Apostrophe (') (studio album) by Frank Zappa

Apostrophe (') by Frank Zappa
Year: 1974
Overall rank: 1,168th   Overall chart historyOverall chart history
Average Rating: 
81/100 (from 446 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution   Average rating historyAverage rating history
Accolades:
Award Top albums of 1974 (22nd)
Award Top albums of the 1970s (241st)
Award Best albums of all time (1,168th)
Product Details
Availability

eBay
eBay
FRANK ZAPPA APOSTROPHE 50TH ANNIVERSARY 5 Disc + Blu-ray Audio Limited Edition!
Condition: Brand New


eBay
eBay
Frank Zappa - Apostrophe [New Vinyl LP]
Condition: New


eBay
eBay
SEALED Frank Zappa Apostrophe YELLOW SNOW vinyl BONUS 7” hot rats fits all money
Condition: New


  My favourite store:  

Frank Zappa bestography

Apostrophe (') is ranked 2nd best out of 122 albums by Frank Zappa on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Frank Zappa is Hot Rats which is ranked number 225 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 7,257.

Frank Zappa album bestography « Higher ranked (225th) This album (1,168th) Lower ranked (2,477th) »
Hot RatsApostrophe (')Sheik Yerbouti

Upcoming concerts

Jul
15
Tue
18:00
CARNIFEX "HELL CHOSE ME 15 YEAR ANNIVERSARY TOUR"
Mercury Ballroom, Louisville, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jul
12
Sat
19:30
Classic Stones Live
Birchmere, Alexandria, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Jul
10
Thu
21:30
An Evening with David Nail
Music Farm, Charleston, United States. United States
Tickets from Ticketmaster Get tickets
 
Discover more upcoming concerts

Listen to Apostrophe (') on YouTube

Loading content from YouTube...

Apostrophe (') track list

  Track ratingsTrack ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 83 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

Sort by
#
Track
Rating/Comments
2.
Rating: 85 (93 votes)Comments: 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
5.
Track pick
Rating: 86 (100 votes)Comments: 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
7.
Track pick
Rating: 86 (95 votes)Comments: 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
8.
Rating: 84 (91 votes)Comments: 3
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
9.
Rating: 82 (75 votes)Comments: 1
  • Amazon Music
  • iTunes
  • Spotify

Track pick Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Apostrophe (') rankings

Apostrophe (') collection

Apostrophe (') ratings

Average Rating: 
81/100 (from 446 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 446 ratings for this album.

Sort ratings
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 Report rating
4 days ago thepardunk  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 2,33970/100
 
85/100
 Report rating
06/08/2025 02:06 CokeBabies  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 52983/100
 
85/100
 Report rating
05/31/2025 15:26 davidhuret  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,96176/100
 
75/100
 Report rating
03/19/2025 04:10 Herdandhokies  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 17956/100
 
90/100
 Report rating
03/18/2025 14:45 spigelwii  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 53085/100

Rating metrics: Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 81.3/100, a mean average of 80.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 81.5/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.8.

Please log in or register if you want to be able to leave a rating

Apostrophe (') comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 15 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Maximum Rated First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
80/100
From 04/06/2022 00:56
This album is full of some phenomenal instrumental performances that create some truly unique and great songs. An example of this is on Cosmik Debris where at around the 2 minute mark we are treated to a brilliant guitar solo which always puts me into awe. There are several more moments like this and not just on guitar as well which are scattered all across the music. Instrumentally, it is extremely diverse and all of them are used very effectively. Zappa definitely tried to make this record a bit more accessible to mainstream audiences and it works very well in my opinion. The sound is so infectious and his musical timing is perfect. He also maintains his little nuances of abstractness and his crazy lyrics that make him the unique artist he is. All of this combines to create an album that could only be crafted by Zappa. There are a couple weak points on this album in my opinion and they mainly come from the shorter tracks. They feel a little slow to me and like their only purpose is to build up to the next song, except for Uncle Remus which is great. Overall, he has better albums but this one is very enjoyable and has some genius tracks which always draw me back time and time again.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
65/100
From 02/06/2022 10:42
A little more accessible than some of his works. It is a shame a lot (most) of his work is overshadowed by crudity, innuendo and utter tosh. No, I am not a prude, just a lover of really good music and thankfully there is some really good music on this album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 04/26/2019 14:57
Experimental, debochado e, de sua forma, hilário!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 10/29/2018 22:02
best Zappa record
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
60/100
From 09/16/2018 11:52
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -4 votes (0 helpful | 4 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 08/21/2018 13:18
Decided it was my favorite Zappa album a long time ago. Hasn't changed
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 06/21/2016 13:08
One of the most consistent Frank Zappa albums of the seventies(along with, bongo fury, and, zoot allures). Still sounds like nothing and no one else. Great googly woogly.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 09/29/2015 05:40
This album never bores me. It may be his most commercial, but it is still very musical and comical. There are a handful of people who could write a line like "He took a dog-doo snow cone and stuffed it in my right eye," and make it groove. And Zappa made it groove indeed.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (6 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 10/18/2013 18:20
His most commercial album, but that doesn't mean it's not good. Never boring.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 05/07/2012 22:44
Yet another solid record by this genius.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Please log in or register if you want to be able to add a comment

Your feedback for Apostrophe (')

Anonymous
Let us know what you think of this album by adding a comment or assigning a rating below!
Log in or register to assign a rating or leave a comment for this album.
Best Albums of 1974
1. Red by King Crimson
2. On The Beach by Neil Young
3. The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway by Genesis
4. Crime Of The Century by Supertramp
5. Rock Bottom by Robert Wyatt
6. Court And Spark by Joni Mitchell
7. Here Come The Warm Jets by Eno
8. Sheer Heart Attack by Queen
9. A Tábua De Esmeralda by Jorge Ben
10. Diamond Dogs by David Bowie
11. Queen II by Queen
12. Mirage by Camel
13. Radio City by Big Star
14. Pretzel Logic by Steely Dan
15. Kimono My House by Sparks
16. Autobahn by Kraftwerk
17. Fulfillingness' First Finale by Stevie Wonder
18. I Want To See The Bright Lights Tonight by Richard & Linda Thompson
19. No Other by Gene Clark
20. Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy) by Eno
Back to Top