Bongo Fury (50th Anniversary Edition – 2LP Version)

The Mothers or The Mothers Of Invention
Frank Zappa teamed with gigging R&B group The Soul Giants in 1964. The band included vocalist Ray Collins, bassist Roy Estrada and drummer Jimmy Carl Black. Zappa emerged as their creative leader and the band became The Mothers (as in mother-f**kers = good musicians). After signing to Verve Records this was changed to The Mothers Of Invention at the insistence of the label. Until Zappa founded his own label the appendage was usually added in mock deference and the band were usually referred to as The Mothers.

Frank Zappa was an American composer, lyricist, songwriter, guitarist, vocalist, bandleader, conductor, producer, filmmaker.
Born 21 December 1940 in Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Died 4 December 1993 in Los Angeles, California, USA.
Frank Vincent Zappa was of Italian origin, his grandfather having arrived in America from Partinico, Sicily. Frank Zappa grew to be one of the most accomplished composers of the rock idiom, his music combining an understanding and appreciation for such contemporary classical figures as Stravinsky, Stockhausen and Varese. These influences, coupled with an affection for late ’50s doo-wop, rock & roll, and skillful guitar-heavy rock, dominated pop in the 1970s. However, Zappa was also a keen satirist, whose reserves of scorn and parody seemed bottomless, and whose wicked sense of humor and absurdity continued to delight his numerous fans — even when his lyrics crossed the broadest bounds of taste.

Don Glen Vliet – Captain Beefheart aka Don Van Vliet – Born: 15th January 1941, Glendale, California, USA.
Died: 17th December 2010, Arcata, California, USA. He was vocalist, harp-player, saxophonist, flautist, songwriter, lyricist, poet & painter. As a frontman of “Captain Beefheart And His Magic Band” or working without The Magic Band, the captain recorded a dozen official albums. Several live releases would follow, some of them perhaps not entirely official. Van Vliet’s career path was also interwoven with that of Frank Zappa, and was followed by secluded ‘retirement’ with his wife in 1982 when he began painting full time. He maintained an affinity for wildlife throughout his life and was a keen conservationist. He forged a successful career as a painter, exhibiting in galleries in New York, the UK and Europe, before dying of complications from multiple sclerosis. First recorded appearance: “A Low Forceps Delivery,” featuring Don Glen Vliet, at Glendale Research Hospital 16:25 hours on 1941-01-15.

First published 1975, this is a 50th Anniversary reissue for 2026 with additional material on the second LP.

Tracklisting: