Joe's Garage
| Joe's Garage | ||||||||||
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Original cover art for the single LP release Joe's Garage Act I, depicting Zappa in blackface.
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| Studio album by Frank Zappa | ||||||||||
| Released | September 17, 1979 (Act I) November 19, 1979 (Acts II & III) |
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| Recorded | March — June 1979 at Village Recorders "B", LA | |||||||||
| Genre | Rock opera, progressive rock, hard rock, jazz fusion, comedy rock | |||||||||
| Length | 115:14 | |||||||||
| Label | Zappa Records | |||||||||
| Producer | Frank Zappa | |||||||||
| Frank Zappa chronology | ||||||||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic (Acts I, II & III) |   |
| AllMusic (Act I) |  |
| AllMusic (Acts II & III) | |
| Rolling Stone | (favorable) |
Joe's Garage is a three-part rock opera recorded by American musician Frank Zappa in 1979. Originally released as two separate studio albums on Zappa Records, the project was later remastered and reissued as a triple album box set, Joe's Garage, Acts I, II & III, in 1987. The LPs initially received mixed to positive reviews, with critics praising its innovative and original music, but criticizing the scatological, sexual and profane nature of the lyrics. Since its original release, Joe's Garage has been reappraised as one of Zappa's best works.
Zappa self-deprecatingly described the album as a "stupid little story about how the government is going to do away with music." The story is told by a character identified as the "Central Scrutinizer" narrating the story of Joe, an average adolescent male who forms a garage rock band, has unsatisfying relationships with women, gives all of his money to a government assisted and insincere religion, explores sexual activities with appliances, and is imprisoned. After being released from prison into a dystopian society in which music itself has been criminalized, he lapses into insanity.
The album encompasses a large spectrum of musical styles, while its lyrics often feature satirical or humorous commentary on American society and politics. It addresses themes of individualism, free will, censorship, the music industry and human sexuality, while criticizing government and religion, and satirizing Catholicism and Scientology. Joe's Garage is noted for its use of xenochrony, a recording technique that takes guitar solos from older live recordings and overdubs them onto new studio recordings. All of the guitar solos on the album are xenochronous except for "Crew Slut" and "Watermelon in Easter Hay", a signature song that Zappa has described as the best song on the album, and according to his son Dweezil, the best guitar solo his father ever played.
After being released from his contractual obligations with Warner Bros. Records, Frank Zappa formed Zappa Records, a label distributed at that time by Phonogram Inc.. He released the successful double album Sheik Yerbouti (1979, recorded 8/1977-2/1978), and began working on a series of songs for a follow-up album. The songs "Joe's Garage" and "Catholic Girls" were recorded with the intention that Zappa would release them as a single. Throughout the development of Joe's Garage, Zappa's band recorded lengthy jams which Zappa later formed into the album. The album also continued the development of xenochrony, a technique Zappa also featured on One Size Fits All (1975), in which aspects of older live recordings were utilized to create new compositions by overdubbing them onto studio recordings, or alternatively, selecting a previously recorded solo and allowing drummer Vinnie Colaiuta to improvise a new drum performance, interacting with the previously recorded piece.
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