Frank Zappa: A Token Of His Extreme

Frank Zappa: A Token of his Extreme is the 1974 television special recorded at Kcet in Hollywood that was produced by Zappa and aired only in France and Switzerland. The program, as thoroughly tweezed and produced by Zappa for his own Honker Home Video label, includes the following musical performances by Zappa and his band: T”he Dog Breath Variations/ Uncle Meat,” “Montana,” “Florentine Pogen,” “Stink-Foot,” “Pygmy Twylyte,” “Room Service,” “Inca Roads,” “Oh No,” Son of Orange County,” “More Trouble Every Day” and “A Token of My Extreme.” In the words of Zappa himself as he said it on The Mike Douglas Show in 1976, “This is put together with my own money and my own time and it’s been offered to television networks and to syndication and it has been steadfastly rejected by the American television industry.

Directed by Dick Darley, Frank Zappa: A Token Of His Extreme leans on a strong ensemble — Frank Zappa, Napoleon Murphy Brock, George Duke — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about music titles of 2013.