While he is first and foremost dedicated to ZZ Top, the band’s bearded guitarist and vocalist Billy Gibbons has, in recent years, moonlighted with other musicians. He issued his first solo album, Perfectamundo, in 2015 with the help of producer Joe Hardy, organist Mike Flanigan and drummer Greg Morrow. The record was a departure of sorts for the Texas legend, and three years later, he’s returned with a second helping called The Big Bad Blues.
This time, along with Hardy, Flanigan and Morrow, Gibbons brought in drummer Matt Sorum, who’s bashed the skins for Guns N’ Roses, Velvet Revolver and The Cult. James Harmon also blows some harp on what is most definitely a blues record of standards and originals. The album has already dented the #1 spot on Billboard’s Americana/Folk chart, #2 on the Blues chart, and #5 in Current Rock. To seal the deal, Gibbons is hitting the road with Sorum and singer, songwriter and left-handed guitarist Austin Hanks for a 25-date tour that begins on Saturday, October 13 in Riverside, Iowa, and ends Sunday, November 18 at the Troubadour in Hollywood, California.
In the following exchange, Gibbons talks about the new record, the blues, and his 2018 solo tour. Of course, anyone who follows ZZ Top with any regularity may be aware that the group’s 50th anniversary is in 2019. So, naturally, I had to find out from Gibbons if the band has any plans to mark the milestone. Without giving away too much, it sounds like there will be plenty of ZZ Top to go around in 2019.
~
How does it feel to have your second solo album, The Big Bad Blues, on the charts?
It’s feelin’ fine. This is the album waiting for ignition and prompted by John Burk at Concord Records who offered the opportunity to get it rockin’. The fact that it’s been so well received is something of a bonus and we’re diggin’ that so many seem to be digging what we’ve done. It’s long been said that “you can’t lose with the blues” and this kind of proves that in some way.
What makes the blues so big and so bad?
The blues seems to remain as the underpinning of what we’ve always done and, in point of fact, is the foundation of what became known and rock and roll. What we’ve attempted to do is amplify, both literally and figuratively, the bio-rhythm essence of the blues and kick it up a notch or two. We haven’t invented the wheel but we’ve done our best to keep the tires inflated.
Your take on “Crackin’ Up” is magnificent. What made you want to end the album with it?
It’s been something of an obsession to figure out the intro that our buddy Bo cooked up many decades back. Once we cracked the code, so to speak, we figured it was something we’d want to share and having it end the album might make it the thing that stays with you the longest. Bo was an innovator whose work we’ll always admire and emulate wherever and whenever possible.
What I love about this record is when the needle drops, I can automatically tell it’s you. You have one of the sweetest, yet also one of the most muscular, guitar tones in popular music. When did you know you had found your sound?
Yes, tone is what it’s all about. It tells you, without words, once you’ve nailed it down, that “this is the place.” You can write notes on a page but tone is something that you just feel, and when it’s right you know it’s right. Maybe there’s a certain voodoo to it.
You’re hitting the road with Austin Hanks and Matt Sorum. Tell me about the musical chemistry between you three.
Those guys are just great to work with. We’ve been hanging out with Matt for some time and the opportunity to have him hit the skins with us was one we just couldn’t pass up. He plays with power, for sure, but he’s got nuance for days. And, there’s Austin Hanks. Austin’s left-handed, upside-down playing appeals to our sense of symmetry and that Southern boy singing is simply tops.
For this trek, will you be mixing material from the new album, with songs from Perfectamundo, ZZ Top, and a few standards perhaps?
Your guess is as good as ours. We certainly have some songs in mind and the emphasis will be this new album but you never know what we might be putting down on stage. Just come out and hear the “whatevers”…
The tour wraps at the Troubadour in Hollywood in November, but you’re playing two nights at the end of December with a bunch of special guests like Jimmy Vaughn and Chris Layton at Antone’s in Austin. What’s in store for those shows?
It is The Jungle Show! It’s the show that’s a celebration of great friendships among kindred spirits. It’s always something special when we’re back in Austin and those guys are the ones to hang out with there, especially within the fabled walls of Antone’s. It’s gonna be a party!
ZZ Top will be celebrating their golden anniversary next year. Got anything special planned you can share?
We’re kicking off the 50th with a residency at The Venetian in Las Vegas in January so we’ll be able to get down on stage and get lucky at the tables every night. Thereafter, we’ve got some bad…and nationwide…touring planned. It’s gonna be a blowout year as we dig in for the next 50.
