Review: Dweezil does the old man proud

Since his death in 1993, there's been no diminished awe where Frank Zappa is concerned. An absurd, sarcastic humorist and a genre-jumping composer whose output included avant-garde classicism, psychedelia, progressive jazz, doo-wop, musique concrète, and heavy metal, the thing that made him most magical - from a purely instrumental standpoint - was his dexterous, adventurous guitar playing. Tense, dissonant riffs with shifting time signatures or speedy, clearly plucked, note-bending solos - either way, Zappa stung and swung. In June, Dance Me This, the last album of his career, will debut through his family label, a trust watched over by son Dweezil, whose tribute, Zappa Plays Zappa, sold out the Keswick on Saturday.

The son has been covering Dad's catalog in this setting since 2006, both as genial caretaker-host and manically adroit guitarist. He doesn't ape Frank, though every cluck, blob, and piercing glissando stretch is hauntingly reminiscent of Pop's raging, tender tones. On Saturday, the mission of Zappa and his powerhouse ensemble was to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Frank's prog-rocking One Size Fits All - merrily melodic funk-jazz workouts with driving polyrhythms and choral harmonies cut by breaks signaling genre switcheroos. Every sharp turn was navigated gleefully, especially the zigzagging, nyah-nyahing "Florentine Pogen" and "Sofa," which leapt from twangy Bakersfield country to prog-punk to gospel jazz.

Saxophonist/flautist Scheila Gonzalez and brass man Ben Thomas (who tackled Frank's snarky vocals) bounced as they coursed through the boogie-down of "Can't Afford No Shoes" and the bluesy ballad "Sofa No. 2," marked by its shift into German. Through the album's nine tracks, Dweezil let loose with searing guitar leads - e.g. his delightfully blobby soliloquy of "Inca Roads" and the languid fluidity of "Andy."

Beyond One Size, ZPZ ran through a full-bore Frank history lesson. They jumped from the doo-wop of 1967's "Status Back Baby" into the goofball R&B of "Big Leg Emma," then a regal, Gil Evans-ish take on 1972's "The Grand Wazoo," complete with a skronky sax solo. Along with the epic "Carolina Hard-Core Ecstasy" and a soulful flower-power double-bill ("Son of Suzy Creamcheese," "Who Needs the Peace Corps?") there was the head-charging classicism of "Sinister Footwear," where Dweezil offered a most snake-charming solo. Frank would've been proud.