Interestingly, while always priding themselves on being a kick-ass live band, ZZ Top never got around to issuing a full-length live album during their 1970s/1980s peak.
But as they say, it's better late than never, and 2011 finally saw the arrival of an archival live ZZ Top recording, Live in Germany 1980.
Featuring half of the audio portion of their 2009 Double Down Live DVD, Live in Germany 1980 does a fantastic job of displaying all of the group's pre-Eliminator classics in a concert setting.
And as expected, the tunes take on a life all their own throughout -- "Jesus Just Left Chicago," "Precious and Grace," and "Cheap Sunglasses" sound even more muscular and strut-heavy on a concert stage.
The word "explosive" springs to mind upon coming in close contact with "Heard It on the X" and "Beer Drinkers & Hell Raisers," and the hits that made ZZ Top synonymous with classic rock radio are included as well -- "La Grange," "Tush," etc.
Shortly after this concert was recorded, ZZ Top got a bit handcuffed by gimmicks (long beards, wacky-looking guitars) and electronics.
But in 1980, ZZ Top were one of the (if not the) most powerful trios in all of rock, and Live in Germany 1980 helps confirm this claim once and for all.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | El DegüelloFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 00:56 | 2 MB | 5 MB |
| 2 | I Thank YouIsaac Hayes, David Porter | ZZ Top | Play | 03:10 | 7 MB | 21 MB |
| 3 | Waitin' for the BusBilly Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 02:33 | 5 MB | 17 MB |
| 4 | Jesus Just Left ChicagoFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 04:02 | 9 MB | 27 MB |
| 5 | Precious and GraceFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 02:35 | 5 MB | 18 MB |
| 6 | Manic MechanicFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 03:19 | 7 MB | 22 MB |
| 7 | Lowdown in the StreetFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 02:54 | 6 MB | 19 MB |
| 8 | Heard It on the XFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 02:28 | 5 MB | 16 MB |
| 9 | Cheap SunglassesFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 04:21 | 9 MB | 28 MB |
| 10 | Arrested for Driving While BlindFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 04:41 | 10 MB | 31 MB |
| 11 | Beer Drinkers & Hell RaisersFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 03:03 | 7 MB | 20 MB |
| 12 | La Grange/Sloppy Drunk/Bar-B-QFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 08:08 | 18 MB | 57 MB |
| 13 | Dust My BroomElmore James, Robert Johnson | ZZ Top | Play | 03:22 | 7 MB | 23 MB |
| 14 | Jailhouse RockJerry Leiber, Mike Stoller | ZZ Top | Play | 01:48 | 4 MB | 12 MB |
| 15 | TushFrank Beard, Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill | ZZ Top | Play | 03:39 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 16 | A Fool For Your Stockings | ZZ Top | Play | 05:51 | 13 MB | 36 MB |
| 56 mins | 130 MB | |||||
| 56 mins | 382 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frank Beard | Composer |
| 2 | Manfred Becker | Photography |
| 3 | Rick Canny | Executive Producer |
| 4 | Billy Gibbons | Composer |
| 5 | Isaac Hayes | Composer |
| 6 | Dusty Hill | Composer |
| 7 | Elmore James | Composer |
| 8 | Robert Johnson | Composer |
| 9 | Geoff Kempin | Executive Producer |
| 10 | Jerry Leiber | Composer |
| 11 | David Porter | Composer |
| 12 | Peter Ruechel | Liner Notes |
| 13 | Terry Shand | Executive Producer |
| 14 | Mike Stoller | Composer |
| 15 | Carl Stubner | Executive Producer |
| 16 | ZZ Top | Primary Artist |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |