When Zappa in New York was first released on CD, it was a bit of a mixed bag for longtime fans who'd heard the album on its original vinyl. The bonus tracks were great, but they were edited into the flow of the existing album, creating some jarring or "wrong" edits for fans who already knew the album cold. Then there was the fact that it wasn't the same mix; also slightly disorienting. This set finally remedies that situation. Disc 1 of this set is the entire original vinyl mix of Zappa in New York (never before on CD), exactly as you remember it from vinyl, with all the edits and applause outros intact. It sounds fantastic. The next three discs are alternate takes from Zappa's four-night stand at the Palladium, newly mixed by Craig Parker Adams. Some of these are full performances from a single show and some are hybrid performances from different nights. They all sound wonderful and there are many highlights. As opposed to the version of "The Torture Never Stops" on the previous CD release, where Zappa runs through a number of different guitar effects during his solo, on this take we get a ripping, "Rat-Tomago"-esque solo. There's an excellent "Peaches en Regalia" and great instrumental versions of "Penis Dimension" and "America Drinks," with really nice horn charts. There's also another take on "Sofa," where Lou Marini's alto solo is quite different and there are no guitar overdubs. There's a fascinating short take on "The Purple Lagoon" that has a fully orchestrated instrumental, "Any Kind of Pain," inserted -- a song that wouldn't make another appearance until 1988! It's a bit of shame that we can't see Don Pardo's dancing during "I'm the Slime." And how do you keep a bunch of serious jazz horns happy while they're backing a rock show? Give them lots of solo space! So that's what you get on tunes like "Black Napkins," "Pound for a Brown," "Purple Lagoon," and even the alternate "Illinois Enema Bandit." Additionally, on "Pound for a Brown," Zappa manipulates the speed of his digital delay during his solo that has rarely, if ever, been heard before. There is no overlap of the bonus tracks from the previous CD issue until you get to the fifth disc, "Bonus Vault Content." There are some of the bonus tracks from the previous issue, but in superior mixes that Zappa did back in 1977, as well as an unused "Punky's Whips," also mixed by Zappa in 1977. These tracks are bookended by solo piano versions of "The Black Page," performed respectively by Tommy Mars in 1978 and Ruth Underwood (on piano!) in 2017. This set not only restores a treasured album to its original mix, but adds great bonus material and some real surprises. It also really showcases another one of Zappa's powerhouse bands, and it's a can't-miss for fans. ~ Sean Westergaard