Name: We're Only In It For The Money
Brand: Frank Zappa

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

238372

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Colour

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

U.K. Import

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Format Music US

Limited edition

Release date

2022-04-01

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier US

Lasgo

Tax rate US

Sales:8.875

UPC / Barcode

0824302383728

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Total Cap

1 / CD / Extended format: No / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

ZR3837

{"blocks": [{"data": {"text": "ZR3837"}, "type": "paragraph"}]}

2019-07-31

Revol­ver

00824302383728

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ZR38371

{"blocks": [{"data": {"text": "ZR38371"}, "type": "paragraph"}]}

2016-12-09

Unive­rsal

00824302383711

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1 / Extended format: No / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

Artist

Frank Zappa

Genre US

60s & 70s

Label US

Zappa Records

Frank Zappa was an American composer, lyricist, songwriter, guitarist, vocalist, bandleader, conductor, producer, and filmmaker. Born on December 21, 1940, in Baltimore, Maryland and passed away on December 4, 1993, in Los Angeles, California. Zappa's music combined elements of contemporary classical figures such as Igor Stravinsky and Karlheinz Stockhausen with a love for doo-wop and rock &amp; roll. He was known for his satirical lyrics and wicked sense of humour that delighted fans even when pushing the boundaries of taste.Zappa was a prolific record maker who produced massive amounts of music on his own labels including Bizarre Records, Straight Records, and Barking Pumpkin Records. After unhappy associations with Warner Bros. Records and MGM in the past, he gained control over his old albums in the 80s and began reissuing them through Rykodisc. Throughout his career, Zappa stayed at the forefront of technology investing in equipment and home studio facilities to have full control over production.In 1988 he released his official autobiography and embarked on a world tour before being diagnosed with cancer in late 1991 which ended his live performances. His wife Gail became the figurehead of the Zappa Family Trust (ZFT) until her death in 2015. The ZFT continued producing posthumous releases under their children's guidance.

From the beginning, Frank Zappa cultivated a role as voice of the freaks — imaginative outsiders who didn't fit comfortably into any group. We're Only in It for the Money is the ultimate expression of that sensibility, a satirical masterpiece that simultaneously skewered the hippies and the straights as prisoners of the same narrow-minded, superficial phoniness. Zappa's barbs were vicious and perceptive, and not just humorously so: his seemingly paranoid vision of authoritarian violence against the counterculture was borne out two years later by the Kent State killings.

Like Freak Out, We're Only in It for the Money essentially devotes its first half to satire, and its second half to presenting alternatives. Despite some specific references, the first-half suite is still wickedly funny, since its targets remain immediately recognizable. The second half shows where his sympathies lie, with character sketches of Zappa's real-life freak acquaintances, a carefree utopia in "Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance," and the strident, unironic protest "Mother People."

Regardless of how dark the subject matter, there's a pervasively surreal, whimsical flavor to the music, sort of like Sgt. Pepper as a creepy nightmare. Some of the instruments and most of the vocals have been manipulated to produce odd textures and cartoonish voices; most songs are abbreviated, segue into others through edited snippets of music and dialogue, or are broken into fragments by more snippets, consistently interrupting the album's continuity. Compositionally, though, the music reveals itself as exceptionally strong, and Zappa's politics and satirical instinct have rarely been so focused and relevant, making We're Only in It for the Money quite probably his greatest achievement.