ZZ top

ZZ Top

ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in June 1969 in Houston, Texas. The band consists of guitarist and lead vocalist Billy Gibbons, bassist and co-lead vocalist Dusty Hill, and drummer Frank Beard. The band and its members went through a several reconfigurations throughout 1969, achieving their current form when Hill replaced bassist Billy Etheridge in February 1970, shortly before the band was signed to London Records. Etheridge's departure emanated primarily from his unwillingness to be bound by a recording contract.

Since the release of the band's debut album in January 1971, ZZ Top has become known for its strong blues roots and humorous lyrical motifs, relying heavily on double entendres and innuendo. ZZ Top's musical style has changed over the years, beginning with blues-inspired rock on their early albums, then incorporating New Wave, punk rock and dance-rock, with heavy use of synthesizers.

ZZ Top were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. As a group, ZZ Top possesses 11 gold records and 7 platinum (13 multi-platinum) records; their 1983 album, Eliminator, remains the group's most commercially successful record, selling over 10 million units. ZZ Top also ranks 80th in U.S. album sales, with 25 million units. The band released their latest studio album, La Futura, in September 2012 and began a supporting tour in October.

The original lineup formed in Houston, Texas by Gibbons, organist Lanier Greig and drummer Dan Mitchell. ZZ Top was managed by Waxahachie-native Bill Ham, who befriended Gibbons a year earlier. They released their first single, "Salt Lick", in 1969, and side B contained the song "Miller's Farm"; both songs were credited to Gibbons. Immediately after the recording of "Salt Lick", Greig was replaced by bassist Billy Etheridge, a band mate of Jimmie Vaughan, and Mitchell was replaced by Frank Beard of the American Blues. Due to lack of interest from record companies, ZZ Top was presented with a record deal from London Records. Unwilling to sign a recording contract, Etheridge quit the band and Dusty Hill was selected as his replacement. After Hill moved from Dallas to Houston, ZZ Top signed with London in 1970. They performed their first concert together at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Beaumont on February 10.

In addition to assuming the role as the band's leader, Gibbons became the main lyricist and musical arranger. With the assistance of Ham and engineer Robin Hood Brians, ZZ Top's First Album (1971) was released and saw the inclusion of the band's humor, with "barrelhouse" rhythms, distorted guitars, double entendres and innuendo. The music and songs closely reflected on ZZ Top's blues influences. Following their debut album, the band released Rio Grande Mud (1972), which failed commercially and the promotional tour consisted of mostly auditoriums.

Website:
http://www.zztop.com

ZZ Top -Antenna

Antenna

I just rediscovered this gem and was not sorry I did. Having been a Top fan since '83 and catching them live on the Afterburner tour it is refreshing to hear that this CD has pushed away from the keyboardy, synthish, electric drummy, polished & glitzy sound of old. The trio is thumping heavily in true Top style. For one thing, Gibbons sports a real dry, punchy, meaty, crunchy guitar sound that is surprisingly soothing to the ears. A few solos knock me back in my shoes, particularly the solo to "Breakaway". I personally feel the man is incapable of playing an incorrect note. Guitarists call this gift "phrasing" and Billy has it to give away. To put it mildly, he has a tone that I feel will never and cannot ever be duplicated, if only by him. Hill is on bass, old faithful with a wall of thump and bump and growl and more than ably holding down the bottom solidly. Beard is highly active on the skins and cymbals, without being abrasive and overplaying, then plodding and stable at other times. This shows the true talent of a drummer who has gone from bar-fight blues to rocket boogie to techno-styled dashings back to commanding the foundation of the song. They seem to all 3 be tight and locked in. There are one or two tunes on here that I can live without, but that would be lyrically, not musically. One would think that after 24 years of being RECORDED artists (at this release date, anyway) that they would go stale with songs about women, drinking, partying, cars, compromising situations, and hell-raising, but they always find a way to make the tried and true sound new and ear-opening. They do it well and nobody can ride it as long and successfully as they have. They haven't been together for over 3 decades for nothing. This is not a disappointment by any means. A good CD to pop in with the windows down on a long road trip. Enjoy.

ZZTop -El Loco

El Loco

Whoever said ZZ Top doesn't like to experiment needs to check out this album. First off, there's very little of the distortion and bite of earlier releases. New Wave was prominent at this point, and ZZ Top fully embraced the genre on 1981's El Loco. The Gibson dirt of earlier releases are replaced with a Fender sheen (This also was the first album where they were playing separated from each other in different booths, where as earlier releases had them all in the same room). The band was also experimenting with more robotic drum beats and chorus effects on guitar/vocals. Just listen to something like Tube Snake Boogie or Pearl Necklace and you'll hear the change from the past release.

Other than that, it's the same old ingredients. Texas-fried boogie done in a way that the Top could only cook it. This album contains some of their best work: The slow-burning It's So Hard and I Wanna Drive You Home, the party fun of Groovy Little Hippie Pad & Party On The Patio, and the nastiness of Tube Snake Boogie, Pearl Necklace, and one of my favorites, Ten Foot Pole.

However, not every experiment works. Leila has to be one of the worst songs the band have ever penned, a boring adult contemporary song that sounds like it could've fit on Days Of Our Lives. And that pedal steel is just awful. Also, what the hell were they thinking with Heaven, Hell Or Houston? Disco-sci fi? I dunno about that one. Too many drugs.

This marks the end of total consistency for ZZ Top. It had to happen, 6 great albums in a row isn't too bad though. After this marks the beginning of the "commercial" ZZ Top, which, isn't that bad, but it was never the same.

ZZ Top -Mascelero

Mascelero

 I have to admit, they frustrated me with some of the material on Antenna and XXX. But Mescalero has a lot of harmonica and steel pedal guitar on it, getting back to a Texas Blues sound but mellower and slower than Rhythmeen. "Piece" has some pretty passages and a metal-sounding rhythm groove near the end. Billy Gibbons' Gretsch guitar sounds awesome on this whole recording, especially his leads. "Que Lastima" kind of grows on you. "What is it Kid" has a great bass line: go Dusty! "Tramp" takes an old blues progression and makes it sound positively innovative. I love that song;Billy alternates between his low-pitched speaking voice and a higher singing voice. The ending chord progression on Liquor is awesome, even though the song borrows the same fadeout technology the band used on "Loaded," it works. But don't change CD's just yet: the hidden track under #16 is really well done. I'm sure you'll know the song. All I can say is, you guys let me down for a long time, but this release is really good. I'm really happy with it.

ZZ Top - First Album

First Album

ZZ Top, or as many people would call them, That Little Ol' Band From Texas, is truly a band with staying power. 14 albums (Well, soon to be 15), 40 years, and NO lineup changes, they are truly one of a kind and a rare breed indeed. It's hard to imagine this band any other way: The gutsy vocals and deep-fried pickings of Billy Gibbons, the rattling bass of Dusty Hill, and the excellent drumming of Frank Beard (the only one without a beard, thank you very much). The band has virtually reinvented the blues, almost to a self-parody of sorts (I'm of course talking about their 80's blunders, which they have made up for with their more recent heavy albums). But all seriousness aside, they are just a good fun rock and roll band, and that's all their music is.

ZZ Top's first album, which came out in 1971, is a fantastic introduction to their boogie rock stylings. While it doesn't have any of the big hits that became their calling cards, it does establish their sound, their attitude, and their quirks. The songwriting is already unique in itself, using clever double entendres in their sexual repertoire. Each song just hits hard, whether it's the radio-friendly Somebody Else Been Shaking Your Tree, the mean riffing of Brown Sugar, or the laidback grooves of Squank and Backdoor Love Affair.

The band also doesn't mind getting a little heavy in the riff department, as songs like Going Down To Mexico showcase a mean British side to their blues rock. One can say that Billy was a fan of Black Sabbath during this time even! Also, what's prevalent on here and not on future releases are slow ballads, and Old Man is definitely one of those, a slow burner with a lot of soul.

All in all, it's a great intro to the world of Top; slick but unpolished, raw but professional, bluesy and rocking all at the same time. That's the Top for ya. 

ZZ Top -Tres Hombres

Tres Hombres

ZZ Top's Tres Hombres is a classic rock album, perhaps one of the all-time best. I consider it ZZ Top's best album, being the finest representation of their sound and containing their highest-quality material as far as both performances and songwriting are concerned. Their second album, Rio Grande Mud is almost as good, however Tres Hombres gets an edge because the songs are more instantly memorable and are all high quality. There is not a single weak moment on Tres Hombres. Every cut is top notch. There's quite a bit of variety too, from the mid-tempo blues of Jesus Just Left Chicago to the hard rock of Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers to the Memphis soul of Hot, Blue and Righteous to the John Lee Hooker boogie of La Grange. Even lesser known album cuts like Precious and Grace, Shiek and Master of Sparks are excellent. Forget the compilations, if you're looking for the absolute best of the Little Old Band from Texas, look no further. Tres Hombres is it. It is an essential album than any fan of blues-oriented rock and roll needs to have.

Finally after many years, the original sound mix is available on CD. This new remastered edition eliminates the horrible 1980s remix which piled on echo and fake drums, completely ruining the raw, bluesy feel of the original album. Finally, that mistake has been corrected to the delight and relief of ZZ Top fans everywhere. It's just too bad that it took over a decade for it to happen. The new CD sounds great and includes very informative liner notes giving background information on the recording of the album, as well as three live bonus tracks.

Now, as for the bonus tracks. They're great and I'm very glad they were included, but as was the case with Fandango they simply left me wanting more. Any live ZZ Top material is much appreciated as this is one thing sadly lacking from the Top catalog. Until now, the live side of Fandango was the only live representation that the band had (except for a couple of live cuts on the XXX album from 1999). The live tracks on Tres Hombres are very good. They are obviously not from the era in which the album was recorded. They sound like they were recorded in the '90s or even 2000s perhaps. That's okay, though. It's still ZZ Top live. Waitin' on the Bus/Jesus Just Left Chicago and La Grange are solid staples of the band's live repertoire and it's great to hear them in concert setting. The only disappointing thing is that there are only three of them. I want much, much more. A whole album of ZZ Top live tracks would be awesome, particularly if it consisted of tracks recorded in the '70s. They're such a great live band, they truly deserve a live album. Hopefully, someday soon Warner will open up the archives and pull out some of those live recordings that are just sitting there gathering dust.

In summary, if you could own only one ZZ Top album, Tres Hombres should be the one. I would also recommend Rio Grande Mud, Fandango, Deguello and Rythmeen. If you're going to buy Tres Hombres make sure that you get the new remastered CD with the original mix restored. Avoid the old one at all costs. Or else just get it on vinyl.

ZZ Top-Rio Grande Mud

Rio Grande Mud

ZZ Top's First Album, while still a great release, didn't really propel the band to stardom like everybody thought they would. So what do you do? Well, tweak the sound, of course! With the first album having a slicker and cleaner sound, on this one, the distortion and mud is tweaked to the max, resulting in a guitar sound with a locomotive force. Yeah, the production is a little dated (Especially on these CD releases - Good God, why did they add in Eliminator-esque drum machines?), but if you can look past that, this is a superb album.

The main reason this album improves on the first is simple: BETTER SONGS. Seriously, every ZZ Top fan needs this in their collection. The driving force of Francine, the rough metal stylings of Just Got Paid, the slow Chicago blues of Mushmouth Shootin, and let's not forget about the slow soul of Sure Got Cold After The Rain Fell, one of the best unknown treasures in the Top's catalog.

There are still a couple of songs that should've been worked out a little more, but on a whole, Rio Grande Mud is another fun and fine collection of 70's hard rock before it became a cliche. Add this to your collection, you won't be disappointed.

ZZ Top- One Foot in the blues

One foot in the blues

This CD is a fabulous compilation of that slightly off-kilter Southern rock/blues that distinguishes ZZ-Top from all other rock bands. These boys have a righteous appreciation of the music that built their unique sound. This is a "must have" CD for all rock/blues fans. A good compilation of there best songs