"Cheepnis" is a song by

Frank Zappa Frank Vincent Zappa (December 21, 1940 – December 4, 1993) was an American musician, composer, and bandleader. His work is characterized by wikt:nonconformity, nonconformity, Free improvisation, free-form improvisation, sound experimen ...

and

The Mothers The Mothers of Invention (also known as The Mothers) was an American rock band from California. Formed in 1964, their work is marked by the use of sonic experimentation, innovative album art, and elaborate live shows. Originally an R&B band c ...

, which is a tribute to low-budget monster movies. The song first appeared on Zappa's 1974 live album ''

Roxy & Elsewhere ''Roxy & Elsewhere '' is a double live album by Frank Zappa and The Mothers, released on September 10, 1974. Most of the songs were recorded on December 8, 9 and 10, 1973 at The Roxy Theatre in Hollywood, California. Overview The material taken f ...

''. On the Roxy recording Zappa introduces the song with a spoken monologue about his love of the 1956 film ''

It Conquered The World ''It Conquered the World'' is an independently made 1956 American black-and-white science fiction film, produced and directed by Roger Corman, starring Peter Graves, Lee Van Cleef, Beverly Garland, and Sally Fraser. ''It Conquered the World'' was ...

'' and horror movies in general. Zappa also says that "cheapness, in the case of a monster movie, has nothing to do with the budget of the film, although it helps".

Description

The lyrics describe a monster, named "Frunobulax", a very large poodle dog. The poodle is a recurring theme in Zappa songs and is an example of "conceptual continuity" in his work. In ''

The Real Frank Zappa Book ''The Real Frank Zappa Book'' is an autobiography/memoir by Frank Zappa, co-written by Peter Occhiogrosso, and published by Poseidon Press. The text is copyright 1989 Frank Zappa, and copyright 1990 Simon & Schuster, Inc. Since 1999, the book has ...

'', Zappa reveals that Frunobulax was inspired by his pet sheepdog Fruney. Cheepnis was also a part of Zappa's unreleased "Hunchentoot" stage musical written in 1972. This show also included tracks later released on ''

The Grand Wazoo ''The Grand Wazoo'' is the eighth studio album by Frank Zappa and The Mothers, released in November 1972. It was written and recorded during Zappa's period of convalescence after being assaulted in December 1971 in London, UK. Overview Along wi ...

'' (1972) and ''

Sleep Dirt ''Sleep Dirt'' is an album by Frank Zappa released in January 1979, on his own DiscReet Records label. It reached #175 on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart in the United States. Zappa's original title for the album was ''Hot Rats III''. As the ...

'' (1979). Another live version of Cheepnis was released on '' You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 2''. The song is mentioned in the '' Book of the SubGenius''.

References

External links

Song info
Frank Zappa songs 1974 songs Songs written by Frank Zappa Song recordings produced by Frank Zappa {{1970s-song-stub