It's a rare treat to see a bicycle player doing an interview - they usually send a spokesperson.

@powerpc127

4 күн бұрын

You magnificent bastard... I love it.

@Hampton_Doubleday_Jr

4 күн бұрын

@@powerpc127 Thankyou :)

@billhenderson4135

Күн бұрын

Well done sir, well done.

I think this young man may have a promising future in music.

@porridgehead

Жыл бұрын

Personally, I believe he has no commercial potential in his future

@canalanimeiro4441

11 ай бұрын

Maybe

@mmastiff734

10 ай бұрын

@@porridgehead😂

@denialawareness

3 ай бұрын

He was a genius musician and composer.

@brianmonayong2769

2 ай бұрын

@@denialawarenessYes, he was.

Frank at 23, already an established pioneer of the avant-garde.

@stan4now

16 күн бұрын

He took the Beat Generation to the next level.

@stevenroper3577

14 күн бұрын

I had no idea Zappa's legacy went back that far.... a little shocked, I must say.

@buddyhome4402

14 күн бұрын

@@stevenroper3577 I found this link of a video that doubles the age of this old yarn! It features a 33 year old Billy Connolly, who had just quit the "Humblebums" Folk Rock Group, in order to go solo! It's a laugh riot, that he keeps laughing at his own self: kzread.info/dash/bejne/ha6O3Kmxgsi-ndI.html

@migueldeniseful

12 күн бұрын

🪿🦆🦤🦃🦩🐧🦜

@nonichagnonsmith2170

12 күн бұрын

Also a creative publicist - He was thinking "How can I get the name World's Worst Sinner" out there?" Good on him! PS, I appreciate seeing the likes of FZ, George Carlin & Willie Nelson as they morphed from one decade to the next.

Being a musician means realising that everything in existence is a musical Instrument.

@Michael-ep1ll

14 күн бұрын

Easy when you get the Zappa lesson.THERE are only 8 notes to different octave same note. Because of the fact the humanoid brain can hear notes and tones inside the sounds ,tones and external noise just gets fit in. ♾️🪖

@donaldharris8826

12 күн бұрын

All creation can be used as a musical instrument. The 80%+ inefficient humanoid can not sense nor hear every frequency off All creation, but the 100% efficient Humanoid Spirit can Hear All of creation., for it has recorded All things ever since it was created into being until it is transitioned into something else in the future, but even if that Energy becomes nothingness, nothingness is still Somethingness even if in a State of Energy Flux for All Eternity. All Is Energy and Such Is All Energy Is Life Force Eternal !!! 👍🆒☺️🇺🇸🙏DDH 5-5-2024.

@SHIFTYCHEF

11 күн бұрын

....even your keister.

@donaldharris8826

11 күн бұрын

@@SHIFTYCHEF Exactly , All Creation !!! 👍🆒☺️🇺🇸🙏 DDH 5-5-2024.

@Eden_jasper

11 күн бұрын

“Everything’s a drum” -Auntie Donna

Weird seeing him dressed so straight-laced and clean.

@theconquistador8862

5 жыл бұрын

Just Like George Carlin... he shed that skin off with a new look and long hair like a "rebel"

@nomadben

4 жыл бұрын

Crazy how much changed in five years, hard to even believe.

@AlisaForestHillsBrigades

4 жыл бұрын

That's cause it was a time where society dress code of how and what you can be..wow I never experienced it I'm born in 76

@AlisaForestHillsBrigades

4 жыл бұрын

@@nomadben omg I know

@mikoajbachosz3673

4 жыл бұрын

@@AlisaForestHillsBrigades Early 60s were still good times when people would dress properly.

It seems that Steve Allen began to realize in this short segment how much he liked Frank Zappa and possibly how much they had in common.

@vonhalberstadt3590

12 күн бұрын

Steve Allen was a national treasure.

@nancyknight2293

11 күн бұрын

I was a college student when Frank Zappa was all the rage. I loved this crazy guy!!

@DavidBoniface-jh1gk

11 күн бұрын

High school for me.

@randybradshaw7060

11 күн бұрын

Two national treasures together

If there was ever anyone qualified to play the bicycle......

@markdinkel-uh2je

17 күн бұрын

I played Playing cards clothespinned to spokes.

@Michael-ep1ll

14 күн бұрын

Zappa could play and was a Master of All Music,his take on Philosophy,his math, science knowledge was deeper than most ♾️🪖

@metaphoria3

9 күн бұрын

Frrrr

@kervinbrungardt7547

8 күн бұрын

Both Steve Allen and Frank Zappa were well accomplished smart asses amongst the serious stuff they did.

@Norm-yi9zh

6 күн бұрын

… on Bicycle Day…

Steve was one hip dude. He knew Zappa was for real.....

@stephenskinner4857

18 күн бұрын

My parents were ex Jazz musicians that used to listen to Steve Allen and Johnny Otis in this vintage. Exposed to some non traditional stuff. Miss all of that creative and funny stuff.

@NelsonMontana1234

17 күн бұрын

Not at all. Steve was a legit musician and I think he saw Zappa as a joke -- which he basically was. He just took that silliness and developed it into a more evolved art form over the years.

@user-ft4jp1yq5f

16 күн бұрын

Steve loved it... he wanted to ride his bicycle where he liked..

@user-pq2mu5xc2x

15 күн бұрын

@@user-ft4jp1yq5f BICYCLE BICYCLE

@strikerorwell9232

15 күн бұрын

Frank Zapata was amazing. The only strange fact is that all the Laurel Canyon inhabitants had families in high Military positions?

The only time I've ever seen Zappa laugh in public

@jbell6642

12 күн бұрын

He corpsed a few times when he was on SNL in the ‘70’s. I think it was an instalment of the Coneheads.

@ChicoTheMan69

10 күн бұрын

I think this kid might be on drugs. 😅 I could totally see a tweaker coming up with this orchestra.

@lynnehuff7059

9 күн бұрын

​@@jbell6642I love the Coneheads!

@mikes9759

6 күн бұрын

​@jbell6642 Yeah Aykroyd was talking to him because he was dating his daughter Lorraine Neumann. And they talking about something and Aykroyd blurts out ZAPPA! And Frank busted out laughing.

@johnnymossville

5 күн бұрын

I know, it was really great to see him smile and laugh.

Frank was not joking here. You can find this "random disorder of sounds" years later, in his famous albums. This is a musical expression for Frank, some people may not understand him but he was dead serious, a musical genius with such a passion that made him famous worldwide. R.I.P Frank.

@donjuan123

15 күн бұрын

So f..king true!!!

@keithshaw1780

15 күн бұрын

I know it's so Zappa!

@fishouttawtr

14 күн бұрын

Nothing organic about this appearance, or Frank's rise to fame. He, like EVERY other "musician" who mysteriously converged on Laural canyon, just in time for the hippie movement, were sons and daughters of high ranking military intelligence, or related fields! Franks entire adult life is a psyop!

@laniakea1501

14 күн бұрын

​@@fishouttawtr Source?

@fishouttawtr

14 күн бұрын

@laniakea1501 you can start with..." weird scenes from the canyon" I forget the author's.name but, there's tons of material about the music business and how it's all a CIA , Tavistock institute, Frankfurt school construct to destroy our values, demoralize us to make us easier to control. Mike Williams (sage of quay) is an expert on the subject, with the Beatles being his specialty! He's on KZread! The Beatles are completely fake and manufactured and paul was killed and replaced in 66

So strange seeing Frank so young and in black and white. Even stranger to realize that Steve Allen outlived him by seven years.

@rmp7400

12 күн бұрын

Zappa's genius, however... will far outlast Steven's... R.I.P., gentlemen+🙏🌹🌹

@kayhansen9229

12 күн бұрын

​@@rmp7400I don't know about that Steve Allen's show was pretty good I watched him and realized what a great guy he was even when I was a teenager. And there's always reruns of TV. I know about Frank Zappa when I was a young teenager too. It seems I remember his albums as being comedy mostly for me. I can't get to hear them anymore even when I ask Google. Too bad he died of prostate cancer. I guess he didn't get tested soon enough. Such a shame. I have to admit I just like the silly stuff. Watch out where the Huskies go don't you eat that yellow snow.

@kayhansen9229

12 күн бұрын

​@@rmp7400I don't know about that Steve Allen's show was pretty good I watched him and realized what a great guy he was even when I was a teenager. And there's always reruns of TV. I know about Frank Zappa when I was a young teenager too. It seems I remember his albums as being comedy mostly for me. I can't get to hear them anymore even when I ask Google. Too bad he died of prostate cancer. I guess he didn't get tested soon enough. Such a shame. I have to admit I just like the silly stuff. Watch out where the Huskies go don't you eat that yellow snow.

@user-mm7sg9kc6u

12 күн бұрын

Zappa stunk, he was boring inane and produced mostly toilet humor type music.

@terimkel3

12 күн бұрын

​@rmp7400, really, they both have contributed to pop culture. Art is subjective in all forms, so you can't compare who will "outlast" the other.

Kudos to Steve Allen for being open minded

@curbozerboomer1773

15 күн бұрын

Steve Allen was an important, transitional sort of well-educated, very witty and quirky entertainer, a type of "Renaissance" man, who was mostly a "1950s" kind of guy, who could see the future of social change...Much of David Letterman's type of humor, was inspired by Steve's free-wheeling approach to comedy on late night TV. He dealt in absurd, alternative, thoughtful humor, even though he was not that approving of the coming social changes. The poor guy, his beloved son joined a bizarre, pseudo-Christian-based cult in Seattle, named "The Love Israel" family. For several years, he lived under his assigned new name, Logic Israel, and was Love Israel's (the cult leader, who-guess what--convinced over 500 people that he was the latest Jesus incarnation) "right-hand man". Eventually, Steve's son realized the scam element, and left the cult. Love Isreal himself, eventually left his own group of followers, became a banker of sorts, and died a few years ago, from Prostate cancer. Apparently, he was just another "mortal" person, just like the rest of us! Steve Allen himself, died at age 72, a few years ago, after having been in a moderate car accident, that soon after, caused him to have a heart attack. Very strange.

@kleenmaint

13 күн бұрын

@@curbozerboomer1773 I miss Steve Allen.

@brucetowell3432

12 күн бұрын

Well remember Steve had Elvis on his show and also Jerry Lee Lewis. Although Steve was a traditional jazz pianist, he wrote I believe over a thousand songs!!! Also believe he was self taught, wrote hundreds and hundreds of books, as well... very intelligent...he also claimed he needed 11 hours of sleep every day!

@rmp7400

12 күн бұрын

Good Business Instincts!!

@rmp7400

12 күн бұрын

Allen humiliated Elvis -or...tried to...

The amount of control that Zappa has over this whole presentation is mind-boggling.

@crescentfreshbret

2 жыл бұрын

A true control freak like Zappa knows how to maintain control in all situations.

@fullstop6078

2 жыл бұрын

I can not agree more. F'ing wonderful

@crescentfreshbret

7 ай бұрын

@@deanronson6331 What? How’d my calling him a control freak lead you to draw those conclusions about me? Neither of those things are true at all of me! And Zappa was a notorious control freak- I’m definitely not the only person say that about him.

@JuniorFarquar

18 күн бұрын

Riiiight

@stan4now

16 күн бұрын

Control? More like opening our eyes, ears and mind to the world of sound and bringing it together as symphonic caucaphony. Pure Genius with the Muse. It's multi-dimensional sound out of The Twilight Zone that forms the background of the Beat Generation. The Mother of Invention flows with it. So must we.

seeing him without the mustache is so weird

@robbernath

17 күн бұрын

And the long, hippy hair.

@mournblade1066

17 күн бұрын

@@robbernath Eh, he wore his hair short throughout the 1980s.

@robbernath

17 күн бұрын

@@mournblade1066 guess you never saw him in the late 1960s or at all during the 1970s

@juana1483

5 күн бұрын

And goatee bruh????

That symphony was then recorded and inserted for play into every MRI machine forever more.

@camc5483

12 күн бұрын

😂🤣 Great observation!

@donaldmiller1207

2 күн бұрын

LOL

I'm 65 years old and have never seen this sequence. The range of emotions that I experienced watching this is beyond my ability to articulate.

@user-zy3zd3sx2d

11 күн бұрын

By all means, please do. lol

@jaxdragon1723

9 күн бұрын

same here @63... . but about 5 yrs. ago I stumbled onto a FZ & the Mothers poster. It's framed and not in the best shape,but I couldn't let it go in the trash. I should sell it on e-bay b4 I die,but what is it worth?

@Sun-si3fj

5 күн бұрын

Yes...63 here... This is Beautiful. Perfect.....

@tyme4chaim

3 күн бұрын

His accomplishment to just get on the Show is fantastic!

@145FREE

Сағат бұрын

Zappa contacted Edgard Varese which is how he began thinking in terms of articulated sound.

From playing a bicycle to WEASELS RIPPED MY FLESH

@migueldeniseful

12 күн бұрын

Um dos 78 discos fantásticos de Frank Zappa: 'WEASELS RIPPED MY FLESH' = 'UM ESQUILO CORTOU MINHA CARNE'... Onde ele aproveitou estes primeiros sons e arranjos de improviso...

Zappa once described music as “decorating time”. ♥️

@CSCoolidge

17 күн бұрын

❤

@Thrashsquatch

16 күн бұрын

Perfect... love that Zappa feller!! =)

@ibeetellingya5683

16 күн бұрын

Wow. 🤔👍🙂

@howardhughes7596

14 күн бұрын

"You have a piece of time and you get to decorate it".

@vannjunkin8041

13 күн бұрын

And that's exactly what it is and that's exactly what it does

This video is proof that Frank Zappa is in a class all by himself.

@tinfoilhatter

Жыл бұрын

he could've gotten a lot more mileage outta that contraption, but he generously left it to others to do-that-dirty-work, so t'speak : smart: and very considerate, wasn't he?

@brianmonayong2769

Жыл бұрын

@@tinfoilhatter No doubt. 👍

@fatty7555

8 ай бұрын

❤️100 percent

@writerpaperback6284

20 күн бұрын

Without the four guys from England, who took us all by the hand, it was time to laugh, time to sing, time to join the band he would have a longer journey to be What he became. The Big Bang of rock and roll, the greatest show on earth showed him the way. He had very hard to admitt that later in the century and in the 1970s. The Big Bang of rock and roll turned everything up side down in a great way.

@judyn1647

15 күн бұрын

Exactly 🎉

The fact that they let this breathe for sixteen minutes is something we just wouldn't do now.

“How long have you been playing bike, Frank?” “About two weeks.” That quote right there sums up FZ satire...lol

@christopherpetersen9956

3 жыл бұрын

😂😂

@ZootWorld1

2 жыл бұрын

I wouldn't be surprised if he was just being perfectly honest there.

@tinfoilhatter

Жыл бұрын

two weeks on-the-bike, and he comes up with this? incredible, yes?

@55mblindy

6 ай бұрын

😂

@StrangeScaryNewEngland

15 күн бұрын

I once saw a show where the host was about to fly in a small plane over South American jungle. He asked the non-English speaking pilot how long he's been flying for and the guy says "Two" (meaning years), but the host then asks "Two weeks?!?!" and the pilot smiles, nods, and says yes. The host's eyes bugged out. Lmao.

I fucking LOVE this. The irony on display is wonderful - Allen and the audience are apparently lampooning Frank - who I have to say comes across at times as almost 'sweet' which is a word I would never ever ever ever attach to Frank hence forth - what is so lovely to see is the utter control Frank has over the entire performance - it's almost shadowing his entire future to come. He smiles, chuckles, almost obediant at times yet he makes it absolutely crytstal clear how serious he takes this whole 'thing'. I loved it when he reeled off the instruments he'd composed for. It's what I admire so so much about Frank Zappa - he is so genuine and has never deviated from his utter love and dedication to music simultaneously taking the piss out of the people that 'think' they are in control. Bloody marvellous

@brianmonayong2769

Жыл бұрын

You nailed it my friend. Absolutely nailed it. Nothing more needs to be said. 👍

@raulx.garcia9387

26 күн бұрын

Baloney. Steve Allen got it and fooled you.

@kathyCSea

17 күн бұрын

@@raulx.garcia9387 Exactly Zappa is serious about his music but in this situation he is clearly also serious about the absurdist humor in this...and Steve Allen is totally on board with it. It's the seriousness that makes this work. It's Zappa who's having fun with the audience....they're not quite sure what to make of him, so they are feeling a little out of balance. Which I think is exactly where he wanted them.

@FlyGuy2000

17 күн бұрын

I noticed his demeanor change in an instant when he was asked about the ensemble he put together; in that moment he was all business, and a consummate professional.

@masimaninlv

16 күн бұрын

This is just as odd as Pink Floyd Umma Gumma... Zappa saw a different sound that others didnt....check out NINE SMALL SPECIES OF SMALL FURRY ANIMALS ALL GATHERED TOGETHET IN A CAVE AND GROOVING WITH A PICT....Pink floyd Umma Gumma

Zappa became a musical genius...even writing classical pieces...he left us too soon...

@wassupnomesayin

7 күн бұрын

I "totally" agree. "Valley Girl" is 100% genius. But that wasn't him, it was all due to his teenage daughter. She's the one who provided him with his most famous piece of work and his highest charting song. As far as creativity, where can you go but down from there?! Maybe he should have consulted her on more projects. "Gag me with a spoon!"

@tomvesely4008

3 күн бұрын

​​@@wassupnomesayin If you measure musical originality by the numbers of records sold then Zappa doesn't score high.

@timbetts3647

2 күн бұрын

​@@tomvesely4008indeed but doesn't that mean that the majority don't appreciate really good music. I mean today, Tayla Swift is the next massaia. She'll be Shania twain by next week. Listen to " we're only in it for the money " Still my favourite zappa album. 'Apostrophe ' A close second.

Frank says he never did drugs...this is all Zappa

@AxExRx

11 күн бұрын

His dad would bring home mercury for him to play with. Dude was mad as a hatter.

@McFaddenWasRight

10 күн бұрын

You really believe that? Lol.

@waitaminute-vw9hf

10 күн бұрын

@@McFaddenWasRight it's possible lol. Not everyone is a druggy.

@charlesumile3656

8 күн бұрын

Nope, if you did drugs you were out of the band

@GenZIsDopeShit

7 күн бұрын

Everything is a drug, you just gotta learn not to misuse it. Perhaps he was not as aware as he thought himself to be.

For one brief, shining moment 58 yrs ago, a 23 yr-old Frank freaking Zappa pried open the brains of Middle America, Anywhere USA families, sitting around the B&W TV, and expanded them to infinite possibilities.

@XMIR10C

2 жыл бұрын

Yes indeed, we all did the clothespin thing and blowing into the wings, not the spokes upside down

@user-qs7gx7rp7m

17 күн бұрын

That was just yesterday to me. Blows me away the way time screams by while we remember the stations stopped at.

@salamanderbilly8266

16 күн бұрын

Yeah..... I dont think it stuck.

@stan4now

16 күн бұрын

Way Cool

@Juliet475

16 күн бұрын

The fact that of ALL the musical geniuses, Frank was totally sober, and DID NOT like being around people who did drugs- unlike those who did and died so young. He was a devoted family man. He was a true eccentric genius, who wasn't afraid of change and discovery. Years after Frank's passing a met a cousin of his. Nicest guy, who said the passing of Frank was a great loss to the whole family. Frank graced us with his talent that will always be with us.

And to think just three years later he would release Freak Out with the Mothers of Invention

@bazookajoethompson3407

15 күн бұрын

With a little help from his friends...

@agbobier2657

10 күн бұрын

I can't get my head around this straight smiley chatty guy and the Frank Zappa who seemed so stern while music I grew up with. WOW!

Is this possibly the earliest recorded trolling, he had the damn host blowing into a bicycle handlebar! 🤣🤣🤣

@richardfurness7556

3 жыл бұрын

He was introducing the audience to musique concrete, which I suspect the host and the resident band were well aware of.

@sleeve8651

2 жыл бұрын

That, " Damn Host ", you referred to was the Late Great Steve Allen ! A true pioneer, in many ways, to include his zany Television show, seen here ! Opening the door for many a late night talk show, that we otherwise would likely never have witnessed ! Mr. Allen was also brilliant in his own right, and not afraid to take chances, as demonstrated by entertaining the thought of having an unknown at the time, Frank Zappa on his show ! Something a younger audience would likely not understand, as the World seemed a much more innocent place then, as Networks guided by the Federal Communications Commission, aka FCC, were very uptight back in the day ! Mr. Allen was also someone that fought to keep children's programming, just that, Children's programming ! Through his talent, and unwavering fight to move Television forward, we once had great Television ! Yes....I said, " Once " ! ✌️😎

@Margaret1448

2 жыл бұрын

@@sleeve8651 So happy you noted this; Steve was a genius in his own right! Seeing these guys together is pretty amazing! 🤩

@pamkerr7567

Жыл бұрын

@@sleeve8651 Thanks, he was great.

@Y-two-K

17 күн бұрын

@@richardfurness7556 i think he was pranking his audience and the host with musique concrete

brilliant! thankyou so much! Frank Zappa, short hair and a suit and tie, who would have thought it!

@robscoggins

17 күн бұрын

He wore it well though.

@1deadhead

14 күн бұрын

Ya, that really blew my mind !

@mandyjourneaux6552

14 күн бұрын

@@1deadhead me too!

The best ad lib by Steve Allen occurred at 13.30 in the middle of the ' Zappa Concerta 'with his instant genius lyric "Ruth rode on my cycle car, on a seat in back of me. I took a bump at 95, and rode on 'Ruthlessly'..." Pure brillance!

@tomboughan2718

13 күн бұрын

Even had Frank Zappa laughing at that.

@jladdyost

12 күн бұрын

two brilliant men at once

@louiswilson6950

11 күн бұрын

It's an old Limerick !

@alfreeman7257

5 күн бұрын

It started a little clunky with SA poking fun a FZ nudging the audience with a comment and a jibe...but FZ stayed calm and in control effortlessly.... and in the end Allen was the one being lampooned ...which showed a level of intelligence and performing skill that FZ showed throughout his all too brief career! On show here are two great showmen from very different sides of entertainment! Great to see.

A once in a lifetime meeting of two of the greatest musical (and comedic) geniuses of all time. A perfect performance from start to finish.

I think Frank's sence of humor was helped along by Steve. At the start of the act Frank is all humble and after 10 minutes he's going toe to toe with Steve being careful not to upstage him.

@Mynnia

14 күн бұрын

Absolutely. This is good moderation, introducing the conservative audience step by step to the thing and not playing The Authority. Giving and taking jokes, too.

Zappa teaching grownups how to play. Truly an under-recognized genius.

Really nice to see FZ laughing and joking in a lighthearted manner. His demeanor seems quite different in this early television appearance. Often, he seemed distrustful of interviewers, but looks to be okay with Mr. Allen.

This is great TV😂 RIP FRANK AND STEVE ✌🏻💜🙏🏻

Allen’s nose improv at 7:44 actually sounds like some stuff we’ve heard on Frank’s records.

@krisrhodes5180

Жыл бұрын

Yeah I was waiting for Zappa to say "I can work with that"

@robrarker

17 күн бұрын

"how's your bird" 🐦

@juana1483

5 күн бұрын

Yah it does!!!

The way these two played off each other was awesome and really natural .Odd seeing Frank all clean cut and straight lace looking 😅

To think, this was the early days of a genius. Who knew we'd be getting something as awesome as "Shiek Yerbouti" out of this guy.

@itsnotthesamething

4 жыл бұрын

Have you heard the album, "How's Your Bird"? Or some of the dozens of albums he released? Shiek Yerbouti was one of the first I heard. I was dropping acid when I heard that album. I thought I would die, laughing! I don't do drugs anymore. But still enjoy Zappa.

@BeeKay5150

4 жыл бұрын

@@itsnotthesamething there's still so much Zappa I haven't heard. I'm working on it!

@itsnotthesamething

4 жыл бұрын

@@BeeKay5150 He has a pretty impressive list! Some of the stuff he's done sounds just like this bicycle ensemble. Some of his stuff is difficult to listen to, because it is so different. But every bit of it is deliberate. I have heard from folks ho played for him say he is a perfectionist, and will freak if someone gets a note out of place! It makes you think about what is music. I honestly can say I hate most rap music, but all my young friends, and a few of my older friends like it. So who am I to say what music is? I hope you enjoy everything you hear from Zappa. Some is hilarious, and some is really out there!

@dgwristen

4 жыл бұрын

i remember watching this with my father when i was a kid , little did i know frank would go on to a very successful music career. there was , and never will be another FRANK ZAPPA , a true genius

@fullstop6078

2 жыл бұрын

Funnily enough, when you watch this clip and you are a life long fan of Frank it seems almost 'obvious' that he will produce the uncannilly huge musical repetiore that he did. The guy never fucking changed. He didn't have his moustache in this clip and that was about it. I have never seen ANYONE so utterly consistent in their approach/character/manarisms/verbal response etc etc. in their career. I am not in general a bloke that idolises anyone and I sometimes question my love/obsession with Frank Zappa but to be fair to myself, I watch this clip and I know why!!

Zappa before "Zappa." Stockhausen influenced _klangfarben_ stuff (noise as music,) but what's amazing - this bit is SIXTEEN MINUTES LONG on 1963 TV! Bravo , Steve Allen, I knew you were a great musician, but I didn't think you had it in ya to go avant-garde. Wonder how many viewers changed the channel... 🙄

@stan4now

16 күн бұрын

Danke du klangfarben.

@edh9237

16 күн бұрын

Fox News would have said, "We only have 30 seconds, but could you play "IN A GADDA DA VIDA"?

@thejerseyj5479

2 күн бұрын

​@@edh9237😆

Steve allen was a pioneer in tv, much like Frank in music

As a Brit I saw Frank Zappa more than 50 concerts living in the UK. The most immersive and alternative performance genius at the time. 😊

@michaeldelio1870

14 күн бұрын

I was fortunate enough to see him once at Stony brook university on Long Island in the 80s. He was great, at one point in the beginning of the show, everyone stood on the chairs, and Frank said, " everybody sit down, I'm playing for you, your not playing for me". He then played that beutiful guitar, while turning pages from a book!!, I miss the simple old fun days.

@juana1483

5 күн бұрын

What were you on those fifty times????

We miss you, Frank. I play the spokes whenever I replace one to check for the right tension.

SA: "so how long have you been playing the bicycle?" FZ: "2 weeks"

@timeno1763

18 күн бұрын

Almost an overnight sensation.

@juana1483

5 күн бұрын

Chirp chirp

I adored Steve Allen , & Frank Zappa ! ❤

Thank you very much for this inetresting fact of Frank Zappas life.

Frank Zappa..... Rock's closest thing to a true renaissance man, a true Artist. He has been acclaimed as a genius for his versatility. He was a brilliant guitarist, a superb composer, a matchless bandleader, a movie producer, a record company executive, a human rights activist and an incomparable social satirist. He started out in the 60's as the leader of the zany avant-rock pioneers the Mothers. His subsequent solo work encompassed everything from jazz-rock to orchestral pieces, always delivered with Zappa's trademark humor. He succumbed to cancer in 1993, but the mind-boggling prolific workaholic left behind a staggering body of work. Genius is an overused word in music, but it applies to Zappa in spades.

@brianmonayong2769

8 ай бұрын

Well said man. 👍

@musoandafan965

17 күн бұрын

But before all that he played a bi-cycle

@wassupnomesayin

7 күн бұрын

Which explains why his most famous and highest chart-topping contribution to music was his teenage daughter Moon Unit's creation "Valley Girl." Yeah, what a "genius!" Depending on your kid to make you famous. Lol.

@gregquinn5474

2 күн бұрын

​@@wassupnomesayin He was the mikes Davis of the West Coast dude. You were nobody in progressive rock until you sat with zappa. He made amazing music and discovered legends like jean luv pointy, George duke, Lenny Bruce, and Steve Vai. You're inability to absorb the music isn't the fault of the art or the artist. Think of it like a fighter jet, just bc you don't know how to fly it doesn't make it a bad piece of machinery. Open you're mind bro, there's a whole world outside that rock you're under

@wassupnomesayin

2 күн бұрын

@@gregquinn5474 Says the guy who only pretends to like Zappa because he thinks it's "hip." I'm guessing you smoke cigarettes to look "cool" as well. And it's "your" mind not "you're." How about learning some grammar if you want to appear to be intelligent. It helps. Also stop using the words "bro" and "dude." Truly smart people don't do that.

How gracious they both were, and the audience! We have become a little tight arse lately.

@nedcramdon1306

5 күн бұрын

Ya, so has my f'n boss!

I had a band in the early 80’s and for a very short while I had a clever lad playing with us who played nothing but toy instruments. He got some really cool sounds out of them

I remember seeing this show on TV. This feat of Frank Zappa playing music on a bicycle was done by him before he became a famous musician. Back then nobody realized some years later Frank Zappa would become one of the greatest rock stars ever!

We normally laugh when we don't understand genius. You can see the Frank's mood on his face.

Zappa played for about 3.5 hours in Honolulu CIVIC CENTER in 1973. He kept coming back for encores.

Frank was such a likeable guy and an out of this world musician. And Steve Allen was just the BEST. R.I.P. Frank

@curbozerboomer1773

15 күн бұрын

I would not say that Zappa was very "likeable"...He was up in his own grill, so to speak, but that does not really matter.

I was 18 when they did this piece of art.......Zappa was just insane (in a good way) and Steve Allen was the best host ever of any Late Show (and even more insane in a very good way). I've gotta find more Steve Allen

@sexicherrypepsi2510

3 жыл бұрын

Wht is yur name supposed to mean lol

@shuttlewerks1

2 жыл бұрын

I remember Steve dressed up as a tea bag and went outside the studio and a crane dunked him in a large tea cup. Once he had cream pies for the audience and they had a giant pie fight. Sometimes he would just invite the audience to get up and go out for a walk outside the studio. On warm California nights he would at times leave his desk and go out in front the studio with a microphone and talk to LA crazies passing buy or just comment on things.. Such an entertaining show. Allen, such a gifted nut. He made television. He could have been a close friend to Zappa. They had the same intellect and mindset.

@michaelchapman4955

Жыл бұрын

& a talented composer, arranger & Jazz pianist complementing Steve's off-the-wall comedy on the corner of Sunset Blvd & N Bronson Ave, My Grandparents & My dad's old LA, Hollywood neighborhood

@curbozerboomer1773

15 күн бұрын

@@shuttlewerks1 You nailed it!...I am so happy to see how these two talented men really hit it off! It is inspiring to me, actually!

Zappa is playing it straight and laughing up his sleeve, the whole time...great prankster

@kathyCSea

17 күн бұрын

100%!! Exactly!! I commented on another thread (that thought Steve and audience were "lampooning" Zappa ...laughing at his expense.) I totally disagreed!! Zappa is serious about his music but in this situation he is clearly also serious about the absurdist humor in this...and Steve Allen is totally on board with it. It's the seriousness that makes this work. It's Zappa who's having fun with the audience....they're not quite sure what to make of him, so they are feeling a little out of balance. Which I think is exactly where he wanted them.)

Thank you for sharing this. I have never seen him so young and serious. Was so cool to experience him so fresh and still green.

Wow look how far back this genius goes! I didn’t know he was already making a name for himself in the early 60’s. Sure do miss him.

@curbozerboomer1773

15 күн бұрын

Zappa was a child of the 1950s...and was exposed to the good and the bad of that musical time period...he then proceeded to blaze his own trail!

Two weeks playing the bicycle and he was already a virtuoso! 😂

@timeno1763

18 күн бұрын

Almost an overnight sensation.

Wow! A young Frank Zappa with NO MOUSTACHE!!! And he was just as weird back then as he ever was! What a classic video! 😁

Lucky enough to see Frank Zappa many years ago in Melbourne Australia never knew of this performance absolutely amazing love it

It's interesting how similar this little piece is to some of the work that came out at the end of Zappa's life. The chaotic nature of this experiment calls to mind Zappa's explorations into the world of the synclavier on "Jazz from Hell" and "Civilization Phaze III".

@XMIR10C

3 жыл бұрын

eclectic jazz

@dressedtosmellgood

5 ай бұрын

he did this sort of thing throughout his entire career. he was a careful study of stockhausen, varese, boulez etc.

@kelechi_77

5 ай бұрын

he does play the bicycle a few times on "We're Only in It For the Money"

Had I seen this in 63, I would at least have had an idea of the craziness to come. That said, Zappa was intellectually way ahead of his time.

Wow, I remember those sounds from his albums! Amazing

"One more time...!" (GONG!!) Boy, that got me 🤣🤣🤣🤣 Comedy Gold!! Thank you for this!

You cannot find a host like Steve anymore

I used to whistle through my bicycle handlebars. If only I'd tried to get on television life could have been so different. You had to apply just the right air pressure, though. Too much and they just hissed. You could suck, too, and the sound would be different, but I don't really want to go down that road.

My Parents loved Steve Allen we watched almost religiously in our home, i saw this when I was young. Later in life while enjoying APOSTROPHE and maybe in a slightly altered state I exclaimed that Dude used to play a bicycle. Like a Stradivarius.

@grumpymcgrump5822

16 күн бұрын

What a wonderful experience!

What a GEM!!! I had no idea this existed! Thank you.

FRANK ZAPPA ( December 21 , 1940 - December 4 , 1993 ) is on the STEVE ALLEN SHOW at age 22 without his famous moustache .

Well, this young man is obviously a genius. What an act! The bicycle has another use, genius. Thanks for sharing. I love it.

I know what you're thinking.... watch out where the Huskies go, don't you eat that yellow snow!😂😮

@Michael-ep1ll

14 күн бұрын

Not necessarily. I was thinking Personnelly, I just a couple of hours walked out a Trauma Center, humming a Zappa tune. My DR some nurses and others questioned my choices.if you know FZ. You will get this ,,"""I wrapped the free newspaper around my heady and told them I was so deep they could only really help me When They were all Fast asleep I have my rocketrods. .no Cellular Telephone .if God wants me here or wherever that'll be where I am . Have slept for 0 hours over the emergency surgery and treatment

@Michael-ep1ll

14 күн бұрын

Left the hospital early today have people to do😉and more things to See. They thought I would be back by Now.

@Lovepeacejoy..

9 күн бұрын

Lolol! Memories…

I love this. Frank is a master. He never let anyone stand in his way and he alwAys knew what he wanted. Bob Marley also had that determination, be serious be clear be present and be ready to change the world.

This really turned in to some FUNNY television. Steve Allen was a pioneer. Booking Frank Zappa, and his two weeks of bicycle playing, is proof. And he said it at 14:17.

This probably opened some youngsters' minds about possibilities at the time.

Steve Vai had the same Ear for Music, & played w Zappa, He also saw music in Everything & Attempted to reproduce the sounds of this & Nature on his Guitar, Pure Genius 👌🍷

Great art ... having succeeded in finding people who considered something like this worth to be presented in a TV show.

Wow, didn't realise Zappa had been at it for so long, what a legend😊

FRANK - doing his Rod Serling impression :) KOOL

@srvntlilly

13 күн бұрын

Now that you mention it...🤔 Wow. I was thinking Bob what's his face from "Full House", but Rod Serling, definitely, lol.

Steve was so funny. And a great sport with Frank.

And that's when the world discovered the amazing Mr. Zappa. Thanks for that, Steve!

There’s so much going on in this clip. Two master improvisers performing together. You can see Frank Zappa dedication to his Kraft, as well as Steve Allen. and you could see how the comedy of David Letterman is inextricably linked to this as well.

These are the sounds that inspired Yoko Ono.

@desmondsunstrum6260

21 күн бұрын

Natural progression from Dada. Lots of experimental avant garde projects at this time. The Fluxus movement that Yoko was part of, and John Cage of course.

@arisig

18 күн бұрын

Ohh 😂😂 god thanks for the laugh

Zappa was a pioneer of sounds exploration.As an entertainment reporter, I was blessed to interview Frank when he came to New Orleans. It was the second most fascinating interview of my 35-year career. (Laurie Anderson remains #1)

I had Zappa’s Mothers of Invention album, and realized it was either over my head or I simply can’t bear cacophony disguised as music. He was so young here! Steve Allen was always a gentleman, and it really was a pleasure to be taken back to television’s early days.

The early Frank Zappa music was creative with funny HUMOR! Cool 😎 too Steve Allen.

One of the most remarkable and important musical items ever recorded. FZ forever!

1960 John Cage Water Walk and three years later this. 60´s was amazing time for music.

@charleholst3881

15 күн бұрын

And Steve Reich’s tape pieces, like Come Out, and Gonna Rain. (I may have garbled the titles a little).

@curbozerboomer1773

15 күн бұрын

Believe me, the social changes, spearheaded by Music, was a stressful, yet liberating aspect of that tumultuous decade...we are still both benefitting--and suffering--from the changes that came down during that time.

@notmyworld44

13 күн бұрын

The 1950s and 1960s would have been a fabulously beautiful era had it not been for those damned USA military-industrial adventures in the Orient.

This leads to naming your son Dweezil and your daughter Moon

On the surface here, Frank was served up as an object of ridicule, but Steve knew there was more to it.

@stan4now

16 күн бұрын

Steve Allen gave Frank Zappa all the room he needed while making candid remarks, strange as things like this can be until we realize the beauty of it.

I love the way Frank carried himself for his interviews. So polite in the hot seat.

I commend this young man for addressing the serious lack of drug music on 1960s talk shows.

Blowing through the bicycle handlebars? I remember doing that as a kid.

There is no denying the genius on display here. Frank was an incredible composer and whole bunch of other things besides. Little did we know what was to come. Incredible if you think about it. But never mind about Frank, what about Steve? Steve Allen for his day was actually a very cool dude! Just having Frank on his show is a clue as to what Steve Allen was willing to do. If you start looking into it you will see what I mean. Frank and Steve could have been good friends, they aren’t all that different.

@timhays332

11 ай бұрын

Well said

@seanrobinson6407

14 күн бұрын

I am denying it.

@wassupnomesayin

7 күн бұрын

Yes, who could have predicted the heights of genius reached by his teenage daughter who propelled him to a household name with the epic "Valley Girl?" His highest charting song EVER. Fact. There's no denying HER genius. Maybe he should have followed her inspiration more often. "Like, TOTALLY!!!"

I wasn't aware of it, but he was influencing me even then. 👍. RIP FZ. Chaffee high school 👍

Can you imagine owning one or both of these famous bikes that Mr. Frank Zappa played on the Steve Allen show?

Wow ... I was approaching 1 year old when this was filmed. and frank Zappa was all ready a musician . Zappa was a genius. This is the central scrutinizer ...

Frank Zappa was a great comedian and has a lot of humilty!! You will be remembered Zappa!!

@curbozerboomer1773

15 күн бұрын

He lost most of that humility later on, but that was a good thing!...He was iconoclastic, great, and he knew it!

Those guys were not ready for this but their sons and daughters loved it

@centralscrutinizer8369

21 күн бұрын

"their kids" - I see what you did there :P

@danfoss1535

20 күн бұрын

We weren't even ready for valley girls back then

@danfoss1535

20 күн бұрын

Or DeLoreans

How great to see FZ as a young man - thanks for posting this. Square hair, narrow suit, narrow tie, and that's where it ends.🤩

What a precious gem this is ❤❤❤

You can definitely see Frank’s Italian roots when he’s clean shaven.

@brianmonayong2769

Жыл бұрын

True.

@margueritemazzeo2904

17 күн бұрын

Frank was Arabic.

@waynewood8840

10 күн бұрын

Frank’s mother was Italian, his father was from Sicily but was of Greek-Arabic decent.

It's amazing to see how many of Allen's mannerisms Carson picked up for his show and used throughout his tenure. He really set the foundation for being an entertaining host while still allowing the guests to present themselves.

@robbernath

17 күн бұрын

Steve Allen was the original host of The Tonight Show. He was succeeded by Jack Paar, who in turn was followed as host by Carson.

@stillnotwoke

15 күн бұрын

​@@robbernath Jack Paar was a strange dude...

@robbernath

15 күн бұрын

@@stillnotwoke Paar's walking off the stage/set during a live Tonight Show broadcast was probably the most unusual thing he did during his television career, but he was pretty much checked out of hosting the show by that point anyway.

@curbozerboomer1773

15 күн бұрын

Allen was a super-educated man, who had multiple skills as an entertainer...his sardonic, absurdist humor was very cutting-edge during that time frame. In his own way, he was just as unique as Zappa was, and you could tell that Steve and Frank respected each other very much!

@gerhardtclanky7048

10 күн бұрын

And Letterman