Frank Zappa plays the many notes on his guitar with the same intensity as he expresses his distaste for traditional pop music. As a classic rock musician, Zappa continuously promotes the more real-world elements of music making, continuously opposing commercialism and highlighting the quest for creativity as his only true calling.
This has forced him to square off against some of the biggest names in rock & roll over the years. Even though he eventually came to appreciate the band, he was once infamously angered at the fair-faced Liverpool Fab Four for breaking American rock and roll tradition by introducing a whole new genre of pop music. On a few occasions, Zappa disregarded their influence with casualness, observing, “Everyone else thought they were God! That, in my opinion, was incorrect. They were merely an effective business group.
Zappa also made pokes at other bands. A verbal beating was inflicted upon the Velvet Underground and, perhaps more importantly, their manager, Andy Warhol. Jimmy Carl Black, the other member of Mothers of Invention, explained it this way: “I don’t remember Zappa actually putting them down on stage, but he might have.” He didn’t like the band at all. The Velvets’ de facto leader, Lou Reed, expressed the same sentiment when he called Zappa “the most untalented musician I’ve ever heard.”
The Doors, on the other hand, are a band that might have been Zappa’s greatest enemy given his admiration for the artistic integrity at the core of his vision for rock and roll. Zappa never really thought highly of the Jim Morrison-led group; instead, he preferred a straightforward musical structure supported by Morrison’s lyrical poetry. But what really got Zappa’s nose out of joint was their obsession with obtaining the big, fat dollar.
Through his wife, Zappa was well aware of the band’s ascent, and Morrison in particular: “Well, I knew Jim Morrison too.” In actuality, Jim Morrison raised my wife. They were buddies when they played. She may have even given him a blow to the head with a hammer, too. I therefore have extensive knowledge of Jim Morrison. In fact, Herb Cohen once attempted to supervise him. And when we initially started, they were performing around Los Angeles.
Zappa went on, “They were working at the Whisky a Go-Go and all that stuff.” I am therefore somewhat familiar with Jim Morrison’s ascent. And the annoying thing about Jim Morrison was when Crawdaddy went on this strange rampage and decided to declare him the Lizard King of rock and roll.
The commercial machinery surrounding The Doors turned Zappa off, especially the offensive merchandise linked to their music. It surpassed the bounds of reality for him.
According to Frank Zappa, the group was not deserving of the praise that the media gave them. The Beatles lived up to their role as pop saviors, but Zappa thought The Doors’ fame stemmed from a hype machine. It rapidly elevated ordinary performers to legendary status.
In 1982, he stated to Guitar World, “No, I’m not even making fun of Jim Morrison.” I am talking about the apparatus that amplifies any situation, blowing it out of proportion. This leads the public to accept a distorted reality. I observe, accept, manage, and move forward—embracing reality and swiftly transitioning to the next challenge. However, Americans are drawn to hype, bloated images, and bloated everything else; they avoid anything realistic. Whatever it is, they want the candy gloss version. Jim Morrison is just one illustration of that.
A group could be deemed repulsive for neglecting peers or engaging in unconventional acts. Despite this, Zappa’s actions make them influential, unlike The Doors. Frank Zappa hasn’t always followed the rules, though.
