Frank Zappa

Frank Zappa (1940-1993) was a composer, guitarist and bandleader who left behind one of the largest and most varied bodies of work in rock. He started out in the 1960s with The Mothers of Invention, whose Freak Out! and We're Only in It for the Money threw doo-wop, avant-garde and satire into the same pot. Then came the jazz-rock of Hot Rats and The Grand Wazoo, the virtuoso bands behind Over-Nite Sensation and Apostrophe ('), the rock opera Joe's Garage, and the orchestral work he recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra and Ensemble Modern. Zappa taped his own concerts and studio sessions systematically, and the Zappa Family Trust keeps drawing new releases from that archive. In 1985 he testified before the US Senate against the PMRC plan to put warning stickers on records.

This collection brings together Frank Zappa on vinyl, LP and CD: studio albums and soundtracks, official live and archive releases, and compilations that run right across his career.