Known For
Acting
Born
Dec 21, 1940
Died
Dec 04, 1993
Place of Birth
Baltimore, Maryland, U.S.
Credits
123 titles
Frank Zappa
Biography
Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, electronic, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed album covers. Zappa produced almost all of the more than 60 albums he released with the band The Mothers of Invention and as a solo artist. While in his teens, he acquired a taste for percussion-based avant-garde composers such as Edgard Varèse and 1950s rhythm and blues music. He began writing classical music in high school, while at the same time playing drums in rhythm and blues bands; he later switched to electric guitar. He was a self-taught composer and performer, and his diverse musical influences led him to create music that was often impossible to categorize. His 1966 debut album with The Mothers of Invention, Freak Out!, combined songs in conventional rock and roll format with collective improvisations and studio-generated sound collages. His later albums shared this eclectic and experimental approach, irrespective of whether the fundamental format was one of rock, jazz or classical. He wrote the lyrics to all his songs, which—often humorously—reflected his iconoclastic view of established social and political processes, structures and movements. He was a strident critic of mainstream education and organized religion, and a forthright and passionate advocate for freedom of speech, self-education, political participation and the abolition of censorship. Zappa was a highly productive and prolific artist and gained widespread critical acclaim. Many of his albums are considered essential in rock and jazz history. He is regarded as one of the most original guitarists and composers of his time. He also remains a major influence on musicians and composers. He had some commercial success, particularly in Europe, and for most of his career was able to work as an independent artist. Zappa was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1995 and received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1997. Zappa was married to Kathryn J. "Kay" Sherman from 1960 to 1964. In 1967, he married Adelaide Gail Sloatman, with whom he remained until his death from prostate cancer in 1993. They had four children: Moon Unit, Dweezil, Ahmet Emuukha Rodan and Diva Thin Muffin Pigeen. Gail Zappa manages the businesses of her late husband under the name the Zappa Family Trust. Description above from the Wikipedia article Frank Zappa, licensed under CC-BY-SA,full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known For
Filmography
Nova '78
Self (archive footage)
Marc-André Hamelin @ Ruhr Piano Festival 2025
Music
Frank Zappa: Cheaper Than Cheep
Self (guitar, vocals)
Ladies & Gentlemen... 50 Years of SNL Music
Self (archive footage)
Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention: Live at Whisky a Go Go 1968
The Residents - A Documentary
Compositor
Cover Your Ears
Self - Musician (archive footage)
Steve Vai - His First 30 Years: The Documentary
Self (archive footage)
Rock this Town
Self (archive footage)
Kalvøyafestivalen - 50 år siden første riff
Self (archive footage)
The Velvet Underground
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Classic Albums: Frank Zappa & The Mothers Of Invention - Freak Out!
Self
The Art of Dissent
Self - Subject (archive footage)
Larry Flynt for President
Self (archive footage)
Zappa
Self (archive footage)
Laurel Canyon
Self (archive footage)
Stupor Mundi: Book 3, The Most Dangerous Encounter
Self (archive footage)
Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice
Self (archive footage)
Manson: Music from an Unsound Mind
Self (archive footage)
Echo in the Canyon
Self (archive footage) (uncredited)
Marian Briozzo
Himself (archive footage)
Take Your Pills
Self (archive footage)
Eat That Question: Frank Zappa in His Own Words
Self (archive footage)
Stupor Mundi: Livre 1, Rituel de décapitation du pape
Self (archive footage)
Stupor Mundi: Livre 2, Les Hommes qui mangèrent la montagne
Self (archive footage)
Zapped: Frank Zappa par Frank Zappa
Self - Subject (archive footage)
Frank Zappa & the Mothers of Invention - The Lost Broadcast: The Beat Club '68
Self
Frank Zappa & The Mothers: Roxy: The Movie
Himself
Feats First: The Life and Music of Lowell George
Self (archive footage)
Led Zeppelin Played Here
Self (archive footage)
Frank Zappa – Summer '82: When Zappa Came to Sicily
Himself (archive Footage)
Made in Japan: The Rise of Deep Purple Mk II
Self (archive footage)
Cheepnis
Himself
Super Duper Alice Cooper
Self (archive footage)
Frank Zappa: A Token Of His Extreme
Himself
From Straight to Bizarre
Self
1982. L'estate di Frank
Music
Frank Zappa: The Freak Out List
Himself
Hart & Soul - The Hart Family Anthology
Self (archive footage)
Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention: In the 1960's
Himself
Frank Zappa - Live in Paris 1980
Self
An Evening with Frank Zappa During Which... The Torture Never Stops
Self
Frank Zappa: The Broadcast Archives
Self
The Wrecking Crew
Self (archive footage)
Frank Zappa: Music In Review
Self (archive footage)
Classic Albums: Frank Zappa - Apostrophe (') Over-Nite Sensation
Self (archive footage)
Frank Zappa: A Pioneer of the Future of Music
Frank Zappa: Roxy, 1973
Fuck
Self (archive footage)
EAV Rarities
Self (archive footage)