As close as anyone has come to a definitive greatest hits set, Strictly Commercial manages to encapsulate much, if not most, of a career that deliberately defied any such attempts. This is the most accessible single collection of Zappa's music available, containing familiar ditties such as "Don't Eat The Yellow Snow," "Joe's Garage," and the radio hit, "Valley Girl." Those skeptical of his guitar work will most certainly find the included selections, "Sexual Harassment in the Workplace," "I'm the Slimeand," "Muffin Man" to be educational. Excellent for whetting the appetites of potential Zappa fanatics. --Andrew Boscardin
Review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine
For all of his many attributes, one thing Frank Zappa most certainly was not is commercial. Presumably, the title of this collection is ironic. Strictly Commercial: The Best of Frank Zappa is a compilation not of the composer's hits -- he only broke the Top 40 on one occasion, with "Valley Girl" -- but rather, a collection of his best-known material, from "Don't Eat the Yellow Snow" to "Sexual Harassment in the Workplace." Zappa's albums often function as individual works, but this disc offers an intelligent selection of songs, serving as an introduction to the maverick musician.
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