Global InformationThe Mothers of Invention information
The Mothers of Invention | |
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 The Mothers of Invention touring Europe in 1968. Back row: Roy Estrada, Frank Zappa, Don Preston. Front row: Jimmy Carl Black, Bunk Gardner. | |
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| Origin | Pomona, California, U.S. |
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The Mothers of Invention (also known as the Mothers) were an American rock band from California.[3] Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows.
Originally an R&B band called the Soul Giants, the band's first lineup comprised Ray Collins, David Coronado, Ray Hunt, Roy Estrada, and Jimmy Carl Black. Frank Zappa was asked to take over as the guitarist when a fight between Collins and Hunt led to the latter being fired. Zappa insisted they perform his original material - a decision which resulted in Coronado leaving as did not agree to the change - and on Mother's Day in 1965 the band changed their name to the Mothers. Record executives demanded the name be changed, and so "out of necessity", Zappa later said, "We became the Mothers of Invention".
After early struggles, the Mothers earned substantial popular commercial success. The band first became popular playing in California's underground music scene in the late 1960s. With Zappa at the helm, it was signed to jazz label Verve Records as part of the label's diversification plans.[4] Verve released the Mothers of Invention's début double album Freak Out! in 1966, recorded by Zappa, Collins, Black, Estrada and Elliot Ingber. During their original run, the band's ever-changing lineup also included Don Preston, Bunk Gardner, Billy Mundi, Ian Underwood, Jim "Motorhead" Sherwood, Art Tripp, Buzz Gardner, and Lowell George. The Mothers released a series of critically acclaimed albums, including Absolutely Free, We're Only in It for the Money, and Uncle Meat, before being disbanded by Zappa in 1969. In 1970, he formed a new version of the Mothers that included Ian Underwood, Jeff Simmons, George Duke, Aynsley Dunbar and singers Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan (formerly of the Turtles, but who for contractual reasons were credited in this band as the Phlorescent Leech & Eddie or Flo & Eddie for short). Later replacing Simmons with another ex-Turtle, bassist Jim Pons, this second incarnation of the Mothers endured through December 1971, when Zappa was injured by an audience member during a concert appearance.
Zappa focused on big-band and orchestral music while recovering from his injuries, and in 1973 formed the Mothers' final lineup, which included Ian Underwood, George Duke, Ralph Humphrey, Sal Marquez, Bruce Fowler, Tom Fowler, and Ruth Underwood. Napoleon Murphy Brock and Chester Thompson also joined the band later that year. The final non-archival album using the Mothers (of Invention) name, Bongo Fury (1975), featured Captain Beefheart, as well as guitarist Denny Walley and drummer Terry Bozzio, both of whom continued to play for Zappa on subsequent non-Mothers releases.
- ^ Eder, Bruce. "Biography of Ruben and the Jets". AllMusic. Retrieved December 24, 2007.
- ^ Semley, John (November 26, 2020). "How Weird Was Frank Zappa?". The New Republic. Retrieved June 26, 2023.
It was also the year Zappa and his band, a blues-rock outfit called the Mothers of Invention
- ^ "Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention Formed 50 Years Ago in Pomona". The Daily Bulletin. Archived from the original on December 5, 2022. Retrieved March 2, 2022.
- ^ "The Mothers of Invention | Biography & History". AllMusic. Archived from the original on August 8, 2017. Retrieved August 8, 2017.