Frank Zappa – You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 2 (The Helsinki Concert) (1988)

Number 2 in the six volume set of You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore (spoiler, Frank, you can) series, this one is an entire concert, recorded in Helsinki on 22nd September 1974. I've no idea where I picked this up, but certainly during my Zappa obsessive phase in my late 20s / early 30s.

I get that life on the road is harsh, being with the same group of individuals day in and out, but sometimes the in jokes can seem very tiresome to outsiders. This ensemble had been touring and playing this material for a year, and were both completely on top of their game, and playing the sort of jokes and tricks Zappa bands would do to keep the interest. This album shows the band at its best, usually during some of the extended instrumental pieces, and at a less satisfying place, often when band members vocalise and interact with the maestro.

CD1 opens with FZ chatting laddishly with the band over A Token Of My Extreme, from Joe's Garage, before the tedious Stinkfoot. However, Inca Roads is a welcome diversion, Ruth Underwood's percussion working nicely alongside the spacey effects and some nice guitar work. Similarly, RDNZL is an enjoyable, adventurous extended instrumental. There's also a far more upbeat version of Village Of The Sun than I'm used to, and I'm not convinced. Neither am I convinced by much else, until the full blooded rock of Room Service. This sadly deteriorates in the second half with some puerile banter among the band, which they seem to enjoy more than the audience. And that's also the feel of the final two tracks.

CD2 opens brightly with the intro to Approximate, but a quick interlude for some showing off banter and attempted humour ends the interest, and Dupree's Paradise continues this for about six minutes, until settling into a very listenable extended jazz instrumental, enjoyable until the drum solo followed by kazoo and electronic hilarity. But Satumaa (Finnish Tango) is a lively crown pleaser (at least in Helsinki), and after a medley of instrumental shorts (including Dog Breath Variations and Uncle Meat ) and some smug interaction with the audience, and stop-start foreplay the likeable Montana comes along, albeit with too much in-joking among the band.

You'll have gathered that I've enjoyed most of the music much more than the live interaction, and it's inevitable that it's a different experience from being there live. But as a concert snapshot (and at 2 hours, it was a snapshot of decent length) of the 1974 Zappa band, it's pretty listenable and in some parts really enjoyable.

Link to album tracks

3* - get past the Zappa smartarsery and the in jokes of the band, and there's a lot to enjoy here.