"...Yar!..."
A bit of ZZ
History is needed on this one... Back in the mists of early CD reissues and
especially 'remasters' - 1987's "Six Pack' by ZZ TOP was considered to be
the height of desirability. It contained Discs 1 to 5 and 7 listed below - so
it naturally 'looked like' a great remaster deal. That is until you listened to
it. In order to cash in on the huge success of 1983's "Eliminator"
and its 1985 follow up "Afterburner" - 1980's type percussion was
'remixed' into the first five LPs in the set (excluding "El Loco")
and the results were awful. By way of finally placating fans - 2006 saw proper
CD remasters of "Tres Hombres" and "Fandango!" that even
contained bonus tracks (not included in these reissues unfortunately).
"Eliminator" also saw a Deluxe Edition 2CD proper remaster in
September 2008 - but the other albums have only seen sporadic tracks crop up in
remastered form on Anthologies and the 2003 "Chrome, Smoke & BBQ"
4CD Retro.
Which brings us
to this fab little box set - "The Complete Studio Albums 1970-1990"
on Warner Brothers 8122796519 released June 2013. It features 10 albums, 100
tracks and all using the original mixes - and for the first time in the case of
"ZZ Top's First Album", "Rio Grande Mud" and
"Tejas" - proper remasters. And they're in lovely 5" card repro
sleeves with "Tres Hombres" and "Tejas" sporting their
original gatefolds (a tri for "Tejas"). Here is a disc-by-disc
breakdown of the wide-brimmed hats and ladies with lengthy limbs...
Disc 1 (35:37
minutes):
1. (Somebody
Else Been) Shaking Your Tree
2. Brown Sugar
3. Squank
4. Goin’ Down To
Mexico
5. Old Man
6. Neighbor,
Neighbor
7. Certified
Blues
8. Bedroom Thang
9. Just Got Back
From Baby’s
10. Backdoor
Love Affair
Tracks 1 to 10
are their debut LP “ZZ Top's First Album” – released January 1971 in the USA on
London PS 584 (no UK release at the time)
Disc 2 (39:01
minutes):
1. Francine
2. Just Got Paid
3. Mushmouth
Shoutin’
4. Ko Ko Blue
5. Chevrolet
6. Apologies To
Pearly
7. Bar-B-Q
8. Sure Got Cold
After The Rain Fell
9. Whiskey’n
Mama
10. Down Brownie
Tracks 1 to 10
are the LP “Rio Grande Mud” – released April 1972 LP on London PS 612 in the
USA and July 1972 LP on London SH-U 8433 in the UK
Disc 3 (33:30
minutes):
1. Waitin’ For
The Bus
2. Jesus Just
Left Chicago
3. Beer Drinkers
& Hell Raisers
4. Master Of
Sparks
5. Hot, Blue
& Righteous
6. Move Me On
Down The Line
7. Precious And
Grace
8. La Grange
9. Shiek
10. Have You
Heard?
Tracks 1 to 10
are the LP “Tres Hombres” – released August 1973 LP in the USA on London PS 631
and November 1973 LP in the UK on London SH-U 8459
Disc 4 (33:51
minutes):
1. Thunderbird
[Live]
2. Jailhouse
Rock [Live]
3. Backdoor
Medley: Backdoor Love Affair/Mellow Down Easy/Backdoor Love Affair No.2/Long
Distance Boogie [Live]
4. Nasty Dogs
And Funky Kings [Live]
5. Blue Jean
Blues [Side 2]
6. Balinese
7. Mexican
Blackbird
8. Heard It On
The X
9. Tush
Tracks 1 to 9
are the LP “Fandango!” – released May 1975 in the USA on London PS 656 and June
1975 in the UK on London SH-U 8482 (Side 1 is Live, Side 2 is Studio Tracks)
Disc 5 (34:52
minutes):
1. It’s Only
Love
2. Arrested For
Driving While Blind
3. El Diablo
4. Snappy Kakkie
5. Enjoy And Get
It On
6. Ten Dollar
Man
7. Pan Am
Highway Blues
8. Avalon
Hideaway
9. She’s A
Heartbreaker
10. Asleep In
the Desert
Tracks 1 to 10
are the LP “Tejas” – released January 1977 in the USA on London PS 680 and
February 1977 in the UK on London LDU 1
Disc 6 (34:18
minutes):
1. I Thank You
2. She Loves My
Automobile
3. I’m Bad, I’m
Nationwide
4. A Fool For
Your Stockings
5. Manic
Mechanic
6. Dust My Broom
7. Lowdown On
The Street
8. Hi Fi Mama
9. Cheap
Sunglasses
10. Esther Be
The One
Tracks 1 to 10
are the LP “Deguello” – released November 1979 in the USA on Warner Brothers HS
3361 and December 1977 in the UK on Warner Brothers K 56701
Disc 7 (37:23
minutes):
1. Tube Snake
Boogie
2. I Wanna Drive
You Home
3. Ten Foot Pole
4. Leila
5. Don’t Tease
Me
6. It’s So Hard
7. Pearl
Necklace
8. Groovy Little
Hippie Pad
9. Heaven, Hell
Or Houston
10. Party On The
Patio
Tracks 1 to 10
are the LP “El Loco” – released July 1981 in the USA on Warner Brothers BSK
3593 and Warner Brothers K 56929 in the UK
Disc 8 (45:28
minutes):
1. Gimme All
Your Lovin’
2. Got Me Under
Pressure
3. Sharp Dressed
Man
4. I Need You
Tonight
5. I Got The Six
6. Legs
7. Thug
8. TV Dinners
9. Dirty Dog
10. If I Could
Only Flag Her Down
11. Bad Girl
Tracks 1 to 11
are the LP “Eliminator” – released April 1983 in the USA on Warner Brothers
23774-1 and Warner Brothers W 3774 in the UK
Disc 9 (37:34
minutes):
1. Sleeping Bag
2. Stages
3. Woke Up With
Wood
4. Rough Boy
5. Can’t Stop
Rockin’
6. Planet Of
Women
7. I Got The
Message
8. Velcro Fly
9. Dipping Low
(In The Lap Of Luxury)
10. Delirious
Tracks 1 to 10
are the LP “Afterburner” – released November 1985 in the USA on Warner Brothers
25342-1 and Warner Brothers WX 27 in the UK
Disc 10 (39:55
minutes):
1. Concrete And
Steel
2. Lovething
3. Penthouse
Eyes
4. Tell It
5. My Head’s In
Mississippi
6. Decision Or
Collision
7. Give It Up
8. 2000 Blues
9. Burger Man
10. Doubleback
Tracks 1 to 10
are the LP “Recycler” – released October 1990 in the USA on Warner Brothers
26265-1 and Warner Brothers WX 390 in the UK
Bitty bad news
first - as it appears to be with all these Warners mini boxes (see reviews for
Ry Cooder, Little Feat and Joni Mitchell) - there's no booklet - when such a
thing would have been just oh so sweet. That aside what you do get is
blindingly great Blues Boogie and ZZ's brand of Swamp Rock that doesn't let up
for the duration (even if the later Eighties LP are patchy in places). And the
sound is fantastic - clear, warm and full of ballsy clarity - and best of all -
untampered.
Musically how
good is it to finally hear the "First Album" and especially "Rio
Grande Mud" sound this kicking - a few seconds into slinky "Bedroom
Thang", the harmonica boogie of "Mushmouth Shoutin'" and the rip
of "Ko Ko Blue" and I'm in Rocking Nirvana. The aching seven and half
minute Blues "Sure Got Cold After The Rain Fell" is surely one of
their great forgotten classics.
All the hits are
here "La Grange", "Tush", "Jesus Just Left
Chicago" and "Arrested For Driving While Blind" from the
Seventies to the Eighties monsters "Gimme All Your Lovin'",
"Legs", "TV Dinners", ""Sleeping Bag",
"Rough Boy", "2000 Blues" and the stunning boogie slayer -
"My Head's In Mississippi". But half the fun is rediscovering those
album gems you'd forgotten about - Fandango's "Blue Jean Blues",
Tejas's "El Diablo" and Deguello's "A Fool For Your
Stockings" and their slide cover of the Elmore James classic “Dust My
Broom” - now with the audio clarity they've always deserved. What a blast...and
at just over two quid a disc - this is pretty much a no-brainer.
Buy it, start boogieing across the ceiling and grow that beard long baby...YAR!
Buy it, start boogieing across the ceiling and grow that beard long baby...YAR!
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