Zappa?

One of my favorite concert memories was sitting on the floor in front of Frank Zappa at the Park Center (think small)in Charlotte NC and watching his band, with the full horn section preform 'the Grand Wazoo'. Amazing.
Zappa kinda lost me with his later stuff, but I always loved him. From the first time I heard 'Freak Out' as a little kid, I was fascinated by him and his music. My personal faves are mostly from before and including 'Overnight Sensation'. After that I kinda got burnt, a lot of the music seemed redundant, incredibly sophisticated background for his spoken word social commentary. A lot of people I know are mostly familiar with his later stuff, so thats just me I guess. Oh yes, plenty of awesome guitar jam. I would say 'Waka Jawaka Hot Rats' (totally separate album from 'Hot Rats')is the closest musically to "Grand Wazoo'. Go to his official website, maybe there are samples. Zappas influence on music and on guitar playing can not be overestimated. Have fun.

Peter mentions "Chungas Revenge", an album that seems to mark a transition of sorts (there were many), one of my favorites. The dirty wawa blues licks on "Road Ladies" stopped my buddy in his tracks when I played it for him. He was a Jimmie Page fanatic, but suddenly he took FZ seriously as a player, something he had not considered.
You might think about trying some earlier FZ first just to see where he was coming from. Whatever you do, dont forget his early stuff, even the silliest songs are great. Also anyone notice that "Burnt Weenie Sandwich" shows up on the "Filmore" and in "200 Motels" among other albums in various forms?