Zappa experts - what's the song "Yo Cats" about?

[Rabrrrrrr]

I was just listening to it - haven't listened to Meets the Mothers of Prevention since it came out. Totally forgot about this song.

It certainly seems to about the rates being charged by unionized session players who game the system.

But is it about a particular player? The name Arlyn is featured, and mention is made of brass instruments, which makes me wonder if there was a specific session player that Zappa had to deal with that inspired this ditty.

Do you know?

[Rabrrrrrr]

1. Kicking for the night crew

[MilesColtrane]

2. I don't think this tune is about any particular musician.

It just reflects his disdain for the in group of LA session players he was dealing with.

Arlyn's and Your Girl are answering services based in Holywood that were used by many of the first call studio musicians.

Zappa was virulently anti-union, I'm guessing, because he thought that their rules regarding compensation hamstrung him from getting his music performed, and because he thought they rewarded mediocrity.

Interviewer: "So you think that the musician's union is holding back you and other artists?"

Zappa: "No! I think all unions are. I don't mind saying that I am anti-union. The union mentality has affected the arts drastically in the United States. The worst example would be the stage hands union, which in many instances earns more than the musicians who are playing."

http://wiki.killuglyradio.com/wiki/Unions

[Rabrrrrrr]

3. Yeah, he really went off in unions in his book, too.

Complaining, quite rightly, about how his crew always did all the work and whatever unionized theater workers were at his venue didn't have to do anything, and since he recorded all his shows, the special union wage for recording was 3x higher... he had to pay a bunch of people three times their normal rate for doing absolutely nothing but eating the catered food he was required to offer.

I'm very pro union (without them, EVERYONE would be screwed), but that's pretty fucking crazy.

[hifiguy]

4. FZ had a particular hatred for the orchestral musicians' union

His orchestral music was dense and difficult - to say the least - hard to play, and the musicians' union rules were pretty out there. If a session ran ten minutes long, the musos would each get paid for a full hour extra and when you're dealing with an orchestra of 80-100 pieces that gets insanely expensive.

Some of his beefs were legit, and others were not.

[CBGLuthier]

5. Typical Libertarian Viewpoints

I like his music but his philosophy sucked.