Wednesday 23 August 2023

Fandango! - ZZ TOP***

Thunderbird/Jailhouse Rock/Backdoor Medley/Nasty Dogs & Funky Kings/Blue Jean Blues/Balinese/Mexican Blackbird/Heard It On The X/Tush

Fandango! was a half live/half studio release from the Texan blues-rock band ZZ Top. The live medley was recorded at The Warehouse, New Orleans in April 1974. Album features the US top 20 hit Tush. (US:10 UK:60)

“The live show is just stunning and probably one of the hottest ever done by the band. The only regret is that there are only three live tracks. The studio tracks are excellent too. My ZZ Top all-time favourite is Blue Jean Blues one of the greatest blues masterpieces ever written, with gorgeous guitar playing.”

Fandango! is a pretty cool album; the first half captures this tight little trio live at the Warehouse in New Orleans. The second half finds the boys in the studio pumping out six of the absolutely finest selection of songs recorded during their heyday. The live half is less than stellar as the performances are erratic. It is the second half of studio tracks that makes this album worth checking out.”

“It is something of a mixed bag as it combines live cuts with studio songs. The mix doesn't help the album flow. The studio cuts are first rate including the propulsive hit single Tush, the solid Hear It On The X and one the band's best and most underrated songs Balinese. The live songs are good and show off the band's musical prowess, but they would have been better served releasing a separate live album.”

“I normally have an inbred dislike of live recordings, but the live side of ZZ Top's Fandango! is quite good. The studio side was the prime meat and bones of ZZ's patented bluesy swagger, featuring a mixture of R & B saturated tunes and raucous rockers, culminating in the raunchy Tush.”

“A lop-sided border-crossing between ZZ Top's early trio of hard blues-busters and the mellower, eclectic releases to follow, the half-live/half-studio Fandango! feels a little tossed-off but is not without it's rewards. The live side finds us arriving late to a gig at The Warehouse, New Orleans, just as the band sweeps off the stage with a run through a slew of rock 'n' blues covers in jammed-out medley fashion,. Side two is back in the studio and back to that ZZ magic.”

“Side One recorded live features a lot of jamming without too much to get excited about. Side Two however is jam-packed with classic ZZ Top swagger.”

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