ZZ Top

The original line-up was formed in Houston and consisted of Gibbons, bassist/organist Lanier Greig,[12] and drummer Dan Mitchell.[12]

The name of the band was Gibbons' idea. The band had a little apartment covered with concert posters and he noticed that many performers' names used initials. Gibbons particularly noticed B.B. King and Z. Z. Hill and thought of combining the two into "ZZ King", but considered it too similar to the original name. He then figured that "king is going at the top" which brought him to "ZZ Top."[13]

ZZ Top was managed by Bill Ham, a Waxahachie, Texas, native who had befriended Gibbons a year earlier. They released their first single, "Salt Lick," in 1969, and the B-side contained the song "Miller's Farm." Both songs credited Gibbons as the composer. Immediately after the recording of "Salt Lick," Greig was replaced by bassist Billy Ethridge, a bandmate of Stevie Ray Vaughan, and Mitchell was replaced by Frank Beard of American Blues. Due to lack of interest from the major American record companies, ZZ Top accepted a record deal from London Records, the American affiliate of the British Decca Records label. Unwilling to sign a recording contract, Ethridge quit the band and Dusty Hill, Frank Beard's American Blues bandmate, became 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, Texas, on February 10, 1970.

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 exhibited the band's humor, with "barrelhouse" rhythms, distorted guitars, double entendres, and innuendo. The music and songs reflected ZZ Top's blues influences. Following their debut album, the band released Rio Grande Mud (1972), which produced their first charting single, "Francine".[14]

ZZ Top performing live in 1976

ZZ Top released Tres Hombres in 1973, which reached the No. 8 position on the Billboard 200 albums chart by early 1974. The album's sound was the result of the propulsive support provided by Hill and Beard, and Gibbons' "growling" guitar tone. Dan Erlewine wrote that the album "brought ZZ Top their first Top Ten record, making them stars in the process." The album included the boogie-driven "La Grange" (written about the Chicken Ranch, a notorious brothel in La Grange, Texas, that also inspired the musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas). On the subsequent tour, the band performed sold-out concerts in the US. ZZ Top recorded the live tracks for one side of their 1975 album, Fandango!, during this tour. Fandango!, which also contained one side of new studio songs, was a top-ten album; its single "Tush" peaked at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Tejas, released in 1976, would be the band's final album under their contract with London Records. It was not as successful or as positively received as their previous efforts, although the album went to number 17 on the Billboard 200.[15] ZZ Top continued the Worldwide Texas Tour in support of Tejas through most of 1977, even though they had been touring regularly for seven years. The band then went on what was supposed to be a 90-day break from public appearances. Gibbons traveled to Europe, Beard went to Jamaica, and Hill went to Mexico.[16] The break extended to two years, during which Gibbons and Hill grew chest-length beards.[17]

In 1979, ZZ Top signed with Warner Bros. Records and released the album Degüello. While the album went platinum, it only reached number 24 on the Billboard chart.[18] The album produced two popular singles: "I Thank You", a cover of the David Porter/Isaac Hayes composition originally recorded by Sam & Dave, and the band original "Cheap Sunglasses". The band remained a popular concert attraction and toured in support of Degüello. In April 1980, ZZ Top made their first appearance in Europe, performing for the German music television show Rockpalast. The band later played the BBC show The Old Grey Whistle Test, where they shared a studio with English electronic band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD). ZZ Top became fans of OMD's synthesizer-driven music and adopted elements of their energetic performance style,[19][20] before themselves experimenting with synthesizers on the October 1981 album El Loco.[21] The album peaked at number 17 on the Billboard chart, and featured the singles "Tube Snake Boogie", "Pearl Necklace", and "Leila".[22]

Hill and Gibbons in 1983

ZZ Top's next album was even more successful. Eliminator, released in March 1983, featured two top-40 singles ("Gimme All Your Lovin'" and "Legs"), and two additional Top Rock hits ("Got Me Under Pressure" and "Sharp Dressed Man"), with "Legs" peaking at number 13 on the Club Play Singles chart.[23] Eliminator saw the band fully embrace synthesizers and elements of new wave music; electronic band Depeche Mode have been cited as an influence on the album.[24] It became a critical and commercial success, selling more than 10 million copies while peaking at No. 9 in the U.S. Billboard pop charts.[25] Several music videos from the album were in regular rotation on MTV. The band also won their first MTV Video Music Awards in the categories of Best Group Video for "Legs", and Best Direction for "Sharp Dressed Man". The music videos were included in their Greatest Hits video, which was later released on DVD and quickly went multi-platinum.[25] The later lead singer of Survivor, Jimi Jamison, provided backing vocals in the album, after hanging with the band since the late 70's in different occasions. Gibbons referred to Jamison as the "fourth member" of the group for being a big fan, contributor and "humble person".[26] However, the Eliminator album was not without controversy. According to former stage manager David Blayney in his book "Sharp Dressed Men", sound engineer Linden Hudson co-wrote much of the material on the album while serving as a live-in high-tech music teacher to Beard and Gibbons. Despite continued denials by the band, it settled a five-year legal battle with Hudson, paying him $600,000 after he proved he held the copyright to the song "Thug".[27][28][29]

Despite not selling as many copies as Eliminator, 1985's Afterburner became the band's highest-charting album (No. 4 on the U.S. Billboard chart),[30] racking up sales of five million units.[25] All of the singles from Afterburner were Top-40 hits, with two ("Sleeping Bag" and "Stages") hitting number one on the Mainstream Rock chart.[30] The music video for "Velcro Fly" was choreographed by pop singer Paula Abdul.[31] ZZ Top's grueling Afterburner World Tour lasted well into 1987, which also had the release of The ZZ Top Sixpack, a three-disc collection of ZZ Top's albums from 1970 to 1981, with the exception of Degüello. The albums ZZ Top's First Album, Rio Grande Mud, Tres Hombres, Fandango, and Tejas were remixed to have a more contemporary sound.[32]

Recycler, released in 1990, was ZZ Top's last studio album under contract with Warner Records. Recycler was also the last of a distinct sonic trilogy in the ZZ Top catalogue, marking a return towards a simpler guitar-driven blues sound with less synthesizer and pop bounce than the previous two albums. This move did not entirely suit the fan base that Eliminator and Afterburner had built up, and while Recycler did achieve platinum status, it never matched the sales of those albums. However, the single "My Head's in Mississippi" did reach No. 1 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart that year.[33]

In 1992, Warner released ZZ Top's Greatest Hits, along with a new Rolling Stones-style cut, "Gun Love", and an Elvis-inflected video, "Viva Las Vegas". In 1993, ZZ Top inducted a major influence, Cream, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In 1994, the band signed a $35 million deal with RCA Records,[34] releasing the million-selling Antenna. Subsequent RCA albums, Rhythmeen (1996) and 1999's XXX (the second album to feature live tracks) sold well, but did not reach the levels enjoyed previously. In 2003, ZZ Top released a final RCA album, Mescalero, an album thick with harsh Gibbons guitar and featuring a hidden track—a cover version of "As Time Goes By." RCA impresario Clive Davis wanted to do a collaboration record (in the mode of Carlos Santana's successful Supernatural) for this album. In an interview in Goldmine magazine, Davis stated that artists Pink, Dave Matthews, and Wilco were among the artists slated for the project. ZZ Top performed "Tush" and "Legs" as part of the Super Bowl XXXI halftime show in 1997.

A comprehensive four-CD collection of recordings from the London and Warner Bros. years, Chrome, Smoke & BBQ, was released in 2003. It featured the band's first single (A- and B-side) and several rare B-side tracks, as well as a radio promotion from 1979, a live track, and several extended dance-mix versions of their biggest MTV hits. Three tracks from Billy Gibbons' pre-ZZ band, the Moving Sidewalks, were also included.

In 2004, ZZ Top was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones gave the induction speech. ZZ Top gave a brief performance, playing "La Grange" and "Tush".

ZZ Top at the Crossroads Guitar Festival, on June 26, 2010

Expanded and remastered versions of the original studio albums from the 1970s and 1980s are currently in production. Marketed as "Remastered and Expanded", these releases include additional live tracks which were not present on the original recordings. Three such CDs have been released to date (Tres Hombres, Fandango!, and Eliminator). The first two were released in 2006 and use the original mixes free from echo and drum machines, while Eliminator was released in 2008. The Eliminator re-release also features a collector's edition version containing a DVD featuring several videos and additional live tracks.[35]

The Eliminator Collector's Edition CD/DVD, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the band's iconic RIAA Diamond Certified album, was released September 10, 2008. The release includes seven bonus tracks and a bonus DVD, including four television performances from The Tube in November 1983.

The band performed at the 2009 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo on the final night on March 22, 2009. In July, the band appeared on VH1's Storytellers, in celebration of their four decades as recording artists.[36]

ZZ Top at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, November 7, 2013

ZZ Top performing at the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio in 2015

Billy Gibbons stated in an interview in August 2011 that a new album had been recorded, with initial recording taking place in Malibu, California, before moving to Houston, but was still unnamed and had yet to be mixed and mastered.[37] Gibbons said that the expected release date was sometime in March or April 2012 but, later, a late summer or early fall release date was announced.[37] The album was subsequently released on September 11, 2012.[38]

Entitled La Futura, the album was produced by Rick Rubin.[39][40] The first single from the album, "I Gotsta Get Paid", debuted in an advertising campaign for Jeremiah Weed Whiskey and appears on the soundtrack of the film Battleship.[41] The song itself is an interpretation of "25 Lighters" by Texan hip hop DJ DMD and rappers Lil' Keke and Fat Pat.[42] The first four songs from La Futura debuted on June 5, 2012, on an EP called Texicali.[43] DJ Screw was a major influence on the album as well, particularly because Gibbons and Screw both worked with engineer G. L. Moon during the late 1990s.[44]

ZZ Top in September 2016

The band kicked off a North American tour with a concert in Red Bank, New Jersey, at the Count Basie Theatre on March 3, 2015. After rescheduled dates and additions, the tour wrapped up with a concert in Highland Park, Illinois, at the Ravinia Pavilion on August 27, with opening act Blackberry Smoke. Jeff Beck joined ZZ Top for seven concerts on the tour.[45][46]

On September 9, 2016, ZZ Top released a new live album entitled Tonite at Midnight: Live Greatest Hits from Around the World.

In 2017, ZZ Top announced their "2017 Tonnage Tour" which was to last from February 19 to March 14.[47] However, they were forced to cancel last few dates of their tour due to the ailment of bassist Dusty Hill.[48]

In 2018, the band announced their six-day Las Vegas run of shows to be held at The Venetian, starting from April 20, 2019.[49]

In a September 2019 interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, Hill stated that "there's a good chance" ZZ Top will release a follow-up to La Futura: "We've got a lot in the can. It depends on how we would want to put it together or redo it or whatever. Because it's years of stuff. We just record everything, and then we go, 'Well, no, this didn't quite feel right, right now.'"[50] Gibbons told Las Vegas Review-Journal in April 2020 that he, Hill and Beard have been "cooking up another round of wicked sounds for the next ZZ record."[51] On June 21, 2020, Gibbons stated interest in having guitarist Jeff Beck make a guest appearance on the album.[52]

In November 2020, it was announced that the documentary That Little Ol' Band From Texas was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Music Film with the award ceremony scheduled for March 2021.[53]