May 25, 2012Photography and Review by Micah Gummel.Venue:Verizon Wireless Arena NH
Photo Link: ZZ Top Photos
ZZ Top and The Gang of Outlaws are ready to ride!
ZZ Top, “That Little Ol’ Band From Texas,” who we have known for over four decades is ready for a 6 week road trip through the USA! Sharing the ticket is 3 Doors Down and Gretchen Wilson. Calling themselves, “The Gang Of Outlaws,” this tour will be playing mostly Eastern, Southern and Mid-western towns. The tour launched in Manchester. N.H., at the Verizon Wireless Arena.
I was lucky to be invited to cover ZZ Top on this concert series. With their original line-up intact, they are one of only a hand full of bands that I can recall, having the very same members that they did back when they first started out in 1970.
The “sharp dressed” men took the stage – and the crowd took to their feet! At this show Billy Gibbons played lead with his guitar slung low. This gunslinger was intricate and played bended notes. And he played very well, indeed – often one-handed, with the notes coming from his left hand on the neck, or in flourishes, such as on “Pincushion.”
Dusty Hill was ripping it up with a rockin rendtion of Sam and Dave’s soul classic, “I Thank You.”. “Waitin’ For The Bus,” delivered some serious bass blues riffs, just letting the crowd know he still has it. Later on Dusty took on the lead vocal for “Heard It on the X.” Billy and Dusty tore it up and traded lead vocals in “Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers.” While Dusty seems to have a higher range than Gibbons, their voices complement each other nicely, still delivering that sound we all know as ZZ Top. The main set finished with a killer extended version of “Sharp Dressed Man.”
The encore came back with “La Grange,” and directly lead in to “Just Got Paid.” The final song of their encore set, raising the crowd to there feet, was what seemed to be the tune everybody was waiting to hear -“Tush!” This featured Dusty Hill on lead vocals again, with some good, but slightly out of tune slide work, from Gibbons.
The original keepers of the Muddywood, these long time supporters of the blues came out in force as the reliable staple of roots rock, funky soul movers. Their music, their look, and style is so distinctive and original, it was an honor to be amongst the great American tradition of ZZ Top that night. Catch them on tour if you can!
Meet ZZ Top:
Singer/guitarist Billy Gibbons
Singer/bassist Dusty Hill
Drummer Frank Beard
ZZ Top Set List for Manchester, NH, May 25th, 2012:
I Thank You
Waitin’ for the Bus
Jesus Just Left Chicago
Pincushion
Arrested for Driving While Blind
Heaven, Hell or Houston
My Head’s in Mississippi
Heard It On The X
She’s Just Killing Me
Stages
Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers
Gimme All Your Lovin’
Sharp Dressed Man
Legs
Encore:
La Grange / Just Got Paid
Tush
Catch ZZ Top and the Gang of Outlaws on Tour!
Other May 2012 gigs include
Atlantic City at the Mark G. Etess Arena May 26
Mashantucket, Conn., at the MGM Grand at Foxwoods May 27
Scranton, Pa., at the Toyota Pavilion at Montage Mountain May 30
For more information and tour dates, head on over to www.zztop.com.