According to Billy Gibbons, the song written by ZZ Top that is the most underappreciated

In the year 1969, ZZ Top developed from the foundation of the blues scene in Texas with a single promise: to infuse it with a more aggressive rock dimension. ZZ Top would be a no-nonsense take on the genre, one that would decorate rock-solid Southern swagger with a deep, bluesy grit. Billy Gibbons had been at it for quite some time with the psychedelic blues band Moving Sidewalks, but ZZ Top would be a no-nonsense take on the genre.

If you look at Gibbons through a microscope, you will notice that every path leads to the blues. His characteristic raw, gritty, and soulful tone was present in many of his guitar parts, even when he ventured into more typical rock realms. These guitar parts were rooted in blues traditions and characterized by his signature sound. A significant portion of his performance was characterized by the incorporation of traditional blues approaches with a contemporary twist. This yielded an emotional depth and an improvisational approach that is typical of early blues work.

Despite the fact that this established ZZ Top as the small Texas band that could, it also established Gibbons as one of the most regarded blues-rock performers in the music industry. This garnered the attention of modern rock innovators such as Keith Richards and other believers in the revolution of genre blending. At one point in time, Richards was quoted as saying, “These guys are the heartbeat of the entire country, the heartbeat of rock and roll.” These felines are well-versed in the blues, and they are also adept at dressing them up.

Given that Gibbons’s origin from the blues genre also enabled him to innovate in other places and experiment with how blues may cross over into other arenas, it would be an overly simplistic remark to characterize Gibbons as having purely rooted in blues. Due to the fact that many of the earlier, more conventional blues materials would not have been sufficient as a model for ZZ Top, particularly if they desired longevity, Gibbons assisted in providing the scene with a much-needed modern update.

Not only did he combine these conventional aspects with more forward-thinking ones, but he also took the harsh edge of rock and the groovy rhythms of boogie to magnify its appeal. He accomplished this by employing distorted guitar tones and beats that were louder and more refined, which injected the genre with more obvious energy than it had previously had. This synthesis of blues-rock and Texas boogie was the foundation upon which Gibbons created Tejas. However, he added more country influences to the mix, which reflected his developing musical variety and willingness to experiment beyond the typical territory.

Additionally, this record was accompanied by a number of hidden treasures, which are the ones that hint at sounds that are more refined and nuanced, and which laid the way for Gibbons’ future experimenting with technology and production techniques. ‘It’s Only Love,’ for example, combined blues with a laid-back, almost country-inspired vibe. This demonstrated that Gibbons was capable of executing a more relaxed rhythm that suited the album’s more reflective and softer moments.

“I was just thinking about ‘It’s Only Love’ from Tejas,” Gibbons stated in response to a question regarding ZZ Top’s compositions that are considered to be among the band’s most undervalued works during an interview with Songfacts. In the sense that “Baby, what you tryin’ to do” is a lyric that was inspired by Jimmy Reed’s song “Baby What You Want Me To Do,” this blues/country combination platter owes something to the legendary Jimmy Reed. It is pronounced “fonky” with a “o.”

Despite the fact that they maintained their characteristic bluesy feel, Gibbons was able to establish himself as a master of merging subtlety and technical prowess through songs such as “It’s Only Love.” This single also emphasized how his blues inclinations came with a versatile edge, demonstrating that he was able to elicit profound emotion and complexity while still remaining rooted in the raw heart of blues rock.