Interview With Jimmy Carl Black

A few months back Just a week ago, Andrew Greenaway did an interview with Jimmy Carl Black. Despite health problems, Jimmy’s in good spirits, performing with The Muffin Men and recording with various other artists across Europe. Just one project he’s worked on:

The CD is called The Jimmy Carl Black Story. It is due out anytime. I basically went into the studio one night and told my life story. It took me about one and a half hours to do it. He [Jon Larsen – ed.] then used some blues players from Oslo and also some of the guys from the Strange News CD for the background music.

Jimmy won’t make it to Zappanale this year, but has already set his mind on next year’s edition. Which is cool, since Sharl and I won’t be able to make it there either this year, for reasons that we may well expound upon at a later date. Read the whole article here.

11 thoughts on “Interview With Jimmy Carl Black”

  2. [quote comment=”1927″]A few months back? The interview was just last week. Thanks mucho for the ad, though![/quote]
    Erh well, to quote your article:

    When I went to see the Muffin Men with JCB up in Sheffield a few months back, Jimmy and I agreed it was about time we did another interview.

    Emphasis mine. Honest mistake, Guv! Honest! 🙂

    Have a blast @ Zappanale! Be sure to give my regards to Thomas!

  3. IB: What are your feelings about the Zappa Family Trust’s recent ‘aggressive action’ against tribute bands?

    JCB: ZPZ says that Dweezil is the real thing but in reality Frank is the real thing and everything else is tribute bands, period.

    IB: Yes, I have to admit it’s all getting a bit silly: the ZFT bangs on about protecting ‘the intent of the composer’ on the one hand, then on the other licenses Frank’s unreleased music to producers and artists; I can’t believe he ever intended to wind up on Gene Simmons’ Asshole.

    Great interview. JCB certainly doesn’t mince words.

  4. [quote post=”276″]I can’t believe he ever intended to wind up on Gene Simmons’ Asshole[/quote]

    I read the interview but didn’t get what IB meant here. Care to elaborate?

  5. [quote comment=”1932″][quote post=”276″]I can’t believe he ever intended to wind up on Gene Simmons’ Asshole[/quote]

    I read the interview but didn’t get what IB meant here. Care to elaborate?[/quote]

    Of course not quoted from myself. One day i’ll learn this…

  8. [quote comment=”1934″]@Robert:

    check http://globalia.net/donlope/fz/related/Gene_Simmons.html
    for more elaboration on Gene Simmons’ Asshole :-)[/quote]

    SIMMONS explained, “I’ve always admired Frank Zappa. He invited me over to his house right before he unfortunately passed away. We had a real heart to heart.


    “Yeah. We had a real heart to heart, man. He was laying there dying, and I was thinking how best I could use this man’s genius for my own ends. And hey, in the end, it only cost me a licensing fee. Those Zappa’s, man, they’d sell the man’s toenails, but unfortunately there were only ten of them. In the end, they all sang and played on my record, even Gail who can’t sing worth shit. I tried to get Candy Zappa to sing, but I guess there’s still some kind of a rift between them. Anyhoo, gotta go, babes are waiting….GENE”

  9. seems as though many folks are trying to use Frank to their own ends – everybody’s got one…it’s winkin’ at you

  10. What’s this abot Sloatman saying that Black didnt play on “Money”? That one completely slipped by, anyone know that they’re talking about?

  11. IB: Dr Chadbourne mentioned a story that We’re Only In It For The Money didn’t actually feature the Mothers, but a bunch of session musicians. What was that all about?

    JCB: That wasn’t a story that he said. That was from an e-mail he got from Gail about us trying to release Mom And Dad and Willie the Pimp on the CD, Hearing Is Believing. She told the guy from Boxholder Records that I wasn’t even on Mom And Dad, and in fact wasn’t even on We’re Only In It For The Money album. The good Doctor then asked her if Frank had hired Rich Little (a famous comedian, who does impressions) to do “Hi, boys and girls – I’m Jimmy Carl Black, and I’m the Indian of the group”. Well, that stopped her in her tracks. It is ironic that she could say something like that when she wasn’t even allowed to come down to the studio. I was there almost at every one of the sessions that happened at Mayfair Studios.

    You’ve got a very sharp eye, Paul. I almost missed that little tidbit myself. Sounds like Gail is up to her usual tricks of revisionist history: first minimize the original members of The Mothers of Invention contribution to the band, then wipe away their existence altogether.

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