Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa (1940-1993) was an avant-garde rock musician, guitar player, and composer. His music spanned a wide range of genres, though he is perhaps best known for his distinctive guitar-driven jams. His 1986 album "Jazz from Hell" won the Grammy Award for "Best Rock Instrumental Performance."
Social satire played a central role in nearly all of his music, and he heaped his scorn equally on all sides. His landmark album "We're only in it for the money", released in the midst of 1967's "Summer of Love" is as equally condescending towards the hippie culture itself as what they were railing against.
A self described "practical conservative," Zappa was a libertarian politically and came close to running on the Libertarian Party ticket in the 1988 Presidential Election. He was critical of anything he considered conformist, from organized religion to the hippie culture that was ascendant around the same time his music began to be. He is also notable for his staunch opposition to illegal drugs, which he maintained throughout his life (though, being a libertarian, he still considered drug legalization a necessary policy).
He died of prostate cancer in 1993.
