The Man Behind The Beard

Billy F Gibbons when he was just a tall, skinny, very polite young man making a lot of noise in the garage of his parents' home in Tanglewood. His father, Fred Gibbons, was a musician who played the piano for many of the fashion shows in which I modeled; he also accompanied me when I sang on many occasions. I don't think I ever went to rehearse in Fred's home and didn't hear Billy, amped up to the max, rehearsing with his band.

In 1969 Billy's band, Moving Sidewalks, joined with a rival band, the American Blues, which included bassist and vocalist Dusty Hill of Dallas and drummer Frank Beard of Irving. They formed the blues-rock band, ZZ Top – aka That Little ol' Band from Texas. With Billy as the front man, centerpiece guitarist and vocalist, the band has been a part of the American musical landscape ever since. The longest running major rock band still composed of its original members, they are known for their Texas-size energy, showmanship and unique image.

Billy is widely regarded as one of America's finest guitarists working in the blues-rock arena. He is also an internationally recognized collector of cars, guitars and African art, as is chronicled in the best-selling book he wrote about his collecting obsessions, "Rock + Roll Gearhead," which was published in 2005.

His astronomical guitar collection includes the "Muddywood," constructed from fallen timbers from Muddy Waters' childhood home; the famous "Furry One," as seen in the "Legs" video; and his most cherished one, "Pearly Gates," a Gibson Les Paul Sunburst, valued above all others.

Over the years, Billy's cars have become stars in their own right. The Eliminator, CadZZilla, Kopperhed and others have been major attractions on the car show circuit and highlighted in numerous videos. They are considered art and icons of automotive history.

Theories have collected, as well, concerning the origin of the band's name. One asserts that they put two brands of rolling paper, Zig Zag and Top together; another declares the name is a tribute to blues legend, Z. Z. Hill. The real story is told by Billy in his new book, "Rock + Roll Gearhead," where he reveals that the name really came from "king of the blues" master B. B. King. They started to call themselves Z. Z. King, but it sounded too much like their hero; so they settled on ZZ Top.

The band's first two albums, ZZ Top's First Album and Rio Grande Mud, were produced by the London Records label. National success and the first gold album came to the hometown boys in 1973 with the third album, Tres Hombres, featuring the now classic song, "La Grange," about the famous bordello that inspired the musical "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas." This album also included "Beer Drinkers &Hell Raisers," which became a favorite.

Fandango produced the huge hit "Tush;" Tejas featured "Arrested for Driving While Blind" and "El Diablo;" and The Best of ZZ Top quickly followed.

ZZ Top's "Worldwide Texas Tour," with sets that featured haystacks, live buffalo, a longhorn steer, rattlesnakes, buzzards and ranch equipment, lasted a year and a half, and reportedly, earnings were in the tens of millions. Exhausted, the band decided to take a sabbatical in 1977, which lasted for almost three years. When they reunited to record again, under the Warner Brothers banner, a cosmic revelation or cosmic comedy had occurred: Billy and Dusty, unbeknown to the other, had grown the chest-length beards that soon became part of their "wild man" image.

The members of ZZ Top are almost as well known for their appearance as for their music. Billy and Dusty are always pictured wearing sunglasses and their trademark beards. Ironically, Frank Beard is the only band member without a beard; logically, the group could be renamed, "The Beard Brothers." All wear similar clothing. Billy has long since replaced his giant cowboy hat with an African Nudu tribal chief's hat from Cameroon, a nod to his love of African art.

It was not until MTV started in the '80s that ZZ Top decided to appear on television. Their first video, "Gimme All Your Lovin," was soon followed by "Legs" and "Sharp Dressed Man" from the 1983 album Eliminator, which featured Billy's bright red Ford '33 hotrod. This multiplatinum album has become one of the group's most successful. Becoming the "darlings" of MTV took the trio's famous mystique and popularity to an all-time high.

Afterburner, the group's eighth album, was a worldwide smash hit; Recycler came out on the Warner label before the group signed a five-disc deal with RCA. Deguello, ZZ Top's first new album with Warner, featuring "I Thank You," "Cheap Sunglasses" and "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide," is believed by some fans to be the band's strongest release. Six albums on RCA followed.

Throughout the years, Billy, Dusty and Frank have relished playing gigs in their hometown. ZZ Top was the second act to play at the Summit; they played there 23 times, more than any other act; and performed at the closing of the Summit, renamed the Compaq Center, renamed Lakewood Church. As Billy was quoted by Houston Chronicle columnist Bruce Westbrook, "ZZ Top walks out, Jesus walks in." Continuing, Billy said, "We have to give our best for the home folks; the home shows are the fun shows … You get to show off in front of your buddies, new girlfriends, old girlfriends – girlfriends you wish you had." As Houstonians, they felt honored to play at the Houston Livestock Show &Rodeo the last year in the Astrodome (2002) and again the first year at Reliant Stadium (2003).

ZZ Top, an acknowledged symbol of Texas, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on March 15, 2004, by Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, a longtime friend of Billy's. It was the first Houston band to join the roster of rock legends.

Beyond his work with ZZ Top, which includes 14 albums, six compilations and myriad singles, Billy has recorded with many notable artists, such as B. B. King, Kid Rock, John Mayall, Les Paul, Nickelback, Queens of the Stone Age and others. He has acted on the television shows "Bones" and "Yes, Dear," as well as appeared in a Quaker State motor oil commercial and innumerable television appearances.

Additionally, Billy was instrumental in raising funds for The Orange Show when it was in its beginning stages. And The Cancer League honored Billy in 2002 with its Texas Hall of Fame Award. It was a joy to catch up with Billy, who people say is still the sweetest, most modest superstar in the world.

H: What was it like growing up in Houston?
BFG: "Bright … with no traffic. The same great community then as it remains today."

H: Tell me a little about your mom, dad and sister.
BFG: "That's the family. My dear ol' Dad surrounded us with his musical talents, Mom (Lorraine) listened; Pam and I listened and learned."

H: When did you know that music would be your life?
BFG: "Early on, back as far as I recall … probably around age zero!"

H: Who did you listen to when growing up? I know that one of your housekeepers influenced your direction.
BFG: "Loads of influences! As the song says, 'Country, Jesus, Hillbilly, Blues, that's where I learned the licks.'"

H: How did you choose the guitar as opposed to piano, like your dad?
BFG: "Easier to carry! Get up and go!"

H: You're an icon. It's so often said that you're the finest guitarist in the world. How did you learn to play?
BFG: "That's quite a send up! Rock 'n' roll on records and on the radio was the start and still remains a beam of attraction. Good stuff!"

H: ZZ Top has sold 60 million records. Can you think back to the time when you had your first big success? Remember how you felt?
BFG: "ZZ Top's third release landed our first 'Top 10,' 'La Grange' – then the touring travels began taking the famous Houston and Texas feeling around the world."

H: What comes to mind immediately as one of your most memorable moments in a performance?
BFG: "Perhaps one of the first performances where the curtain opened, and we were greeted by the one paying customer of the evening. We looked at each other, then launched into the show. Played the first set, took a break, went out and bought the guy a Coke and went back and completed the night. We're still friends with the guy!"

H: Describe your band members, Dusty and Frank.
BFG: "My stalwart pals; Fine entertainers and superb instrumentalists each. We still like what takes place on the bandstand 'cause we're never certain who's gonna do what. Challenging, yet cool."

H: Describe Billy for me.
BFG: "Just that eccentric guy tryin' to be a good 'un!"

H: It's such a tribute to all of you that you've stayed together all these years. What's the secret to the success?
BFG: "We still enjoy playing and creating above anything. It's a passion which maintains our focus and enjoyment."

H: When did you fall in love with cars?
BFG: "Well, I've been told the first words out of my mouth were 'Ford, Chevrolet and Cadillac' … that says it all."

H: What was your first car? How many cars do you have? Do you have a favorite? What do you drive now?
BFG: "The first car was a Saturday Westheimer Special, a 1953 Packard Golden Clipper, complete with sawdust in the transmission to keep it in gear … picked it up from a notoriously gifted TV pitch-man for $50 and took off straight for the Mexican border. That's the start of it all … now too many to count. We do have some favorites, the little rod '33 Ford, seen in the videos, 'the Eliminator Coupe,' and, of course, 'CadZZilla,' the radically customized '48 purple Cadillac. And after all that, our daily driver is provided by Houston's Yellow Cab!"

H: Why did you decide to write a book? How long did you work on it? Did you enjoy the book tour?
BFG: "The collection of cars and guitars came to the attention of some young associates from Motorbooks International who suggested following the idea of creating a coffee-table photo presentation and essay. The work commenced and a quick few months later, the project hit the streets. A robust book-signing tour ensued and along the way, I rekindled a long standing friendship with another Houstonian, the lovely Adrien Seixas, now residing down the street in Los Angeles! She appears in the book and recognized an early photo of herself when she danced as a go-go girl, way back when!"

H: Do you have any other hobbies in addition to cars and guitars?
BFG: "Oh yes! African art holds intrigue in a most peculiar manner … the somewhat exotic expressions of functionality … in the western eye, considered art, represent feelings of the way, way back. Quite grounded and solid."

H: How about exercise? Favorite foods? Do you ever cook?
BFG: "Exercise? Try walking through an airport looking for the gate! Favorite foods? Mexican as found in Texas or anywhere else. Cook? What's that!?"

H: You've accomplished so much. Do you ever make goals? Is there anything you want to do that you haven't realized?
BFG: "Oh, yeah. I just want to aim at what remains to be discovered. Keep writing songs."

H: Do you ever get nervous performing anymore?
BFG: "No, unless Mom is in the audience!"

H: Any favorite singers?
BFG: "Jeff Beck. Jeff is as good a guitarist as it gets and yet he, at one time, chose to assign the singing chores to someone else. However, I invited him to appear on ZZ Top's XXX release as a singer. It was an unexpected invitation and to capture the moment, we revisited the Robert Johnson blues recordings method of setting up the recording session in Dallas in a hotel room. One take and he nailed it! 'Hey Mr. Millionaire' became another stunning example of Jeff's genius and delivery. Mercy!"

H: How many songs have you written, if you know?
BFG: "A bunch … and still willin' to hammer on!"

H: There's so much humor in your choices of songs. Are all of you that funny? Or, who's the funny one?
BFG: "Well, I suppose if one were to encounter us off stage, we would all be thought quite funny."

H: Can you narrow down your favorite song or songs?
BFG: "I like most all of 'em. Especially the one being played at the moment."

H: In concert, is there one song you MUST do for fans … such as "La Grange"?
BFG: "La Grange," "Sharp Dressed Man," "Bang Bang Shang-A-Lang," "Legs," "Tush."
H: How long have you had the beard? Did Gillette really offer you $1 million to shave it?
BFG: "The beards are now part of the trademark. We have turned down all bets to shave 'em as we don't really know what's under there! The answer that seems to fit is: we're too ugly. Ha!"

H: I love the sunglasses. Do you wear them all the time now?
BFG: "Oh, yes. Part of the image."

H: I hear you're working on your 15th album? Tell me about it. When it's coming, etcetera? When do you go out on tour again?
BFG: "New recordings [are] in the works. Seems that remains an ongoing prospect, followed with touring and, of course, Houston square in the middle. Gotta love the H-town."

H: Talk to me about what Texas means to you.
BFG: "Big, and BIGGER. This is home."

H: When you look back on your career, can you believe what you've accomplished? What has all this success meant to you?
BFG: "The accomplishments are a reward. Family and friends make 'em worthwhile."

H: What do you tell young performers that want to follow in your footsteps?
BFG: "Keep at it. Learn to play what you want to hear."

H: Do you have any favorite sayings that live with you, keep you positive and energized?
BFG: "The great blues singer, Muddy Waters, said it best. 'You don't have to be the best one, just be a good 'un!' That pretty well says it all."

Billy F Gibbons has been described in many ways: "the guru of the guitar," "the musician's musician," "an iconic guitarist," "the legendary master of the six-string," "music's most highly regarded Renaissance man" – even as "The Reverend Willy G.," making that title official when he was ordained in 2002, so that he could perform a wedding ceremony. Boogie on, Billy; you have made your hometown very proud!

 

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From: Fretted Americana Inc

About Fretted Americana:
We specialize in acquiring and offering the finest specimens of American vintage electric guitars with particular attention to those in their complete, original state.

We are the only dealer to embrace a written code of ethetics.

 

Yes, it really is an original PAF ES-295! This incredibly rare guitar weighs just 6.70 lbs. and has a very comfortable nut width of 1 11/16 inches and a standard Gibson scale length of 24 3/4 inches. Reminiscent of the ES-175, with the same sharp-edged single Florentine cutaway and pearl split-parallelogram inlays, this wonderful guitar has a 16-inch-wide laminated maple body, triple-bound on the top and single-bound on the bottom. One-piece mahogany neck with a wonderful thick profile. Brazilian rosewood fretboard with 20 original small frets. Headstock with inlaid pearl "Gibson" logo and pearl crown inlay. Individual ‘single-line’ Kluson Deluxe tuners with single-ring Keystone plastic buttons (stamped on the underside "2356766 / PAT APPLD").

Two original ‘double-black’ PAF humbucker pickups with nicely balanced outputs of 7.43k and 7.62k. Clear plastic pickguard back-painted in cream and embossed with a gold floral design. Four controls (two volume, two tone) on lower treble bout plus three-way selector switch on upper bass bout. Gold plastic bell-shaped "Bell" knobs. Les Paul combination trapeze bridge/tailpiece with strings looping over the bridge. All hardware gold-plated. With the original Gibson orange oval label inside the bass f-hole, with the style ("ES-295") written in black ink and the serial number ("A 25611") stamped in black. Inside the treble f-hole the FON (factory order number) is stamped in black "V 7724 7" which corresponds with late 1956.

This guitar is in exceptionally fine (9.00) condition. There is some light body checking and a little tarnishing to the gold-plated parts, but otherwise, the body is exceptionally clean and the neck remarkably so. This is a totally original, untouched and exceptional example of an extremely rare guitar — one of about a hundred and ten PAF ES-295s ever made. This actual guitar, which was formerly in the Chinery collection, is featured on p. 87 of The History of the American Guitar from 1833 to the Present Day by Tony Bacon.

Here is a great Video featuring this great guitar with Phil X

 

 

Phil X also discusses the Vintage PAF pickups on this vintage electric guitar:

Housed in the original brown hardshell case with purple plush lining (9.00). It has for a long time been common belief that there were only 49 PAF ES-295′s and most of them were issued in 1958. Indeed in Larry Meiners book Gibson Shipment Totals 1937-1979 he states that seventy-one ES-295′s were shipped in 1957 and forty-nine in 1958. A.R. Duuchossoir in his book Gibson Electrics The Classic Years (page 173) states "At the end of 1957, i.e. slightly later than the 175 models, the ES-295 was in turn fitted with a pair of humbuckers. To comply with the all-gold finish of the instrument, cream-coloured plastic rings were used to mount the gold-plated humbuckers". We contacted our friends at Gibson and from the Gibson shipping records we now know that the very first batch of PAF humbucker ES-295′s (three of them "A-25188"-"A-25190") were shipped on February 25th, 1957. The second batch of another ten guitars ("A-25350"-"A-25359") left the factory on March 29th, 1957. The third batch of another seventeen guitars ("A-25611"-"A-25627") left the factory on May 28th, 1957. Our guitar "A-25611" is the first of the third batch. So from this we can safely conclude that the majority of the seventy-one ES-295′s shipped in 1957 also had PAF humbuckers. It is interesting to note that according to the Gibson records the very first guitar to be fitted with PAF humbuckers was serial number "A-25000" which was shipped on February 18th, 1957. "The ES-295 was introduced in 1952 as the hollow body counterpart of the original Les Paul model. This is true in terms of finish, electronics and hardware, but otherwise the 295 is essentially a fancier twin pickup ES-175 At the end of 1957, i.e. slightly later than the 175 models, the ES-295 was in turn fitted with a pair of humbuckers. To comply with the all-gold finish of the instrument, cream-coloured plastic rings were used to mount the gold-plated humbuckers. The change of pickups did not revive the flagging fortunes of the ES-295 (still equipped with the Les Paul tailpiece) and the model was discontinued in Summer 1958. According to factory records, the last production guitars (#A27993 through A28009) were registered in August. However, the 295 nearly came back in 1959. As indicated in Part One, the gold colour was blamed for the declining popularity of the Les Paul model and ES-295 in the late 50s. In 1959 four 295s were specially built for the Summer convention and registered on 27th May. Two were finished in cherry red (#A30224 and A30225) and two in Argentine Grey (#A30226 and A30227). But apparently CMI did not think a new finish was sufficient to justify a return and the 295 was definitely abandoned". (A.R. Duchossoir, Gibson Electrics — The Classic Years, pp. 173-174)

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Great Article in Vintage Guitar Magazine By: Gil Hembree

Seth Lover
Humbuckers And other Lover innovations

 

A noted creator, Seth Lover’s achievements include numerous amplifiers and circuits, but none have been so highly recognized as his humbucking pickup, which became the Patent Applied For (P.A.F.) humbucker. The following is excerpted from an interview with Seth Lover conducted by VG’s Stephen Patt in 1996. At the time, Lover was working with pickup designer Seymour Duncan on the SH-55 humbucker, more commonly known as the Seth Lover Model. Lover passed away on January 31, 1997.

Vintage Guitar: Who got you started on the path of electronics?
Seth Lover:

I was born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on January 1, 1910. In the early 1920s, a schoolteacher in Pennsylvania began helping me with electronics projects. I was living with my grandparents at the time, and we used to get the Philadelphia newspaper; the radio section showed how to build different circuits. I guess my first project was a one-tube radio, which worked pretty well. My grandparents had died in the 1920s, and I decided to join the Army, where I worked with electronics. And when I hit the end of my term in 1931, I took a radio course from a Washington, D.C. company. It was actually my second – the first was in 1925, while I was working on a farm.

How did your first radio business come about?

After my second course, I went into business in Kalamazoo, repairing radios and the like at the Butler Battery Shop. We’d recharge batteries, repair radios, and install them. But when Butler died, we started a shop at 465 Academy. Eddy Smith, an orchestra leader at Long Lake, was a good customer. I used to build amplifiers for them. The poor guitar player would be playing next to the piano, and you could see him moving his hands, but for the life of me you couldn’t hear him play one note! If they let him get close to the microphone, he could be amplified and heard.

 

In 1935, I went to work for M&T Battery, doing the same thing. Then in ’41, Walter Fuller wanted me to come to work for Gibson. They were buying amps from a Chicago company, the EH-125, the 150, and the 185. We’d plug in the tubes and test them – I was a troubleshooter. And when World War II came along, I joined the Army again.

In what capacity?

They offered me a Second Class Radioman rating, and I ended up in the Navy. I was sent to Connecticut, then to Treasure Island, near San Francisco, to radio electronics school. That August, I received my First Class rating and was sent to teach electronics near Washington, D.C. Most of my time during the war was spent teaching.

 

In 1944, I had to go to sea [on] the USS Columbus, which was being built in Massachusetts. I was sent there and began checking installations and spare parts, and a little later we were out to sea. Well, about 500 miles out, the drive shaft broke, and we had to turn around. In order to get at the thing, they had to cut a hole through all the decks. And before they got the darn thing fixed, the war was over!

Did you resume your electronics work?

Yes. I went back to work for Gibson and stayed for a couple years, until the Navy built a training station in Michigan. With my Chief’s rating, I was asked to work for them for $5,000 per year, which was a lot of money back then. Gibson was only paying me $3,000. A few years later, they wanted to transfer me to Minnesota. Ted McCarty asked me to build a special kind of pickup, which I did by hand. Then he decided Gibson could afford to pay me what I was getting in the Navy, so I was back with Gibson in 1952.

What were some of your earlier designs?

Before I’d gone into the Navy, I’d begun to design an amplifier. The tremolo circuit in typical amps at the time "putted" along if there was too much depth. I found a way to get a tremolo without any noise, using an optical device, and Gibson was building it while I was in the Navy. So in 1952, I began designing other amp circuits. In ’55, I got the idea for this humbucking pickup. When a single-coil pickup, got too close to an amplifier, it would make a godawful hum.

 

I had designed an amplifier – the Model 90 – which had a special humbucking choke, and figured I could use the same concept on the pickup itself. It was quite simple, really – just two coils opposed, and they’d pick up the hum and just cancel out. I designed it into the tone circuit of the amplifier, and if you’d swing to one end it would wipe out the bass, to the other extreme it would wipe out the treble. So, the pickup was similar in concept.

When did your humbucker actually begin production at Gibson?

We starting building our version in 1955, even though we didn’t have a patent, and that’s when they got the "PAF" stickers to put on them. When we finally were granted our patent, we changed the sticker to one with a patent number, but we actually printed the wrong number on the sticker, one that matched our tailpiece. This way people who sent away for copies of that patent didn’t ever get a copy of the pickup (laughs)! We were replacing the P-90, and there were other single coils being used, especially on steel guitars. I did make a humbucking pickup for steels that worked particularly well. The Gibson Electraharp had my pickup on it, and it was a whopper, but they didn’t build too many of them. It was quite expensive.

 

I bet you’ll like this. [Seth rummages through an old cabinet, and pulls out a cloth-wrapped something.] This is my PAF prototype. It has a stainless steel cover. There’s no high-conductivity in stainless like copper and brass, so it worked well. When the salesmen saw this with no adjustment screws, it was like breaking their arms! They just didn’t have anything to talk about. So, next came the punched-out holes and the adjustment screws.

Was there anything you did specifically for Epiphone?

Epiphone guitars used to have a bunch of pushbuttons, and every time you’d change settings, it’d go "clunk!" I designed a switch with a rocker panel and a magnet to hold the position. My version was never used, but it worked awfully well.

 

And on the Epiphone mini-humbucker, I changed the design to offset the screws and look different – maybe better in some ways – than the Gibson humbucker with its straight screws. It wasn’t quite as loud as the Gibson version, with fewer turns of the coil, and it was a bit trebly. But it did the job.

What prompted your shift from Gibson to their main competitor, Fender?

I stayed with Gibson until 1967, and then had an offer from my friend, Dick Evan, who was Fender’s chief engineer. Now, while I designed most of the amplifiers and pickups, I never did hold that title. I was just a designer. CBS had bought Fender, and they were kind enough to offer me a job. He sent me a ticket to come out [to California] and talk. And they offered me $12,000 per year. I was only getting $9,000 at Gibson.

 

So I came out and did design quite a bit of stuff for them. But the thing was, if the front office didn’t ask for something, they just weren’t interested in anything you’d come up with.

How did you and Seymour Duncan join forces?

After the patent ran out, Seymour started making the pickups, and he did an awfully good job, not just in appearance, but in materials and workmanship and sound. Everything, down to finest detail, was intact. We had used plain enameled #42 wire. A lot of people would use plastic-coated wire, but the results weren’t the same. We used nickel-silver on the covers originally, sometimes called German silver, again due to its low conductivity. You can’t solder stainless steel, so the nickel-silver worked better. And that’s what you see on these special Duncan-Lover pickups. It’s really faithful to the original. The SH-55 will have my stamp of approval on it, and I’ll even get a small royalty on each sale. Now, that’s something that Gibson never got around to giving me! My name doesn’t show up in too many of these history books, and maybe they didn’t value design in those days. I guess that’s why they never paid me much [a wicked glint in his eyes signals that Seth is gently pulling my leg]. I did a lot of work, and now it seems to be getting recognized.