Greatest Hits - ZZ Top (CD 1992)

As far as I'm concerned, "white boy" blues can be divided into two camps. The first one is occupied by a bunch of nervous types who like to "slum it" from time to time and mimic the old blues masters from places like Chicago, St. Louis and the rural South. The second camp is where bands like ZZ Top thrive. In that camp, you've got some artists who play the blues like they love it, and manage to create new dimensions to that aging form of music.

ZZ Top, simply put, plays gritty, hard blues with a Texas twang added in for good measure. This album represents a good look at the career of that fine trio, and the 18 tracks here sound like they were recorded in the middle of a swamp somewhere. Well, that's true for the most part -- songs like "Sleeping Bag" sound like the fire and passion was stripped right out of them to increase the band's commercial appeal, but that's another story.

The guitars on here growl and spit out nasty, distorted riffs and solos, while the rhythm section plods along and keeps everything moving just fine. For those in love with bass, this disc was mastered to simply boom about any set of speakers out there. Be careful, though -- all the steady thudding can make for angry neighbors. The production is such, though, that the heavy-bass doesn't get in the way of the guitars and "cool daddy" vocals here. In a sonic sense, this album was mastered extremely well.

And, the tunes here are great, too. Some of the band's best-known stuff is included. To prove my point, here's a list of the tracks:

1. Gimme all Your Lovin'
2. Sharp Dressed Man
3. Rough Boy
4. Tush
5. My Head's in Mississippi
6. Pearl Necklace
7. I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide
8. Viva Las Vegas
9. Doubleback
10. Gun Love
11. Got me Under Pressure
12. Give it Up
13. Cheap Sunglasses
14. Sleeping Bag
15. Planet of Women
16. La Grange
17. Tube Snake Boogie
18. Legs

See what I mean? Anyone not familiar with the majority of those tunes simply hasn't turned on his radio in the past 25 years or so. There are two new tracks on this compilation -- "Viva Las Vegas" and "Gun Love." "Viva Las Vegas" is a bad cover of a song made famous by Elvis, while "Gun Love" is a pleasant, but unmemorable, number. I would have loved it if two other "classic" tunes were put in to replace the new ones, but that's another story.

Another complaint I have about this collection has to do with the idiotic liner notes. A brief history of the band and the tracks is included, and that's just fine. What's not fine is the addition of words like "renaiZZance" and "claZZic" in there. Just drives me nuts.

For fans of guitar-based rock, this collection is fantastic. Sure, it might not contain enough tracks to satisfy hardcore ZZ Top fans, but its enough for most folks and having all these tracks in one place is very convenient. Now, I wish that drummer would grow a beard to match the other members of the band...