For those of you who were not alive during the 1960s, Frank Zappa and his crew got their first real gig from this album. This is a concept album that is actually a stab at the Rock scene at the time, before The Beatles released their epic album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Heart’s Club Band in 1967. Frank Zappa insisted that the band create their own songs instead of relying on cover songs from the start when he joined the band. Instead of necessarily opting into the Psychedelic Rock movement that was coming up at the time, The Mothers Of Invention went for an experimental edge with their songs, breaking down musical barriers in the process. The result was this album, which although bombed at the time in terms of popularity, is now widely seen as a classic album and also seen as something that, like The Velvet Underground’s offerings, should be heard by more people out there. Let’s take a listen to this album and hopefully, it is up to scratch.

Hungry Freaks, Daddy launches straight into it, with fuzz-laden guitar and bass guitar riffs galore. Frank Zappa and friends sing nicely about the hypocrisy of the education and political systems of the USA. It launches into a really good mocking tune about life in the USA. There is also a kazoo present as well. A neat and proto-shred style guitar solo is present as well, just sounding quirky and different. It is one of the weirdest listens from 1966, but all for a good cause. The Fender-styled fuzz guitar is different. An awesome song to listen to, and a good start to an underappreciated album. This is cynicism and sarcasm at its best at the time. It also has a melody that Nirvana lifted for one of its own songs. A weird yet wonderful listen.

I Ain’t Got No Heart launches straight into it with some great and clean guitars, entering into a parody of the 1960s romanticism-themed songs that the likes of The Beatles made popular at the time. A very different listen, and something very valuable to listen to. A good song that is perfect for those of you who like 1960s music but hate love songs. It sounds remarkably old-fashioned musically but mixes it with some decent sounds and production that were cutting-edge at the time. Nonetheless, a good listen for those of you who value weirdness in your music. It has a weird outro, before quickly finishing up.

Who Are The Brain Police? begins with some weird low-end sounds, followed by some distorted guitar. This launches into a very clever parody of Hippie Music, and it sounds weird as anything. Regardless, this is an excellent and clever piece of music, through and through. Near the middle is a scream, followed by some mental-sounding feedback and guitars to match this really weird tune. A good listen if you understand what this music is about. In the second half are harmonies, before this returns to the main song at hand. One of the weirdest listens you will ever hear. It ends with a kazoo and an intensely sped-up section of the introductory riff before fading out.

Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder is a Southern Music parody piece, which is a weird listen, once again. There is some cool guitar and other supporting instrumentation here. Nonetheless, for a parody, this does sound really great to listen to. A warped listening experience that is superb, yet oddball. The instrumentation is simple, and the singing is beyond weird throughout. Very unusual music, and something designed to raise eyebrows or make one chuckle. This is beyond weird as a musical piece, but it sure sounds captivating. One of the weirdest pieces of music ever recorded, but a good parody at that. Nonetheless, a good and very entertaining listen.

Motherly Love begins with bass guitar and launches into another eccentric-sounding musical piece. This is a weird tune with varying sections and is possibly about incest. Yes, you read correctly. A weird tune that has multiple instruments and different sections throughout. Nonetheless, this is an excellent tune. There are also lyrics about Rockstar groupies and getting it on as well. A very good tune from 1966, complete with kazoo in the intermission sections. A really good tune, provided you can understand the humour of this song. The outro has some interesting lyrics, sarcastic vocals and weird instrumentation throughout.

How Could I Be Such A Fool begins as a piano-based ballad, and launches into a satirical and strange tune about losing one’s love. The Mothers Of Invention make good music for one to grin and enjoy as a bit of a joke. The midsection has xylophones and brass parts over the chorus. This is difficult to take at all seriously, although the song matter does come across as being rather serious. Another great and quirky tune to enjoy. It ends with a dramatic crescendo of instrumentation.

Wowie Zowie begins with some Fender Telecaster-styled guitar parts and some interesting percussion follows, along with xylophone. This is a really unusual and odd love song that has a quirky and eccentric sense of humour linked with it. This cannot be at all taken seriously and has some fantastic one-line lyrics that are excellent throughout. This weird music is a really thoroughly comical listen and is not to be taken seriously. At all. “Weird Al” Yankovic likely got his ideas from Frank Zappa. In any case, this is a really bizarre song of lust and desire for a woman who is seemingly perfect. Bizarre.

You Didn’t Try To Call Me begins with some neat guitar arpeggios and bass guitar, launching quickly into a song about awaiting a response from a lady. Very unusual and strange music, this is a mockery of some of The Beatles-styled romanticism in the music of the 1960s that was prevalent at the time. There are muted guitars, brass sections and other wacky musical elements throughout that are quite good. Frank Zappa rips into an excellent vocal in the middle of this song, and this is also an excellent description of longing for a lady to get back to a man. Very wacky and weird, this is an oddball tune with some random ranting at the end which aims fair and square at the whole peace and love vibe of the Hippie era. Good though. It fades out at the end.

Anyway The Wind Blows begins with some intricately played guitars and launches into another Hippie satire piece of music throughout. This is a much more Poppy effort and is one of the highlights of this album. Frank Zappa sings very well here, and it is easy to see why he became successful as a solo artist later on. A very odd-sounding piece of music. The solo section is very pleasant sounding and is followed by weird harmonies. This album is good to put on and play to your friends if you want to show them the weirder side of the 1960s. All in all, a good song. It ends with the repeated guitar riffs and a quick conclusion.

I’m Not Satisfied begins with drums and guitars, and launches into a very strange Pop song. A very weird piece of music that has a touch of 1950s piano in it. This is a song about being annoyed and peeved off about life, of course as a parody song. Weird as anything, yet consistently interesting, this is a really good and well-constructed piece of music to listen to. This album is very weird, and this song is no different in that respect. This is music for those who value the artistic weirdness of the late 1960s to the nth degree. This wraps up with a load of conclusive brass sections and other instrumentation to finish up.

You’re Probably Wondering Why I’m Here begins with some clean Fender guitar strumming, and quickly launches into a strange-sounding tune. This quickly launches into one of the weirdest songs that you will ever hear, complete with xylophone, kazoo, rolling drumbeats and other odd musical touches to match it. A mockery of what people do in their everyday lives, this sounds really quirky and weird to listen to. The kazoo solos are really an oddball touch. In the second half are a bunch of different musical touches that sound really weird. Telling the story of a young kid who rips up their parents’ convertible car, this is very weird music. This is strange music for those of you who desire the weirdest Pop/Rock Music from the late 1960s, this is tolerable, as long as you can appreciate that. It ends after three and a half minutes. Different.

Trouble Every Day begins with some very 1960s sounding guitars, and launches into a good song about the everyday experiences that inspire one to take action, not necessarily for the right reasons, however. A very weird and unusual tune to listen to, this does evoke the images of protesting Hippies in the late 1960s, particularly in the USA. A really good song to listen to, with some excellent guitar riffing, this is yet another cynical/sarcastic parody of the evening news. All in all, a good parody of the situation that the Hippies were in around the release of this album. Nonetheless, another good listen from this album, being more conventional and less weird as such. This is a good listen but is more trying to prove a point than being necessarily musical. In the second half are some interesting guitar solos, which sound melodic and different throughout. The playing present is very awesome and sharp. A good song for those of you who dig late 1960s music, in a weird sort of way. It ends with a harmonica solo and a ton of reverb on it, followed by a sped-up conclusion. Different, it fades out at the end.

Help, I’m A Rock sounds unusual from the start. It has some hammer on guitar riffing and chanting, which is weird. This song makes very little sense on a logical level, it just sounds plain weird. There is some mock Spanish in the right channel, followed by a piano riff. Very odd music to listen to, the murmuring and vocals here are definitely weird. A wacky and out-there song to listen to, it fits this album nicely, even though on its own, it wouldn’t make sense. Towards the middle is a brief break with guitars and feedback, following back into the main section of the song. It’s difficult to take this music at all seriously, it just sounds totally unusual and worked out strangely. This is an album that is designed to get the Hippies to stop listening to their Psychedelia and instead embrace a broader musical vision. The chanting, repetitive melodies and vocals get very repetitive throughout. Towards the end is a mockery of sexual activity, which builds up right to the end. Odd.

It Can’t Happen Here begins with some odd mix-up of vocals, some singing and some merely spoken words. A very unusual pastiche of sounds and concepts throughout. With references to various American states, this is where the album takes a turn for the worse. Eventually, drums and weird Jazz-based piano parts enter. An unusual piece of music, that is for sure. In any case, this is okay to listen to. The music stops again in the middle of this song, repeatedly referencing AC/DC (years before they existed as a band) and this is really odd to listen to. Being a mostly spoken-word piece of music, this is not worth your time, to be frank. It makes zero sense to listen to this track, so skip ahead if you can. It ends with a bunch of reverberated vocals that don’t make sense. Ordinary.

The Return Of The Son Of Monster Magnet is the final track on this album and runs for well over 12 minutes in length. It begins with a discussion in the mind between a lady named Suzy Creamcheese and her conscience. It sounds weird because it is. It launches into melodies and screaming, sounding quite awful, in fact. This is a fairly tedious album to get through already, and it just is lacking throughout. It seems that the concept burns out somewhat towards the end of this album. A very odd listen with Theremin-styled sounds and other unusual sonic additions that, quite frankly, stink. The drum loop present is good, but that is about it. By this point, you can hit stop and go and do something else. There is very little musically to be appreciated in this track. Some clapping and weird chanting enter this tune, followed by a sped-up section. This is not good, to be fair. It sounds messed up and unprofessional to the nth degree. It continues on for some time, and quite frankly, you can and should avoid this nonsense. Very, very weird. Perhaps Yoko Ono got her awful vocal musical ideas from this track? Towards the middle, things get a little more musical with particular emphasis on the drumming. This builds up to a good amount of sonic sound. Still, this is very poor to listen to. Eventually, this returns to a weird section of vocals that make zero sense and are not worth hearing. Frank Zappa claimed that these guys weren’t on drugs, which is hardly believable. Sex sounds are also thrown into the mix here, which isn’t easy to listen here. This leads into the second half with a barrage of differently recorded vocals and some ordinary sounds to match. Nothing special here, just pure nonsense. Very weird and extremely bizarre. There are enough sounds to annoy you here, and this drags the album down a lot. Crashing drums are present in the second half here, before launching into some multitracked vocals that reference the idea that America is wonderful, followed by a load of recorded yelping. Yes, you read that correctly. This is very awful to listen to, and it isn’t anything worthwhile outside of an artistic concept. Enough to bore one senseless, this is not a really great listen. At all. Avoid like the plague. Enough to send one really crazy to listen to it. Towards the end, there is clicking percussion, vocals that are unintelligible and random sounds galore. Not worth it, not for a moment. A pathetic attempt at musical experimentation. It ends with sped-up vocals, followed by distorted piano and other weird musical sounds. Terrible, to be fair and honest. It finally ends after 12 minutes, thank goodness.

This is not a very enjoyable or impressive listening experience and it quickly burns out in the second half of the album, in particular. No surprise that this music neither sold well nor was popular at the time. If you are on hard drugs of some sort, this might make sense. Otherwise, to the average listener, this will make zero sense at all. Should you listen to this album? Only if you are totally out of it, otherwise don’t ever bother with it.

Lame.

5/10