Their first two albums reflected the strong blues roots and Texas humor of the band. They were formed in 1970 in and around Houston from rival bands the Moving Sidewalks (Gibbons) and American Blues (Hill and Beard). This sturdy American blues-rock trio from Texas consists of Billy Gibbons (guitar), Dusty Hill (bass), and Frank Beard (drums). This ten-album, must-have set includes ZZ Top’s acclaimed albums: ZZ Top’s First Album, Rio Grande Mud, Tres Hombres, Fandango!, Tejas, Deguello, El Loco, Eliminator, Afterburner and Recycler.
Official Digital Download – Source: HDTracks | Digital Booklet | Rhino/Warner Bros. In 2008 they announced their plans to start working on the new album.ZZ Top – The Complete Studio Albums: 1970-1990 (2013)įLAC (tracks) 24 bit/192 kHz | Time – 370:49 minutes | 11,9 GB | Genre: Rock In 2004 the group was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame. With the last records far from the old best albums, ZZ Top focused on their live shows. The full-time activity became possible only in 2003 when ZZ Top made a new album called Mescalero notable for specifically harsh and heavy guitar sound. After these concerts, Hill was discovered to have hepatitis and took a while for recovery. In 1999, they celebrated the thirtieth anniversary with the release of the XXX album and a massive tour. This one contained the hit She’s Just Killing Me featured on the soundtrack to Tarantino’s classic From Dusk Till Dawn. ZZ Top started their cooperation with RCA in 1994 making a noteworthy long player called Antenna. The new album titled Recycler saw light in 1990 and was the last record released by Warner Bros. After another powerful release, Afterburner (1985), ZZ Top took time out for five years. Eliminator failed to reach the first place in the charts, yet it remained in Top 20 for more than a year. With these songs conquering the radio stations, the record had immense sales brining ZZ Top more and more new fans.
After the unexpectedly flopping El Loco (1981), ZZ Top returned to the tops with the 1983 album Eliminator including the hits Sharp Dressed Man, Legs, Gimme All Your Lovin’. They came back to the studio in 1979 and released four albums in six years. Gibbons and Hill grew impressive beards, a new integral part of their stage image. The touring captivated them and made the guys forget the studio activity for three years. It started in 1976 and lasted longer than the musicians planned. It was a huge program of concerts in a number of countries notable for the Texas style of stage decorations including cactuses, snakes and other typical images of the band’s homeland. Catching the right moment, ZZ Top launched the incomparable World Wide Texas tour.
Half-studio, half-live record, Fandango (1975), followed the glorious way of its predecessor and became a hit in Europe. This track lifted the album straight to Top 10 making it platinum. ZZ Top achieved the commercial success with the 1973 release of Tres Hombres, containing the smashing La Grange.
Although, its singles had a good airplay, the album itself was not well promoted and had a poor charts performance.
The group started their career touring the Southern states mostly, until the second long player, Rio Grande Mud (1972), earned them nationwide fame. The debut work by the rockers, called First Album (1970), featured the heavy version of country and blues which could be accepted only by the local folks of Texas. This unique sound became the trademark of ZZ Top making them recognizable and remarkable among many other rock performers. So they did, yet the Southern origin took its toll as the young men flavored their music with blues. They were headed by the producer Bill Ham who recommended the guys to play hard rock. The new lineup of ZZ Top remained the same for many years to come and included Billy Gibbons, Joe Hill and Frank Beard. With only one single released, Billy was forced to search for new musicians after the original members went to Vietnam. In 1970, Billy launched a new project involving his Moving Sidewalks partners. His majesty Jimmy Hendrix praised the works of this formation naming Gibson one of the most promising American young musicians. The legendary rock band ZZ Top was originated on the base of Billy Gibbons’ blues group Moving Sidewalks formed in Texas late in the sixties.