Classic Rock Album of the Day- Z Z Top- Tres' Hombres (1973). ****
Before being asked to give up my Texas Card, I figured I'd better cover one bad ass Rockin' Blues outfit from my home state here. Z Z Top.
Billy Gibbons absolutely shreds as a rock blues guitarist. Almost all of their albums are great, but this one is awesome, and by far my favorite. Being from here, we ALL were Top fans. Though Billy steals the show obviously, Frank and Dusty aren't slouches either.
And in this particular LP, there really aren't any weak cuts. Ranking the middle and lower tier preference of these is a tough task indeed. Well, here goes.....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BNjy4LRWo8Side 1
Waitin' On the Bus- Have Mercy!!!!! Get ya' Brown Paper bag and get ready..... What a song... Song comes out like a ditty, and them slams you with harmonica and bad ass blues riffs. Song is so iconic in Texas..... And you can't play this one it without blending into......... (Texas Rock Sacralige)
2Jesus Just Left Chicago- The boys really put on their old timey blues hats on this one. Got to wear sunglasses while listening hear folks. How many times in this review do I get to say "bad ass". Great blues riffs on this one.
3Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers- The Top changes gears and rocks out. When I hear this one, it conjures bar memories galore. Juke Boxes wore this one out.
5Master of Sparks- ZZ Top's first hand account of some of their youthful craziness. Somewhat of downshift rocking wise, but not bad at all. For S & G's, I have added the wikipedia blurb on the song. What a hoot.
6"Master of Sparks" is a song by American rock band ZZ Top from their 1973 album Tres Hombres.
The song tells the true story[1] of Billy Gibbons and his friend R.K. Bullock who with a workman, welded together a steel ball cage with a seat and seatbelt fitted inside. They placed the cage into the bed of a truck and at night, after reaching a speed of 60 miles per hour (97 km/h), on Highway 6 near Houston (also known as Jack Rabbit Road), rolled the cage out the back with the hapless narrator and friend taking a ride inside. The cage generated a tail of sparks on the road but in its crushed condition stopped rolling. Still moving at high speed, the now egg shaped cage crashed into a fence. Both occupants survived relatively unscathed and were awarded the title "Master of Sparks" by the cheering crow.
Hot Blue and Righteous - Slow blusey ballad. Maybe the weakest cut in a fantastic album Some love it, me....not so much.
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Side 2-
Move it Down the Line- Another great rocking tune. This is one freaking consitently good LP.
4Precious and Grace- MOR rocker again. Good, but not their best.
9LaGrange- HAW HAW HAW!!!!!!! Ahhh... the definitive Top tune. And my favorite by them. Where's my air guitar, some of Gibbons most compeling blues work too. Love when he does this live. Of course, when I first heard this when I was 15, I had no idea this song was about a brothel.
1Sheik- A little Tejas infusion in this tongue in cheek song about....Yeah being a sheik, and some random mindlessness. Hey but shit's got rhyme doesn't it.
7Have You Heard- More standard bluesy fare.
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