Jimmy Carl Black: Drummer and vocalist with The Mothers of Invention

"Hi boys and girls, I'm Jimmy Carl Black, and I'm the Indian of the group". This was how the drummer and occasional singer with the original line-up of The Mothers of Invention would introduce himself on stage and on record. Led by the guitarist, composer and singer Frank Zappa, this incarnation of the Mothers, as they were known, to the dismay of their record label MGM, released five ground-breaking albums and three compilations between 1966 and 1970. Zappa and his cohorts waged "a war against apathy", asking "Who Are The Brain Police?" on their 1966 debut album, the double-set Freak Out! Then, when all around them were singing about peace and love, they turned on the hippies and took a caustic, contrary stance with We're Only in it for the Money in 1968. Not only did the lyrics to "Who Needs The Peace Corps?" lampoon the... [read full story]