The Mothers of Invention - Mothermania (1969)

This one is a compilation of songs from the first three Mothers of Invention records. There are some excellent picks on here, and while it has some odd choices, I could think of much worse ways people could get into the early Mothers material. It also works as a recap of slightly more accessible material before the borderline impenetrable Uncle Meat.

8/10

The Mothers of Invention - Cruising With Rueben and the Jets (1968)

Frank takes an interesting turn here with Cruising With Rueben and the Jets, which is just a full-on doo-wop/R&B record. Not even a jokey one, at that! These songs are the real deal. It opens with "Cheap Thrills", an absolutely wonderful tune. If you don't like this song, chances are you won't be a big fan of Rueben and the Jets. Then there's "Love of my Life", an amazing love song, and a contender for the best love song in his whole catalog. Then there's a decent but not fantastic reprise of "How Could I Be Such a Fool?" off of Freak Out!, and another great love song in "Deseri". Unfortunately, the record really drops off after that. There are some more remakes of songs off Freak Out! on here, but they all range from mediocre to just plain bad. There are a few good originals from then on out, such as "Jelly Roll Gum Drop" and the closer, "Stuff Up the Cracks", but it just can't keep up. A decent enough album if you're in the mood for greasy love songs and worse redos of songs from much better albums, but not one I think about or revisit often.

6/10