"Zappas in the sistem"
YoKey
elsewhere on the web with zero success.
You know the original cover for The Rolling Stones album Beggars
Banquet, the one with the photo of this dirty toilet wall with
scribblings all over it, that was rejected by their recording company
so that alternative cover was used all until '80s when the original
cover was restored for all later reissues? There are actually two
photos of two different walls (although very similar) with all
different writings on them, one for the front cover and other for the
back. This complete artwork with all writings added was made in 1968,
and I read somewhere that the actual photo was taken in 1966.
On the back cover, in the top right corner there is this scribble in
small lettering saying "Zappas in the sistem" (transcribed as it is).
Is there any story attached to this? Mick or Keith or whoever
explaining it in some interview? Any background at all?
ttuerff
I doubt the Stones had anything to do with it. They probably just took
pics of some dirty, graffitti-laden stalls and through the magic of
art direction put in the album-related Graffiti so that it mixed with
the stuff that was in the original picture. You'd need to find whoever
wrote that in the first place, which even then would have been
impossible.
TT
Biffy the Elephant Shrew
equivalent of brethren, but a misspelling of cistern, meaning the
toilet tank). I have no idea *why* Zappa's in the cistern.
It's the same wall in both pictures. They did the front cover shot
first, cleaned it off, and then did the back cover graffiti. Note that
on the back cover you can clearly see the remains of the hand over the
tank, where it has been incompletely erased.
Your pal,
Biffy the Elephant Shrew
computeruser
wrote:
It means Zappa is the shit.
It inspired those in Czechoslovakia and other eastern bloc countries
to smuggle in Mothers of Invetion records to energize the anti-
communist underground much to the chagrin of James Baker. If you know
what I meme.
Les Cargill
but in Mother Rooshia, none drew more water than the Beatles.
http://www.thirteen.org/beatles/
There is a fillum, by Leslie Woodhead.
--
Les Cargill
computeruser
>
> - Show quoted text -
From the PBS page Les mentioned above I found a link:
http://www.thirteen.org/beatles/display/?entry=Frank_Zappa.html
WHAT PEOPLE SAID ABOUT Frank Zappa
ann doyle
Frank Zappa had a unique style of music not easily imitated. He
influenced the lives of would be musicians to attempt their own style.
Many people have attempted to copy him. Frank Zappa made his voice
heard. And we enjoyed his sound and character.
James Kenny
I liked him because he was an original composer unafraid to veer into
territory untried by his contemporaries and yet willing to give credit
to his compositional forbears. I also enjoyed the fact that he did not
suffer fools gladly and let them know it with wicked satirical jabs.
Carole Sorell
Frank Zappa was a unique musician who merged the ideas of classical
new music with rock and always supported American avant garde
composers. His own music was original, ground breaking and often
censored. He fought against record label censorship and was oftened
defamed for his efforts. A proponent of Varese, Berg and Webern, his
"new music " ideas spoke to a young generation that heard his complex
sounds.
William Sterba
Frank Zappa inspired the Czech rock group "Plastic People of the
Universe" which invigorated the Czech insurgents against their hard-
line Czech government. His vision of freedom invigorated the Velvet
Revolution, which enabled disaffected East Germans in avoiding the
restrictions on them and led directly to the East German governments
and Berlin Wall's collapse when East German Communism could no longer
remain in power. The Soviets had to go home and end the Cold War.
Marcus Morreale
Because he was popular worldwide and helped to overthrow communism in
Checkozlavakia.
Richard Gatjens
Frank broke boundaries in rock and roll music, stood up against the
attempt to censor music lyrics, and worked with Vaclav Havel in the
new nation of the Czech Republic.
YoKey
> pics of some dirty, graffitti-laden stalls and through the magic of
> art direction put in the album-related Graffiti so that it mixed with
> the stuff that was in the original picture. You'd need to find whoever
> wrote that in the first place, which even then would have been
> impossible.
>
> TT
Actually I thought of that possibility, but then if it's true that
they photographed it in 1966 it seems kinda unlikely that FZ was
already a subject of toilet slogans, although it is remotely possible.
Now I just can't find again this information of exactly where and when
they took this photo.
YoKey
wrote:
Thank you, Biffy! This was an eye opener. This "sistem" was always
unclear to me, kinda smudged, but In never thought it could be
"sistern". And I never studied it that closely to see the remains of
the hand, and now I see there's also this pointer on the left side of
the tank, leftover from "Bob Dylans dream" from the front.
I guess that it's because Beggars Banquet has this reputation of being
"rebellious" that I stuck with "system" reference, like as if Stones
wanted to (ironically) claim that "you see even Zappa is a fake rebel,
and we are the real deal".
YoKey
More to the point would be that Zappa is a shit eliminator.
YoKey
Also, if it was really meant to be "system", somehow it always
associates me to 1968 and the famous incident in Berlin ("Mothers of
Reaction") and final and bitter disenchantment of all the
counterculture "revolutionaries" with Zappa as their imaginary leader.
computeruser
Right you are.