Freak Out! is the debut of The Mothers of Invention, Frank Zappa's band, and the first double debut album by a rock act. Producer Tom Wilson signed the group believing he had found a white blues band. What he got was a satire of American pop culture and the Los Angeles freak scene, built from doo-wop, rhythm and blues, orchestral arrangements, free jazz and tape manipulation. The album was originally released in 1966 on Verve Records and is often cited as one of rock's first concept albums. Hungry Freaks, Daddy, Who Are the Brain Police? and Trouble Every Day set the tone, and the closer The Return of the Son of Monster Magnet is an extended sound collage. In 1999 Freak Out! received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.

The 60th anniversary edition was compiled by Zappa archivist Joe Travers and digs deep into the vaults: the rediscovered 1966 pre-master mix, the long-unavailable mono mix, live recordings from the Fillmore Auditorium in San Francisco in 1966 and Mothers demos.

This edition is a 180-gram 5-LP box set, the 60th anniversary edition, with the pre-master mix and the mono mix on two LPs each and a fifth LP of demos, live recordings and collage pieces, plus an expanded booklet, a litho print and a replica of the Freak Out! Hot Spots Map.