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Did you attend this show at KKL Beethovensaal in Stuttgart?

Dweezil and the band would love to read your reviews.

Please do not post in this thread if you did not attend the show.

Mikey
Zappa.com Webmeister

hi -

this is going to be a short post since it's unbelievably late in Europe right now.

I've been listening to FZ albums for years, but since I never had the chance to see him perform live on stage, I had mixed feelings about attending this concert. You can do a lot of things in a studio that you can't do on stage (anymore).

But tonight, you really blew me away. I liked the selection of songs you played and how the video sequences were interspersed with purely live performances. Although most of the people in the band can't have been around when Frank was doing tours, you really managed to capture all the best elements of the recorded shows I've watched. I'd really like to watch the show a second time in the US or England, because it must be easier for you to interact with an English-speaking audience - the improv parts were what I enjoyed most of all. (shame about Britney's children, really...)

Thank you so much for a wonderful evening. And for the autograph.

Setlist:

Improvisations Intro
Montana (w/RX video trailer 73, vocals & guitar solo tracks by FZ, incl. Overnight Sensation illustration)
City of Tiny Lights
Advance Romance
Cheepnis
Doreen
Dumb All Over (w/DRS video trailer 81, vocals & guitar solo tracks by FZ)
What's New in Baltimore?
Pygmy Twylight
Dupree's Paradise (incl. themes of Packard Goose [guitar solo], Heavy Duty [key solo] and a RW Reggae Version "Some people called me a smoked Irish")
Uncle Remus
Willie the Pimp
Joe's Garage
Wind up Workin' in a Gas Station
San Ber'dino
Zoot Allures
Ship Ahoy
The Illinois Enema Bandit (incl. preamble by Billy)

ENCORE
Dog Breath Variations / Uncle Meat
G-Spot Tornado
Muffin Man (w/BS video trailer 77, vocals & 1st guitar solo by FZ)

this was my 12th and last show (of this year)
thx guys for this great show in my hometown and especially for Cheepnis last night
looking forward 2CU next year again
Elmar

Yes, a great show indeed, and the setlist posted by Elmar is correct (i took a picture of the setlist from the stage). The audience consisted of more than 90% senior freaks, a younger face was spotted here and there.
The venue was not fully sold out, and with Pygmy Twylyte energy began to flow (more exactly: when Pete, Dweez, Jamie and Ray did the "power rock thing" with their guitar necks, as FZ and Tom Fowler did it in their Roxy performance) and the first standing ovations were given.
Next was Dupree's Paradise with its improvised interlude and Ray's spontaneously crafted lyrics about the "Smoked Irishman" and the "Jamaican Leprechaun" (which in reality came out as "Smoked Jamaican Leprechaun" or "Jamaican Smoke Irishman" or something like that).
Next highlight was Wind Up Workin' In A Gas Station: FZ (to my knowledge) never performed this piece live on stage, so Dweez & Band replicated the ZA studio mix - excellent work!
Zoot Allures & Ship Ahoy once again were a highlight for me. I have been living with Ship Ahoy from SUNPYG for almost 20 years now and Dweezil did a fantastic job in recreating the sound and feel of this piece live on stage.
Illinois Enema Bandit was as fantastic as expected, Ray's voice flooded the venue like a tsunami.
Finally, the encore: I think that it was a very good decision to move Dog/Meat from the main show (cf. previously posted setlists) to the encore, next to G-Spot Tornado. Both pieces were performed with spirit and precision, but apparently the mixing dude had left the building previously, because Jamie Kime's guitar was substantially louder in the mix (this small flaw only made his excellent and perfect timing during G-Spot more obvious, all his notes were exactly at the correct odd places)
Muffin Man concluded the show with yet another video. So when leaving the venue, you could close your eyes and could still tell who had been attending the show: Those that were humming "Daa-Da-Da-Da-Daa-Da-Da-Da-DaDaa".

See you in 2008!!

heh - that was me. I was kind of freaked at first to be sitting between a couple hundred bearded old men.

Thanks for posting the setlist, btw, I didn't recognize all the instrumental pieces. Need. To buy. The DVD.

"Wind Up Workin' In A Gas Station" was performed live by FZ.
Official recording: YCDTOSA Vol. 6 Disc 1 1975 Philly PA feat. Bianca Odin (very cool version of this great song)

Hey folks
I have had the honour, to visit the show ZpZ in Stuttgart last wednesday. An absolutely great show! Till now I was FZ - Fan. Now, I know, why the world advances: because the children are mostly better than there parents He (Dweezil) plays the guitar(s) more harmonic, more secure, more smooth - totaly different to his father. Now, I love both and I hope, he (Dweezil) comes back to Germany to play his own stuff, Frank: forgive, you know, you're the greatest - but let your son go his own way!
Zappa Fan Jo

I wouldn't dare to compare any guitar player with FZ, even if the player's last name happens to be Zappa! FZ's style was unique with regard to every aspect of the art form itself. Try any other guitarist's stuff to fill a suite of five CDs with guitar solo material alone and listen to all CDs in a row without getting bored. (Ha, i'm comparing even though i said i woudn't... WTF!)

I dare to compare Because it's subjective. Like the most things in life we feel. But you're right: I won't compare, FZ style is unique. I was simply trying to say, that Dweezil is a great player too

It was a great show, but I liked last year in berlin better:

1. I like Napoleon Murphy Brock more (was always my favorite Zappa singer) than Ray White, especially his version of Cheepnis...
2. By leaving out more guests like Steve Vai an Terry Bozzio, the attention might be directed more to the music, but the show lost a lot of variety.
3. I liked last years song selection better (more 1973/1974 stuff).

But there were positive suprises:
1. the singings of Scheila Gonzalez, Joe Travers and Dweezil (Uncle Remus) have been fun to listen to.
2. Dweezil was more pleasent than last time (no exaggerated self-praise)
3. The Frank videos have been very cool.
4. The classical pieces (Dog Breath/Uncle Meat/G-Spot Tornado) were great!

Alltogether a very good concert, but not as great as last year.