Apostrophe (')

Apostrophe (')

(Frank Zappa, LP, DiscReet DS 2175, March 22, 1974)

  1. Don't Eat The Yellow Snow 2:07
  2. Nanook Rubs It 4:37
  3. St. Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast 1:51
  4. Father O'Blivion 2:18
  5. Cosmik Debris 4:13
  6. Excentrifugal Forz 1:33
  7. Apostrophe' (FZ/Bruce/Gordon) 5:50
  8. Uncle Remus (FZ/Duke) 2:44
  9. Stink-Foot 6:34

Produced, Arranged & Struggled with Frank Zappa

Studios:
Electric Lady, NYC
Bolic Sound, Inglewood, CA
Paramount Recording Studios, LA, CA

Engineers:
Steve Desper
Terry Dunavan
Barry Keene
Bob Hughes
Kerry McNabb

Technical:
Paul Hof
Oscar Kergalvis
Kansas & sometimes Dunt
Brian Krokus
Bob Ludwig
Unity

Graphics: Cal Schenkel
Front Photo: Emerson-Loew
Back Photo: Mark Aalyson

DRUMS:
Jim Gordon
Johnny Guerin
Aynsley Dunbar
Ralph Humphrey
BASS:
Jack Bruce
Erroneous
Tom Fowler
FZ
KEYBOARDS:
George Duke
VIOLIN:
Sugar Cane Harris
Jean-Luc Ponty
PERCUSSION:
Ruth Underwood
SAXOPHONE:
Ian Underwood
Napoleon Murphy Brock
TRUMPET:
Sal Marquez
TROMBONE:
Bruce Fowler
BACK-UP VOCALS:
Ray Collins
Kerry McNabb
Susie Glover
George Duke
Debbie
Lynn
Tina Turner (uncredited)
Napoleon Murphy Brock
Ruben Ladron de Guevara
Robert "Frog" Camarena
LEAD VOCALS & ALL GUITARS:
FZ (except Tony Duran rhythm guitar on APOSTROPHE')

NOTE: Since there's not so much information about who plays in each song and when they were recorded, the musicians and recording dates listed below are only guesses based on close listening and information found here and there. Special thanks to Joe Travers, Biffyshrew, Charles Ulrich and Patrick Neve.

 

1. Don't Eat The Yellow Snow 2:07

includes a quotation from Midnight Sun (Hampton/Burke/Mercer)

Basic tracks:
Bolic Sound, Inglewood, CA
December, 1973
Engineer: Bob Hughes

FZ—guitar, lead vocals
George Duke—keyboards, back-up vocals
Tom Fowler—bass
Ralph Humphrey—drums
And probably:
Ray Collins—back-up vocals
Kerry McNabb—back-up vocals
Susie Glover—back-up vocals ?
Debbie—back-up vocals
Lynn—back-up vocals
Ruben Ladron de Guevara—back-up vocals
Robert "Frog" Camarena—back-up vocals

Dreamed I was an Eskimo
(Bop-bop ta-da-da bop-bop Ta-da-da)
Frozen wind began to blow
(Bop-bop ta-da-da bop-bop Ta-da-da)
Under my boots 'n around my toe
(Bop-bop ta-da-da bop-bop Ta-da-da)
Frost had bit the ground below
(Boop-boop aiee-ay-ah!)
Was a hundred degrees below zero
(Booh!)
(Bop-bop ta-da-da bop-bop Ta-da-da)
And my momma cried:
Boo-a-hoo hoo-ooo
And my momma cried:
Nanook-a, no no (no no . . . )
Nanook-a, no no (no no . . . )
Don't be a naughty Eskimo-wo-oh
(Bop-bop ta-da-da bop-bop Ta-da-da)
Save your money: don't go to the show
Well I turned around an' I said:
HO HO
(Booh!)
Well I turned around an' I said:
HO HO
(Booh!)
Well I turned around an' I said:
HO HO
An' the Northern Lites commenced t' glow
An' she said
(Bop-bop ta-da-da bop . . . )
With a tear in her eye:
WATCH OUT WHERE THE HUSKIES GO
AN' DON'T YOU EAT THAT YELLOW SNOW
WATCH OUT WHERE THE HUSKIES GO
AN' DON'T YOU EAT THAT YELLOW SNOW

2. Nanook Rubs It 4:37

includes a quotation from Midnight Sun (Hampton/Burke/Mercer)

Basic tracks:
Bolic Sound, Inglewood, CA
December, 1973
Engineer: Bob Hughes

FZ—guitar, lead vocals
George Duke—keyboards
Ruth Underwood—percussion
Bruce Fowler—trombone
Napoleon Murphy Brock—saxophone
Tom Fowler—bass
Ralph Humphrey—drums
And probably:
Ray Collins—back-up vocals
Kerry McNabb—back-up vocals
Susie Glover—back-up vocals ?

Well right about that time, people,
A fur trapper
Who was strictly from commercial
(Strictly Commershil)
Had the unmedicated audacity to jump up from behind my igyaloo
(Peek-a-Boo Woo-ooo-ooo)
And he started in to whippin' on my fav'rite baby seal
With a lead-filled snow shoe . . .
I said:
With a lead
LEAD
Filled
LEAD-FILLED
A lead-filled snow shoe
SNOW SHOE
He said Peak-a-boo
PEEK-A-BOO
With a lead
LEAD
Filled
LEAD-FILLED
With a lead-filled snow shoe
SNOW SHOE
He said Peak-a-boo.
PEEK-A-BOO
He went right up side the head of my favorite baby seal
He went WHAP!
With a lead-filled snow shoe
An' he hit him on the nose 'n he hit him on the fin 'n he . . .
That got me just about as evil
As an Eskimo boy can be . . . so I bent down 'n I reached down 'n I scooped down
An' I gathered up a generous mitten full of the deadly . . .
YELLOW SNOW
The deadly Yellow Snow from right there where the huskies go
Whereupon I proceeded to take that mitten full
Of the deadly Yellow Snow Crystals
And rub it all into his beady little eyes
With a vigorous circular motion
Hitherto unknown to the people in this area,
But destined to take the place of THE MUD SHARK
In your mythology
Here it goes now . . .
THE CIRCULAR MOTION . . . (rub it) . . .
(Here Fido . . . Here Fido)
And then, in a fit of anger, I . . .
I pounced
And I pounced again
GREAT GOOGLY-MOOGLY
I jumped up 'n down on the chest of the . . .
I injured the fur trapper
Well, he was very upset, as you can understand
And rightly so
Because
The deadly Yellow Snow Crystals
Had deprived him of his sight
And he stood up
And he looked around
And he said:
I CAN'T SEE
(DO . . . DO DO-DO DO DO DO . . . YEAH!)
I CAN'T SEE
(DO . . . DO DO-DO DO DO DO . . . YEAH!)
OH WOE IS ME
(DO . . . DO DO-DO DO DO DO . . . YEAH!)
I CAN'T SEE
(DO . . . DO DO-DO DO DO DO . . . WELL!)
NO NO
I CAN'T SEE
NO . . . I . . .
He took a dog-doo sno-cone
An' stuffed it in my right eye
He took a dog-doo sno-cone
An' stuffed it in my other eye
An' the huskie wee-wee,
I mean the doggie wee-wee
Has blinded me
An' I can't see
Temporarily
Well the fur trapper
Stood there
With his arms outstretched
Across the frozen white wasteland
Trying to figure out what he's gonna do
About his deflicted eyes
And it was at that precise moment that he remembered
An ancient Eskimo legend
Wherein it is written
On whatever it is that they write it on up there
That if anything bad ever happens to your eyes
As a result of some sort of conflict
With anyone named Nanook
The only way you can get it fixed up
Is to go trudgin' across the tundra . . .
Mile after mile
Trudgin' across the tundra . . .
Right down to the parish of Saint Alfonzo . . .

3. St. Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast 1:51

includes Rollo Interior

Basic tracks:
Bolic Sound, Inglewood, CA
December, 1973
Engineer: Bob Hughes

FZ—guitar, lead vocals
George Duke—keyboards, back-up vocals
Ruth Underwood—percussion
Bruce Fowler—trombone
Napoleon Murphy Brock—saxophone
Tom Fowler—bass
Ralph Humphrey—drums
And probably:
Debbie—back-up vocals
Lynn—back-up vocals
Ruben Ladron de Guevara—back-up vocals
Robert "Frog" Camarena—back-up vocals
Napoleon Murphy Brock—back-up vocals

Yes indeed, here we are!
At Saint Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast
Where I stole the mar-juh-rene
An' widdled on the Bingo Cards in lieu of the latrine
I saw a handsome parish lady
Make her entrance like a queen
Why she was totally chenille
And her old man was a Marine
As she abused a sausage pattie
And said why don't you treat me mean?
(Hurt me, hurt me, hurt me, oooooh!)
At Saint Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast
(Hah! Good God! Get off the bus!)
Where I stole the mar-juh-rene . . .

Saint Alfonzo
Saint Alfonzo
Saint Alfonzo
Saint Alfonzo
Ooo-ooo-WAH . . .

4. Father O'Blivion 2:18

Basic tracks:
Bolic Sound, Inglewood, CA
December, 1973
Engineer: Bob Hughes

FZ—guitar, lead vocals
George Duke—keyboards, back-up vocals
Ruth Underwood—percussion
Tom Fowler—bass
Ralph Humphrey—drums
Napoleon Murphy Brock—back-up vocals

Get on your feet an' do the funky Alfonzo!
Father Vivian O'Blivion
Resplendent in his frock
Was whipping up the batter
For the pancakes of his flock
He was looking rather bleary
(He forgot to watch the clock)
'Cause the night before
Behind the door
A leprechaun had stroked, yes . . .
The night before
Behind the door
A leprechaun had stroked (he stroked it) . . .
The night before
Behind the door
A leprechaun had stroked . . . his . . .
Sma-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah
Ahhh (stroked his smock)
Which set him off in such a frenzy
He sang LOCK AROUND THE CROCK
An' he topped it off with a . . .
An' he topped it off with a . . .
An' he topped it off with a . . .
WOO WOO WOO
WOO WOO WOO
WOO WOO WOO
As he stumbled on his ____
He was delighted as it stiffened
And ripped right through his sock
Oh, Saint Alfonzo would be proud of me
PROUD OF ME
He shouted down the block
Dominus Vo-bisque 'em
Et come spear a tu-tu,
Oh!
Won't you eat my sleazy pancakes
Just for Saintly Alfonzo
They're so light 'n fluffy-white
We'll raise a fortune by tonite
They're so light 'n fluffy-white
We'll raise a fortune by tonite
They're so light 'n fluffy-brown
They're the finest in the town
They're so light 'n fluffy-brown
They're the finest in the town
Good morning, your Highness
Ooo-ooo-ooo
I brought you your snow shoes
Ooo-ooo-ooo
Good morning, your Highness
Ooo-ooo-ooo
I brought you your snow shoes

Ha ha ha ha . . .

5. Cosmik Debris 4:13

includes a quotation from Who Knows (Hendrix)

Basic tracks:
Bolic Sound, Inglewood, CA
May 28, 1973
Engineer: Barry Keene

FZ—guitar, lead vocals
George Duke—keyboards
Sal Marquez—trumpet
Bruce Fowler—trombone
Ian Underwood—saxophone
Jean-Luc Ponty—violin
Ruth Underwood—percussion
Tom Fowler—bass
Ralph Humphrey—drums
Tina, Debbie & Lynn—back-up vocals

The Mystery Man came over
An' he said: "I'm outa-site!"
He said, for a nominal service charge,
I could reach nervonna t'nite
If I was ready, willing 'n able
To pay him his regular fee
He would drop all the rest of his pressing affairs
And devote His Attention to me
But I said . . .
Look here brother,
Who you jivin' with that Cosmik Debris?
(Now who you jivin' with that Cosmik Debris?)
Look here brother,
Don't you waste your time on me

The Mystery Man got nervous
An' he fidget around a bit
He reached in the pocket of his Mystery Robe
An' he whipped out a shaving kit
Now, I thought it was a razor
An' a can of foamin' goo
But he told me right then when the top popped open
There was nothin' his box won't do
With the oil of Afro-dytee
An' the dust of the Grand Wazoo
He said:
"You might not believe this, little fella, but it'll cure your Asthma too!"
An' I said . . .
Look here brother,
Who you jivin' with that Cosmik Debris?
(Now what kind of a geroo are you anyway?)
Look here brother,
Don't you waste your time on me
Don't waste yer time . . .

I've got troubles of my own, I said
An' you can't help me out
So take your meditations an' your preparations
An' ram it up yer snout
"BUT I GOT A KRISTL BOL!," he said
An' held it to the light
So I snatched it
All away from him
An' I showed him how to do it right
I wrapped a newspaper 'round my head
So I'd look like I was Deep
I said some Mumbo Jumbos then
An' told him he was goin' to sleep
I robbed his rings
An' pocket watch
An' everything else I found
I had that sucker hypnotized
He couldn't even make a sound
I proceeded to tell him his future then
As long as he was hanging around,
I said
"The price of meat has just gone up
An' yer ol' lady has just gone down . . . "
Look here brother,
Who you jivin' with that Cosmik Debris?
(Now is that a real poncho or is that a Sears poncho?)
Don't you know,
You could make more money as a butcher,
So don't you waste your time on me
(Don't waste it, don't waste your time on me . . . )
Ohm shonty, ohm shonty, ohm shonty-ohm
SSSHONTAY

6. Excentrifugal Forz 1:33

Basic track:
Paramount Recording Studios, LA, CA
July, 1972
Engineer: Kerry McNabb
Overdubs:
probably summer 1973

FZ—guitar, bouzouki, bass, lead vocals
George Duke—synthesizer
Jean-Luc Ponty—violin
John Guerin—drums

The clouds are really cheap
The way I seen 'em thru the ports
Of which there is a half-a-dozen
On the base of my resorz
You wouldn't think I'd have too many
Since I never cared for sports
But I'm never really lonely
In my Excentrifugal Forz

There's always Korla Plankton
Him 'n me can play the blues
An' then I'll watch him buff that
Tiny ruby that he use
He'll straighten up his turban
An' eject a little ooze
Along a one-celled Hammond Organism
Underneath my shoes
An' then I'll call PUP TENTACLE
I'll ask him how's his chin
I'll find out
How the future is
Because that's where he's been
His little feet got long 'n flexible
An' suckers fell right in
The time he crossed the line
From LATER ON to WAY BACK WHEN

7. Apostrophe' 5:50

(Zappa, Bruce, Gordon)

Basic track:
Electric Lady Studios, NYC
November 8, 1972
Engineer: Dave Whitman
Overdubs:
Unknown studio and date

FZ—lead guitar
Tony Duran—rhythm guitar
Jack Bruce—bass
Jim Gordon—drums

 

8. Uncle Remus 2:44

(Zappa, Duke)

Basic track:
Paramount Recording Studios, LA, CA
May 24, 1972
Engineer: Kerry McNabb
Overdubs:
Bolic Sound, Inglewood, CA
May-June, 1973
Engineer: Barry Keene

FZ—guitar
George Duke—keyboards
Alex Dmochowski—bass
Aynsley Dunbar—drums
Susie Glover—back-up vocals [uncredited]
+
FZ—lead guitar, lead vocals
Tina, Debbie & Lynn—back-up vocals

Wo, are we movin' too slow?
Have you seen us,
Uncle Remus . . .
We look pretty sharp in these clothes (yes, we do)
Unless we get sprayed with a hose
It ain't bad in the day
If they squirt it your way
'Cept in the winter, when it's froze
An' it's hard if it hits
On yer nose
On yer nose

Just keep yer nose
To the grindstone, they say
Will that redeem us,
Uncle Remus . . .
I can't wait till my Fro is full-grown
I'll just throw 'way my Doo-Rag at home
I'll take a drive to BEVERLY HILLS
Just before dawn
An' knock the little jockeys
Off the rich people's lawn
An' before they get up
I'll be gone, I'll be gone
Before they get up
I'll be knocking the jockeys off the lawn
Down in the dew

9. Stink-Foot 6:34

includes quotations from Dragnet (Schumann/Rósza)

Basic track:
prob. The Record Plant, LA
March 1970
Overdubs:
probably recorded early 1974

FZ—guitar, bass?, lead vocals
George Duke—keyboards
Napoleon Murphy Brock—saxophone, back-up vocals
Tom Fowler—bass?
And probably:
Sugar Cane Harris—violin
Aynsley Dunbar—drums
Debbie—back-up vocals
Lynn—back-up vocals
Ruben Ladron de Guevara—back-up vocals
Robert "Frog" Camarena—back-up vocals

In the dark
Where all the fevers grow
Under the water
Where the shark bubbles blow
In the mornin'
By yer radio
Do the walls close in t' suffocate ya
You ain't got no friends . . .
An' all the others: they hate ya
Does the life you been livin' gotta go, hmmm?
Well, lemme straighten you out
About a place I know . . .
(Get yer shoes 'n socks on people,
It's right aroun' the corner!)
Out through the night
An' the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep
The Imaginary Diseases,
Out through the night
An' the whispering breezes
To the place where they keep
The Imaginary Diseases, mmm . . .

This has to be the disease for you
Now scientists call this disease
Bromidrosis
But us regular folks
Who might wear tennis shoes
Or an occasional python boot
Know this exquisite little inconvenience
By the name of:
STINK FOOT
Y'know, my python boot is too tight
I couldn't get it off last night
A week went by, an' now it's July
I finally got it off
An' my girl-friend cry
"You got STINK FOOT!
STINK FOOT, darlin'
Your STINK FOOT puts a hurt on my nose!
STINK FOOT! STINK FOOT! I ain't lyin',
Can you rinse it off, d'you suppose?"
Here Fido . . . Fido . . .
C'mere little puppy . . . bring the slippers
"Arf, arf, arf!" (crash-crumble-bump-bump-bump)
Heh heh heh . . . sick . . .

Well then Fido got up off the floor an' he rolled over
An' he looked me straight in the eye
An' you know what he said?
Once upon a time
Somebody say to me
(This is a dog talkin' now)
What is your Conceptual Continuity?
Well, I told him right then
(Fido said)
It should be easy to see
The crux of the biscuit
Is the Apostrophe(')
Well, you know
The man who was talkin' to the dog
Looked at the dog an' he said: (sort of staring in disbelief)
"You can't say that!"
He said:
"IT DOESN'T, 'n YOU CAN'T!
I WON'T, 'n IT DON'T!
IT HASN'T, IT ISN'T, IT EVEN AIN'T
'N IT SHOULDN'T . . .
IT COULDN'T!"
He told me NO NO NO!
I told him YES YES YES!
I said: "I do it all the time . . .
Ain't this boogie a mess!"
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
(POO-DLE . . . )
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
( . . . BITES)
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES
THE POODLE CHEWS IT
THE POODLE BY-EE-ITES

 

All compositions by Frank Zappa except as noted
Site maintained by Román García Albertos
http://globalia.net/donlope/fz/
Lyrics from the CD booklet
Corrections and additions by Román, Bossk (R), slime.oofytv.set and Charles Ulrich
This page updated: 2019-11-11