In proper celebration of 50 years of One Size Fits All, a suite of newly expanded 50th anniversary editions led by a five-disc (4CD/1Blu-ray Audio) Super Deluxe Edition featuring 58 tracks in total will be released via Zappa Records/UMe. The lavish Super Deluxe Edition box comes complete with a 36-page booklet and unseen photos from the archives of Sam Emerson, in addition to liner notes and new historical essays by noted music journalist David Fricke, longtime Zappa/Mothers bandmember Ruth Underwood, and, as always, The Vaultmeister, Joe Travers.
One Size Fits All will also be released on vinyl with two special pressings: a 180-gram 2LP "Black Glitter" anniversary edition that combines a brand-new analog cut of the album with a bonus LP of highlights from the box set plus the 50th anniversary booklet, and a limited edition 1LP on 180-gram "Blue Galaxy" vinyl housed in a jacket printed on silver foil and including a lithograph of a never-before-seen photo contact sheet from one of Zappa's historic shoots with Sam Emerson.
The Super Deluxe Edition and 2LP will be released on September 26 but fans who pre-order any of the One Size All: 50th Anniversary Edition offerings, including the 1LP color vinyl, exclusively at Zappa.com, uDiscover Music or Sound of Vinyl will receive the album on Friday, August 1. [...]
Produced by Ahmet Zappa and Zappa Vaultmeister Joe Travers, the new, expanded collection, One Size Fits All: 50th Anniversary Edition, sports the 2012 remaster of the original album by Bob Ludwig, along with scores of additional session outtakes from The Vault, alternate takes, and 2024 mixes remixed and restored by Craig Parker Adams, all remastered in 2025 by John Polito at Audio Mechanics. Also included in the expanded collection is a truly historical live concert recording captured at Sports Palace Ahoy in Rotterdam, Amsterdam, on September 28, 1974, plus a pair of bonus concert tracks from Gothenburg Concert Hall in Gothenburg, Sweden, extracted from a gig just a few days earlier on September 25, 1974.
The Blu-ray contains the core album newly remixed in Dolby Atmos and 5.1 surround sound by Karma Auger and Erich Gobel at Studio1LA [...], which were mixed directly from the 24-track album master tapes, along with the hi-res stereo 2024 remaster at 24-bit/192kHz for the main album, plus two bonus Vault-culled surround tracks featuring vintage mixes by Zappa himself. Also included are two bonus videos taken from the classic KCET-TV shoot in Los Angeles, Calif., on August 27, 1974, which have been re-edited for the first time since Zappa had his hands on the footage back in 1974.
Additionally, the Super Deluxe Edition will be available digitally, with all 58 tracks available in both hi-res 24-bit/96kHz and standard-res 16-bit/44.1kHz options. A standalone Dolby Atmos mix of the core album's nine tracks will also be available on all Atmos-supporting hi-res streaming services.
Recorded at KCET-TV Studios, Los Angeles CA, 8-27-74
Helsinki, Finland, Sept. 22-23, 1974
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
2-27-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
KCET-TV Studios, Los Angeles CA
8-27-74, 2'' quad videotape soundtrack master
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
12-9-1974, 2'' 24-Track Analog Tape Master
Mixed by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow CT. Studios, 2024
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
Mixed at The Record Plant by Bob Hughes & Bob M.
12-27-1974, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
2-27-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
12-12-1974, 2'' 24-Track Analog Tape Master
Mixed by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow CT. Studios, 2024
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
Mixed at The Record Plant by Bob Hughes & Bob M.
12-27-1974, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
3-10-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Recorded at KCET-TV Studios, Los Angeles CA, 8-27-74
Over-dubs at The Record Plant
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
2-13-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Recorded at KCET-TV Studios, Los Angeles CA, 8-27-74
Over-dubs at The Record Plant
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
3-27-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
The Record Plant, Los Angeles, CA
2-26-1975, 2'' 24-Track Analog Tape Master
Mixed by Joe Travers, 2025
1974, 1/2'' 4-Track Master, MOI Rehearsal Hall
Mixed by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow CT. Studios, 2024Players:
FZ—Guitar, Vocals
JEFF SIMMONS—Guitar, Vocal
GEORGE DUKE—Keyboards, Vocals
TOM FOWLER—Bass
CHESTER THOMPSON—Drums
RUTH UNDERWOOD—Percussion
ROBERT "FROG" CAMARENA—Vocals
TONY DURAN—Slide Guitar (Probably)This material was found on a 4-track reel stashed in a 1974 European Tour tape box (Basel, Switzerland specifically). My guess is that this reel was recorded before the European tour when Jeff Simmons was in the band. [...]
Bitch Bitch Bitch is an early San Berdino. Bitch Bitch Bitch in rehearsal incorporates Sleeping In A Jar (not just quotes!).
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
12-20-1974, 2'' 24-Track Analog Tape Master
Mixed by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow CT. Studios, 2024
Recorded at The Record Plant, 1-8-1975
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
1-17-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Recorded at The Record Plant, 1-8-1975
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
2-27-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Recorded at The Record Plant, 1-8-1975
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb, Gary O. & Michael Braunstein
3-1-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Recorded at The Record Plant, 1-8-1975
Over-dubs at The Record Plant
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
1-15-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Recorded at The Record Plant, Jan. 8, 1975
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
2-27-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
Caribou Studios, Nederland, CO
Mixed at The Record Plant by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein
2-27-1975, 1/4'' Stereo Analog Tape Master
SPORTS PALACE AHOY, ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS
28 SEPTEMBER, 19741/2'' 4-Track Master
Original recording engineer and sub-mix by Brian Krokus
Re-mixed by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow Ct. Studios, 2024[...] It seems that in my research, Brian Krokus (recording and front of house engineer) was having nightly issues with the gear at his disposal. The Swedish show did not contain a bass guitar track. The Rotterdam show failed to capture all of Ruth's percussion rig to tape. Thankfully, her Marimba and Vibraphone increase in level as the show proceeds. Both shows have extremely prominent bass drum to tape. FZ's overall guitar tone is very edgy. So, all in all, the 4-track masters from that run are not perfect (they rarely are). But, the performances are of course legendary.
Geef mij wat vloerbedekking
Onder deze vette zwevende sofa
The end of Cosmik Debris (11:19-onwards to my ears) is taken from the early show in Basel (10 01). I compared it to the soundboard tape of that show and it's a match. Note how Frank says "gratia plena", which sticks out to this half-dutch, half-german dude like a sore thumb. The Pogen preamble should be from Rotterdam again.
George Duke telling of an encounter with a flying saucer, as also heard in 74/10/01 (late) Basel.
Dig the roots of "Zoot Allures" being implied by FZ after Chester's drum solo in "Dupree's." It seems those chords first appear in multiple instances on this tour!
[...]
Contains an interpolation of "I Found A Love" (W. Pickett, W. Schofield, R. West)
Contains an interpolation of "The Monkey Time" (C. Mayfield)
At the beginning of Pygmy Twylyte (track 5 on CD 4), and later again in the piece, they briefly tease the soul classic The Monkey Time by Major Lance.
GOTHENBURG CONCERT HALL
GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN
25 SEPTEMBER, 19741/2'' 4-Track Master
Original recording engineer and sub-mix by Brian Krokus
Re-mixed by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow Ct. Studios, 2024
The 4-track master tape ran out during the end of "Po-Jama People," so an excerpt from the board mis cassette was used to fill in the gap.
Produced by FZ
Mixed by FZ, Kerry McNabb & Michael Braunstein, Record Plant, 3-27-1975
Produced by FZ
Mixed by FZ & Spence Chrislu, UMRK, 7-22-1993
Research, compilation and maintenance by Román García Albertos