We are delighted to welcome three of Frank Zappa's former musicians again this year. Last year they toured with the Paul Green Rock Academy as Banned from Utopia and will be presenting this program at the upcoming Zappanale. And Robert, Scott and Ray will surely be making guest appearances with one or two (or more) bands.
Robert Martin:
He was tied to the Whipping Post with Dental Floss, he visited the City of Tiny Lites, was Bamboozled by Love - and his voice was always at the top: we are talking about Robert "Bobby" Martin, who as a saxophonist, keyboardist and singer shaped the sound of Frank Zappa's band from 1981 to the farewell tour in 1988. Alongside and after that he worked on a long list of productions with big names (Bette Middler, Paul McCartney, Michael McDonald, Prince, Etta James, Patti Labelle, The Moody Blues and many others).
Scott Carter Thunes:
Scott Thunes played with Zappa's band from 1981 to 1988 too, and plays on such albums as The Man From Utopia, Them or Us, Broadway the Hard Way, You Can't Do That on Stage Anymore, Does Humor Belong In Music?, The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life, Frank Zappa Meets the Mothers of Prevention, Ship Arriving Too Late to Save a Drowning Witch, Make a Jazz Noise Here, and Guitar, a double-album compilation of Zappa's live guitar solos.
His most prominent bass performance can be heard on Frank Zappa's Valley Girl, which peaked at #32 on the Billboard Hot 100. He played bass on Frank Zappa's Jazz from Hell, which won a Grammy Award for Best Rock Instrumental Performance in 1988.
More recently, he was touring on bass as part of The Zappa Band / Banned From Utopia. In 2021, The Zappa Band opened for King Crimson multiple times.
Ray White:
One of the most powerful and distinctive voices that ever graced a Zappa vocal, Ray White. Ray White’s distinctive, powerful voice was first heard interpreting Zappa’s music in 1976. From that beginning, he became an integral member of Frank’s band through 1984, and can be seen on the DVD recorded the summer of that year in New York, “Does Humor Belong In Music?” A former member of the Edwin Hawkins Singers gospel group, he also brings a solid R&B guitar style to the blend, both as a rhythm player and as a soloist. Looking towards future creative endeavors with Banned From Utopia, Ray is also a gifted writer and lyricist.
