I Shot Frank Zappa: My Life In Photography

This is the autobiography of Robert Davidson, who shot to fame with his iconic photograph of Frank Zappa with his trousers around his ankles, on the loo, chatting to his wife on the phone. Known as the 'Zappa Krappa', these pictures gained cult status, as Zappa himself famously said, "I'm probably more famous for sitting on the toilet than for anything else."

On 16th August 1967, 25-year-old Robert Davidson was at The Royal Garden Hotel with band promoter Tony Secunda as part of a press call for Frank Zappa's upcoming concert at the Royal Albert Hall – a day that would change his life forever. It was swelteringly hot, and the room was heaving with press. Zappa disappeared to go to the bathroom. Wandering around the penthouse apartment, looking for a photo opportunity, Robert found Zappa, stripped, with his trousers around his ankles, sitting on the loo and chatting to his wife Gail on the phone. The open doorway framed the shot perfectly. It was too good to miss. Robert asked permission to take some photos, with Zappa reportedly saying to his wife, "Some limey wants to take my picture on the John. Sure, whatever turns him on." This set of images immediately gained cult status, a sentiment echoed by Zappa himself in 1983, when he stated, "I'm probably more famous for sitting on the toilet than for anything else." Despite one of the photographs becoming a worldwide bestselling poster, Robert never received any royalties.

I Shot Frank Zappa chronicles Robert's efforts over the years to reclaim copyright and ownership of the negatives, and in the process takes the reader on a journey through the drug-fuelled Swinging Sixties of London up to the current day, where characters like the Kray twins, models Twiggy and Celia Hammond, and later Kate Moss, trip lightly over the pages. It is not just a story about stolen copyright; it describes a man’s personal journey and his struggle to balance the demands of family life with failing mental health. I Shot Frank Zappa is a tale of serendipity and redemption and the refusal to give up when the world seems against you, all seen through Robert’s eyes, which filter events with warmth and humanity, much like the lens of the camera behind which he prefers to hide.