Things began to pick up with their second album, Rio Grande Mud, which produced another Lone Star hit with “Francine. Their First Album LP received little fanfare as the band continued to hone their live show in juke joints throughout the South. The Top had a regional hit with “Salt Lick ” on Ham ’s Scat label, which prompted London Records to sign them. “It ’s harder that way and takes much longer, but once the band has established itself as a people ’s band, the people won ’t leave you. “We played a lot of the out-of-the-way places, playing for the people at people ’s prices, ” Ham told Chet Flippo in Rolling Stone. Ham convinced the trio that his strategies would make ZZ Top a household name and he became their manager, controling every move and aspect of their careers. ” They knew they had a great sound together, but they also realized that it takes even more to make it in the music world. We decided that it was so much fun that we kept on cookin ’. Records, 3300 Warner Blvd., Burbank, CA 91510.ĭidn ’t quit for a couple of hours. Beard played in various bands before forming the American Blues Band, which backed numerous blues headliners, including Lightnin ’ Hopkins, Jimmy Reed, and Freddie King.Īddresses: Record company -Warner Bros. Hill began playing bass at age 13 played in various groups, including the Deadbeats and Lady Wild and the Warlocks played in the American Blues Band, 1967-70. and the Ten Blue Flames played with the Moving Sidewalks, 1967-70. Gibbons formed first band, the Saints, at age 14 later played with the Coachmen and with Billy G. guitar), Dusty Hill (born May 19, 1949, in Dallas, Tex. Group formed in Texas, Februmembers include Billy Gibbons (born Houston, Tex. “We started off with a shuffle in C and For the Record … “We threw a jam session together that fateful day, ” Gibbons informed Guitar World. On February 10, 1970, the three musicians were united. When the band broke up, Beard hooked up with Gibbons and told him of Hill ’s availability. They picked up priceless experience backing up blues legends like Lightnin ’ Hopkins, Jimmy Reed, and Freddie King. After that band folded in 1967, the two joined drummer Beard ’s American Blues Band. Along with his brother, guitarist Rocky Hill, they formed the Deadbeats before playing in Lady Wild and the Warlocks.
Hill, a Dallas native, also entered music after seeing a Presley performance on television and began playing the bass when he was thirteen.
He and Ham began auditioning drummers and bassists before settling with two veterans of the Texas blues scene, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard. Due to the Vietnam War, members of the Sidewalks were drafted and Gibbons was forced to disolve the band. Gibbons ’s unique style also caught the attention of Bill Ham, a local record promo man who knew a moneymaker when he heard one. Hendrix was so impressed with Gibbons ’s fretwork that he cited the Texan as one of America ’s best guitarists on a “Tonight Show ” television appearance. Their single “99th Floor ” stayed on top of the Texas charts for five weeks and earned the band a spot as opening act for the Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1968. By 1967 he was working with a trimmed-down, four-member psychedlic combo called the Moving Sidewalks. It was only a matter of a few years, however, before Gibbons was fronting his own James Brown-styled rhythm and blues group, Billy G and the Ten Blue Flames. He formed his first band, the Saints, when he was fourteen and eventually moved on to the Coachmen. Gibbons was born in Houston, Texas, and, after being bitten by the Elvis bug at the age of seven, began playing guitar. “We ’re not attempting to deliver any sociological breakthrough other than, ’Have a good time.
But, regardless of these accomplishments, the band has stuck to their original philosophy: “Our message remains pretty much clear cut, ” guitarist Billy Gibbons told Guitar Player. synthesizers and drum machines) into their sound. Their 1976 tour broke attendance records previously set by the Beatles they were one of the first bands to realize the potential of music videos and they were arguably the first blues band to successfully incorporate advanced electronics (e.g. Although many people may consider the three-piece unit just another boogie band from the South, the Top has some pretty impressive credentials. That “little ol ’ band from Texas, ” ZZ Top, has been together for over two decades now, making more music, and money, than bands twice their size.
0 kommentar(er)
