Zappa in New York was recorded in December 1976 at the Palladium and originally intended for release in 1977. It was held up due to arguments between
Frank Zappa and his then-record label, Warner Bros. When the two-LP set finally appeared in March 1978, Warner had deleted "Punky's Whips," a song about drummer
Terry Bozzio's attraction to
Punky Meadows of
Angel. The
Zappa band, which includes bassist
Patrick O'Hearn, percussionist
Ruth Underwood, and keyboard player
Eddie Jobson, along with a horn section including the two Brecker brothers, was one of the bandleader's most accomplished, which it had to be to play songs like "Black Page," even in the "easy" version presented here.
Zappa also was at the height of his comic stagecraft, notably on songs like "Titties & Beer," which is essentially a comedy routine between
Zappa and
Bozzio, and "The Illinois Enema Bandit," which features TV announcer
Don Pardo. ~ William Ruhlmann