ZZ Top ZZticks to gunZZ for 40 ZZuccessful yearZZ

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This article was published 15/06/2010 (5592 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Perhaps the biggest compliment that could be paid to ZZ Top is its commitment to a singular sound.

The self-dubbed little ol’ band from Texas has endured every trend thrown at it during the past 40 years, from punk rock to arena rock. During this time, long-haired rockers cut their hair short; groups that wore elaborate costumes went back to basics; and hard rockers inevitably went soft.

Not the beloved ZZ Top. For better or worse, members of the group have always remained fixed on the blues boogie they first adopted back in 1969.

"We just kept on keepin’ on," singer-guitarist Billy Gibbons said of the numerous trends ZZ Top has weathered. "It wasn’t calculated or some kind of strategy. It’s just what we do, and because it feels right and we enjoy it now as much as we did 40 years ago, there’s no reason to stop. We always say, ‘You just can’t lose with the blues.’"

By the end of 1973, the little ol’ blues band was becoming very big, indeed.

Thanks to its first hit album, Tres Hombres, which spawned the still-classic hit, La Grange, the trio of Gibbons, bassist Dusty Hill and drummer Frank Beard became one of the best-kept secrets in America.

The group’s music, which included lyrics laced with a sarcastic wit and fuelled by party antics, were soon the staple sounds of every college dorm or summer barbecue. ZZ Top’s unique blend could have been called a new strain of American blues, which would have been fitting: American Blues was the name of Hill and Beard’s band prior to ZZ Top.

"They actually dyed their hair blue — how’s that for total commitment?"

Gibbons joked. "The band I was in at that time was the Moving Sidewalks, so maybe, if we hadn’t thought of ZZ Top, we could well have been Moving Blues or American Sidewalks. We do take great inspiration from our forebears like Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Bo Diddley and B.B. King, so, yes, blues is a significant part of what we do no matter what you call us."

ZZ Top lost a step prior the close of the ’70s, due primarily to record label hassles. But once it signed a new deal, the band put together a string of moderate hits (I Thank You, Cheap Sunglasses, Tube Snake Boogie) that laid the groundwork for what became one of the most surprising success stories of the 1980s — and saw the group explode on a level previously thought to be well outside ZZ Top’s realm of possibilities.

ZZ Top’s chart dominance came in 1983 with Eliminator, which has gone on to sell 10 million copies in the U.S. The band’s music was everywhere in 1983: Legs was in the clubs and TV Dinners was satiating the faithful, while Gimme All Your Lovin’ and Sharp Dressed Man were absolutely everywhere else.

Despite the record’s impact, it was a series of groundbreaking videos that put ZZ Top over the top. Their popularity was so widespread that when a Saturday Night Live skit during the era asked viewers to call in and nominate a new Democratic presidential candidate, ZZ Top wound up getting the most votes.

"We’ve actually done better than running for office," Gibbons said when reminded of the skit. "ZZ was named Official Heroes of the State of Texas a while back."

For Gibbons, the moments he cherishes most are those when he gets to record with today’s bad boys of rock ‘n’ roll, such as he did with Kid Rock, Queens of the Stone Age, and Nickelback on recent recordings.

"If it’s a good fit, musically, why not jump on and turn it up? These guys are fun to hang with and fun to play with and that’s the bottom line: There’s no downside if you get a kick out of it."

— Canwest News Service