180-g box set features every album the Texas trio released between 1979 and 1990
ZZ Top is set to dish out a second heaping helping of analog goodness with the sequel to its previous vinyl set. On the menu this time around are the albums that made “That Little Ol’ Band From Texas” global superstars during the 1980s. The collection includes five studio albums pressed on heavyweight 180-gram vinyl, presented in a box the design of which has been inspired by the custom suits made for guitarist Billy F Gibbons’ by Hollywood’s Jaime Castaneda a/k/a “Jaime The Tailor.”
Cinco No. 2: The Second Five LPs will be available on June 1st from Warner Bros. Records. Each album features audio sourced from the original masters and boasts artwork that faithfully reproduces the original releases. Before the set arrives, the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers will hit the road to play some shows, including the band’s first residency at The Venetian Theatre in Las Vegas and, soon thereafter, an extensive tour with John Fogerty.
Between 1979 and 1990, Billy F Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard released five groundbreaking and earth shaking albums including Degüello, El Loco, Eliminator, Afterburner and Recycler.
The new collection picks up where the previous set left off, beginning with the band’s 1979 release Degüello. A certified-platinum success, it was the trio’s fourth consecutive album to be certified gold or better. The record features several standout songs that remain fan favorites, like “Cheap Sunglasses,” “I Thank You” and “I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide.”
El Loco followed in 1981 and featured radio staples like “Tube Snake Boogie” and “Pearl Necklace.” Certified gold, the album also was a turning point for the band’s sound, introducing cutting edge contemporary technology into the mix for the first time. Electronica gets its due on ZZ Top’s eighth studio album Eliminator. It went on to become the best-selling record of the band’s career so far. One of the few albums ever to have received Diamond Certification from the RIAA in recognition of album sales in excess of ten million units — in the U.S. alone. Songs like “Legs,” “Sharp Dressed Man,” “Got Me Under Pressure” and “Give Me All Your Lovin'” were all massive hits on radio and MTV.
The band’s popularity continued to soar with the 1985 release of Afterburner. Certified five-times platinum in America, it includes hits like “Rough Boy,” “Velcro Fly” and “Sleeping Bag.” The final album featured in the new vinyl collection is Recycler. Released in 1990, it achieved platinum status on the strength of a trio of hit singles: “Doubleback,” (as heard on the soundtrack to the film Back To The Future III in which ZZ Top played a version of themselves from the past), “Concrete And Steel” and “My Head’s In Mississippi.”
