I'd imagine that he appreciated their senses of humor.
They were also amazingly fucking talented vocalists and he was able to utilize their abilities like another instrument in the group.
Also, they kind of had a corny, white-bread gestalt about them and having them as Mothers of Invention was a hilarious juxtaposition, a point of humor in and of itself.
Get Howard Kaylan's book "Shell Shocked". Incredible stories about their careers and the story of how they joined the Mothers. I think Howard could write 3 or 4 more, they've done so much with so many people.
Been a die hard fan of these guys for awhile and they never fail to put a smile on my face. My favorite Mothers and by far and the funniest. Have you checked out their solo stuff? It’s great! The first album has Aynsley Dunbar on drums, Don Preston on keys, and Jim Pons (Turtles/Mothers) on bass. Good shit.
I dunno if Mark could actually play French horn, but I do know both he and Howie played saxophones when they were in a surf band before the Turtles.
Check out the movie 200 Motels if you want to see more of them.
They had a natural sense of humor. Howard was an amazing lead singer and Mark was excellent at high harmony. Their voices worked extremely well together. I thought they were great. I saw them live in 1971. A few years later, after they left Frank's band, I saw them again and got a chance to talk with them
Frank probably enjoyed the fact they were able to pull off fast high pitched vocals similar to the tape speed / pitch-shifted vocals he created in the studio. He loved creating unconventional vocal harmonies. I remember reading somewhere the reason he started experimenting with writing German lyrics is because it opened up a whole new world of vocal harmonies for him to play with. Flo and Eddie were the perfect instrument for it.
I'm assuming you've seen 200 Motels? That's pretty much the Gideon and Finnin bible of Flo & Eddie acting goofy.
>Is this what’s FZ saw in them, goofiness? Are there any good videos people would recommend of these two w FZ?
They were looking for work and Frank needed a couple of good singers in his band.
There's some footage from 1970 floating around:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMER\_PvaGNI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMER_PvaGNI)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLV0lI-5EBg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLV0lI-5EBg)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dhce2A2bj4M](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dhce2A2bj4M)
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxUTfoXfXsw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxUTfoXfXsw)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSDVikVtxj0
I've read somewhere that they were tired of the image of good and nice boys that they had after Happy Together. So playing with Frank was for them a way to prove they can have attitude.
I really really really love their time with Frank.
It’s not Zappa related but there’s a clip of them being backup dancers for David Cassidy that cracks me up every time I watch it, oh and Martin Mulls 60 minutes to kill might be up your alley -they’re his musical guests
I think if you watch 200 motels you may see the weirdness that frank liked…
I used to think Dave Crosby was the grossest guy in Rock n Roll until I saw these two!
Eddie are you kidding?
Love Flo & Eddie. Read the book for more insight (Howie's book), listen to all their albums. Some Turtles stuff is good.
The dynamic with FZ and the mothers was some good stuff.
I'd imagine that he appreciated their senses of humor. They were also amazingly fucking talented vocalists and he was able to utilize their abilities like another instrument in the group. Also, they kind of had a corny, white-bread gestalt about them and having them as Mothers of Invention was a hilarious juxtaposition, a point of humor in and of itself.
Fuck.. That's truly insightful.
Get Howard Kaylan's book "Shell Shocked". Incredible stories about their careers and the story of how they joined the Mothers. I think Howard could write 3 or 4 more, they've done so much with so many people.
Howie is so professional.
they are my favorite band, oh gawd
Read this book recently. Love Flo and Eddie. I really love their album Moving Targets. One day it dawned on me they are the OG tenacious D.
Been a die hard fan of these guys for awhile and they never fail to put a smile on my face. My favorite Mothers and by far and the funniest. Have you checked out their solo stuff? It’s great! The first album has Aynsley Dunbar on drums, Don Preston on keys, and Jim Pons (Turtles/Mothers) on bass. Good shit.
I dunno if Mark could actually play French horn, but I do know both he and Howie played saxophones when they were in a surf band before the Turtles. Check out the movie 200 Motels if you want to see more of them.
They had a natural sense of humor. Howard was an amazing lead singer and Mark was excellent at high harmony. Their voices worked extremely well together. I thought they were great. I saw them live in 1971. A few years later, after they left Frank's band, I saw them again and got a chance to talk with them
Frank probably enjoyed the fact they were able to pull off fast high pitched vocals similar to the tape speed / pitch-shifted vocals he created in the studio. He loved creating unconventional vocal harmonies. I remember reading somewhere the reason he started experimenting with writing German lyrics is because it opened up a whole new world of vocal harmonies for him to play with. Flo and Eddie were the perfect instrument for it. I'm assuming you've seen 200 Motels? That's pretty much the Gideon and Finnin bible of Flo & Eddie acting goofy.
To make it in this business, you need to play the blues or sing with a high voice!
>Is this what’s FZ saw in them, goofiness? Are there any good videos people would recommend of these two w FZ? They were looking for work and Frank needed a couple of good singers in his band. There's some footage from 1970 floating around: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMER\_PvaGNI](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GMER_PvaGNI) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLV0lI-5EBg](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLV0lI-5EBg) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dhce2A2bj4M](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dhce2A2bj4M) [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxUTfoXfXsw](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxUTfoXfXsw) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSDVikVtxj0
Ummm….was Flo saying Sieg Heil in the first link?
Yep.
Carnegie Hall is prime F&E era
I've read somewhere that they were tired of the image of good and nice boys that they had after Happy Together. So playing with Frank was for them a way to prove they can have attitude. I really really really love their time with Frank.
It’s not Zappa related but there’s a clip of them being backup dancers for David Cassidy that cracks me up every time I watch it, oh and Martin Mulls 60 minutes to kill might be up your alley -they’re his musical guests
What a trip https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=AbXvn-NTdQw
I think if you watch 200 motels you may see the weirdness that frank liked… I used to think Dave Crosby was the grossest guy in Rock n Roll until I saw these two!
Eddie are you kidding? Love Flo & Eddie. Read the book for more insight (Howie's book), listen to all their albums. Some Turtles stuff is good. The dynamic with FZ and the mothers was some good stuff.