Flower Punk

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band 

VS 

We're Only In It For The Money

Who Needs the Peace Corps?

Zappa preached infiltration as the most effective method of conflict resolution: an interesting and surprisingly relevant topic to explore in the wake of the recent uprisings in the Middle East and the demonstrations that sparked other Egypt-style peaceful protests. 
While giving a lecture at the London School of Economics Zappa said that “Demonstrations aren’t comfortable and they don’t prove anything.” In his opinion, the solution to social change is to infiltrate: “The best way to achieve lasting results is to infiltrate where you can… I’m afraid that everyone will have a revolution and make a mess of it. They will have their banners on the streets and brandish sticks and go home and brag about their bruises: ‘There I was – the teenage rebel.’” It’s an interesting statement because it seems that a lot of recent social change has been brought about by revolution; Egypt’s latest uprising and the resignation of their president after thirty years of power being a current example. Although, it seems that Zappa’s problem with these “demonstrations” has to do with a few main concerns. One concern being that if the protest turns violent, the whole affair can escalate into a giant boxing match, ultimately giving the military a justifiable excuse to take command of the situation and simply render the cause illegitimate. The other problem being his concern of the true motives behind some of these movements, questioning whether or not it is simply a fad or if people are truly fighting for change. Much of his doubt lies in his confidence in youth and their ability to stand for something that they are capable of effectively pursuing. He considered the flower-power movement to be a waste of time, a fad, and an excuse for people to get a doped up and wander the streets. The social demonstrations of today are certainly different from those of Zappa’s time, mainly due to the incredible media coverage and insider information, and heightened social and global conscience that can be shared at an overwhelming speed via cell phones, the internet and social networking sites. Zappa did say, “you have to use the media, the media is the key and you have to use it” and I think he makes an extremely valid point. The media is one of the most powerful ways to share information on a large scale and provides the means to raise awareness in places that would otherwise remain in ignorance. The musician also stated, “You are not going to solve all the problems in fifteen minutes or ten years. You think ‘If we win, everything will be great,’ but who tells you when you’re there? The only way to make changes that will last is to do it slowly. People are thrilled with the idea of revolution in the streets.” Yet another interesting point because really, who does decide when the appropriate actions have been taken and that there has been a satisfying amount of change? Finally, Zappa does go on to acknowledge that in certain instances there does lie potential in social demonstrations, “I’m not ruling them out completely… When you have 10,000 people of all ages – not just kids – marching on the Pentagon, then that really does something.” So I do believe that Frank Zappa does ultimately recognize a certain form of peaceful protest as a legitimate way to seek immediate social change, but whether of not he believes in their long-term effectiveness is still up for debate.

Drugs Will Turn You Into Your Parents

ONE MAN'S UTOPIA

“A drug is not bad. A drug is a chemical compound. The problem comes in when people who take drugs treat them like a license to behave like an asshole.”

-Frank Zappa 

When researching the chemical effects that smoking cigarettes have on the brain, there were many articles that said smoking alters the flow of opioids, affecting regions of the brain important to emotions and craving. This means that that “feel good”, calming sensation many smokers talk about is a real thing, but to say that smoking brings about a sub-awareness or insensitivity that parallels the use of other harder drugs is rather extreme and, from what I’ve read, untrue. After reading about caffeine and its effects on the brain, all that I concluded was that it caused a heightened sense of awareness but not an increase in intellectual abilities. Therefore, I do not feel that Zappa was applying a double standard in demanding complete sobriety of his musicians. Also, I do not find it unreasonable to ask sobriety of his musicians for they are still in working environment and, as Zappa said, his music – especially in its later years – became very intricate and complex and to have it properly executed required concentration and a clear state of mind, not one hindered by substance abuse. Secondly, research aside, I can say from my own experiences with people on drugs, that there is absolutely no comparison to the mental state of someone who is smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee to that of someone who is doing harder drugs like weed, coke or acid. The latter has the ability to reveal a completely different person than the one that you previously knew sober. I cannot really give an opinion based on personal experimentation seeing as drugs were not something I dabbled in, but I can say that I do not believe that it’s a matter of “understanding” them. I have seen countless strangers and friends on drugs and I think refusing to indulge in that loss of control that can bring you outside of your mind does not make you narrow minded. I don’t need to experiment with jumping off of bridges to know that it is not going to be good for me. Barry Miles’ theory that Zappa’s attitude towards drugs was strongly influenced by his experience with incarceration definitely seems to hold truth. If not motivated by his negative experience with incarceration, Zappa certainly seemed motivated to keep himself and his band members away from drugs for the sake of his music and trying to avoid giving the authorities any excuse to “shut them down”. In an interview Zappa said, “If you’re traveling around with a band that says in their lyrics some of the things that I say, it would be best if you didn’t give a government agency the opportunity to take you away for potential infringement of some peculiar regulation.” I appreciate Zappa’s stance in regards to drugs because I find it refreshing and also a relief to come across someone who managed to be so different, controversial and out there just for who he was, and not artificially altered or defined. I find that many people turn to drugs today either to satisfy a particular image and reputation or as an excuse to let go and use drugs as a mask to hide behind. Whereas, I find that if you are truly seeking to lose yourself in discovering what is the purest expression of who you really are and what you wish to represent, a sober mind is the clearest way to find it… and remember, for that matter.