TODAY I LEARNED: The song “smoke on the water”, is about Frank Zappa?

Um, he’s mentioned in the lyrics, yeah.

Are you sure it wasn't Willey Nelson?

Not FZ specifically but a fan attending his concert fired a flare gun that burnt down the casino and the destruction of Frank's equipment.

Additional fun fact: Frank complained about the "Parental advisory- explicit lyrics" warning label, likening it to "Using a guillotine to treat dandruff". In response, they hit his next album with the label.

Perhaps you doubt that. Perhaps you think I'm exaggerating; that they gave it that label because they truly thought that the lyrics WERE obscene. But no. That album- Jazz From Hell, if you're wondering- did NOT have explicit lyrics, because it didn't have ANY lyrics; it's instrumental.

It's about some stupid with a flare gun.