The Last US Show

Nobody knew, not even Frank Zappa, as he led his 11 strong band through a celebratory version of “America The Beautiful” to close out his show at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, NY, on March 25th, 1988, that it would be the last time he’d ever play in the United States. Days later, the 1988 band would trek to Europe for a multi country tour, only to implode on the road before they could make it back to the States for another round of scheduled shows. Despite the growing tensions in the band, the ensemble was considered one of the best Zappa ever put together, a skilled mix of extremely talented musicians made up of both longtime members that had played with The Maestro from the early days alongside exciting new additions, bolstered by his favorite new instrument, the Synclavier. A well oiled machine armed with an extensive 100 song repertoire, the adroit band were equally as adept at playing Zappa’s complex and challenging, genre defying songs as they were performing classical compositions by the likes of Bartók, Ravel and Stravinsky.

On June 18th, 2021, Zappa’s historic, final American show will be released for the 1st time as the new live album, "Zappa 88 : The Last US Show" via Zappa Records and Universal Music. The 1st posthumous archival release from the 1988 touring band, the album features 29 unreleased performances including 2 additional performances from the same tour. Zappa’s wild interpretations of the Allman Brothers Band’s “Whipping Post” from the March 16th show in Providence, RI, and Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway To Heaven” from the March 23rd Towson, MD, show. The record is also notable for containing the 1st official release of the much talked about “The Beatles Medley”.