🎧 Band: Frank Zappa
💿 Album: Shut Up 'N Play Yer Guitar
📅 Date: 1981
🌍 Country: Europe
🏷 Label: CBS 66368
🎛 Features: 3 x vinyl Box Set Limited Edition

This is a three vinyl box set, originally released as individual albums.
- Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar
- Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar Some More
- Return of the Son of Shut Up 'n Play Yer Guitar

These are all guitar instrumental tracks. No orchestrals, no famous songs... only guitar from live performances between 1977 and 1980. Zappa carefully selected and edited these improvisations into complete pieces, creating one of the finest showcases of his guitar playing.

Personally, I have never been a great fan of Zappa's guitar solos. They can go for too long, and Zappa was very technical when it came to playing guitar solos. He uses a different approach to his solos, having the whole band follow him, rather than the usual rhythmic guitar solos other bands do.
I like the melodic guitar solos more, hence my preference goes for Mike Oldfield when it comes to guitar performers.
Then again, even Jimmy Carl Black from the Mothers once said in a documentary that Zappa was not a great guitarist when he joined the Mothers.

This box set might be a challenging listen, but it is a treat for Zappa's guitar fans.

Got this box set not too long ago. Particularly because there are some good guitar solos, and particularly the in-between tracks have the same type of intro as he did on Läther, Joe Garage and Thing Fish.
It's a nice box to have if you like rock guitar solos.

#frankzappa #ShutUpnPlayYerGuitar #ZappaCollection #VinylCollection #RecordCollectors #GuitarSolo #JazzRock #NowSpinning #guitar #boxset #records #limitededition

🎧 Band: Frank Zappa
💿 Album: Joe's Garage Acts I, II & III
📅 Date: 1979
🌍 Country: UK
🏷 Label: Zappa Records – ZAPPA 20
🎛 reissue 1990
Features: 3 x vinyl Box Set

Here’s a box set that doesn’t need introductions!

Joe’s Garage Act I and the double album Joe’s Garage Acts II & III first came out in 1979 as separate releases; later, the three acts were combined into this fantastic box set edition.

A concept album telling the story of Joe’s frustrations as a guitar player. Amazing storytelling throughout, filled with unforgettable characters and strange humour, all packed together with easy-going tracks, satire, and lots of laughs in between.

Musically, this is one of Zappa’s most polished and ambitious productions, blending rock, jazz fusion, spoken word, and some incredible guitar work. The box set itself really highlights how massive the whole project was intended to feel, almost like a surreal rock opera.

All the tracks are great, but I give particular note to: “Watermelon in Easter Hay”, one of the most emotional guitar solos Zappa ever recorded, and a surprisingly serious piece near the end of the story.

#zappa #frankzappa #joesgarage #vinyl #vinylcollection #vinylcollectors #music #boxset #vinylcommunity #musiccommunity #fediverse #mastodon #zappafan #myvinylcollection #zappanale #zappaproject

The Blues Box, 1966 on Verve Folkways.

3xLP box set featuring Lightnin' Hopkins, Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee, and Jimmy Witherspoon. On a couple of sides Hopkins plays with Terry & McGhee. The recordings were all made in Los Angeles - the first two LPs are taken from the Ash Grove on July 6th and 7th, 1960, and the third LP says it was recorded in LA in September 1959. My copy via Flip Over Records in Acton MA. I love finding old box sets for a reasonable price.

https://goatless.org/2026/04/30/the-blues-box-1966-on-verve-folkways