History
Miss Pamela and Miss Sparky met while attending Cleveland High School. Miss Christine had travelled to Los Angeles from San Pedro with Miss Sandra, and both lived in the basement of Frank Zappa's log cabin in the mid-1960s. Miss Christine was the live-in nanny for Zappa's eldest two children, Dweezil and Moon Unit, before Miss Pamela took over the position during the late 1960s. Miss Mercy had emigrated from the Haight Ashbury hippie scene to LA due to "boredom", alleging she "couldn't be a hippie forever." Miss Cynderella was an addition to the group brought by Mercy after the nucleus of the group had been formed. This accounts for Cynderella's presence in some, but not all of the GTOs' publicity shots. Miss Lucy was also not an original member and joined after the recording of Permanent Damage.
Originally known as "The Laurel Canyon Ballet Company," they changed their name to The GTOs on the advice of Frank Zappa, their financial supporter and producer. The new name is an acronym which, as Stanley Booth wrote, could mean "Girls Together Outrageously or Orally or anything else starting with O." The acronym has also been defined as “Girls Together Occasionally”, “Girls Together Often” and “Girls Together Only”. Miss Lucy stated in a filmed interview that the latter name is what it stood for.
The members were connected by their association with Zappa, a complex musician who encouraged their artistic endeavors, despite their limited vocal skills. Performances by the group were infrequent, although they created a strong impression at their 1968 performance at the Shrine Auditorium. A mix of theatrics, singing, and dance were staples of their act. Their only album, Permanent Damage, (Straight Records) was produced in 1969 by Frank Zappa with the assistance of Lowell George and Russ Titelman (tracks 7 and 11). The latter track also features Titelman's brother-in-law, guitarist Ry Cooder, both of whom appear on Captain Beefheart's Safe As Milk album. Track 5 "The Captain's Fat Theresa Shoes" is a GTO comment on Beefheart's taste in footwear (his cousin Victor Hayden had also effected Beefheart's introduction to Pamela Des Barres). The songs are mixed in with conversations between the members of the group, friends, and others, including Cynthia Plaster Caster and Rodney Bingenheimer. The album features songwriting contributions from Lowell George, Jeff Beck and Davy Jones. A young Rod Stewart also pops up on the vocals of one track. Permanent Damage was re-issued on CD in 1989 by Enigma Retro.
Read more about this topic: The GTOs
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