Billy Gibbons Lists His Favorite Albums
Billy Gibbons has shared a list of his favorite records — and the results may surprise longtime ZZ Top fans.
Gibbons, speaking with the Quietus to promote the band's new Live! Greatest Hits From Around the World album and fall tour, warned that his picks weren't as focused on the blues classics as some might expect.
"It's prudent to precede my list with a disclaimer," he explained. "My choices are a little more recent than what might have been anticipated. People often ask about Jimmy Reed and Muddy Waters or even Howlin' Wolf, but it's safe to say that the list of great bluesmen, and the beautiful period of recording between 1949 and 1959, is already on the books."
Even though Gibbons' list is focused on the work of other artists, he added another preface by name-checking one of his favorite ZZ Top covers: Ministry's version of "Sharp Dressed Man," tracked for the group's 2010 Undercover LP. "I recorded a slide solo with [frontman Al Jourgenson]," Gibbons recalled. "He was at the Sonic Ranch studio in El Paso, Texas. And he was doing the most ... intriguing version of 'Sharp Dressed Man.' You could add that to my list of favorite ZZ Top interpretations."
Check out the list of Billy Gibbons' favorite records — arranged, according to the Quietus, in no particular order — below, and read his comments on each record.
Surprise Vacation, Stealing Office Supplies
Charles Bradley, Changes
Dâm-Funk, Invite the Light
Erick Sermon, E.S.P. (Erick Sermon's Perception)
Chromeo, White Women
Michael Kiwanuka, Love & Hate
Quinn Sullivan, Midnight Highway
Carlene Carter, Carter Girl
Shemekia Copeland, Outskirts of Love
Lecherous Gaze, Zeta Reticuli Blues
Dinosaur Jr., Give a Glimpse of What Yer Not
Isaac Rother and the Phantoms, The Unspeakable Horror Of …
Motörhead, Bad Magic
ZZ Top Albums Ranked Worst to Best