Them or Us

Personnel: Frank Zappa, Ray White, Ike Willis (vocals, guitar); Bobby Martin (vocals, harmonica, saxophone, keyboards); George Duke (vocals, piano); Johnny "Guitar" Watson, Napoleon Murphy Brock, Moon Zappa, Bob Harris (vocals); Steve Vai, Dweezil Zappa (guitar); Brad Cole (piano); Tommy Mars (keyboards); Scott Thunes (Moog synthesizer, bass); Patrick O'Hearn, Arthur Barrow (bass); Chad Wackerman (drums); Ed Mann (percussion); Roy Estrada, Thana Harris (background vocals).
THEM OR US is comparable in many ways to 1981's YOU ARE WHAT YOU IS. They were both double albums later released as a single CD, each featuring a wide variety of styles and containing similar-sounding production (very '80s). If you're a fan of Zappa's thought provoking, impeccably played '80s work, THEM OR US is highly recommended. The album proved to be the last studio recording that actively involved guitarist Steve Vai.
Zappa always had a soft spot in his heart for late '50s doo-wop, and he starts the album off with a cover of the golden oldie "The Closer You Are" (which includes an impressive vocal harmony courtesy of Mr. Zappa himself). But not all of THEM OR US is retro--there is plenty of Zappa's trademark musical dementia to go around. "In France" features one of Frank's musical heroes, legendary guitarist Johnny "Guitar" Watson on vocals, and is one of the album's many humorous tracks (along with "Baby, Take Your Teeth Out," "Frogs With Dirty Little Lips," etc.). The best track has to be the guitar duel "Stevie's Spanking," which features Vai and Zappa's son Dweezil trading off impressive guitar lines at the song's end.