Review & Photos by Jordan West
Guitarist Billy Gibbons and the BFG Band made a stop in Anaheim and gave the crowd a taste of what it is like when a legend comes out to jam. Gibbons, the long-time leader of “That lil’ol’band from Texas” ZZ Top, has been touring with this particular trio — bassist Mike “The Drifter” Flanigin and drummer Chris “Whipper” Layton, both members of his Texas-based side project The Jungle Show, which also included guitarist Jimmie Vaughan.
The crowd was alive and in great anticipation, many of them members of the music industry, as the 2026 NAMM Convention had just wrapped up, and, as an attendee, I noticed many audience members who had been in the halls of the Anaheim Convention Center all weekend.
Right on time, at 8:00 sharp and without an opening act, Gibbons and the BFG Band hit the stage — looking like “sharp- dressed men” in their matching rhinestone-enhanced suits made by the legendary Beverly Hills suit-maker Nudie, matching flower-design guitars, with various skateboards strewn around — and launched into the classic ZZ Top blues number “Waitin’ For the Bus” and, just like on the 1973 Tres Hombres release, segued into the slow, grinding blues number “Jesus Just Left Chicago.” This set the pace for the upcoming 19-song set. Just some inspiring, biting, blues played by a trio of Texans who play the blues the way they were intended to be played.
Gibbons has always had his own sound, and for years so many have tried to replicate it. Most have failed. I noticed that Gibbons’ guitar, as well as Flanigin’s, were plugged directly into a backline of Magnatone amplifiers, which are famous for their rich, full tones. And that they were, all evening long. That sweet sound that so many guitar players have salivated over was evident during a cool cover of Slim Harpo’s classic “I Got Love If You Want It,” followed by ZZ Top’s pleading “Blue Jean Blues” that brought out a huge applause from the crowd.
Gibbons paused to address the crowd and spoke about his time with his late 1960s band The Moving Sidewalks and his experience opening for the Jimi Hendrix Experience. He said they played two of Hendrix’s songs during their set, and when he came offstage, Hendrix grabbed him by the shoulders and said, “I like you. You got a lot of nerve.” Tonight, Gibbons smiled and then he and the band played a bang-up version of Hendrix’s “Foxy Lady” with Flanigin playing organ instead of bass guitar. He excels at both.
The BFG Band then tore into the early ZZ Top catalog, starting with 1972’s rocking “Francine,” which Gibbons explained he had to change the words from “My Francine just turned 13, she’s my angelic teenage queen” to “18” for obvious reasons. Drummer Chris Layton, who previously manned the drums for the late Stevie Ray Vaughan and Kenny Wayne Shepherd, among others, is a “drummer’s drummer.” He uses his wrists more than pure power, and his accents and cymbal control keep him, as we drummers like to say, “in the pocket” at all times. His contributions to early ZZ Top classics that followed — “Just Got Paid,” the wonderful “Precious and Grace,” and the rocker “Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers” — brought out the best in Gibbons and Flanigin, without deviating too much from the original recorded versions. The sign of a true pro.
This was especially evident during “Nasty Dogs and Funky Kings” with its stops and starts and various accents, all the while letting Gibbons fly. He absolutely BLAZED across his fingerboard during this number. It was a true band-jam and a highlight for me and all others in attendance to witness.
“Let’s lock the doors up and keep playing,” Gibbons excitedly said more than once during the evening. Sporting a white Stetson hat over his trademark green Bamileke beanie, I almost expected them to fly off his head at any time. The playing was that firey! “Sharp Dressed Man,” probably ZZ Top’s most popular latter-career hits, was performed almost as a must before Gibbons and company went back to ZZ Top’s first album for the rocking blues of “Brown Sugar.”
Gibbons playfully teased the audience with a snippet of “Mexican Blackbird” before Layton played the familiar opening rim-rolls that led to the set-ending, groove of the ZZ Top classic, “La Grange.” As many times I have heard (and played…) this song, it never gets old. Tonight, the BFG band put in some spice by taking it to new heights but keeping it low to the ground. This number is, to me, the quintessential Gibbons and ZZ Top sound. The Magnatone amps shook, as Gibbons and company rocked them in ways that only a true master can. As I looked around, as the song finished, it was all smiles from band and audience alike.
A standing ovation from the crowd brought the band back to finish the show with an inspired, and fun Texas-styled shuffle of “Thunderbird.” The chorus of “Get high, everybody get high” was shouted along by all, and my feet were stomping the floor like it was a Texas roadhouse filled with peanut shells.
Layton came out from behind his Mexican blanket and Sombrero-adorned drum kit, and the band smiled and bowed for their adoring audience. It was a truly inspired performance from three pros, the perfect cap to an outstanding NAMM convention weekend that provided a great vibe and a mutual love of live music and all that it brings.
Billy Gibbons and the BFG band will be performing at various cities this year. Do yourself and see this master and his combo perform songs that are as deep and huge as the heart of Texas. My thanks to those that made it possible for me to attend.
