Since 1967, Montreux, Switzerland, has hosted the Montreux Jazz Festival on the shores of Lake Geneva. Acclaimed acts who have performed at the festival include Neil Young, Brandi Carlile, Miles Davis, Ella Fitzgerald, David Bowie, Prince, Stevie Wonder, Herbie Hancock, and countless others. Another acclaimed name to add to that list is Frank Zappa, who, on this day, December 4, 1971, was a part of this most memorable moment in the festival’s history.
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In 1971, a few of the acts that performed during the Montreux Jazz Festival were Aretha Franklin, Yusuf Islam/Cat Stevens, Roberta Flack, and Hampton Hawes. Prior to Frank Zappa’s set, the festival was running fairly seamlessly. However, that all changed when Zappa took the stage, but he had nothing to do with the logistical nightmare and nearly tragic incident, which was a fire that destroyed the Montreux Casino.
What Happended and How It Inspired Deep Purple’s Biggest All-Time Hit
On the night of December 4, 1971, Frank Zappa and the Mothers of Invention took the stage of the Montreux Casino for their scheduled set. During an arbitrary point in the concert, a fan irresponsibly shot a flare gun at the ceiling. Consequently, a fire broke out, and everyone in the building was evacuated. Luckily, everyone walked away alive, and only several audience members walked away with minor injuries. Claude Nobs, founder of the Montreux Jazz Festival, played a pivotal role in the evacuation process, as he stuck around to help bystanders.
Unfortunately, the Montreux Casino burned down entirely. Although a song did come out of it—Deep Purple‘s all-time biggest hit, “Smoke On The Water”. Staying at a nearby hotel, the members of Deep Purple watched the fire transpire and noticed the smoke drift across the glassy water of Lake Geneva. Hence, they come up with the awfully literal name for their biggest hit of all time, which was released roughly a year after the incident and peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Four years later, in 1975, parties rebuilt the Montreux Casino, and the festival returned there. Also, weirdly enough, 22 years later on this day, Frank Zappa passed away at the age of 52 years old from Prostate cancer in Los Angeles, California. Clearly, this is a mere coincidence. Nonetheless, this day, December 4, is a notable day in rock ‘n’ roll history for these two reasons, and many, many more.
Richard E. Aaron/Redferns
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