Beat the boots I - As an am

Live at Sporthalle, Cologne, Germany - May 21, 1982
The Palladium, NYC, NY - October 31, 1981

Linked material:

Video “The torture never stops”

Beat the boots I - As an am

1 That makes me mad

2 Young & Monde {Let’s move to Cleveland}

3 Sharleena

4 Black napkins

5 Black page {The black page #2}

6 The torture never stops

All compositions by Frank Zappa.

1. That makes me mad

[FZ] No, it’s not. As a matter of fact, the bootleg problem as it applies to the work that I do is very much… out of control. And so the FBI is working on it for us. And we’ve supplied them with examples of all the various things that we’ve found that’ve been bootlegged. And they’ve been checkin’ up on… tryin’ to find out where the things are coming from. Because as far as my material goes it’s a very big business.

[B. Mitchel Reed] Really

[FZ] I don’t think that it’s the work of just a couple of individual guys who went out and made a record for fun. It’s… some… one or two people who are releasing vast quantities of material. Last year twelve bootlegs, in the last year!

[B. Mitchel Reed] Phew! I wasn’t aware of…

[FZ] And one of them has all the songs on the next album that’s coming out in September. They’ve already got the stuff recorded live in concert before I can even release it on a record. And that makes me mad.

2. Young & Monde {Let’s move to Cleveland}

[Instrumental]

So young and monde

So very monde

So young and monde

3. Sharleena

In-wizzable

I’m cryin’, I’m cryin’

Cryin’ for Sharleena, don’t you know?

I called up all my baby’s friends an’ ask’n ‘um where she done went

But nobody ‘round here seems to know where my Sharleena’s been

Where my Sharleena’s been

I’m cryin’, I’m cryin’

Cryin’ for Sharleena, can’t you see?

I called up all my baby’s friends an’ ask’n ‘um where she done went

But nobody ‘round here seems to know where my Sharleena’s been

Where my Sharleena’s been

Ten long years I been lov’n her

Ten long years and I thought deep down in my heart she was mine

Ten long years I been lov’n her

Ten long years I would call her my baby, but now I’m always cryin’

[Instrumental]

Ugh!

I would be so delighted (I-I-I-I would be), I would be so delighted (yes, I would be)

If they would just send her on home to me

I would be so delighted (I-I-I-I would be), I would be so delighted (oh-wow-wow I would be)

If they would just send her on home to me

Send my baby home to me!

[FZ] Ray White, Tommy Mars, Chad Wackerman, Ed Mann, Bobby Martin, Scott Thunes, Steve Vai. Thanks for coming to the show. Good night.

Thank you

4. Black napkins

[Instrumental]

5. Black page {The black page #2}

[Instrumental]

6. The torture never stops

[FZ] OK, calm down now. We’re now gonna perform a traditional Halloween number.

Flies all green an’ buzzin’ in his dungeon of despair

Prisoners grumble and piss their clothes and scratch their matted hair

A tiny little light from a window hole a hundred yards away

Is all they ever get to know about the regular life in the day

An’ it stinks so bad, the stones been chokin’ an’ weepin’ greenish drops

In the room where the giant fire puffer works an’ the torture never stops

The torture never stops

The torture…

The torture never stops

Slime an’ rot an’ rats an’ snot an’ vomit on the floor

Fifty ugly soldiers, man, holdin’ spears by the iron door

Knives an’ spikes an’ guns and the likes of every tool of pain

An’ a sinister midget with a bucket and a mop…

A sinister little midget with a bucket and a mop…

A sinister little midget with a bucket and a mop where the blood goes down the drain

An’ it stinks so bad, the stones been chokin’ an’ weepin’ greenish drops

In the room where the giant fire puffer works an’ the torture never stops

The torture never stops

The torture…

The torture never stops

Flies all green an’ buzzin’ in his dungeon of despair

An Evil Prince eats a steamin’ pig in a chamber right near there

He eats the snouts an’ the trotters first

The loins an’ the groins are soon dispersed

His carvin’ style is well rehearsed

He stands and shouts (That’s right!):

“All men be cursed”

And disagree (That’s right!) well, hey, no-one durst

He’s the best of course of all the worst

He’s the best of course of all the worst

Some wrong been done, he done it first

Some wrong been done, he done it first

An’ he stinks so bad, his bones been chokin’ an’ weepin’ greenish drops

In the night of the iron sausage where the torture never stops

The torture never stops

The torture…

The torture never stops

(That’s right!)

[Instrumental]

[FZ] Flies all green an’ buzzin’ in his dungeon of despair

Who are all these people that is locked away down there?

Are they crazy?

Are they sainted?

Are they zeros someone painted?

Well, it’s never been explained since at first it was created

But a dungeon, just like a sin

Requires naught but lockin’ in

Of everything that’s ever been

Look at her

Look at him

That’s what’s the deal we’re dealing in

Happy Halloween! Good night to our television audience.

Photo by John Livzey

English lyrics from site Information Is Not Knowledge.