Geronimo Black was formed by former Mothers of Invention drummer Jimmy Carl Black in 1970, shortly after Frank Zappa broke up the original Mothers. Named after his youngest son (who has since grown up to be a musician himself), Geronimo Black was Black's band all the way, although he was one of two lead singers and everyone in the band contributed to the songwriting. Besides Black on drums and vocals and his Mothers bandmate Bunk Gardner on keyboards and reeds, the group also included sax player Tjay Cantrelli (who had previously been in the second lineup of Love)...
Normally, that would be that, but the entire original lineup of Geronimo Black re-formed in 1980 to record a new album, Welcome Back Geronimo Black, for the indie Helios label. Besides including new versions of three songs, "Low Ridin' Man," "Other Man," and the Native American epic "An American National Anthem" from Geronimo Black, the album featured contributions from three more former members of the Mothers of Invention: Don Preston, Ray Collins, and Buzz Gardner. This expanded version of Geronimo Black is the group that for all intents and purposes evolved into the controversial Grandmothers, the group of former Mothers of Invention members who re-formed in the early '80s to play new material and Frank Zappa covers, much to Zappa's displeasure.