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The Latest Breaking News from ZZ Top

“That’s 15 less than I’m used to….” ZZ Top’s Elwood Francis was saddled with his 17-string bass after a joke appearance went viral – now he’s experimenting with a 2-string build

The former guitar tech turned ’Top man is continuing to tinker with his live setup, with amusing results

Guitar World

“Would I play it for a whole show? Absolutely not! I’m so happy to get that thing off. It’s brutal”: ZZ Top’s Elwood Francis on his latest weird bass acquisition – the 15-string ‘High Selecta’ bass

The guitar tech-turned-band member already struggled with a 17-string monstrosity, before adding a 15-string to his arsenal – and says he can’t forget his days cleaning the band’s fuzzy guitars

Guitar World

"My first concert was The Black Crowes, but my second was ZZ Top. That would've been the cooler answer!" Brat's Liz Selfish: 10 Records That Changed My Life

From Eyehategod and A Day To Remember to 50 Cent and Dave Matthews Band, these songs have shaped Brat vocalist Liz Selfish

Metal Hammer

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Las Vegas honours ZZ Top icon with special ceremony for 'Billy Gibbons Day'

Billy Gibbons' home town of Las Vegas, Nevada, rolls out the red carpet with City Hall ceremony for ZZ Top star

Louder

“We were opening for ZZ Top at Madison Square Garden. I told the guys, ‘I’ll go out there and blow for 60 seconds, then we’ll go into the first tune.’ I hit the first chord and my Marshall blew up”: Richie Sambora on Bon Jovi's nightmare arena debut

Reflecting on the experience decades later, Sambora said that – embarrassing as they are in the moment – mishaps like that are “what shape you as a pro”

Guitar World

ZZ Top announce Elevation Tour dates for 2025

The shows will hopefully give fans another chance to behold the majesty of Elwood Francis's 17-string bass

Louder

'Deadpool & Wolverine's Viral Opening Scene Was Almost Completely Different

The picture editor for 'Deadpool & Wolverine' had a hand in crafting the opening dance scene to NSYNC's "Bye Bye Bye," which nearly was set to a totally different song.

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“Billy Gibbons pulls out this big-ass yellow 17-string bass and he’s like, ‘Okay, we’ll play it for a song, right?’” ZZ Top’s Elwood Francis on teching for Joe Perry, lying to Steve Vai – and the curse of playing that viral 17-string bass

The gear-trashing DIY enthusiast once had to choose between Vai and Joe Perry, before being fired and rehired by Guns N’ Roses –in a matter of days

Guitar World

“I found it late at night while surfing on one of those Chinese websites. I couldn't believe they were making something like that”: How ZZ Top acquired their 17-string bass

How ZZ Top got hold of their 17-string bass

MusicRadar

“I said to Billy, ‘We should order one of these, and I’ll play it. It’ll be hilarious.’ Then it went viral. I hate playing that bass. Now I’ve got to play it every night”: Elwood Francis on why he regrets his 17-string bass becoming a ZZ Top staple

Elwood Francis reveals the origins of his preposterous 17-string bass – and why he’s disappointed it went viral

Guitar World

Best podcasts of the week: Esther Perel’s love letter to romance

In this week’s newsletter: The audio superstar is back with a ‘beach read’ of a podcast, The Arc of Love. Plus: five of the best podcasts about death

The Guardian - UK

“Dusty is their bass player. I'm not the bass player. I shouldn't be in the band”: Elwood Francis replaced Dusty Hill in ZZ Top – but he still feels uncomfortable about it

Francis originally served as ZZ Top's longtime guitar tech, but took on a completely new role at the behest of Hill's wishes after the bassist passed away

Guitar World

"We were starting to work in the girl theme. Cars, girls, fast and loud – those elements were starting to gel": How ZZ Top reinvented themselves with Degüello to pave the way for Eliminator

With some top tunes, a vintage clavinet and a battery of effects plastered all over it, Degüello successfully updated ZZ Top’s old-school blues and pointed the way towards future superstardom

Louder

“I got a call from David Bowie’s people to record Let’s Dance. I became a big advocate of Stevie Ray Vaughan in the studio. Nobody else could play like him”: Session bass great Carmine Rojas shares the stories behind his awe-inspiring resume

Despite suspecting he used the wrong bass on Tina Turner’s Foreign Affair, the veteran dedicates himself to being a supporting player and learning every day with the likes of Keith Richards, Joe Bonamassa and Billy Gibbons

Guitar World

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Louder

“To survive in this game, we had to get away from the 10-minute guitar solos”: the story of .38 Special, Blackfoot and the Southern Rock/AOR crossover

In the late 70s and early 80s, many of Southern Rock’s finest swapped twanging guitars for melodic rock magnificence

Louder

"Saucy enough to flavour a thousand barbecues": How a fabled Texan brothel inspired a ZZ Top classic

Celebrating a real-life Texan brothel, the visiting of which was in its day "a rite of passage", La Grange is still one of ZZ Top's best-loved songs and a must-play at shows

Louder

“The audience threw lighters, bottles, ice cubes and coins. We managed four songs before being booed off”: the rollercoaster story of Loverboy, Canada’s greatest AOR band

Turn Me Loose, Working For The Weekend, Loving Every Minute Of It – Loverboy raised the maple leaf flag high in the 1980s

Louder

ZZ Top announce first European tour in five years

"It's been a while since we've been able to check in with our European fans": ZZ Top's 2024 European shows will be their first on the continent with new bassist Elwood Francis

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Louder

Watch Slash, ZZ Top's Billy Gibbons and Myles Kennedy join Gov’t Mule onstage for an epic cover of Lynynrd Skynyrd classic Simple Man

Warren Haynes’ annual Christmas Jam charity fundraiser featured some familiar faces and some killer collaborations this weekend

Louder

“You oughtta see if you could get somebody to send you money”: we wondered how ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons got his nickname ‘The Reverend’, so we asked Billy Gibbons to tell us

Spoiler alert: ‘The Reverend’ Billy F Gibbons is not an actual Reverend – it all comes from a money-making scam

Guitar World

“When they shot smoke, the crowd went wild!”: Dusty Hill’s Hot Rod car bass, custom built by Wayne Charvel for ZZ Top’s Eliminator tour, hides a few secrets beneath the hood – now it’s up for auction

Check out the automobile-inspired build that powered some of the band’s most iconic appearances in the early-’80s

Louder

“I wouldn’t say we were trying to create another Close To The Edge or A Night At The Opera, but there are definitely some of those elements on the record." The making of the Von Hertzen Brothers' War Is Over

Kicking off their seventh studio album with the 12-minute title track, War Is Over found Finland's Von Hertzen Brothers on fine prog form

Guitar World

"Man, I like this thing!": Watch Billy Gibbons play the blues on a cardboard Strat

Even with the odd body material, the ZZ Top man looks – and sounds – right at home

Guitar World

Billy Gibbons gets his pedals on Amazon – and his favorite brand starts at $15

Larkin Poe’s Rebecca Lovell has revealed that, despite his boutique guitar and amp choices, the ZZ Top icon is obsessed with cheap mini pedals

Guitar World

Lynyrd Skynyrd will continue without Gary Rossington and honor tour dates with ZZ Top

“Gary was always the first to say how, ‘Skynyrd’s music is bigger than me or any one person,’” says Rossington’s widow

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