Afterburner (ZZ Top album)

Afterburner is the ninth studio album by the American rock band ZZ Top, released in 1985. Afterburner was a financial success, going several times platinum and launching several hit singles, the most successful of which was "Sleeping Bag" which peaked at No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks and at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Afterburner
Studio album by
ZZ Top
ReleasedOctober 28, 1985
RecordedMarch-July 1985
Genre
Length37:36
LabelWarner Bros.
ProducerBill Ham
ZZ Top chronology
Eliminator
(1983)		 Afterburner
(1985)		 Six Pack
(1987)
Singles from Afterburner
  1. "Sleeping Bag"
    Released: October 1985
  2. "Stages"
    Released: December 1985
  3. "Rough Boy"
    Released: March 1986
  4. "Velcro Fly"
    Released: July 1986

In the UK, it was the band's second album to be certified by the British Phonographic Industry, attaining Gold (100,000 units) in 1985. In 1990, it was certified Platinum (300,000 units).

Reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Rolling Stoneunfavorable [2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[3]
Q Magazine[4]
Kerrang! [5]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[6]
The Village VoiceB[7]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic retrospectively gave it 3 stars out of 5, stating: "Well, if you just had your biggest hit ever, you'd probably try to replicate it, too. And if you were praised for being visionary because you played all your blues grooves to a slightly sequenced beat, you'd probably be tempted to not just continue in that direction, but to tighten the sequencer and graft on synthesizers, since it'll all signal how futuristic you are. [...] Problem is, no matter how much you dress ZZ Top up, they're still ZZ Top. Sometimes they can trick you into thinking they're a little flashier than usual, but they're still a lil' ol' blues band from Texas, kicking out blues-rockers. And blues-rock just doesn't kick when it's synthesized. [...] All this means that Afterburner is merely a product of its time -- the only record ZZ Top could have made at the time, but it hardly exists out of that time."

Robert Christgau gave a B score, stating: "With sales on Eliminator over five mil almost by accident, this hard-boogieing market strategy is defined by conscious commercial ambition--by its all but announced intention of making ZZ the next Bruce/Madonna/Prince/Michael, with two beards and a Beard at every checkout counter." Christgau cited "Rough Boy" and "Velcro Fly" as the highlights of the album.

The album was the band's first to hit number 1, topping the charts in New Zealand. It peaked at number 4 on the Billboard 200, at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart, and at number 6 on the Australian albums chart.[8]

Track listing

All songs by Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard.

Side one
  1. "Sleeping Bag" – 4:03
  2. "Stages" – 3:32
  3. "Woke Up with Wood" – 3:45
  4. "Rough Boy" – 4:50
  5. "Can't Stop Rockin'" – 3:02
Side two
  1. "Planet of Women" – 4:09
  2. "I Got the Message" – 3:27
  3. "Velcro Fly" – 3:29
  4. "Dipping Low (In the Lap of Luxury)" – 3:11
  5. "Delirious" – 3:41

Personnel

Production

Charts
Chart (1985/86) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[9] 6
United Kingdom (Official Charts Company) 2
United States (Billboard 200) 4

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[10] Platinum 62,795[10]
France (SNEP)[11] Gold 100,000*
Germany (BVMI)[12] 3× Gold 750,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[13] Platinum 15,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[14] Platinum 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[15] Platinum 300,000^
United States (RIAA)[16] 5× Platinum 5,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "ZZ Top Afterburner review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
  2. "ZZ Top Afterburner review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 28 November 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
  3. Cross, Charles R. (2004). "ZZ Top". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. pp. 907-8. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  4. "ZZ Top Afterburner review". Q. Bauer Media Group. Archived from the original on 27 September 2007. Retrieved 1 September 2011.
  5. Wall, Mick (14 November 1985). "ZZ Top 'Afterburner'". Kerrang!. 107. London, UK: Morgan Grampian. pp. 23–24.
  6. Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
  7. Christgau, Robert (December 3, 1985). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  9. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 348. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  10. "ZZ Top" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  11. "Les Certifications depuis 1973: Albums". Infodisc.fr. Retrieved December 10, 2012. (select "ZZ Top" from drop-down list)
  12. "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (ZZ Top; 'Afterburner')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  13. "New Zealand album certifications – ZZ Top – Afterburner". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
  14. "Gold & Platinum Awards 1987" (PDF). Music and Media. American Radio History Archive. 26 December 1987. p. 46. Retrieved 1 January 2020.
  15. "British album certifications – ZZ Top – Afterburner". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved December 10, 2019. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Afterburner in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  16. "American album certifications – ZZ Top – Afterburner". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 10, 2019. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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