Tinsel Town Rebellion

Tinsel Town Rebellion (or Tinseltown Rebellion) is album #30 by Frank Zappa. It was released in May 1981 on Barking Pumpkin Records and is available on Rykodisk.

The (2LP/1CD) set has a bit of everything...

• Most of the songs are live recordings, but there's also studio material
• A lot of "fun songs" with typical satirical Zappa lyrics, often sex related (Easy Meat), mocking Hollywood's band-of-the-week phenomenon (the title song), poking fun at esoteric people (The Blue Light)
• Great instrumentals and guitar solos (Now You See It, Now You Don't, Peaches)
• New recordings of ancient material (Brown Shoes Don't Make It) - even a reprise of Ruben And The Jets (Love Of My Life)
• Touring folklore / audience participation time: the collection of underwear from the audience to make a quilt (Panty Rap) and a Dance Contest

Tinsel Town Rebellion certainly is a good way to get into Zappa's live work, probably as good as Zappa In New York.

Musicians:

• Frank Zappa -- guitar, vocals
• Ike Willis, Ray White, Steve Vai, Warren Cucurullo -- rhythm guitar & vocals
• Denny Walley -- slide guitar & vocals
• Tommy Mars -- keyboards & vocals
• Peter Wolf -- keyboards
• Bob Harris -- keyboards, trumpet & high vocals
• Ed Mann -- percussion
• Arthur Barrow -- bass & vocals
• Patrick O'Hearn -- bass on "Dance Contest"
• Vinnie Colaiuta -- drums
• David Logemann -- drums on "Fine Girl" & 1st half of "Easy Meat"
• Creg Cowan -- featured in a role of eccentric well-to-do Oregonian party giver

Tracks:

1. Fine Girl (also on: You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 1)
2. Easy Meat (also on: You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 5)
3. For The Young Sophisticate
4. Love Of My Life (also on: Cruising With Ruben And The Jets, You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 4)
5. I Ain't Got No Heart (also on: Freak Out)
6. Panty Rap
7. Tell Me You Love Me (also on: Chunga's Revenge, You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 1)
8. Now You See It, Now You Don't
9. Dance Contest
10. The Blue Light (also on: Thing-Fish)
11. Tinsel Town Rebellion (also on: Does Humor Belong In Music?)
12. Pick Me, I'm Clean
13. Bamboozled By Love (also on: You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol 3)
14. Brown Shoes Don't Make It (also on: Absolutely Free)
15. Peaches II

The title track is also available on Does Humor Belong In Music? (video and album).