Freak Out! (1966) is the debut studio album by the American rock band the Mothers of Invention. One of rock music's first concept albums, it is a satirical expression of frontman Frank Zappa's perception of American pop culture. It was also one of the earliest double albums in rock music. It features Zappa on vocals and guitar, along with lead vocalist and tambourine player Ray Collins, bass player and vocalist Roy Estrada, drummer-vocalist Jimmy Carl Black and guitar player Elliot Ingber, who later joined Captain Beefheart's Magic Band under the name Winged Eel Fingerling. The musical content of Freak Out! ranges from rhythm and blues, doo-wop and standard blues-influenced rock to orchestral arrangements and avant-garde sound collages. The album was a success in Europe; in the United States, it was poorly received at first, but gradually gained a cult following. In 1999, the album was honored with the Grammy Hall of Fame Award, and in 2003, Rolling Stone ranked it among the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freak_Out!

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1794:

The United States and Great Britain signed the Jay Treaty, the basis for ten years of peaceful trade between the two nations. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jay_Treaty

1863:

American Civil War: U.S. President Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address at the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gettysburg_Address

1942:

World War II: Soviet troops launched Operation Uranus at the Battle of Stalingrad, with the goal of encircling Axis forces, turning the tide of the battle in the Soviet Union's favour. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Uranus

1969:

Playing for Santos against Vasco da Gama in Rio de Janeiro, Brazilian footballer Pelé scored his one thousandth goal. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pel%C3%A9

2010:

The first of four explosions occurred at the Pike River Mine in the West Coast region of New Zealand in the nation's worst mining disaster in nearly a century. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pike_River_Mine_disaster

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

ruff: 1. A circular frill or ruffle on a garment, especially a starched, fluted frill at the neck in Elizabethan and Jacobean England (1560s–1620s). 2. Anything formed with plaits or flutings like a frill. 3. Senses relating to animals. 4. Philomachus pugnax (syn. Calidris pugnax), a gregarious, medium-sized wading bird of Eurasia; specifically, a male of the species which develops a distinctive ruff of feathers and ear tufts during mating season (the female is called a reeve). 5. (ornithology) A set of lengthened or otherwise modified feathers on or around the neck of a bird. 6. (zoology) A collar of lengthened or distinctively coloured fur on or around the neck of an animal. 7. (engineering) A collar on a shaft or other piece to prevent endwise motion. 8. (obsolete) An exhibition of haughtiness or pride. 9. (obsolete) Tumultuous or wanton conduct or procedure. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ruff

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Sections and races should be forgotten and partisanship should be unknown. Let our people find a new meaning in the divine oracle which declares that "a little child shall lead them", for our own little children will soon control the destinies of the Republic.   --James A. Garfield https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/James_A._Garfield