On December 4, 1971 Frank Zappa and the Mothers were at the best place around / But some stupid with a flare gun burned the place to the ground

On December 4, 1971, Montreux Casino burned down during a concert by Frank Zappa after a fan had set the venue on fire with a flare gun. Claude Nobs saved several young people who, thinking they would be sheltered from the flames, had hidden in the casino from the blaze. A recording of the outbreak and fire announcement can be found on a Frank Zappa Bootleg album titled "Swiss Cheese / Fire".

The Mothers of Invention

 

This is the complete recording of the entire concert, from the intro to the sounds of the fire burning the casino and the band's equipment.


Band: 
Frank Zappa, Mark Volman, Howard Kaylan, Jim Pons, Ian Underwood, Don Preston, Aynsley Dunbar. 
Tracks: 
Intro, Peaches En Regalia, Tears Began To Fall, She Painted Up Her Face, 
Half A Dozen Provocative Squats, Call Any Vegetable, Anyway The Wind Blows, 
Magdalena, Dog Breath, Sofa Suite, Pound For A Brown, Sleeping In A Jar, Wonderful Wino, Sharleena, Cruisin' For Burgers, King Kong (interrupted by fire).

Deep Purple - Smoke on the Water .mp3

Found at bee mp3 search engine

The song "Smoke on the Water" by English rock group Deep Purple is about the incident:

"We all came out to Montreux on the Lake Geneva shoreline / To make records with a mobile - We didn't have much time / Frank Zappa and the Mothers were at the best place around / But some stupid with a flare gun burned the place to the ground / Smoke on the water, fire in the sky... " Visit Deep Purple official site - http://www.deeppurple.com/