orig. Francis Vincent Zappa
born Dec. 21, 1940, Baltimore, Md., U.S.
died Dec. 4, 1993, Los Angeles, Calif.
U.S. rock musician and composer.
Zappa grew up in California and taught himself drums and guitar. He wrote film scores in the early 1960s. In 1964 he began working with the Soul Giants, who eventually became the Mothers of Invention. He became known for his musical virtuosity and wildly eccentric wit on albums such as Freak Out! (1966), We're Only in It for the Money (1967), Lumpy Gravy (1967), Absolutely Free (1967), Sheik Yerbouti (1979), and Jazz from Hell (1988). His greatest commercial success was "Valley Girl" (1982), featuring his daughter Moon Unit.