In a house that someone used to live in, little Donny Preston, also known as little Dom DeWilde or little Biff Debrie, was born on September 21st, 1932 in Flint, Michigan.
Happy Birthday, Don!
To celebrate Don Preston’s 78th birthday, Jon Larsen of Zonic Entertainment – the very same label that brought you ‘Strange News From Mars’, ‘The Jimmy Carl Black Story’, and The Mar Vista Philharmonic’s ‘No Forest Fire’ – will be releasing Don’s new, epic saga of contemporary synth music, COLLIDING GALAXYS, exclusively available as digital download from Zonic.
I fondly recall the very first instant when I was completely blown away by the artistry and musicianship of Don Preston, not just as a Mother, but as his own creative force. It was the Burnt Weeny Sandwich album. In particular, “Little House I Used To Live In.” It’s still as mind blowing today as when it was first performed.
Unfortunately, Youtube doesn’t have that particular track available. They do, however, have the May 23rd, 1969 Appleton version which is almost as good, which I have posted below along with “Igor’s Boogie” from the end of the same show.
Don and company are in top form.
Must be all of those spiritual elixirs…
Frank Zappa – lead guitar, lead vocals, band leader
Lowell George – guitar, vocals
Ian Underwood – woodwinds, keyboards
Bunk Gardner – woodwinds
Motorhead Sherwood – baritone saxophone
Don Preston – keyboards
Roy Estrada – bass, vocals
Jimmy Carl Black – drums, vocals
Art Tripp – drums, percussion
I saw Don Preston live last year, he was still playing with a skill and ferocity most people fifty years younger would envy him. I could add that he took the time to talk to anyone who wanted to talk to him after the concert, and signed anything anyone put in front of him. A living legend and a leading light to live by.
Don is a remarkable musician. I know he has done lots of other stuff aside from Zappa, but I have to say that he was, in some ways, the perfect keyboardist to work with Zappa in those earlier days. They were on the same wavelength in certain ways that the result was, at times, much greater than the sum of the parts (listen to ‘Eye of Agamoto’ which Don wrote). If the only thing Don ever did was that great piano solo in ‘Little House’ and the minimoog solo on ‘Waka/Jawaka’, he would be unforgettable – and of course that’s not the case.
I find it oddly telling that soon after moved away from Flint, the property values started dropping…
Happy Birthday Don!