The first indication of that is watching drummer Frank Beard (you know, the one without the beard) moving his microphone/headset back and forth to his mouth, alternating between chain smoking and singing. Beard's style is even old school - while many drummers today are intent on attacking the kit with reckless abandon, Beard's drumming is so slow and deliberate you wonder how he's keeping such a perfect beat.
Then, there were the old dogs up front, Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill.
The little ol' band from Texas sounds better than ever, especially vocally. When I heard their recent "Live In Texas" CD, I wondered if they'd lost a step or two (or a two step, as it were) but those fears were put to rest quickly at DPAC Wednesday night. Both Gibbons' and Hill's voices were in excellent form, and the new material (like the opener "Chartreuse" and "Gotsta Get Paid") held up surprisingly well next to the old material. And if it was classics you wanted, it was classics you got - after starting with a new song, they went right to "I Thank You" which segued right into "Waitin' for the Bus" straight into "Jesus Just Left Chicago".
A few moments felt a little too staged, like when they brought a woman up from the front row and, after complimenting her outfit and making it clear they thought she was very good looking, Gibbons intro'd the next song by saying "I think we need to play the blues".
One thing I found very refreshing about the show was ZZ Top's embracing of their post 70's sound. When I saw Steve Winwood at DPAC, I was a little disappointed that Winwood refused to play almost all of his 80's catalog, despite the fact that it was his best selling decade. ZZ Top's career took a similar path, in that rock fans adore their early sound but it was the 80's that shot them to superstardom.
In this show, dripped in plenty of nostalgia (complete with the original MTV videos on the screen behind them), the Top covered all their decades, including a couple of surprises - 1994's "Pincushion" and 1985's "Stages".
You've got to admire ZZ Top's staying power. As Gibbons remarked at one point, "We've been comin' around for four decades. Same three guys, same three chords". When so many other bands have broken up, reunited, replaced members, broke up and reunited again, ZZ Top is an example that great rock n roll never goes out of style.
Foster
Radio 96.1
**Pic courtesy of Culture Map**
1 comment:
I was there b/c we won tickets from a radio station out of Greensboro and really enjoyed ZZ Top's set. I was disappointed that it only lasted for an hour & 15 minutes though - had I paid for tickets - especially up front where they were around $120, I would have been pretty upset. The sound was awesome - I really had a good time - even just as a 'radio fan' of the band.
The opening band was NOT impressive AT all. I hope whoever booked them does a better job next time finding a more enjoyable group. Not only did they open & close with cover songs, they made mistakes during the opening number. If you're gonna do covers, they either need to be perfect or need to be 'made your own'. (in my opinion, of course) Vocals weren't great either. I hate that a higher caliber group didn't get that amazing opportunity.
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