Banned From Utopia, featuring legendary Frank Zappa alumni Ray White, Bobby Martin and Scott Thunes, will be touring North America with The Paul Green Rock Academy this summer starting in July. The We Love Zappa Tour celebrates the music of Frank Zappa from all eras.
Banned From Utopia was formed in 1994 to keep the true spirit of Frank Zappa’s music alive. Covering a variety of Zappa songs, the ensemble lovingly recreates the eclectic virtuoso approach of their former band leader.
Tour dates:
July
4 - Lyndhurst NJ - Town Square Bandshell
5 - Hudson Falls NY - The Strand Theatre
6 - Cleveland OH - Beachland Ballroom
10 - St. Louis MO - City Winery St. Louis
11 - Milwaukee WI - Shank Hall
12 - Chicago IL - Martyr’s
13 - Ft. Wayne IN - Sweetwater HQ
14 - Cincinnati OH - Ludlow Garage
16 - Pittsburgh PA - City Winery Pittsburgh
17 - Asheville NC - The Grey Eagle
19 - Nashville TN - City Winery Nashville
20 - Charlotte NC - Visulite Theater
21 - Atlanta GA - City Winery Atlanta
23 - Lansing WV - Burrito Bar at Breeze Hill
25 - Rutherford NJ - Williams Center for the Arts
26 - New Haven CT - Toad’s Place
27 - Pawtucket RI - Met Café
28 - Pawling NY - Daryl’s House
30 - Montgomery NY - City Winery Montgomery
August
1 - Westport CT - Westport Library
2 - Boston MA - City Winery Boston
3 - Brattleboro VT - Stone Church
4 - Ardmore PA - Ardmore Music Hall
Banned From Utopia:
Ray White - vocals, guitar
One of the most powerful and distinctive voices that ever graced a Zappa vocal, Ray White. Ray White’s distinctive, powerful voice was first heard interpreting Zappa’s music in 1976. From that beginning, he became an integral member of Frank’s band through 1984, and can be seen on the DVD recorded the summer of that year in New York, Does Humor Belong In Music? A former member of the Edwin Hawkins Singers gospel group, he also brings a solid R&B guitar style to the blend, both as a rhythm player and as a soloist. Looking towards future creative endeavors with Banned From Utopia, Ray is also a gifted writer and lyricist
Robert Martin - vocals, keyboards, saxophone, French horn
Keyboards, horns, and of course, the voice that always made Frank smile, Robert Martin brings it all. Robert (Bobby) Martin joined Frank Zappa in 1981 and sang and played various instruments on every tour from then on, through the final tour in 1988. In addition to the diverse sonic palette Robert brought to the band with his multi-instrumental skills, Zappa relied heavily on Robert’s unique vocal power and range to enhance the variety of musical styles Frank explored in all his performances. In any moment, Frank might switch from heavy metal to classic Doo Wop, or anything in between, and Robert would be right there..
Scott Thunes - guitar, vocals
Scott Thunes played with Zappa’s band from 1981 to 1988, and plays on such albums as The Man From Utopia, Them or Us, Broadway the Hard Way, “ou Can’t Do That on Stage Anymore, Does Humor Belong In Music?, The Best Band You Never Heard In Your Life, Frank Zappa Meets the Mothers of Prevention, Ship Arriving Too Late to Save a Drowning Witch, Make a Jazz Noise Here, and Guitar, a double-album compilation of Zappa’s live guitar solos. His most prominent bass performance can be heard on Frank Zappa's “Valley Girl,” which peaked at #32 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Robbie Mangano - guitar, vocals
Robbie has performed with Zappa Tribute band Project/Object, playing bass and guitar with members of Frank Zappa’s band, and embarked on his first tour and first overseas gigs through that ensemble. Soon after he would begin touring with more Zappa alumni in The Grandmothers Of Invention. Most recently he has toured with Sean Lennon & Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger.
Jamie Kime - guitar
Jamie Kime has performed and recorded with Dweezil Zappa’s Zappa Plays Zappa project from 2006 until 2012. More recently, he did a European tour with The Banned From Utopia. Earlier this year, Jamie Kime recorded his very first solo album: Alleys. Some standout moments include gigs with The Boneshakers (feat. Texas blues/soul legend Malford Milligan), Jewel, the original lineup of a Zappa Plays Zappa - with whom he collected a Grammy Award in 2009, the Los Angeles Philharmonic for the World Premiere of Frank Zappa’s 200 Motels Orchestral Suites in 2013, and rock legend Dr. John. The Jamie Kime Group performs on the first Monday of every month at the world-famous Baked Potato in Studio City, CA.
Joel Taylor - drums
Joel Taylor has toured or recorded with artists such as Greg Howe, Brian Bromberg, Mike Garson, Al Di Meola, Frank Gambale, Allan Holdsworth, Banned From Utopia, and appears on Yanni's live concert video Tribute.
The Paul Green Rock Academy
The Paul Green Rock Academy (PGRA) is the latest music program from School of Rock founder Paul Green. From the very beginning of his teaching career Paul has taught the music of Frank Zappa, calling it “one stop shopping for musical education.”
While co-headlong the German Zappa festival Zappanale in 2023 Paul and his students got to see Banned From Utopia in action, and vice versa, and an instant bond was formed between the acts.
Watch The Paul Green Rock Academy plays Zappa at Zappanale!
The students of PGRA are honored to be going on this tour with BFU and will learn so much from the experience, while also thrilling audiences with their own fiery renditions of Zappa classics and deep cuts.
For more information, visit bannedfromutopia.com.
