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If you’ve ever wondered why Frank Zappa is regarded as a musical genius, you’ll find the proof in every groove of The Grand Wazoo – it’s an album alive with ideas, ambition, and humor that skips between genres with abandon, from exhilarating jazz funk to wee small hours jazzy shuffles. If the words “jazz fusion” cause concern, The Grand Wazoo is an accessible entry point. If you’re already a fan of the Zappa of Hot Rats or We’re Only In It For The Money, prepare to have your mind blown all over again. The album was recorded in 1972, a fantastic year for Frank Zappa musically. In April and May, he recorded two albums of ambitious, sophisticated, and witty jazz fusion – Waka/Jawaka (released July that year) and The Grand Wazoo, which hit shelves in November. The music itself is proof of Frank Zappa’s incredible creativity, but what makes his output that year truly remarkable is that he managed to write and record anything at all. On December 10, 1971, Zappa was attacked by a member of the audience while playing with The Mothers Of Invention at The Rainbow Theatre, London. The assailant, 24-year-old Trevor Howell, later claimed that his girlfriend was besotted with Zappa and, in a fit of rage, sought his revenge. Howell launched himself at an off-guard Zappa who was pushed off the stage in the ensuing melee. Zappa was confined to a wheelchair for most of the following year and suffered from chronic back pain as a result of the accident. Most mortals would’ve enjoyed an extended period of convalescence. Not Zappa. By April, he’d composed enough material to enter Paramount Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles, to record Waka/Jawaka and The Grand Wazoo. Though it was the second of the pair to be released, in no way is The Grand Wazoo a collection of outtakes or off-cuts – it’s a fully-formed album with a strong identity. Waka/Jawaka swims in similar jazz fusion waters, but it uses a small jazz combo, The Grand Wazoo saw Zappa embracing a big band with a clarity of purpose. Considering the circumstances that led to The Grand Wazoo’s creation, it would have been understandable had Frank Zappa wallowed and produced music steeped in self-pity. That wasn’t Zappa’s style, instead he made some of his most life-affirming and accessible music. “Grand” was an understatement.