While ZZ Top in their original incarnation last toured Australia in March of 2013, their support act, George Thorogood & The Destroyers, have toured more recently, last here in 2022.
This run of Australian shows is being billed as a farewell tour for the latter. Opening act Dallas Frasca has been a fixture on the live circuit for some years now, but has remained a relative unknown to the wider public.She arrives onstage (29 April) unannounced and plays an opening salvo that's like Jimi Hendrix doing 'The Star Spangled Banner', thereafter accompanied only by programmed drums.
Dallas' short set of buzzsaw guitar and powerful vocals consisted of some of her own originals before closing with a blistering take on Led Zeppelin with a medley encompassing 'Kashmir', 'Black Dog', 'Immigrant Song' and 'Whole Lotta Love', setting the tone early with regard to the subsequent bands performing covers within their own sets tonight.
An intro recording of Barry McGuire's 'Eve Of Destruction' and stage announcement precedes George Thorogood's entrance with current Destroyers (long-time drummer Jeff Simon, Bill Blough on bass, Jim Suhler on guitar and Buddy Leach on saxophone) who start in full swing with 'Rock Party', George soloing like Michael J. Fox's Marty McFly in 'Back To The Future'.
The menacing blues of 'I Drink Alone' is only one of three originals played amongst a set primarily made up of his more famous covers (Bo Diddley's 'Who Do You Love?', John Lee Hooker's 'House Rent Boogie / One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer', Them's 'Gloria') that sound like they could be used to soundtrack a John Waters film.
There's a preoccupation with drinking in the lyrics, so much so that George actually gives an in-song public service announcement within the extended workout of 'One Bourbon, One Scotch one Beer'.
Another original is the pounding rock & roll of 'Gear Jammer', with George's vocals buried in the instrumentation. Following their performance of 'Gloria', the drawn-out chanted vocal rendered via squealing saxophone, George asks: "Do you want it? Alright then you got it," and the band end with the stuttering 'Bad To The Bone', a song no George Thorogood & The Destoyers' set would be complete without.
Billy Gibbons is currently the only remaining constant in ZZ Top, a band with the record for having the longest unchanged line-up (51 years) until bassist Dusty Hills passing in 2021, after which he was replaced by able bass tech Elwood Francis; and in Frank Beard's absence (who didn't travel to Australia after a recommendation from medical personnel), drum artist John Douglas is subbing on drums.
They perform a set almost without the usual excesses and other cliched fanfare (although there is the rather extraneous use of a bubble machine right at the end). The stage is otherwise unadorned except for stacked Magnatone amplifiers looking like some kind of Lego creations on either side of the drum setup.
Of course there are the showy, glittering outfits and the occasional gimmick such as Elwood playing his unwieldy 'high selecta' 15-string bass on opening song 'Got Me Under Pressure' (itself an acknowledgement of their '80s hits-era electro blues represented by a selection of songs from the 'Eliminator' album played throughout the set) and the fluffy white guitar and bass played during 'Legs' bookending the main set.
Onstage, Billy looks the same as he always did but possibly a little thinner, scarecrow-like which along with Elwood's red 'slipper' footwear seems fitting given we are in a land colloquially known as Oz.
On the greater Adelaide Entertainment Centre Arena stage they remain close, both physically and musically 'tight' and at one stage later in the set, Elwood and Billy appear to be spooning during their simple choreography.
With guttural vocals that he has only grown more into over the years, there's a hoarseness to Billy's gravelly vocals and most certainly a degree of muscle memory in his guitar playing alongside Elwood's grounding bass and the heavy thump of John Douglas' drums (although it did appear he was only just keeping time with the programmed beats during 'Legs').
As with the previous sets this evening, there are covers; early on Sam & Dave's 'I Thank You' and later Merle Haggard's 'Sixteen Tons' does not sound out of place even though it was introduced as a "country song".
After 'I Gotsta Get Paid', Billy tells us: "Don't get too excited, we're only making this stuff up," and the set concludes with a couple more songs from 'Eliminator', Billy soloing one handed during 'Sharp Dressed Man', before the aforementioned fluffy white guitar and bass make an appearance in 'Legs'.
Returning to encore, Billy comments: "You just can't get rid of us," and the band play 'Brown Sugar' (the earliest song in their catalogue played tonight from the appropriately titled debut) and then 'Tube Snake Boogie'.
Typically held back to last and definitely worth the wait is 'La Grange', a classic song you would have certainly heard before whether or not you knew it was by the band, having entered the pantheon of songs covered by blues players over the years ad infinitum.
There will undoubtedly be some who will grumble about the length of the set (not quite 75 minutes) but let's put this into perspective; Billy Gibbons is 75 and he's lost one bandmate already while the other had to sit this tour out, and even their replacements are both in their early 60s.
Be happy and enjoy that you got to see them at all as good as this, because given George Thorogood's reported retirement from touring it is possible ZZ Top might not tour again either.
