Song of the Moment

Friday, January 10, 2003  | 

Frank Zappa's Apostrophe is required listening for me on road trips. It's like a short vacation inside Robert Crumb's head. You've got huskies whizzing in the snow, fur trappers beating up baby seals, St. Alphonzo serving up pancakes, and, well, Nanook. On one trip — I think I was driving from Destin to Tallahasee — I listened to it four times back-to-back, losing myself in a bizarre, cinematic reverie all the while. I really wanted to film the whole album — sort of a Cheech & Chong meets Terry Gilliam thing. Someday.

This version of "Cosmik Debris" is from The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life, featuring a full horn section and a fantastic guitar solo. I love this version for a lot of reasons, but mostly because at one point someone changes a lyric and gets Zappa laughing. If you don't get the "Ring of Fire" jokes, pick up the album, which includes a cover that would make Johnny Cash . . . um . . . actually, I have no idea how he'd respond . . . but I'd like to watch.