zappa Audience: Approx, 500.
Setting: LSE Day: 27th May, 1969.
Time: 1.00pm A film was shown. Mothers of Invention playing in the background. Blinking lights. Speeded up. Colours.
Film ends. Brief silence. Zappa and entourage enter stage entrance. Zappa sits on the single chair on the stage, the entourage on steps leading to the stage, the floor and amongst audience. One of the entourage resembles Julie Felix. About 5 cameramen using flash guns click away throughout the meeting. Zappa takes his time, moves slowly and takes his seat. He speaks slowly. The audience sits in suspense, obviously impressed by the film, many having watched his TV appearances expected God. The personality cult by the mass media works devastatingly. A long silence. Nervous laughter.
Zappa begins to talk. He starts by saying that he prefers discussion to speeches. trate an army without killing? Questions from the floor would start it off, Silence again. Artificial nervous questions begin. Inane questions like What was the point the film was trying to make? Did Zappa have something hi wanted to communicate? Why did he make the film?" Answer: 1 like making 209IC3 Short cryptic unfriendly answers are the response to a host of idiot questions about technical aspects. He shot the film ed from material he named. No, he did not go to sce underground movies and he had seen nothing of Andy Warhol. He did not believe in scenes. To be fair to him, the questions were insane, but this was so because of the high expectations entertained by the audience. In a way. Zappa must have seen the gap in the audience's mind between what the personalily cult had created and reality. But the way in which he dealt with this was not one of communicating but anlagonising by rude quips.
The natural reaction followed. The politicos, who had started by giving Zappa the benefit of their doubts, now reacted by seeking a reason for this lack of communication with the audience. Suddenly scrious questions started to i flow. Martin Tomkinson asked Zappa what he thought of the events at Berkeley. One must remember that the audience linked Zappa to the West Coast Movement in America, a movement which has recently become increasingly politicised. Zappa continued his flippThe wasn't there. The audience pushed him to reply. Zappa said demonstrations were not his scene. He did not approve of demonstrations, He Q: What are you going to do about America shitting all over the world.
A: What do you expect me to, stick my finger up its arse A comrade from India asked what Zappa expected a peasant in India to do, join the British bourgeoisic and fight to reform it from within? There were some rather more hostile heckles by now, accusing him of wanting to get as rich as Rockefeller before reforming the world. These gave way to a more volatile debate.
Martin pointed out to Zappa that although it may be possible for both of them to infiltrate, it was not credible advice to the negro sitting in Harlem. Unless he acted, no one was going to do it for him. It may well be more meaningful to talk in terms of taking up arms in certain circumstances than talking of infiltration. In reply Zappa treated this criticism with an affectionate appeal to "Martin' (recognition of another famous person) and attacked demonstrations as this year's fad. "We have tried everything else, why not inviltrate Someone questioned how it was poss ible for the Vietnamese peasant to infilA: Plenty of jobs that do not involve killing Heckle: Like loading the gun Q: What would you do if people came and burnt your house down.
A: I would just go and build another one.
Heckle: You have the money.
O: If you had something stolen would Grou call the police!
low and speeded it up. The film borrow- A: Yes, if it was big cough. Aside:
That's what we pay taxes for. We might as well screw them for as much as we can gel.
And so the discussion went on. What annoyed certain students was not that Zappa did not care about humanity in a particular way but his capitalisation of he trendy propressive image and the aypocrisy this involves. But he is a brill iant musical talent and he made his position on music in the following exchange.
Q: What is music.
A: Just music.
Q: Do you think music should exist for itself.
A: Yes il should.
This is O.K. but it is when Zappa has the nerve to advance political views (in filtration and love) that he becomes unacceptable I don't care whether Zappa gets his Cadillac or not. I hope for his sake that he does. Many less warthy men have. But when he comes to LSE and attacks he methods of the oppressed whelner i 'ietnam, Berkicy or Harlem then be iclarifying which side of the barricades he 5 on.
The question that summed it all up was: 0. What distineuished you from Bob Sanday, June 29th at 5.30 and 8.30 p.m.
Tickets: 5.30 p.m. 15/- 12/6 10/- 7:6 5/Monday, June 30th at 7.30 p.m.
Tickets: 25/- 20/- 15/- 10/- 5/Tuesday, July 1st at 7.30 p.m.
Tickets: 17/6 12/6 10/- 7/6 Wednesday, July 2nd at 7.30 p.m.
Tickets: 25/- 20;- 15/- 10 - 5;Thursday, Jaly 3rd at 7.30 p.m.
Tickets: 17/6 12/6 10/- 7/6 Friday, July 4th at 5.30 and 8.30 p.m. Tickets: 5.30 p.m. 20/- 15/- 10/- 7/6 5/8.30 p.m.
Saberday, July 5th at 5.30 and 8.30 p.m. a stamped self-addressed envelope.
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JOHN PEEL THE DUBLINERS THE IAN CAMPBELL GROUP MARTIN CARTHY and DAVE SWARBRICK THE YOUNG TRADITION Compere-DOMINIC BEHAN THE ALAN BOWN 25/- 20/- 15/- 10/- 5/Bodast Tickets: 5.30 p.m. 25/- 20/- 15/- 10/- 5/8.30 p.m. 30/- 25/- 21/- 15/- 10/6 S/Box Office telephone number is 01-589 8212 Postal applications are best if you can't go in person. Please remember to enclose the exact money and specify the exact concerts. Also enclose We regret season tickets are not available, Sound by W.E.M.S Special lighting by IAN KNIGHT. Performances by the artists - people show by the audience! (There is no difference in the quality or length of the 5.30pm shows. The tickets are cheaper for people with less money or who have ALL TICKETS ARE NOW ON SALE!
ne 14 1969 Page 11 existence is based on toys which are packed - leave the court please. Dutifully (the
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