ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, By Steve Newton Methinks Colin James has been listening to a little too much ZZ Top of late. Don’t get me wrong—I can play the Texas boogiemeisters’ first five albums all day long and still have a hankering for more Tres Hombres. But on “Man’s Gotta Be a Stone”, the … Continue reading Album review: Colin James, Rooftops and Satellites (2009)
Tag: ZZ Top
Album review: Too Slim and the Taildraggers, Tales of Sin & Redemption (2004)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MAY 27, 2004 By Steve Newton Blues-rock fans who yearn for the down 'n' dirty rock ZZ Top plied during its mid-'70s heyday should check out the eighth release from this Seattle-based trio. Led by singer, songwriter, and primo guitarist Tim "Too Slim" Langford, these veteran boogiemen go hog-wild … Continue reading Album review: Too Slim and the Taildraggers, Tales of Sin & Redemption (2004)
That time I asked Jimmy Barnes about his boozer reputation, and why he left Cold Chisel
By Steve Newton When I went to Australia for my little sister's wedding in 1986 I managed to see two wicked Aussie bands--Midnight Oil and the Angels (aka Angel City)--play killer shows in Melbourne-area clubs. Unfortunately, I didn't get to see Cold Chisel play a killer show in a Melbourne-area pub because they'd already broken … Continue reading That time I asked Jimmy Barnes about his boozer reputation, and why he left Cold Chisel
That time I asked Billy Gibbons what the glue was that kept ZZ Top together for so long
By Steve Newton Being a teenaged devotee of guitar-driven boogie in the seventies put me directly in line with what was required to be a hardcore ZZ Top fan. I have vivid memories of the band, like that time I walked into the Chilliwack Second Hand Store and found a near-mint copy of the Tres … Continue reading That time I asked Billy Gibbons what the glue was that kept ZZ Top together for so long
Album review: The Jeff Healey Band, See the Light (1988)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, OCT. 21, 1988 By Steve Newton Local blues-rock fans who've been thrilled by the wild guitar histrionics of Jeff Healey during his many Vancouver club dates are gonna love this album. It's chock full of the scorching, red-hot licks that the 22-year-old Torontonian is famous for, and his inspired … Continue reading Album review: The Jeff Healey Band, See the Light (1988)
Album review: ZZ Top, Afterburner (1985)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 8, 1985 By Steve Newton The "l'il ole band from Texas" have done it again. They've come up with another album's worth of unstoppable boogie -blues, and you can bet the coin they'll make off this one will keep them in Jack Daniels and real estate for many years … Continue reading Album review: ZZ Top, Afterburner (1985)
Album review: Steve Morse, The Introduction (1984)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 2, 1984 By Steve Newton My choice for best instrumental rock album of the year--so far--has got to be this new release by former Dixie Dregs guitarist Steve Morse. With accompaniment from bassist Jerry Peek and drummer Rod Morgenstein, Morse unleashes some of the tastiest riffs imaginable, melding … Continue reading Album review: Steve Morse, The Introduction (1984)
Album review: ZZ Top, Mescalero (2003)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 13, 2003 By Steve Newton It’s hard to believe that the same three guys who gave the world Tres Hombres are content to dump 16 tracks of crap on unsuspecting fans who might think the “Lil Old Band from Texas” still has a reason to be around. Guitarist … Continue reading Album review: ZZ Top, Mescalero (2003)
Album review: Bernard Allison, Storms of Life (2002)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, OCT. 17, 2002 By Steve Newton So I was upstairs at A&B Sound on Seymour recently, searching for the new DVD release of that fab vampire flick Near Dark—which is so new they didn’t have it yet—when a rowdy slide-guitar tune caught my attention. One of the store’s … Continue reading Album review: Bernard Allison, Storms of Life (2002)
Album review: ZZ Top, Rhythmeen (1996)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, OCT. 31, 1996 By Steve Newton I’m having lots of ’70s flashbacks lately, but they’re not being caused by ancient run-ins with tiny squares of coloured paper. There’s a woman in the Straight editorial office researching the paper’s history, scanning every issue published since 1967, and right now … Continue reading Album review: ZZ Top, Rhythmeen (1996)
Album review: ZZ Top, Antenna (1994)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MARCH 17, 1994 By Steve Newton Twenty years or so ago, I impulsively laid down $2.50 for a used copy of ZZ Top’s Tres Hombres LP, which sounded like hard-rock heaven on my $175 Phillips stereo system. Back then I viewed ZZ Top as a great new heavy-metal … Continue reading Album review: ZZ Top, Antenna (1994)
Album review: ZZ Top, Recycler (1990)
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, NOV. 29, 1990 By Steve Newton Playing the rock critic game can be tough, especially when you have to give the thumbs-down to bands that you’ve loved ever since you were a kid. The recent AC/DC album wasn’t up to snuff, and now another band I used to kill … Continue reading Album review: ZZ Top, Recycler (1990)
Wide Mouth Mason’s Shaun Verreault says work your butt off live, then get good management
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN THE GEORGIA STRAIGHT, MAY 29, 1997 By Steve Newton When it came time to record his band’s major-label debut last year, Wide Mouth Mason singer-guitarist Shaun Verreault took the old adage “Go west, young man” to heart. With bassist Earl Pereira and drummer Safwan Javed in tow, Verreault left the flatlands of … Continue reading Wide Mouth Mason’s Shaun Verreault says work your butt off live, then get good management