Touch Me There

Touch Me There is a 1979 album by L. Shankar (credited as "Shankar"). Shankar performed acoustic and 5-string Barcus Berry electric violin, string orchestra, and provided vocals on the track "Knee Deep in Heaters." Shankar composed all the music for the album, except on two tracks which he composed music with Frank Zappa, and further served as an arranger and orchestrator on the record. The album was produced by Frank Zappa who also served as the album's lyricist and who co-wrote, with Shankar, the music for the tracks "Dead Girls of London" and "No More Mr. Nice Girl."

The song "Dead Girls of London" was released as a 12" maxi single on September 24, 1979.

In the final version of the song, "Dead Girls Of London" the lyrics are sung by Zappa and collaborator Ike Willis. Vicky Blumenthal provides the chorus on "Dead Girls Of London," "Knee-Deep In Heaters," and "No More Mr. Nice Girl," while Jenny Lautrec sings the lyrics to the album's title track, "Touch Me There," and Shankar himself sings the lyrics to the album's final track, "Knee-Deep In Heaters."

The lyrics for the album's opening track, "Dead Girls Of London" were originally supposed to be sung by Van Morrison, but since Morrison was signed to the Warner Bros. Records record label who Zappa was in a legal dispute with at the time, Zappa was unable to release the song on his label with Morrison's vocals, and so they were re-recorded (this early version did appear on Frank Zappa bootlegs, such as "Another Cheap Aroma").^[2]

The album was reissued on CD by Barking Pumpkin Records in 1992.

1 Track listing
- 1.1 Original vinyl release
- 1.2 CD reissue
2 Personnel
3 Production
4 References
5 External links

[edit] Track listing

[edit] Original vinyl release

(Zappa Records, 1979)

Side One:

Dead Girls Of London (L. Shankar: Music, Frank Zappa: Lyrics, music) – 5:23
Windy Morning (Shankar: Music) – 3:57
Knee Deep in Heaters (Shankar: Music, F. Zappa: Lyrics) – 5:38
Little Stinker (Shankar: Music) – 3:20

Side Two:

Darlene (Shankar: Music) – 2:56
Touch Me There (Shankar: Music, F. Zappa: Lyrics) – 3:03
No More Mr. Nice Girl (Shankar, F. Zappa) – 8:16
Love Gone Away (Shankar: Music) – 3:33

[edit] CD reissue

(Barking Pumpkin Records, 1992)

Dead Girls Of London (L. Shankar: Music, Frank Zappa: Lyrics, music) – 5:23
Little Stinker (Shankar: Music) – 3:20
Touch Me There (Shankar: Music, F. Zappa: Lyrics) – 3:03
No More Mr. Nice Girl (Shankar, F. Zappa)– 8:16
Love Gone Away (Shankar: Music) – 3:33
Darlene (Shankar: Music) – 2:56
Windy Morning (Shankar: Music) – 3:57
Knee-Deep in Heaters (Shankar: Music, F. Zappa: Lyrics) – 5:38

[edit] Personnel

L. Shankar – Acoustic violin, 5 string Barcus Berry electric violin and string orchestra. Vocals on "Knee Deep in Heaters"
Phil Palmer - Mandolin, acoustic and electric guitars
Dave Marquee - Bass
Simon Phillips - Drums
James Lascelles - Fender rhodes, organ, acoustic piano, synthesizer
Jack Emblow - Accordion on "No More Mr. Nice Girl"
Stucco Holmes - Vocals on "Dead Girls of London"
Vicky Blumenthal - Chorus on "Dead Girls of London," "Knee Deep in Heaters," "No More Mr. Nice Girl"
Jenny Lautrec - Vocals on "Touch Me There"

[edit] Production

L. Shankar - Basic arrangement for "Little Stinker," "Love Gone Away" and "Darlene". Recording arrangement and orchestration for "Love Gone Away"
Ron Frangipane - Basic arrangement except on "Little Stinker" and "Darlene." Recording arrangement and orchestration for "Love Gone Away"
Frank Zappa - Producer, recording arrangements and orchestration except on "Love Gone Away"
Geoff Young - Engineer
Peter Wooldiscroft - Tape Operator
Steve Nye - Engineer
Tim Cuthbertson - Tape Operator
Mick Glossop - Engineer
Alan Douglas - Tape Operator
Carol Friedman - Cover design & photography
Jonathan Pite - Photographer's assistant