(Frank Zappa, CD, Zappa Records/UME ZR20034Z, October 2, 2020)
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31 & November 1, 1981
UMRK Mobile
Recording engineer: Mark Pinske
FZ—lead guitar, vocals, baton
Ray White—guitar, vocals
Steve Vai—stunt guitar, vocals
Tommy Mars—keyboards, vocals
Robert Martin—keyboards, sax, vocals
Ed Mann—percussion, vocals
Scott Thunes—bass, vocals
Chad Wackerman—drums
Produced for release by Ahmet Zappa & Joe Travers
Digital transfers by Joe Travers
Audio remix & restoration by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow Ct. Studios, 2020
Mastering by John Polito, Audio Mechanics, 2020
Photos by Livzey.com
Art: Fantoons Animation Studio
Package design: Michael Mesker
Production manager: Melanie Starks
Liner notes: Joe Travers
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31, 1981, early show
Thank you. Let me uh—
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31, 1981, early show
Okay. You look lovely tonight! Okay.
Okay. Okay. Wait, wait. I know he does. All right. As you all know, this is Halloween, the finest night of the year. And you are in the right place at the right time. Tonight's show— The first show is being videotaped and the second show goes out live via satellite, and will also be videotaped, and the whole thing—both shows and all the encores and everything—will be edited together to make one big thing later. So— So I hope that the cameras don't cause you any inconvenience. Please cooperate with them, don't give them any trouble, and we'll try and make the show go as smoothly as possible in spite of the fact that it's on TV, okay? Not— I can't sign everything all at once so I'll try—thank you—I'll try and get to it later.
Okay. These are Martian flowers? Wonderful! Well, we'll put these over here, here's a guy who would look good with 'em. Let me introduce you to everybody. This is Ray White on guitar and vocals. Tommy Mars on keyboards. Scott Thunes on bass. Chad Wackerman on drums. Ed Mann on percussion. Bobby Martin on keyboards. And our little Italian virtuoso, Steve Vai, on guitar and et cetera. You want me to spank him, is that the deal? Maybe later. He needs it!
All right. No, no, no. We gotta start the show now. You ready?
One, two, three!
includes a quotation from Perry Mason Theme (Park Avenue Beat) (Steiner)
The Palladium, NYC, NY
November 1, 1981
I am gross and perverted
I'm obsessed 'n deranged
I have existed for years
But very little has changed
I'm the tool of the Government
And industry too
For I am destined to rule
And regulate you
I may be vile and pernicious
But you can't look away
I make you think I'm delicious
With the stuff that I say
I'm the best you can get
Have you guessed me yet?
I'm the slime oozin' out
From your TV set
You will obey me while I lead you
And eat the garbage that I feed you
Until the day that we don't need you
Don't go for help . . . no one will heed you
Your mind is totally controlled
It has been stuffed into my mold
And you will do as you are told
Until the rights to you are sold
That's right, folks . . .
Don't touch that dial
Well, I am the slime from your video
Oozin' along on your livin' room floor
I am the slime from your video
Can't stop the slime, people, lookit me go
I am the slime from your video
Oozin' along on your livin' room floor
I am the slime from your video
Can't stop the slime, people, lookit me go
I am the slime from your video
Oozin' along on your livin' room floor
I am the slime from your video
Can't stop the slime, people, lookit me go
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31, 1981, late show
I might be movin' to Montana soon
Just to raise me up a crop of
Dental Floss
Raisin' it up
Waxen it down
In a little white box
I can sell uptown
But by myself I wouldn't
Have no boss
'Cause I'd be raisin' my lonely
Dental Floss
Raisin' my lonely
Dental Floss
(Yes it is!)
Raisin' my lonely
Dental Floss
Well I just might grow me some bees
But I'd leave the sweet stuff
To somebody else
Ah, but then, on the other hand I would
Keep the wax
'N melt it down
Pluck the Floss
'N swish it aroun'
And I will have me a crop
An' it'd be on top
That's why I'm movin' to Montana
Movin' to Montana soon
Gonna be a Dental Floss tycoon
Movin' to Montana soon
Gonna be a mennil-toss flykune
(I wonder what that means)
I'm gonna find me a horse
Just about this big
An' ride that sucker all along the border line
With a
Pair of heavy-duty
Zircon-encrusted tweezers in my hand
Every other wrangler would say
I was mighty grand
But by myself I wouldn't
Have no boss
'Cause I'd be raisin' my lonely
Dental Floss
Raisin' my lonely
Dental Floss
(That's right!)
Raisin' my lonely
Dental Floss
Well I might
Ride along the border
With my tweezers gleamin'
In the moon-lighty night
And then I would
Get a cuppa cawfee
'N give my foot a push
Just me 'n the pygmy pony
Over by the Dennil Floss Bush
'N then I might just
Jump back on
An' ride
Like a cowboy
Into the dawn to Montana
Movin' to Montana soon
(Yippy-Yay-O-Ty-Ay)
Movin' to Montana soon
(Yippy-Yay-O-Ty-Ay)
Movin' to Montana soon
(Yippy-Yay-O-Ty-Ay)
Movin' to Montana soon
(Yippy-Yay-O-Ty-Ay)
The Palladium, NYC, NY
November 1, 1981
This girl is easy meat
I seen her on the street
See-through blouse an' a tiny little dress
Her manner indiscreet . . . I knew she was
Easy, easy, easy meat
Easy, easy, easy meat
Easy, easy, easy, easy
Easy meat, easy meat, easy meat, easy meat
She wanna take me home
Make me sweat and moan
Rub my head and beat me off
With a copy of Rollin' Stone
I knew she was
Easy, easy, easy meat
Easy, easy, easy meat
Easy, easy, easy, easy
Easy meat, easy meat, easy meat, easy meat
I told her I was late
I had another date
I can't get off on the Rollin' Stone
But the robots think it's great . . . I knew she was
Easy, easy, easy meat
Easy, easy, easy meat
Easy, easy,
Easy, easy
Easy meat, easy meat, easy meat, easy meat
Easy
She's so easy
Easy
I saw her tiny titties
Through her see-through blouse
Just had to take the girl to my house
Easy
includes a quotation from Wipe Out (Berryhill/Connolly/Fuller/Wilson)
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31, 1981, late show
It wasn't very large
There was just enough room to cram the drums
In the corner over by the Dodge
It was a fifty-four
With a mashed up door
And a cheesy little amp
With a sign on the front said
"Fender Champ"
And a second-hand guitar
It was a Stratocaster with a whammy bar
We could jam in Joe's Garage
His mama was screamin'
His dad was mad
We was playin' the same old song
In the afternoon 'n sometimes we would
Play it all night long
It was all we knew, 'n easy too
So we wouldn't get it wrong
Even if you played it on a saxophone
We thought we was pretty good
We talked about keepin' the band together
'N we figured that we should
'Cause about this time we was gettin' the eye
From the girls in the neighborhood
They'd all come over 'n dance around like . . .
So we picked out a stupid name
Had some cards printed up for a coupla bucks
'N we was on our way to fame
Got matching suits
'N Beatle Boots
'N a sign on the back of the car
'N we was ready to work in a Go-Go Bar
One two three four
Let's see if you've got some more!
People seemed to like our song
They got up 'n danced 'n made a lotta noise
An' it wasn't 'fore very long
A guy from a company we can't name
Said we oughta take his pen
'N sign on the line for a real good time
But he didn't tell us when
These "good times" would be somethin'
That was really happenin'
So the band broke up
An' it looks like
We will never play again . . .
Guess you only get one chance in life
To play a song that goes like . . .
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31, 1981, late show
Why does it hurt when I pee?
Why does it hurt when I pee?
No no no doctor
Stick no needles in me
Why does it hurt when I pee?
Got it from the toilet seat
Got it from the toilet seat
It jumped right up
'N grabbed my meat
Got it from the toilet seat
My balls feel like a pair of maracas
My balls feel like a pair of maracas
Oh God I probably got the
Gon-o-ka-ka-khackus!
My balls feel like a pair of maracas
Ai-ee-ai-ee-ahhhh!
Why does it
Why does it
Why does it
Why does it hurt . . . when . . . I
Peeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee?
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31, 1981, late show
includes a quotation from Stayin' Alive (Gibb/Gibb/Gibb)
The Palladium, NYC, NY
November 1, 1981
His name is Stevie Vai,
And he's a crazy guy
Last November, I recall,
He needed a spanking
He decided then
A female specimen
Would be exciting for a night
To give him a spanking
Laurel was her name
She came to Notre Dame
He told me just the other day
He oughta be thanking
Her for the spanking
She was large and soft
And she beat him off
Made him drool upon his dork
And gave it a wanking
After the spanking
Hair brush!
Oh! What a hair brush!
(It's not that he requires grooming!
Guys with light blue hair never do!)
Then she did exclaim:
"There's another game
That we can play with this device,
And then a banana!"
It was slightly green
Vapors in between
Rising up to fill the room
And cook the banana
She said it was dry
"Stevie won't you try
To drool a little drool on it
And grease the banana"
Later in the dawn,
Laurel carried on
She got right up and dressed herself and
Ate the banana
includes a quotation from Mysterioso Pizzicato (Lampe)
The Palladium, NYC, NY
November 1, 1981
Thank you! . . . Sing along!
Hob-noblin
Wit de goblin
De Goblin Girl
From da mystery world
Hob-noblin
Wit de goblin
She's black 'n green
'Cause it's Halloween
Raggedy black
Is the way she dress
Little green shoes
'N her hair's a mess
On Halloween night
At de costume ball
She's a Goblin Girl
An' she can gobble it all
She's a goblin
A Goblin Girl
She's a goblin
A Goblin Girl
I been hobblin'
'Cause of the Goblin
Goblin Girl . . . Goblin Girl
Some girls like
To dress like a witch
Some girls like to dress like a queen
Best way a girl
Can dress for me
Is in a Goblin Suit
(They look so cute . . . )
When she's a goblin
There ain't a problin
When she's a goblin
I start a-wobblin'
Pink all over
Some is tan
Goblin Girls
From every land
They look good
From any which-a-way
Every Halloween
You can hear me say:
"Goblin Girl, take it away . . . "
Hob-noblin
Wit de goblin
De Goblin Girl
From da mystery world
De Goblin Girl
From da mystery world
De Goblin Girl
From da mystery world
De Goblin Girl
From da mystery world
The Palladium, NYC, NY
November 1, 1981
Ray White, Tommy Mars, Scott Thunes, Chad Wackerman, Ed Mann, Bobby Martin, Steve Vai. Thanks for coming to the show. Hope you enjoyed it. Good night!
Thank you.
Well let us get tuned up again here . . . Thank you. What? . . . You'll get it, don't worry. Just a minute.
Ready?
includes a theme from Inca Roads
The Palladium, NYC, NY
November 1, 1981
Lord, have mercy on the hippies and faggots
And the dykes and the weird little children they grow
Okay. Thanks for coming to the show. It ain't done yet though. 'Cause just when I came on stage—very nice, wait a minute . . . You like this one? . . . Read 'em? I read 'em—It says, "Genuine Harley Ass. Made of proper materials, made to shake perfectly, and guaranteed satisfactory," that's it. Okay. We had a request for this song, just when we came back on stage, and the name of this song is "Whipping Post."
The Palladium, NYC, NY
November 1, 1981
I been run down
Lord, 'n I been lied to
And I don't know why
I let that mean woman make me out a fool
She took all my money
'N wrecked my new car
Now she's with one of my good-time buddies,
Drinkin' in some cross-town bar
Sometimes I feel
Sometimes I feel
Like I been
Tied to the whippin' post
Tied to the whippin' post
Tied to the whippin' post
Good Lord, I feel like I'm dyin'
My friends tell me
That I been such a fool
I have to stand back an' take it, babe
All for loving you
I drown myself in sorrow
As I look at what you've done
But nothin' seems to change;
That bad times stay the same,
And I can't run
Sometimes I feel
Sometimes I feel
Like I been
Tied to the whippin' post
Tied to the whippin' post
Tied to the whippin' post
Oh, good Lord, I feel like I'm dyin'
Lord
Lord, no
Yeah
Been tied down
Sometimes I feel
Sometimes I feel
Like I been
Tied to the whippin' post
Tied to the whippin' post
Tied to the whippin' post
Lawd-no-oooh!
Oh Lord Lord
Sometimes I fell like I'm dyin'
Hello. Thank you. A little pumpkin! How petite . . . Okay, listen, we gotta— We have to expedite matters here because we're on the air and it's time to go back to music. All right. Okay. You all tuned up? Snakes! Very nice.
includes quotations from Chattanooga Choo Choo (Gordon/Warren) and My Three Sons (DeVol)
The Palladium, NYC, NY
October 31, 1981, late show
Okay, calm down now. We are now going to perform our traditional Halloween number.
Flies all green 'n buzzin'
In his dungeon of despair
Prisoners grumble and piss their clothes
And scratch their matted hair
A tiny little light from a window hole
A hundred yards away
Is all they ever get to know
About the regular life in the day
An' it stinks so bad the stones been chokin'
'N weepin' greenish drops
In the room where the giant fire puffer works
'N the torture never stops
The torture never stops
The torture
The torture
The torture never stops
Slime 'n rot 'n rats 'n snot
'N vomit on the floor
Fifty ugly soldiers, man
Holdin' spears by the iron door
Knives 'n spikes 'n guns 'n the likes
Of every tool of pain
An' a sinister midget with a bucket an' a mop
A sinister little midget with a bucket an' a mop
A sinister little midget with a bucket an' a mop
Where the blood goes down the drain
An' it stinks so bad the stones been chokin'
'N weepin' greenish drops
In the room where the giant fire puffer works
'N the torture never stops
The torture never stops
The torture
The torture
The torture never stops
Flies all green 'n buzzin'
In his dungeon of despair
An evil prince eats a steamin' pig
In a chamber right near there
He eats the snouts 'n the trotters first
The loins 'n the groins are soon dispersed
His carvin' style is well rehearsed
He stands and shouts, that's right
All men be cursed
All men be cursed
All men be cursed
And disagree, that's right, well hey, no-one durst
He's the best of course of all the worst
(He's the best of course of all the worst)
Some wrong been done, he done it first
(Some wrong been done, he done it first)
An' he stinks so bad, his bones been chokin'
'N weepin' greenish drops
In the night of the iron sausage
Where the torture never stops
The torture never stops
The torture
The torture
The torture never stops
That's right!
Flies all green 'n buzzin'
In his dungeon of despair
Who are all these people
That he's locked away down there
Are they crazy?
Are they sainted?
Are they zeros someone painted?
Well, it's never been explained
Since at first it was created
But a dungeon just like a sin
Requires naught but lockin' in
Of everything that's ever been
Look at her
Look at him
That's what's the deal we're dealing in
That's what's the deal we're dealing in
That's what's the deal we're dealing in
That's what's the deal we're dealing in
Happy Halloween! Good night to our television audience!
All compositions by Frank Zappa except as noted
Site maintained by Román García Albertos
http://www.donlope.net/fz/
Original transcription from Halloween 81
Transcription for new material by Román
This page updated:
2024-09-23