398 - ZZ Top - Eliminator - Billy Gibbons
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EPISODE SUMMARY:
In many ways there’s more to being a rockstar than just the music. There’s an aesthetic and a persona which also become important parts of how you carve out a niche for yourself. And few groups have done a better job in establishing themselves as icons in every way possible than sharp-dressed, beard-sporting Southern rock trio ZZ Top. But what may be even more impressive is how they completely redefined their cultural character after already becoming one of the biggest bands of their day when they released the album Eliminator in 1983. No one understands better just what it took for them to do so than the group’s singer and guitarist Billy F. Gibbons.
SHOW NOTES:
00:30 - Intro
11:00 - A gnome-like creature with a jug of wine
17:30 - Timing and tuning
28:15 - Musical television
35:30 - The wonders of technology
43:15 - From France to Mexico to Jamaica
48:45 - Undeniably funny
54:00 - Maybe disco doesn’t totally suck
59:00 - Witnessing legends
1:01:30 - Heart not on your sleeve
1:04:45 - Facts!
1:06:30 - Praise from on high
1:09:15 - Japanese car ads
1:10:45 - The fourth member of the band
1:13:15 - Outro/New music
ALBUM STREAM - ELIMINATOR:
NEW ARTIST INFLUENCED BY ZZ TOP:
“Family Blues” by Uncut