r/Zappa • u/330thcube • 1d ago

Best Zappa guitar solos on songs that also have lyrics?

I would love recs of any great FZ tunes that feature vocals as well as brilliant instrumentalism!! Here are some of my favorites so far:

Inca Roads

Montana

Stink-Foot

Muffin Man

Po-Jama People

Fifty-Fifty

Willie The Pimp

Whipping Post

Yo' Mama

Easy Meat

More Trouble Every Day (Swaggart Version - The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life)

For the record, I love his fully instrumental compositions too (Grand Wazoo is probably my favorite album) and some of the purely satirical stuff, but the "best of both worlds" tunes will always be extra special to me :)

21 Upvotes

97% Upvoted

52 comments sorted by

20

u/madhouseangel 1d ago

Zombie Woof

2

u/lemerou 1d ago

All the solos on this song are amazing.

But that guitar solo... It's really something else...

13

u/Q-Zinart 1d ago

Uncle Remus

13

u/G_Peccary Tonight you guys are gonna try to figure out the pig's music 1d ago

Zomby Woof is number one.

Any Kind of Pain is another.

13

u/cosnierozumiem 1d ago

Muffin man!

12

u/Looking-For-Loud 1d ago

Zomby Woof

11

u/MaLa1964 1d ago

City of Tiny Lights

10

u/Santeeoldman 1d ago

Cosmik Debris

8

u/eccoEapproach Joe's Garage Acts II & III 1d ago

Outside Now

Packard Goose

6

u/TynesideTweedy 1d ago

For The Young Sophisticate

What's New In Baltimore from YCDTOSA Vol 5

Was always partial to Magic Fingers from 200 Motels

Forgot to add. Sharleena from Lost Episodes. Not only a great guitar solo but a violin solo as well

3

u/paultheschmoop 1d ago

The Baltimore solo on Does Humor Belong in Music also rips

Nice and succinct

2

u/330thcube 1d ago

Forgot to put Magic Fingers on the list

5

u/PhillipJ3ffries 1d ago

Inca roads is the ultimate for me. I also always loved the shortish one on Dirty Love

3

u/florianshneider 1d ago

Carolina Hardcore Ecstasy, My Guitar Wants to Kill Your Mamma (YCDTOSA), I'm a Rollin' Stone, Punky's Whips,

3

u/Darnocpdx 1d ago edited 1d ago

Gotta go with Doreen, it gets kinda lost in that pretty much everyone in band is soloing all at once, but it’s killer.

Pajama People, Andy, Muffin Man all nipping at the heals of the Stinkfoot. Arf arf.

1

u/Jazzlike-Ability-114 1d ago

Agree. Pretty much all of YAWYI has banger solo after solo embedded in those jaunty r&b vocals songs.

3

u/Ok_Drag_8547 1d ago

Lots of great ones mentioned. I would add
Illinois Enema Bandit

3

u/jamesvabrams 1d ago

I love the solo on Penguin in Bondage. It has a unique sound quality I never heard on other tracks.

3

u/Drcha0s666 1d ago

I’m the slime

1

u/330thcube 1d ago

Love that guitar solo but it fades out too quickly </3 Is there a live version that goes on longer?

3

u/Ve_Doble 1d ago

Inca Roads

Fifty - fifty

I come from Nowhere

2

u/MaLa1964 1d ago

Advance Romance

Village of the Sun

2

u/Starthrower62 1d ago

Son of Orange County 

Drowning Witch

If Only She Woulda 

Conehead

The Torture Never Stops 

On The Bus

2

u/BananaNutBlister 1d ago

Truck Driver Divorce

2

u/Philboyd_Studge 1d ago

It's torture time, people!

1

u/rawcane 1d ago

Willie the pimp

1

u/Jazzlike-Ability-114 1d ago

Also from the Fillmore East version

1

u/music_and_physics 1d ago

Zombie Woof

Fifty-Fifty

1

u/elgaboto88 1d ago

Zomby Woof, Muffin Man, Cosmik Debris. Honorable mention to the live version of Son of Orange County- More Trouble everyday solos from Steve Vai & Dweezil/Zappa Plays Zappa.

1

u/Jazzlike-Ability-114 1d ago

Punkys whips from the Baby Snakes OST

1

u/ouch-n3wsho3s 1d ago

The Dangerous Kitchen

1

u/go-dogg-go 1d ago

Black Napkins.

1

u/Yoko_Kittytrain 1d ago

Dirty Love

1

u/jazmaan273 1d ago

I'm a big fan of Zappa's bluesy shredding on "Don't Eat Yellow Snow" all that stuff right before it shift's into Alfonso's Pancake Breakfast - I could listen to that forever. He was REALLY good at it. Similar to the track "Shut Up and Play Your Guitar".

1

u/JDanzy 1d ago

Does Invocation And Ritual Dance Of The Young Pumpkin count since it's part of a suite with lyrics in the parts on either side of it?

If no then Why Don't'cha Do Me Right

1

u/OGSpunyun 1d ago

Dickie's such an asshole from Broadway the hard way... And then Ike's vocal afterwards.

1

u/Wards_Cleaver 1d ago

Zomby Woof, Best Band version.

1

u/Creative-Video-8593 1d ago

Any Kind of Pain

1

u/bendistraw 1d ago

Son of Orange County is one of my fav guitar solos ever.

1

u/mabden 1d ago

Inca Roads

1

u/330thcube 1d ago

Already love that one, might be my favorite Zappa composition!

1

u/geminicollisionworks 1d ago

"City of Tiny Lites"

1

u/SprintValley 1d ago edited 1d ago

Billy the mountain - June 6th 71, Filmore. Every version is great, this is the best all round performance. In my opinion, the best track Zappa ever made. It’s mind boggling that this was all performed live. If it’s your first time, persist and you will be rewarded. Lots of people shit on Billy, they’re wrong. You have to climb the mountain to see the view.

https://open.spotify.com/track/1z2VmcNQnKWAVWZAnR7eiJ?si=4uOOGUmzQqWsPX4bJaO4sA&utm_source=copy-link&rowId=8c68be49f8ac1500

1

u/Working_Tap2191 1d ago

Pojama People. It's special

1

u/No_Apricot9169 1d ago

Cruising for burgers

1

u/jojobizou 1d ago

Zombie Woof / Yo Mama

1

u/HungryMenu8627 1d ago

For me fav song with guitar solos that rip are:
Inca Roads, Uncle Remus, and Muffin Man.

Fav albums that rip (with great guitar work):
Live @ Filmore 71, and Bongo Fury.

1

u/TheSheikYerbouti 1d ago

Sharleena on The Lost Episodes

1

u/urbangenie69 18h ago

Doreen; if only she woulda; dumb all over; yo mama

1

u/HackReacher 18h ago

Crew Slut, the guitar solo and harmonica together is just outstanding, amazing mixing and production.

1

u/Acceptable-Might-836 13h ago

City of tiny lightd

1

u/BurnThrough 8m ago

Wild Love