There is ZZ Top on record and then ZZ Top live in concert – with the latter being incredibly better. This was the first time I had ever gone to see the Texas Trio and I was thoroughly impressed with the quality of their actual musicianship.
Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard delivered a performance displaying their unwavering dedication to preserving their unique and classic “desert rock” sound. After 4 decades of playing together it also appears that they have not aged a single day either.
Half way through the set a fan in the front row held up his “Tres Hombres” LP to see if he could get the band members to sign it. Gibbons was nice enough to grant his wish while jokingly auctioning it off to the crowd after the 3 signatures were on it. To hold up the show for one fan makes these guys a class act in my mind.
After an hour and half concert, I was still dying to hear more from perhaps America’s greatest stripped down meat ‘n potatoes band. What still amazes me is the coordination between Gibbons and Hill. They play as 2 separate people yet at certain times you almost feel as if you’re watching mirror images with different instruments. The choreography in their slow daft stage movements was simply uncanny.
I do know one thing for sure – some things never change and ZZ Top is one of them. “Same three guys. Same three chords.” as noted by a smiling Gibbons. I’ll let my videos do the rest of the talking.
