The sole album by the Moving Sidewalks is as fascinating as it is unremarkable. As the birthing ground for legendary blues-rock guitarist Billy Gibbons, one would expect at least a taste of what would later make ZZ Top
one of the best touring and recording bands on the planet; sadly, the
album offers little in the way of revelation in its 15 tracks.
Admittedly, at the time of ZZ Top's 1970 debut, Gibbons'
transformation from a journeyman bandleader into a boogie-blues demigod
was still not fully realized, but his chops were miles away from what
is heard here. Part of that lies in the fact that ZZ Top
was less about psychedelia than straight blues; whatever psychedelic
touches made their way onto the studio albums were largely an accessory.
(They would eventually fully integrate on 1979's Deguello.)
The Moving
Sidewalks, on the other hand, were psychedelic rockers whose songs
hinted at the blues without fully diving in. The songs show little of Gibbons'
future promise, and in fact are so thoroughly mediocre (both in writing
and playing) that it's amazing to think he was only a few years away
from international success. "Pluto-Sept. 31st" shows a clear Hendrix
influence (the two guitarists openly admired each other), and as a
bonus, Akarma's reissue includes five bonus singles that are some of the
strongest material on the album, especially "Need Me," "I Want to Hold
Your Hand," and the legendary single "99th Floor."(allmusic.com)
I was never a big ZZ Top fan but Gibbons is for shure a great Blues guitarist. Here this album is a fine '68 psychedelic album i like very much. Most of you will know it but if not give it a listen. This is definitely no ZZ Top thing.
Enjoy Frank
Flac
Thank you Frank!
ReplyDelete