I love 60’s pop as much as the next man and remain a steadfast supporter of hemp based clothing and combustibles, but there’s something truly grating about the weekly doses of hippie nostalgia the mainstream media has forced on us this year. Yes, it’s the 40th anniversary of pretty much everything that mattered to a bunch of people who eventually elected Reagan but do we really need to dust off a bunch of has-beens every week to pontificate on the significance of John Lennon taking a shit? Just get to the Altamont already.
Frank Zappa knew the time. While it’s hard to condone the man’s more neurotic tendencies you gotta give him props for seeing through the peace-n-love facade of his contemporaries and ripping the Sunset Strip’s Johnny-come-lately crowd a new one with We’re only in it for the money. Like the best satire, “Flower Punk” is equal part tribute and slag, a speedy cartoonish homage to Hendrix’s version of Hey Joe that just so happens to disrespect the original song’s entire target demographic. Makes me wonder what would have happened if the man had ever run into early De La Soul.
Download:
MP3: Frank Zappa – Flower Punk
