In 1984 Zappa was consecutively on tour for five months and a half.
The tour opened in Los Angeles with six consecutive gigs, starting from July 17. Last gig of the first American leg was (probably) on September 2 in Columbia, Tn, while on September 7 in Brussels he opened the European tour that ended up with three consecutive gigs in Rome in mid October. Then back again in America, starting from October 25 in Worcester, Ma and ending two months later in Los Angeles.
The music contained in Does Humor Belongs In Music? (the cd and the video) was recorded during this tour. Also disc one of You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 3 contains music almost entirely recorded during this tour.
During the tour Zappa released 4 albums, for a total of 7 lps:
Boulez conducts Zappa: The Perfect Stranger in August,
Them Or Us (2lp) in October,
Thing-Fish (3lp) and Francesco Zappa in November.
Number of band members: 7 or 8 during July (previous band had 8 members, following one 12)
Frank Zappa: guitar, vocals
Ray White: guitar, vocals
Ike Willis: guitar, vocals
Robert Martin: keyboards, tenor saxophone, French horn, vocals
Scott Thunes: bass
Alan Zavod: keyboards
Chad Wackerman: drums
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Napoleon Murphy Brock: tenor saxophone, vocals (until August 1)
This line-up is featured only in this tour.
For Ray White and Napoleon Murphy Brock this was the last tour with Zappa.
For Alan Zavod this was the only tour with Zappa.
Ike Willis was back in the band after the 81-82 parenthesis.
Known tour guests:
Dweezil Zappa played guitar in two of the Los Angeles shows: on July 20 and on Dec. 23 (the last show of 1984).
Archie Shepp was featured on tenor sax at the Oct. 28 gig in Amherst (and can be heard on Let's Move To Cleveland - Solos 1984 on YCDTOSA4).
On July 22, at the last gig of the Los Angeles opening series, Frank had a wild bunch of guests: George Duke on keyboards, Bruce Fowler on trombone, Aynsley Dumbar on drums, Johnny "Guitar" Watson and Denny Walley on guitar; all, except for Watson, former members of Zappa touring bands.
This page created on February 2005 and latest revised on May 08, 2007