Antonio Salas aka Billy Mundi (Sept. 25, 1942, San Francisco, California - died on March 29, 2014)
(aka Tony Schnasse)
(aka Billy (The Oozer) Mundy)
Billy Mundi was a classically trained percussionist having majored in music at UCLA. Mundi worked as a timpanist in the Los Angeles Philharmonic and worked on various sessions, including the first Tim Buckley album, before joining The Mothers on 26 August 1966, He joined The Mothers of Invention (first called Soul Giants) during the recording of Freak Out!, and provided drums for Absolutely Free, We're Only In It For The Money, Uncle Meat, Burnt Weeny Sandwich, You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 5, and Mystery Disc; also for the Beat The Boots series disk 'Tis The Season To Be Jelly (BTB). His preformance can be seen in the Zappa movies Uncle Meat (the film) & Video From Hell.
Billy was one of the Mother's two drummers. He was enticed away from that band by Jac Holzman at Elektra Records to form a group called Rhinoceros. This was super-group season. and Holzman had the idea of forming a group composed of the best musicians from touring bands of the time.
"He offered Billy Mundi a huge amount of money, a place to live, the whole package—we'll make you a star, you'll work with these top-grade musicians instead of those comedy guys, we'll make a supergroup and call it Rhinoceros. And where the fuck is Rhinoceros now? But I don't blame Billy for taking the job, because at that time we were so poor he was living in the Albert Hotel and he couldn't get enough to eat—he used to come in and tell us how he'd quell his appetite by drinking the hot water in the shower in the Albert Hotel, which could be a life endangering experience. When somebody comes up to you and says, you're going to get something to eat, and not only that, you'll be in a super-group called Rhinoceros, I couldn't even advise him to stick around." —Frank Zappa.
Regarding playing with Jimmy Carl Black, Billy said, "Jimmy and I were Frank’s answer to a percussion section that required four players, but we were only two! Besides the two drum kits, we had Timpani, bells, chimes, gongs, piccolo snare and field drum. Sometimes Jimmy was playing trumpet and sometimes I’d sing high vocals with Roy."
Mother's performance/recording history:
- The Mothers (1966) drums, percussion
- The Mothers Of Invention (late 1966-February 1967) drums, percussion
- The Mothers Of Invention (March-August 1967) drums, percussion
- The Mothers Of Invention (September-December 1967) drums, percussion
- The Mothers Of Invention (May 1970) drums, percussion
- Uncle Meat (the movie)(1987) as Rollo and also as himself
- Video From Hell (1987) as himself
- Absolutely Free (1967) drums, percussion
- We're Only In It For The Money (1968) drums, vocals
- Mothermania (1969) drums, percussion, vocals
- Uncle Meat (1969) drums
- Burnt Weeny Sandwich (1970) drums?
- The Old Masters Box One Mystery Disc (1985) drums (only vinyl version)
- You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore Vol. 5 (1992) drums
- BTB I: 'Tis The Season To Be Jelly (1991) drums
Billy came to Woodstock, New York in 1970. He played numerous recording sessions during the early 1970s there.
He spent some time working with Geoff and Maria Muldaur's group and some time with a group called Jook that included Jim Colegrove, Joe Hutchinson, and David Wilcox. The group recorded but these tracks have yet to be issued.
He also played drums touring with Great Speckled Bird in 1973 to early 1974. That same year he returned to California and toured with Maria Muldaur's band during her hit record days with Midnight at the Oasis.
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