Tag Archives: zz top

Features, In Memoriam

ZZ Top’s Founding Bassist Dusty Hill Has Died (1949-2021)

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This sure has been a terrible week for music as Monday we learned of the death of Metal Church’s Mike Howe, Tuesday’s news was the passing of Slipknot founding drummer Joey Jordison and now the band ZZ Top has shared the sad news about the passing of their bassist Dusty Hill. Born Joseph Michael Hill, the musician passed away in his sleep and was 72. Their statement follows the photo we have taken from their Official Facebook Page.

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ZZ Top’s Dusty Hill from Facebook

Band Statement:
“We are saddened by the news today that our Compadre, Dusty Hill, has passed away in his sleep at home in Houston, TX. We, along with legions of ZZ Top fans around the world, will miss your steadfast presence, your good nature and enduring commitment to providing that monumental bottom to the ‘Top’. We will forever be connected to that “Blues Shuffle in C.”
You will be missed greatly, amigo. Frank & Billy

***

Official Artist Wiki: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dusty_Hill
Official: https://www.zztop.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ZZTop

Features, Tours and Festivals

Exit 111 Announces Full Details For Inaugural Event

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Music fans in my neck of the woods are going to be looking into relocation before October hits based on this sure to be crushing Festival event. It’s the kind of music festival my friends and I clamor for but instead we get The Governors Ball and Panorama Music Festival. Sigh. Anyway, without further adieu I share with you the announcement about the debut of the Exit 111 Music Festival. Read on down below to the full press release and prepare to be stunned by the lineup.

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The Press Release:
EXIT 111 Festival will debut with a heavyweight line-up that celebrates all forms of rock–from hard to classic, alternative to southern–when it debuts October 11-13 at the Great Stage Park in Manchester, TN. The inaugural three-day event hosted by Eddie Trunk will be led by headlining slots from Guns N’ Roses, Def Leppard, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and a mix of platinum-selling artists including Slayer (in the last Tennessee show of their career), ZZ Top, Deftones, Ghost, Megadeth and more than 40 acts (full line-up below). Tickets for EXIT 111 go on sale Thursday, April 25 at 12:00 PM (ET), with additional ticketing info below.

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Produced by C3 Presents and AC Entertainment, the massive footprint of the festival site–known to millions as the home of the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival–will be transformed into a rock and roll playground with the all-star line-up appearing on three stages with 12 hours of music daily, camping and a variety of activities tailored specifically to concert-goers. This marks the first-ever event, beyond Bonnaroo, to utilize the 700-plus acre farm. On site adventures include Paranormal Cirque (an R-rated crazy yet fun fusion between circus, theatre, and cabaret in perfect harmony with the evolution of a show that brings you back to when we dream…and when we had nightmares and fantasies), the first annual EXIT 111 car show, Red Bull motocross demonstrations and a mega sports bar airing full sports coverage throughout the weekend, with more activities announced soon.
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ZZ Top @ Beacon Theatre

Join the three sharp dressed me as they deliver the musical goods with their show at the Beacon Theatre tonight.

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Reviews, Videos

“Live From Texas” [Blu-ray] by ZZ Top

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Artist: ZZ Top
Title: “Live From Texas” [Blu-ray]
Label: Eagle Vision
Release Date: 6/24/2008
Genre: Blues Rock
Rating: 4/5

Having reviewed this DVD when it originally was released on standard edition DVD and finding no real difference other than the presentation on the Blu-ray medium I am re-presenting my words about this issue for those fans who might not own it yet. Please continue.

You’ve heard their songs on the radio for years and cannot deny the instant appeal of their Blues-based Rock sound and yet despite the bands juggernaut level of success there has never been a concert video released from them – until now. Thanks to the folks at Eagle Rock Entertainment, “Live From Texas” captures the power trio on home ground and this release is chock full of the hits that made them famous along with a number of other treats from their back catalog. The band was formed in 1969 and since that time has not had a single lineup change over the almost forty years that they have existed. It’s pretty admirable considering just how many groups have come and gone over that time and how ZZ Top has kept going strong while peers from their early days are finding the need to come out of retirement and do reunion shows with less than half original members. The show presented on this DVD was filmed at the Nokia Theater in Dallas, TX in 2008 and it is sure to keep anyone who watches it entertained. It starts off with “Got Me Under Pressure” from the bands breakthrough “Eliminator” album, and for those interested, the DVD features all four of the main tracks from that release (“Legs”, “Gimme All Your Lovin’” and “Sharp Dressed Man”). Just the mention of those three tunes makes the videos play through in my mind. Visually this is not much to watch because the band is not as much known for antics and showmanship as much as they are for musicianship and groove. If you are looking for super-bombastic display, then you might find this rather dull, but if you want some awesome music then just sit back and press play as this one delivers the goods. Clearly the almost four decade span of their career has not slowed down the talents of Dusty Hill, Billy Gibbons and Frank Beard who perform as tight as well fitted glove on each and every tune. Additional classics featured are of course “Cheap Sunglasses” and “Tush” but absent are songs like “Beer Drinkers and Hell Raisers” which I found to be a little bit of a bummer. With the latter tune having been done by the likes of Lemmy and Ministry, it only serves as a rousing endorsement about the level of impact that this band actually has. Despite my slight and minor reservations about some of the omissions there are clearly enough inclusions of note to make this a rock solid presentation.
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Features, PiercingMetal Says

PiercingMetal’s “Best Of” 2009: The Books and Videos

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I know what you are thinking, gee Ken you guys sure did like a lot of stuff over the course of 2009 and you are not kidding. This will be my last installment from the “Best Of” rundowns and we will not only cover the videos and books that we enjoyed the most but also will line out a bunch of the things that disappointed us here at the Metal Media Command HQ. DVD releases continued to impress and amaze as not only were new and exciting videos being released but also a number of cool historical archives had finally come to see the light of day. We reviewed quite a bit of them this year and still have a number of them to go but the list below focuses on some of our favorites which we made sure to line out first to be a part of this list. Let’s take a look.

The Best DVD’s of 2009:

Iron Maiden “Flight 666” (Universal Music): Maiden’s documentary about their “Somewhere Back In Time” World Tour that discussed how the band flew their own airplane to dozens of countries to deliver the Metal to the faithful believers has to be seen to be believed. Filmed by the famous Sam Dunn of “Headbanger’s Journey” fame.

Anvil: “The Story Of Anvil” (VH1 Classic Records): Anvil finally gets their due and some proper attention based on this fine documentary film by Sasha Gervasi.

Journey “Live In Manila” (Wal-Mart): If you didn’t get enough of Arnel Pineda when Journey delivered us “Generations” then wait till you get a load of him doing his thing in his home country, the Philippines. This show rocks and the crowd was going crazy for their countryman as he led this legendary band into the future.

Rick Wakeman “The Six Wives Of Henry XIII” (Eagle Vision): Former Yes keyboard wizard gets to fulfill a dream performance and we are members of the audience thanks to this special DVD release. A companion CD was also offered and this is a must for the legends fans.

ZZ Top “Double Down Live” (Eagle Vision): This DVD presented not one, but two performances from ZZ Top and while one comes from recently, it is the vintage show from 1980 that is the one to appreciate most. There isn’t a lot of footage of the band that’s been made public, so this was something that many classic rock and blues rock fans can appreciate quite a bit.
Continue reading PiercingMetal’s “Best Of” 2009: The Books and Videos →