There’s A New Tribute Album For ZZ Top Coming Out This October (With Images)

Here are images of the Texas based rock band ZZ Top. Enjoy. 🙂

“Sharp Dressed Man”. “Tush”. “Legs”. “La Grange”.

Even if you’re not a rocker, these song titles probably ring a bell. You’ve heard them on the radio, on TV, in movies or elsewhere.

The Texas-based American rock band ZZ Top (also known as “That little ol’ band from Texas” formed in 1969 in Texas. Featuring blues-inspired rock, their first album ZZ Top’s First Album was released in 1971. Later, they began to incorporate a variety of new wave, punk rock and dance-rock influences, coupled with humorous lyrics full of innuendo and double entendres.

Perhaps most known for Eliminator, released in 1983, which sold more than 10 million copies in the United States, the band has had a long and illustrious career and is still rocking.

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Retrospective: ZZ Top: A Tribute From Friends

In honor of the band’s 40 years in music, 2011 marked the release of ZZ Top: A Tribute From Friends.

The band was pleasantly surprised and humbled by the talent that signed on to be a part of this project – as they initially thought they were going to be paying tribute to someone else – Steven Tyler (Aerosmith), Mick Fleetwood, Filter, Nickelback, Wolfmother, Coheed and Cambria, Wyclef Jean, Daughtry and others.

The album, of course, features some of ZZ Top’s best works, including “Sharp Dressed Man”, “Gimme All Your Lovin’”, “Tush”, “Legs”, “Cheap Sunglasses”, “La Grange” and more.

From faithful recreations of the original tracks to modern reinterpretations, it’s a mixed bag to say the least – but it’s a lot of fun to listen to, and that keeps you listening from top to bottom. And, it should go without saying that there’s some fantastic guitar playing on the record, even if it’s not exactly how it was originally played.

Guitarist Billy Gibbons commented that he was worried they’d have a hard time tracking down artists who wanted to be a part of the project and that they’d fight over who got to cover which song, but he noted that the selection process was fast and easy.

Don’t Miss The Opportunity – Pay Tribute

If there’s something to be learned from the above, it’s that artists should be on the lookout for opportunities to pay tribute to their favorite artists, and perhaps even collaborate with others in the process.

Although duplicating the success of a high-profile release like ZZ Top: A Tribute From Friends might prove impossible, especially for independent artists, many artists these days are discovered for their imaginative covers, often in favor of their original material. Just look at acts like Pomplamoose, Justin Bieber or Arnel Pineda (Journey’s current singer who was discovered on YouTube).

Humble as ZZ Top may be, we don’t think it’s any accident that so many famous artists jumped at the chance to be a part of their project. They all saw an opportunity in paying homage to one of blue-rock’s longest standing bands.