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Joe Perry’s opinion on ZZ Top and Billy Gibbons
The United States gave the world many incredible Blues Rock bands like Aerosmith for example. Formed by Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Brad Whitford, Tom Hamilton and Joey Kramer, the band became one of the most important of all time and sold millions of records worldwide.
The band’s guitarist Joe Perry talked about many Blues bands over the years, including ZZ Top and their guitarist Billy Gibbons.
Joe Perry’s opinion on ZZ Top and Billy Gibbons
Joe Perry is a huge fan of ZZ Top and Billy Gibbons, he even said that they were the “AC/DC of Blues Rock”. Aerosmith even took them on tour in 2009 as their opening act and Perry had a great time. He talked about that in an interview with Music Radar at the time (Transcribed by Rock and Roll Garage).
“Every tour we get a list of young bands and some bands that are on their way up. It’s hard to know which bands gonna be good live. Because we wanna give the audience the best show they can. It’s really a drag to have to sit through an opening act that just doesn’t have anything going except for one song. We’re not from the school, the old Van Halen school, that has a shitty band on first (and then) more people spend more time at the t-shirt desk.”
“We just like to have the best band we can. (After some time) our manager called up and said: ‘What about ZZ Top?’ I said, why you even had to call? (laughs) Are you kidding’? From the five bands I would want to tour with, AC/DC being one of them, ZZ Top would be one of them too. I’m still pinching myself”.
Joe Perry continued:
“One of the things that I like about them so much is the Blues Rock thing. They kind of went a different way than we did. In a lot of ways they are kind of the AC/DC of Blues Rock. Nobody does it better and they continue to do it. I think they’ve been around maybe two, three years longer than us.”
“So, of the three bands that are still together, putting out records, still touring and all the same members, I think they have got the crown. (They are a gig band), not from having hits, not from having videos, but for knocking audiences out every night. (…) Billy (Gibbons), ever since I heard his tone and his playing, I’ve always admired it. I’ve always wanted to hear him play,” Joe Perry said.
ZZ Top was formed back in 1969 in Houston, Texas by Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill (Bass) and Frank Beard (Drums). The line-up was the same until 2021 when Hill passed away at the age of 72. But the band continued, with their former bass tech Elwood Francis. He coincidentally had a long beard like them when he was invited to play.
Joe Perry said he still learns a lot from Gibbons’ playing
Although Aerosmith is nowadays a mainstream Rock group, especially because of their 80s and 90s MTV Hits, the band’s music has always been based in Blues Rock. It’s obviously more clear on their 70s records but during their entire discography the group was inspired by that kind of music. Joe Perry especially can be compared with Gibbons as a Blues Rock guitarist. So he was influenced by many incredible musicians from that music genre.
He even mentioned him once as one of his favorite Texan guitar players. After mentioning, in an interview with The Austin Chronicle in 2004, names like Johnny Winter, Son House, Fred McDowell and Stevie Ray Vaughan, he talked about ZZ Top and Gibbons.
“There’s also ZZ Top. I still learn a lot from Billy Gibbons – every lick, old or new. They’re one of the few bands that managed to keep the distance between blues and rock very short. They do rock & roll, but you can hear the blues bubbling under. To me, it’s modern blues. Billy’s amazing,” Joe Perry said.
The Texan power trio was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004 by Keith Richards. Aerosmith’s induction happened two years before, in 2001.
The two bands have almost the same age, since ZZ Top was formed in 1969 and Aerosmith in 1970. But the band led by Gibbons had the chance to released their debut album in 1971 while Aerosmith had released theirs in 1973. Both groups kind of reinvented their sound in the 80s and achieved a whole new audience. Especially with hit songs being played on MTV frequently.
