Billy Gibbons
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| Billy Gibbons | |
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 Billy Gibbons (left) performing live
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | Reverend Willie G |
| Born | December 16, 1949 |
| Genre(s) | Hard rock, Blues-rock |
| Occupation(s) | Guitarist, Songwriter |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar |
| Years active | 1967 - present |
| Label(s) | RCA Records |
| Associated acts | ZZ Top |
| Website | Official ZZ Top Website |
| Notable instrument(s) | |
| Gretsch Billy-Bo Jupiter Signature Model 1959 Gibson Les Paul nicknamed "Pearly Gates" Dean Z |
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William Frederick (Billy) Gibbons (born December 16, 1949), nicknamed the Reverend Willie G, is best known as the guitarist for ZZ Top. He is also the lead vocalist and composer for many of the band's classic songs. A Houston native, Gibbons is known for playing a classic 1959 Gibson Les Paul guitar he calls Miss Pearly Gates. He is known to play his guitar using a quarter or a peso as a pick, lending a distinctive sound to his playing.
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[edit] History in music
Gibbons founded the Texas psychedelic group the Moving Sidewalks, which recorded several singles and one full-length album, "Flash". The Moving Sidewalks were most prominent for opening for The Jimi Hendrix Experience during the Texas leg of Hendrix's first American tour. Also notable was the Gibbons-penned song "99th Floor," its title a nod to the influence on Gibbons of fellow Texans and pioneering psychedelic band The 13th Floor Elevators. Before that, he was in a band called The Saints with fellow guitarists David Crosswell and Philip Taft.
He formed ZZ Top in late 1969 with bassist/vocalist Dusty Hill and drummer Frank Beard (both alumni of the bands American Blues, the Warlocks, and the Cellar Dwellers). After honing their trademark Texas Boogie-Blues-Rock style, they released the aptly titled "ZZ Top's First Album" on London Records in 1971.
The band rolled on, intensively touring and recording/releasing albums until 1977, when they took an extended hiatus. Their long-time manager/producer/image maker Bill Ham used this time to negotiate a deal that allowed the band to keep control of their previous recordings, to be distributed by their new label, Warner Bros. Records. They reunited two and a half years later in order to start recording under a new Warner Bros. Records contract. Unbeknownst to the other, both Dusty Hill and Billy Gibbons had grown the chest-length beards that quickly became a part of their "wildman" image. Drummer Frank Beard does not have a beard.
The band hit international prominence and their commercial peak with the release of 1983's multi-platinum-selling disc "Eliminator". Named after Gibbon's customized 1933 Ford Coupe (which, along with leggy party girls was featured in several music videos), "Eliminator" featured the hits "Legs", "Gimme All Your Lovin'", "Sharp Dressed Man" and "TV Dinners".
In 1994, the band signed a five-disc deal with RCA Records.
In 2003, a comprehensive collection of recordings from the London and Warner Bros. years entitled "Chrome, Smoke & BBQ" was released. In 2004, ZZ Top was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They have the distinction of being among a very small group of bands with a 30 year plus history that still has all of its original members.
An excellent source of anecdotes, history and photos of Gibbons and his extensive car and guitar collections is the autobiographical coffee-table tome "Billy F. Gibbons-Rock + Roll Gearhead".
As of 2006, it is reported that ZZ Top is recording their 15th studio album. He also made an unforeseen appearance on the 2006 Revolting Cocks album "Cocked and Loaded."
Gibbons performed with The Raconteurs at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. Gibbons was part of ensemble chosen to play with the band, which included Lou Reed and Jim Jarmusch. The performance was heavily edited and cut short by MTV for broadcast, however the full unedited performance is available on MTV's Website for the VMAs. Although not a full length performance, Gibbons can also be heard playing a few bars of the ZZ Top classic "La Grange" in the Season 2 finale of the television series Bones in which he plays, as himself, the father of series regular Angela Montenegro.
His most recent television appearance was on Austin City Limits as part of the band backing Roky Erickson. He will also be interviewed on an upcoming episode of KLRU's series Texas Monthly Talks.
[edit] Discography
[edit] The Moving Sidewalks
- Flash (1968)
[edit] ZZ Top
- ZZ Top's First Album (1971)
- Rio Grande Mud (1972)
- Tres Hombres (1973)
- Fandango! (1975)
- Tejas (1977)
- Deguello (1979)
- El Loco (1981)
- Eliminator (1983)
- Afterburner (1985)
- Recycler (1990)
- Antenna (1994)
- Rhythmeen (1996)
- XXX (1999)
- Mescalero (2003)
[edit] Compilations
- The Best of ZZ Top (1977)
- The ZZ Top Six Pack (1985)
- Greatest Hits (1992)
- One Foot in the Blues (1994)
- Chrome, Smoke & BBQ (2003)
- Rancho Texicano (2004).
[edit] Guest appearances
- First slide guitar lead on the song "Dead End Streets" on the Revolting Cocks album Cocked and Loaded.
- Guitarist/Vocalist/songwriter on the song "Willin' For Satisfaction" from Def Leppard guitarist Vivian Campbell's solo album Two Sides Of If.
- Guitarist/vocalist on the song "Burn the Witch" on the Queens of the Stone Age album Lullabies to Paralyze.
- Guitarist/vocalist on "Tired Of Your Jive", from the BB King & Friends album "80"
- Guitarist/vocalist on the Nickelback songs "Follow You Home", "Fight for all the wrong reasons" and "Rockstar" from the album "All The Right Reasons"
- Guitarist on the Hank Williams III song "Trashville", from the album "Broke, Lovesick and Driftin'"
- Guitarist/vocalist on the Les Paul & Friends "American Made, World Played" track "Bad Case Of Loving You"
- Guitarist on John Mayall & Friends track "Put It Right Back" from the disc "Along For The Ride"
- Guest vocalist on Kid Rock's "Hillbilly Stomp" (from the disc "Kid Rock").
- Guest guitarist during singer Luis Fonsi's presentation at the 7th Latin Grammy awards held in Madison Square Garden, New York, on November 2, 2006.
- Guest appearance on the sitcom Yes, Dear. Greg, Jimmy, Kim and Kristine are waiting to be seated at a fancy restaurant and they see Billy Gibbons sitting at a table. Jimmy puts out the candle near his beard because he doesn't want it to ignite.
- Guest appearance on the animated show King of the Hill.
- Guest appearance on the Fox television series Bones. Billy Gibbons plays himself, as the father of Angela Pearly Gates Montenegro.
- Guest appearance on the show Criss Angel Mindfreak. Gibbons performs following one of the magician's illusions.
[edit] Trivia
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- In the TV series Bones he appears perhaps playing a fictional version of himself, as the father of the character Angela Montenegro portrayed by Michaela Conlin in the episodes "The Man in the Fallout Shelter" and "Stargazer in a Puddle". In this episode it was also revealed that Angela's middle name is "Pearly Gates." Gibbons' signature '59 Gibson Les Paul is named "Miss Pearly Gates." That guitar inspired the Seymour Duncan designed "Pearly Gates" humbucking pickup.
- Was referenced to in the TV Series Supernatural by one of the main characters who uses an alias when introducing himself.
- Occasionally is highlighted in the audience on WWE Television, most recently on the February 2 edition of WWE Smackdown
- Gibbons is referenced in the song "Razorburn" by the band Lagwagon.
- Gibbons and Hill were once offered $1 million dollars each by the Gillette Corporation to shave off their beards using their product in a TV commercial in 1984. They declined the offer, joking that "We're too ugly without 'em."
- One of Gibbon's custom guitars modeled after a Fender Telecaster has two hollowed out compartments where the pickups would ordinarily go on a Stratocaster. Stuffed inside the neck pickup opening is a regular, filtered cigarette. Stuffed inside the middle pickup compartment is a real joint. Both are visible from the first few rows of the audience when Gibbons performs on stage.
[edit] External links
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