"Civilization Phaze III" (1994) marks the third part of a conceptual continuity that started with "We're Only in It for the Money" (1968), with the second part being a re-edited version of Zappa's 1967 album "Lumpy Gravy".
The storyline of Civilization Phaze III involves a group of people living inside a piano, and the menacing reality of the outside world. The album's themes include personal isolation and nationalism.
Much of the album's improvised dialogue was originally recorded as part of sessions which produced We're Only in It for the Money and Uncle Meat, which contained some dialogue by the same speakers, and some of the dialogue on this album previously appeared on the re-edited version of Lumpy Gravy released in 1968.
New dialogue was recorded by Zappa in 1991, and includes similarly improvised dialogue by members of the Ensemble Modern orchestra, Zappa's daughter Moon Unit and actor Michael Rapaport. Civilization Phaze III has been acclaimed as one of Zappa's best works, and has been appraised for its challenging, complex music, largely composed and performed on a Synclavier.
Zappa's masterpiece of electronic music, the genre's best-kept secret.
Frank Zappa
Civilization Phaze III
1994
2012 Reissue
2CDs / 2012 / VBR-V0
Track List:
Disc 1:
1. This Is Phaze I I I
2. Put A Motor In Yourself
3. Oh - Umm
4. They Made Me Eat It
5. Reagan At Bitburg
6. A Very Nice Body
7. Navanax
8. How The Pigs' Music Works
9. Xmas Values
10. Dark Water!
11. Amnerika
12. Have You Heard Their Band?
13. Religious Superstition
14. Saliva Can Only Take So Much
15. Buffalo Voice
16. Someplace Else Right Now
17. Get A Life
18. A Kayak ( On Snow )
19. N - Lite
Disc 2:
1. I Wish Motorhead Would Come Back
2. Secular Humanism
3. Attack! Attack! Attack!
4. I Was In A Drum
5. A Diffrent Octave
6. This Ain't C N N
7. The Pigs' Music
8. A Pig With Wings
9. This Is All Wrong
10. Hot & Stupid
11. Flowing Inside - Out
12. I Had A Dream About That
13. Gross Man
14. A Tunnel Into Muck
15. Why Not?
16. Put A Little Motor In 'em
17. You're Just Insultin' Me, Aren't You!
18. Cold Light Generation
19. Dio Fa
20. That Would Be The End Of That
21. Beat The Reaper
22. Waffenspiel
