Zappa, Frank (Francis Vincent)

US rock musician, bandleader, and composer. His crudely satirical songs, as in Joe's Garage (1980), deliberately bad taste, and complex orchestral and electronic compositions make his work hard to categorize. His group the Mothers of Invention 1965–73 was part of the 1960s avant-garde, and the Mothers' hippie parody We're Only in It for the Money (1967) was popular with its target.

Born in Baltimore, Zappa grew up in southern California. He studied both modern classical and popular music; his first recorded compositions were film scores and a doo-wop song, ‘Memories of El Monte’, for the group the Penguins. The Mother's first album was Freak Out! (1966), which mixed social protest and tape montage; later work featured, variously, a 50-piece orchestra, 1950s pastiche, dirty jokes, and jazz-rock fusion. Zappa's first solo album was the critically acclaimed Hot Rats (1969). With and without the Mothers he released more than 50 albums.