Frank Zappa: Bad Doberan & Elsewhere

Description

With "Bad Doberan & Elsewhere", the multi-instrumentalist and former lead singer for Frank Zappa, Napoleon Murphy Brock and the Ensemble Musikfabrik are releasing an impressive concert recording from Zappanale 2019. With 10 songs, Brock takes us on a musical journey through Zappa's jazz-rock masterpieces accompanied by the contemporary ensemble. The American Napoleon Murphy Brock is a singer, saxophonist and flautist. He is best known for his musical collaborations with Frank Zappa, in whose band "Mothers of Invention" he was the lead singer on stage alongside George Duke and Jean Luc-Ponty in 1974/75. In 2009, Napoleon Murphy Brock was honoured at the 51st Grammy Awards for his Frank Zappa composition "Peaches en Regalia" with the Zappa-plays-Zappa project in the category "Best Performance of a Rock Instrumental". Ensemble Musikfabrik is North Rhine-Westphalia's state ensemble for contemporary music. Founded in 1990, it is one of the leading ensembles in this musical genre and stands out above all for its experimental and free-spirited productions. The collaboration between Napoleon Murphy Brock and Ensemble Musikfabrik was a highlight of Zappanale 2019, with funky saxophone lines alternating with orchestra, all held together by precise percussion playing. The recording was produced by Ali N. Askin, who was Zappa's musical assistant in the 90s. The orchestrations, arrangements and most of the transcriptions were also written by Askin. Thanks to the many years of experience of the contributors, "Bad Doberan & Elsewhere" is a jazz-rock album that impresses with its detailed elements and pays homage to the music of the great Frank Zappa.