Perhaps one of the greatest, most profound lines ever spouted in a movie is from Spinal Tap:
"It's such a fine line between stupid and clever."
Sure, stupid and clever seem like they should be on a continuum, starting with stupid on one end, followed by less stupid, not so stupid, intellectually average, smart, smarter, whip smart, and wickedly clever at the far other end.
But the continuum isn't a line, it's a circle. Or maybe a shower curtain ring. And one end (stupid) practically touches the other (clever).
In that tiny space between the ends of the shower curtain ring, is where Frank Zappa lives.
Zappa made this incredibly complex, intricate, challenging, reputedly hard-to-play music. And among his fans were the people who appreciated the virtuosity required to create and play this music.
On the other hand, he sure did make a lot of pee-pee jokes, thus insuring the Dr. Demento audience of novelty seeking silliness.
Clever, and stupid, at the same time.
Friday, April 2, 2010
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I'm the kind of guy who might have a hidden closet in my home that's a shrine to Frank Zappa. I have a lot of his music on vinyl and cassette and CD. I LOVE ZPZ and am so happy that Dweezil has continued on.
ReplyDeleteI'm tempted to perform "Bobby Brown goes down" on YouTube but don't have the "stones" to do it without some kind of mask.
Frank is my little closeted desire to be a rebel. Of course my wife knows. Then again I don't play Bobby Brown goes down very often....she's stayed married to me for 37 years.