Zappa's compositions pull the strings

Soon after Frank Zappa's death late in 1993 I heard about a tour by the so-called "Band From Utopia", a collection of Zappa alum playing (quite well, to be sure) Zappa tunes. I almost went, but, since I'd never had the pleasure of seeing Zappa live (I was still rockin' out to Guns N' Roses during the notorious 1988 tour, Zappa's last) the whole endeavor seemed hollow to me. Why see a Zappa band sans Zappa? I felt this way until I finally checked out an ongoing series happening down at the Bottom Line in Manhattan. Dig this: an 18 piece big band as tight as Buddy Rich's was rearranging Zappa's material into its own unique sound. It seemed simpatico with Zappa's own frequent re-conceptualizing (how many totally different versions of "Trouble Every Day"?) and the only posthumous Zappa ticket worth buying.

The man behind this project is Ed Palermo. Indeed, he has released an album called The Ed Palermo Big Band Plays The Music of Frank Zappa. His show at the Bottom Line still packs 'em in (next gig is Friday, March 19th!!), often featuring surprise guests. I was lucky to chat with him recently and ask a few questions.

Jordan Hoffman: I think your album can appeal even to listeners who don't know or like Frank Zappa. How would you characterize your interpretation of Zappa?

Ed Palermo: I think my interpretations are inspired by my absolute love for FZ's melodies and chord changes, and my desire to put them in a framework that best showcases those elements. It was Frank's personality to arrange in a way that almost obscured the beauty of his melodies. That's what made Frank such an original. He never sentimentalized his work. When I was a kid, I also loved the music of Todd Rundgren, who always sentimentalized his work. So, I think what I do is try to bring out the pathos in Frank's music the way Todd did in his.

JH: What did you learn new about Zappa's music when you began arranging it for big band that you did not know as a listener?

EP: I realized he was more brilliant than I thought! That's kind of a complicated question because almost every tune of his that I've arranged has had me scratching my head saying, "How did he come up with that?"

JH: You list everyone under the sun as an influence, from Todd Rundgren to Sergei Prokofiev. How did appreciation of other composers, as well as your work with a more traditional jazz outfit, affect your interpretation of Zappa?

EP: I guess you could say that any influence in your life will affect your art. If it doesn't, then you're not much of an artist. As to how it affects my interpretation of FZ's music, I don't have a clue. That's one of those questions that I'll have an answer for immediately after you run this interview.

Ed's Album! You know you want it!

JH: Your album and live set, the two times I've seen you, avoided Zappa's work from the 80s (with the exception of a mindfucker version of "G Spot Tornado"!) Do you plan to expand into this, or are you keeping away from it purposely?

EP: I guess it's obvious that I prefer the older Mothers' material. Actually, we do quite a bit of the 80's stuff (keep in mind I've arranged over 80 FZ tunes thus far), but there are shows where we hardly do any. To be totally honest, there was a period in the late 70's and early 80's where Zappa lost me. Zappa fans, forgive me, but I couldn't stand Baby Snakes (the movie). I didn't like most of the tunes and thought the movie was interminable. And except for a couple classics like "Watermelon in Easter Hay" and "Sy Borg", Joe's Garage didn't thrill me either. To me, the music just lacked Zappa's melodic and harmonic genius. And since no one is paying me for this project, I can only do the material that I truly love, and I'm afraid "Dinah-Moe-Hum" doesn't enter into that category.

JH: There's something of a gender gap with Frank Zappa (at least in my house.) Can you account for that? Do you find this in your work with the Big Band, too?

EP: I think the reason for the gender gap is what I touched on before: Zappa obscured a lot of his gorgeous melodies with weird sound effects that sound like belches and flatulence. He loved the fact that one had to see beyond the "ugliness" to get to the beauty. Add to that the scatological nature of his lyrics, and I think you've turned off a lot of listeners. I, personally, love this about Zappa, but some people don't want to take the time to delve. At the risk of sounding sexist (like Zappa would give a shit if he sounded "sexist") I think most women fall into that category. Most of my audience at the Zappa tributes are male, and I'm constantly approached by their girlfriends with, "I always hated Zappa until I heard your band. I never knew the melodies were so beautiful!" I know this sounds self-serving, but it's true.

JH: Tell us a little bit about the amount of work that goes into one of your Bottom Line shows?

EP: Well, it's quite a lot of work, but it's a total labor of love. First, we usually set the date of the next show within a week of the one we just played. I usually have about 6 weeks between shows. Even though I already have a zillion EP-FZ arrangements to pick from, I always get to work on some new ones. That way, each show is a totally different experience to the ones prior. I really want the audience to experience something special.

Anyway, once the arrangements are done, I bring them into our every Friday rehearsal. Some of the tunes play themselves; they're not insanely demanding. Others, like my new arrangement of "Inca Roads", must be rehearsed slowly and then gradually increased in tempo till we hit the proper speed. My musicians are all incredible virtuosos, but even they have trouble with something like "Inca". Keep in mind, Zappa rehearsed his bands 6 days a week, 8 hours a day. We rehearse once a week for two hours, so I'm really proud of my band.

JH: Will you ever take this show on the road?

EP: We've played several out of town gigs (DC, South Jersey) but each time I've lost more money than I can really afford. So, I'm afraid the answer is probably no. I would love to, though. The DC gig was a blast!

JH: Did you ever meet Frank Zappa?

EP: No. It's one of my deepest regrets. I wish I could have told him how much his music shaped my life and how much total joy it gave me. Oh, well. I imagine he heard it enough in his lifetime.

JH: In the notes to your album, you mention that if you ever get a chance to meet Gail & the kids, you promise to chip in a little for dinner. This begs to be asked about. Can you elaborate on this? Did you not have a good experience working with the Zappa Family Trust?

EP: Actually, that little joke meant nothing. It was just a lame little joke, which is a drag because I think the rest of the liner notes are funny as hell, if I do say so myself.

As to my experience with the Zappas, it goes a little like this: Frank Zappa had been ripped off his entire career by bootleggers and record companies. Add to that the close family bond that the Zappas have, it was inevitable that they would be suspicious of people once again ripping them off. It's really very sweet how loyal they are. Unfortunately, they seem to be suspicious of everybody they don't know and to some they do know. They've never met me, so the only way they have of knowing how sincere I am with this project are with the 4 or 5 letters I wrote to Gail Zappa (Frank's wife) when I started this project 5 years ago. In those letters, I explained to her that the players in my band generally don't get paid enough to pay for their parking on those concert nights, and I always lose money. I also asked for her blessing in continuing Frank's legacy. I never heard back from her, so I decided to go ahead and do the concerts anyway.

Well, 2 or 3 years go by and I finally get a record deal with Astor Place Records. Negotiations between company lawyers and the Zappa estate are slow and strained. At one point, a Zappa lawyer says to an Astor Place lawyer, "Gail is not happy that Ed Palermo is making a living off of her husband's music." MAKING A LIVING?!! It was at that point I realized there was nothing I could ever do to win her over. Like I said before, I understand, and even admire, her loyalty to her husband, but it is just plain delusional to think anyone could make a dime playing, "Dog Breath Variations" with an 18 piece big band. So, it was at that point that I stopped caring whether the Zappas accept me or not. I still wish them the best, because they're Frank's loved ones, but there is only so much I can do. I recently met Gail's sister, Sherrie. What a sweetheart! We met at this Zappa tribute in Florida I was involved with 2 months ago. She couldn't have been nicer. She also brought along her husband and some others, including a beautiful young actress by the name of Lala who happens to be Gail and Sherrie's niece. We all hung out quite a lot during the weekend and they seemed to love the concert, especially Lala, because she spent most of her life in the Zappa household, hearing Frank's music being composed through the walls. She was openly weeping during some of the numbers, as was Sherrie. It was such a beautiful weekend. And all of us (Ike Willis, me, Jerry Outlaw, the great guitarist from a group called Bogus Pomp) kept trying to get Sherrie to relay back to Gail how much we sincerely love this music, how much money we're losing, and mainly, that we are not the enemy. I know Sherrie understood, but it's yet to be seen if she has swayed Gail. Time will tell.

JH: I feel that this album is the only thing Zappa-related to have come out since his death that does something new with the material. Do you have any comment on some of the Zappa cover bands, albums they've released, or the frequent Rykodisc re-releases of Zappa material?

EP: Well, I saw The Band From Utopia play a couple years ago at Irving Plaza and was blown away! I thought they were fantastic! I loved hearing those great players again. Tommy Mars, especially, but they were all great. Their CD is good, too, but not as good as their live show was. They played a really cool original by Chad Wackerman.

My project is different because it would be a waste of my time to try to replicate something that's been done before. It's okay for The Band From Utopia because they are the guys who helped formulate that music. My project has to be my personality or it would be false. The way I see it, as long as I get the melodies and harmonies right, however I dress it up (arrange the music) is my business. If you like it, great! If not, that's cool, too.

I also like the cover bands Project/Object and Bogus Pomp. They're very talented and extremely sincere. You have to be to learn FZ's impossible music.

AND WE'RE ALL LOSING OUR SHIRTS PLAYING THIS STUFF!!

JH: You played a Zappa gig down in Florida with an orchestra? What was that like?

EP: Incredible! I spoke at a symposium the night before the concert along with several very learned Ph.D.s. (I still don't know why they invited me). Anyway, the whole weekend was this incredible love-fest for the music of Frank Zappa. The energy was astounding! The orchestra played the music flawlessly and Bogus Pomp was incredible! I was fortunate to play a couple solos (on alto sax) with them on "Black Napkins" and "Peaches En Regalia". It all happened in St. Petersburg this past January.

JH: Someone from alt.fan.frank-zappa wants me to ask about "that crazy guy in the Alice Cooper makeup." He says you'll know what this means. So I'm asking.

EP: He's referring to Ted Kooshian, my 2nd keyboardist. He's an unbelievably gifted pianist/composer who has added a new dimension to the music by playing (via a sampler) harpsichord, tympani, B3 organ, celeste, glockenspiel, and many other sounds. He can handle any part I throw at him! He's also an extremely bizarre fellow, thus the Alice Cooper makeup.

JH: On a related note, what do you think of die hard Zappa fans and do you consider yourself a member of this club?

EP: Yeah, I think you could definitely consider me a member of this club. I've met many of these folks in the 5 years I've been doing this and I never tire of hearing them thank me for keeping the music alive. I truly appreciate them!! Like I said before, there are quite a few Zappa tunes I don't like, but the amount of tunes that I'm in love with far exceed the ones I don't. I guess you'd have to be hardcore to spend the time I do transcribing this music for no money!

JH: If on a desert island, and were allowed one Zappa album, which would it be? No cheating, you can only name one. I know this hurts.

EP: If you asked me 5 years ago, I would've either said Uncle Meat or Burnt Weeny Sandwich (probably "Burnt Weenie" because of the brilliant "Little House I Used To Live In"--Sugar Cane Harris--pure nirvana!). But since the re-release of 200 Motels, I gotta say, without a doubt, "200 Motels"! A lot of this music went over my head as a kid (I was around 16 when it was first released),but now it just blows my mind! My favorite tracks? "Dental Hygiene Dilemma" and "Lucy's Seduction of a Bored Violinist and Postlude" Absolutely brilliant!

JH: Of course, you have a completely non-Zappa traditional jazz group, as well. Can you tell us a little about that and will they have any albums out soon?

EP: You are referring to my sextet. That's a band called the "Burridge-Palermo Sextet". We play at a club called the 55 Bar. This is the club that Mike and Leni Stern play at all the time. My band's there every other Sunday. The next one is March 28. This band plays tunes by Cedar Walton, Cannonball Adderly, Herbie Hancock, and others. This is mainly a vehicle for me and my co-leader, Bud Burridge, to improvise with. I love it. No albums are set yet for this group. I spend most of my time trying to get this damn big-band off the ground!

If I may say one last thing here about the Zappa project: I truly hope to do this for a very long time because I believe that Frank's music is just as great as the music of Gershwin, Charles Ives, Samuel Barber, Cole Porter, Aaron Copland, and many other American composers. Because of his affiliation with the world of rock and roll, he might not be taken as seriously as those composers for some years to come. Regardless, I feel it's important to keep the legacy alive.

What Edgar Varese was to Frank Zappa, Frank Zappa is to me.