Freak Out!

I first became aware of this record a few months ago when, whilst aimlessly circling the internet and (more specifically) looking at stuff to do with the Beatles, I stumbled across an article mentioning The Mothers of Invention as a major influence on Sgt. Pepper’s.

Released a year before the fab four’s defining (although not necessarily best) work, Freak Out! was the debut offering from a young Frank Zappa, who was the creative force behind the Mothers, and may have been the first ever concept album. What that concept was, exactly, is hard to say. Wikipedia claims that the album’s songs form “a sardonic farce about rock music and America.” Right… Add in a character called Suzy Creamcheese, featured on the back sleeve as the purported writer of an ebullient fan letter but only directly referred to on the album’s last track, and the record’s claim to this dubious honour starts to seem a little tenuous.

Whether or not Freak Out! was the first concept album though, it remains an important work which has been severely overlooked. When people talk about classic rock albums, they always mention the Dark Side of the Moon, or Sgt. Pepper’s, or even (god forbid) The Joshua Tree. And whilst Freak Out! is in many ways a sprawling mess, it contains enough moments of genuine greatness to earn classic status.

Take opener Hungry Freaks, Daddy, a comment on US President Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society”, and Trouble Every Day, Zappa’s response to the numerous race riots erupting in the mid-60s. They highlight not only that Freak Out! is a highly political album, but a great sounding one as well, with both tracks featuring searing riffs and the best production money could buy [MGM spent a small fortune on the recording, only to be greeted with hugely disappointing sales]. Even better are the albums closing tracks, with Help I’m a Rock and the 12-minute noise-fest The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet both fulfilling the album’s titular promise, the Mothers peddling expansive psychedelia long before the Beatles tried their hand.

My personal favourites though, offered up for download at the bottom, are Wowie Zowie and I’m Not Satisfied. The former is a joyous paean to unconditional love (Sample lyric: Wowie Zowie baby you’re so neat / I don’t even care if you shave your legs), whilst conversely I’m Not Satisfied finds Zappa suicidal. These wild mood swings are representative of Freak Out! as a whole. It’s a mess, but all the more loveable for it.

Jed. x