' Man" is filled with melodic quotes from evergreens such as "Happy Days Are Here Again", "Hava Nagila", "La Cucaracha" and "Frère Jacques". In "What Kind of Girl" there is a line from the Beatles' "Strawberry Fields Forever" and a segment from the "Battle Hymn of the Republic"; while "Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk" quotes "Louie Louie", "Rock of Ages" and Marius Constant's Theme from The Twilight Zone .
"Promiscuous", which takes aim at surgeon general C. Everett Koop, is delivered in rapped verse. [2]
Despite the title, Zappa did not intend the material for a theatrical production, but the album received a Grammy nomination in 1990 for Best Musical Cast Show Album, losing to Jerome Robbins' Broadway.
All tracks by Frank Zappa, except where noted.
No. | Title | Venue and date(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Elvis Has Just Left the Building" | Palasport di Genova, June 9, 1988 | 2:24 |
2. | "Planet of the Baritone Women" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Tower Theater, February 12, 1988 | 2:48 |
3. | "Any Kind of Pain" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Tower Theater, February 12, 1988 Falkoner Teatret, April 25, 1988 | 5:42 |
4. | "Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk" | Tower Theater, February 13 and 14, 1988 Royal Oak Music Theatre, February 26, 1988 Cumberland County Civic Center, March 15, 1988 Rothman Center, March 20, 1988 Civic Center, March 16, 1988 Nassau Coliseum, March 25, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Wembley Arena, April 19, 1988 Shea's Theater, March 9, 1988 War Memorial Auditorium, March 11, 1988 | 9:15 |
Total length: | 20:45 |
No. | Title | Venue and date(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
5. | "Dickie's Such an Asshole" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Hall Tivoli, May 23, 1988 Broome County Arena, March 17, 1988 Olympen, April 26, 1988 | 6:37 |
6. | "When the Lie's So Big" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 | 3:38 |
7. | "Rhymin' Man" | Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, May 9, 1988 | 3:51 |
8. | "Promiscuous" | Royal Oak Music Theatre, February 26, 1988 | 2:03 |
9. | "The Untouchables" (Nelson Riddle) | Civic Center, March 16, 1988 | 3:05 |
Total length: | 19:50 |
No. | Title | Venue and date(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Elvis Has Just Left the Building" | Palasport di Genova, June 9, 1988 | 2:24 |
2. | "Planet of the Baritone Women" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Tower Theater, February 12, 1988 | 2:48 |
3. | "Any Kind of Pain" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Tower Theater, February 12, 1988 Falkoner Teatret, April 25, 1988 | 5:42 |
4. | "Dickie's Such an Asshole" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Hall Tivoli, May 23, 1988 Broome County Arena, March 17, 1988 Olympen, April 26, 1988 | 5:45 |
5. | "When the Lie's So Big" | Music Hall, March 5, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 | 3:38 |
6. | "Rhymin' Man" | Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, May 9, 1988 | 3:50 |
7. | "Promiscuous" | Royal Oak Music Theatre, February 26, 1988 | 2:02 |
8. | "The Untouchables" (Riddle) | Civic Center, March 16, 1988 | 2:26 |
9. | "Why Don't You Like Me?" | Bushnell Memorial Hall, February 17, 1988 Syria Mosque, February 25, 1988 Tower Theater, February 13, 1988 Auditorium Theatre, March 3, 1988 | 2:57 |
10. | "Bacon Fat" (Andre Williams, Dorothy Brown, Zappa) | Frauenthal Auditorium, March 1, 1988 | 1:29 |
11. | "Stolen Moments" (Oliver Nelson) | Frauenthal Auditorium, March 1, 1988 Auditorium Theatre, March 3, 1988 | 2:57 |
12. | "Murder by Numbers" (Sting, Andy Summers) | Auditorium Theatre, March 3, 1988 | 5:37 |
13. | "Jezebel Boy" | Tower Theater, February 13, 1988 | 2:27 |
14. | "Outside Now" | Wembley Arena, April 19, 1988 Palasport di Genova, June 9, 1988 | 7:49 |
15. | "Hot Plate Heaven at the Green Hotel" | Wiener Stadthalle, May 8, 1988 Rudi-Sedlmayer-Halle, May 9, 1988 | 6:40 |
16. | "What Kind of Girl?" | Frauenthal Auditorium, March 1, 1988 Auditorium Theatre, March 4, 1988 | 3:17 |
17. | "Jesus Thinks You're a Jerk" | Tower Theater, February 13 & 14 1988 Royal Oak Music Theatre, February 26, 1988 Cumberland County Civic Center, March 15, 1988 Rothman Center, March 20, 1988 Civic Center, March 16, 1988 Nassau Coliseum, March 25, 1988 Warner Theatre, February 9, 1988 Wembley Arena, April 19, 1988 Shea's Theater, March 9, 1988 War Memorial Auditorium, March 11, 1988 | 9:15 |
Some Time in New York City is a part-studio, part-live double album by John Lennon and Yoko Ono as Plastic Ono Band that included backing by the American rock band Elephant's Memory. Released in June 1972 in the US and in September 1972 in the UK on Apple Records, it is Lennon's sixth album to be released under his own name, and his fourth with Ono. Like Lennon's previous solo albums, it was co-produced by Lennon, Ono and Phil Spector. The album's agitprop lyrics are politically charged compared to its predecessors, addressing political and social issues and topics such as sexism, incarceration, colonialism, and racism.
Chunga's Revenge is the third solo album, and eleventh album counting the work of his band The Mothers of Invention, by Frank Zappa, released on October 23, 1970. Zappa's first effort of the 1970s marks the first appearance of former Turtles members Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan - nicknamed Flo & Eddie - on a Zappa record, and signals the dawn of a controversial epoch in Zappa's history. Chunga's Revenge represents a shift from both the satirical political commentary of his 1960s work with The Mothers of Invention, and the jazz fusion of Hot Rats.
The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life is a double-disc live album by American musician Frank Zappa, released in 1991. The album was one of four that were recorded during the 1988 world tour; the other three were Broadway the Hard Way, Make a Jazz Noise Here, and Zappa '88: The Last U.S. Show.
Apostrophe (') is the sixth solo album and eighteenth in total by Frank Zappa, released in March 1974 in both stereo and quadraphonic formats. An edited version of its lead-off track, "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow", was the first of Zappa's three Billboard Top 100 hits, ultimately peaking at number 86. The album itself became the biggest commercial success of Zappa's career, reaching number 10 on the US Billboard 200.
Frank Zappa Plays the Music of Frank Zappa: A Memorial Tribute is a posthumous album by Frank Zappa.
Roxy & Elsewhere is a double live album by Frank Zappa and The Mothers, released on September 10, 1974. Most of the songs were recorded on December 8, 9 and 10, 1973 at The Roxy Theatre in Hollywood, California.
You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 1 is a double disc live album by Frank Zappa. It was released in 1988 under the label Rykodisc. It was the beginning of a series of six double CDs Zappa assembled of live performances throughout his career.
You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 6 is the last of six double-disc collection volumes of live performances by Frank Zappa recorded between 1970 and 1988. All of the material on disc one has a sexual theme. Zappa used the monologue in "Is That Guy Kidding or What?" to ridicule Peter Frampton's album I'm in You with its double entendre title and pop pretensions. Disc two includes performances from Zappa's shows between 1976 and 1981 at the Palladium in New York City, as well as material like "The Illinois Enema Bandit" and "Strictly Genteel" that he frequently used as closing songs at concerts. It was released on October 23, 1992, under the label Rykodisc.
Strictly Commercial is a compilation album by Frank Zappa. It was released in 1995, two years after his death. The album was named as part of a 2011 lawsuit by Gail Zappa towards Rykodisc, claiming the label released several vault masters without the permission of the Zappa Family Trust on this and other releases, specifically the single edits of some songs, such as the 12" disco Remix of "Dancin' Fool". The disc is currently out of print and has been replaced in Zappa's catalog by the 2016 compilation album ZAPPAtite.
The Man from Utopia is an album by American musician Frank Zappa, released in March 1983 by Barking Pumpkin Records. The album is named after a 1950s song, written by Donald and Doris Woods, which Zappa covers as part of "The Man from Utopia Meets Mary Lou".
Make a Jazz Noise Here is a live double album by Frank Zappa. It was first released in June 1991, and was the third Zappa album to be compiled from recordings from his 1988 world tour, following Broadway the Hard Way (1988) and The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life (1991). The album's cover art was made by Larry Grossman.
The Lost Episodes is a 1996 posthumous album by Frank Zappa which compiles previously unreleased material. Much of the material covered dates from early in his career, and as early as 1958, into the mid-1970s. Zappa had been working on these tracks in the years before his death in 1993.
Asshole is the second solo studio album by Kiss's Gene Simmons and it was released in 2004 on Sanctuary Records. Its controversial title does not appear on the front cover. On the side of the CD case the title reads "asshole". "It's just another way of me saying, 'I don't care what anyone says about me," Simmons declared. "I'm preempting what people say and therefore diffusing the power of my detractors."
Trance-Fusion is an album by Frank Zappa. Released posthumously in 2006, 13 years after the musician's death, the album forms the third in a trilogy of instrumental albums which focus on Zappa's improvised guitar solos, after Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar (1981) and Guitar (1988). Trance-Fusion was among the last albums completed by Zappa before his death, along with The Rage & The Fury: The Music Of Edgard Varèse, Dance Me This and Civilization Phaze III. It was also among the first releases by Zappa to be made available digitally via iTunes through Gail Zappa's distribution deal with Universal Music Enterprises.
"Montana" is a song composed by Frank Zappa for his 1973 LP Over-Nite Sensation. The last track on the album is one of Zappa's most famous and renowned compositions. It features backing vocals by Tina Turner and the Ikettes throughout the entire track, notably on the middle and ending sections.
One Shot Deal is an album by Frank Zappa, posthumously released in June 2008.
You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 2 is a live album by Frank Zappa. Despite the subtitle 'The Helsinki Concert', the album is not one complete concert, but was, in fact, assembled from two different concerts performed in Helsinki in 1974. The working title for this album was The Helsinki Tapes, a title more accurately reflecting the fact that the album was composed of performances from more than one show. It is the only album of the series You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore that includes only one Frank Zappa Band, and only one location of concert. All other albums mix different bands and different time periods in the stage career of Frank Zappa.
"Advance Romance" is a Frank Zappa song originally from his live album with Captain Beefheart, Bongo Fury. Other versions of the song can be found on You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Vol. 3, You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore, Vol. 5, and Make a Jazz Noise Here. It is a humorous parody of typical love songs and is sung by Napoleon Murphy Brock with George Duke. The song was played from 1975 to 1976 and from 1982 to 1988 making the song one of Zappa's most performed. Almost all of Zappa's lineups after its release on Bongo Fury played this song in concert.
"I Don't Wanna Get Drafted" is a 1980 single by American musician Frank Zappa. The song peaked at #103 US Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 and #68 on the Cash Box charts, but more successfully reached #3 in Sweden. The original single version has never been reissued on LP or CD.
Zappa '88: The Last U.S. Show is a live album released June 18, 2021, by Frank Zappa. It contains mostly previously unreleased recordings of the last concert he would ever play in the US at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.