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Outerbridge & Lazard, a subsidiary of E.P. Dutton & Co. Inc., New York
1972
ISBN: 0-87690-066-X (cloth edition)/0-87690-076-7 (paper edition)
Pages: 184 (paper edition)
Language: English Category: About
E P Dutton, New York
1980
ISBN: 0-525-93153-8
Pages: 182
Language: English Category: About
De Capo Press, New York
1996
ISBN: 0-306-80710-6
Pages: 222
Language: English Category: About
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This is a story of a man, America in the Twentieth Century, music, lifestyles, Los Angeles in the Sixties, the youth culture and its subsequent exploitation. The story has many characters, plots and subplots. Some of it is funny, some of it is not so funny. All of it is the truth, not the absolute truth, only truth as reflected by the way people view themselves in relation to one man, Francis Vincent Zappa: prime iconoclast, musician, social thinker, philosopher, and chief ugly creative head of a musical assemblage known as the Mothers of Invention, a contemporary music ensemble." Regarding hearsay, I don't think that's true. I know that David did spend some time in direct interviews with Frank and the Mothers. I also know that David's approach is always to consider EVERYTHING that has been written about his subject. So he probably relied on some secondary material as well. David did NOT write the Zappa biography in Frank Zappa's words; he wrote in his own, and that's probably why Frank didn't like it. The only real problem with it from my ponit of view is that David who greatly appreciate Frank genius and understand many things about him doesn't quite happy with a mode d'emploi of all FZ brilliances. David has his own view of a cultural role of a giant such as FZ. The real FZ doesn't fit very well in David plan, so he is a little bit grudgin' here and there. So you disagree, you want to discuss, you what to think it over. And it's much better I believe than mindlessly swallowing bad-to-your-health lolly-pops of all those Viva! and Bravo! From David Walley <dgwalley@bcn.net> Our Bizarre Relationship or The Real Story of Frank Zappa, David Walley and No Commercial Potential (excerpt of letter from DGW to Ben Watson, June 4, 1994) "But this book is going to be around for a long time," he said. " I didn't write it to be thrown in the garbage, I don't write publicity unless I get paid for it," I countered, and that's the way it was left. Eventually the permission slip was found and the money paid. NCP was published and was well-received. But he was still ticked off at me, and for some years thereafter continued to fulminate publicly against my work. In reality, I was as much obsessed by a true creative vision as he was only he didn't see it like that. He was under the impression that I was going to write a straight publicity bio and not a serious work on a serious contemporary American original composer who although he was working within the confines of the rock and roll world was actually way beyond them. Subsequently when I encountered people from Frank's inner circle they assured me (while cautioning me not to tell Frank) that I'd done any excellent job and of course FZ wasn't going to like it because it was an accurate picture, one over which he had no control. Sound familiar? But I was hurt deeply since I spent a lot of time and effort (four years of research and interviews) in attempting to use FZ's analytical tools to mirror his creative environment, to define the context in which he created what he created. You of all people know what I'm talking about because you've attempted to do that yourself. In some ways I was a little surprised that I even appeared in your work considering FZ's involvement, but then again, we get older and our perspectives change, his especially considering the trash for cash bios that came after mine. Don't forget "No Commercial Potential" by David Walley, which has a new edition about to be released. Interestingly, Walley sez that Miles and FZ were very good friends. (So the groups *and* the rock critics all lived together, huh?) "Just want to tell you that my friend and brother in arms David Walley bestowed upon me the latest (soon to come) edition of his "No Commercial Potential" book yesterday. It has now very cheerfully looking yellow-black cover, additional (well thought and written) chapter, that summarized David views (as eyewitness and contemporary) of Frank's life and works which is very interesting and much more optimistic than his unpublished New Yorker obituary also included. But that's not all! Also included special Internet apppendix! Wow! That's right, you heard it right. The first ever written in english book that glorified Frank now come to be first (in this latest edition) that enshrined alt.fan.frank-zappa newsgroup, our FAQs, Homepages and all of us as an undisputed part of Frank Universe! Qudos, David!" (http://www.arf.ru/Biblio/ndpood.html") on No Commercial Potential: The Saga of Frank Zappa |
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