Comments: 42

• L. L. Snoop Diddy from Vegas In SpaceMy favorite radio announcer, Bruce Van Dyke, often referred to them as ZZ Beard.
• Max from IllinoisFun fact: This song was featured in NASCAR the Game: 2011 and a cover was used in the NASCAR: the IMAX Experience DVD.
• Dan Gillespy from Courtenay BcA very cool classic bluesy hard rock song about a Texas whorehouse.
• Angela from MichiganAre we sure this doesn't have something to do with lagrange indiana? It's on the road sign with HOWE, Howe, Howe....the towns are located near each other.
• George Pope from Richmond, Bc, Canada Blaming the reporter when it was this song that ultimately led to the shutdown? I think this whorehouse was inspiration for the episode of The Simpsons, where the town rallies to save the respectable gentlemen's establishment.
  
  To Anonymous from Kaufman: The band's name IS from Zigzag rolling papers (I prefered the white for weed & blue for tobacco); good paper that stayed out of the flavour.
• Anonymous from Kaufman Always been a huge fan . Heard tune snake boogie
  When I was in a friends 1969 galaxy 500 through
  Pioneer 6x9s .That was it I thought everybody knew who ZZ Top . We thought the name was from zig zag or top papers still listening new stuff ain’t about to disappoint.
• Sermonator from 7th HeavenSuddenly, I have a craving for some...chicken.
• Badman from MidwestTres Hombres was by far Tops best work. I saw the tour in the summer of 73 at The Amphitheater in Chicago. One of the best shows I've been to. Deguello was a kick ass surprise. Hadn't heard much of it, but what an album. The concert at The Aragon Ballroom blew me away. They still tour, but the last time I saw them Hill had to sing for Gibbons. What a f--king career though. An American original.
• Donny from Eugene, OrSuch a good song.
• Jorge from Bronx,nySaw the band live on the Eliminator tour. Funny Frank Beard, the drummer, doesn't have a beard, but in that show he started with a big drum set. After the first tune a smaller drum set was given and he played much better. Great live band always. Enjoy Tres Hombres de Tejas.
• Coy from Palestine, TxFirst of all the "Chicken Ranch" looked nothing like the house in the movie. It was in fact, an old Chicken Ranch. During the Great Depression men would trade live chickens for nookie. The Ranch was a Texas institution and State Senators and the winners of the Texas Longhorn game and the A&M Aggies visited the Ranch till the 1950's. La Grange was recorded at Robin Hood Studios in Tyler, Texas (still in operation). Robin Hood Brians, the owner, was the engineer. Bill Ham, the manager of ZZ Top allowed no overdubs. Robin Hood said there were only 3 of them, so the sound was sparse. He sent Ham off to buy some Barbeque and overdubbed the session. When Ham returned he said "that's the sound I want". There was nobody on the record but Gibbons, Beard and Hill. the riff was from several old blues songs, but heck, so were riffs on hundreds of hit records including almost everything ever recorded by the Stones.
• Joel from Richland Springs, ScGood blues rock from a top notch band. ZZ Top does tend to sing some raunchy songs but who the
  f**k cares? It's just good old fashioned rock and roll.
• Jeff from Panama City , Fla true classic...wondered why zz didnt get any credit at all with the movie...it would have been nice if they played la grange in the opening sequence....anyway...gibbons has been my guitar hero ever since I first heard those harmonic notes in the song...smoking and it still is a crowd favorite...ironically his guitar is not set up for super distortion like we tend to think...but somewhere in between with the natural sweetness of pearly (his les paul) to make that zz sound....of course the fingers on billy's hand have a considerable factor in this tone...a true legend in his own time...the harmonic king...I wish I could meet him and tell him how much he has influenced my guitar playing.
• M. from Marion, Kyall this wining about them ripping off these old blues men.so what? i wonder which song still gets the most airplay.oh wait a minute....i think it's..oh yeah that's right la grange.this song is like therapy.it has the lowest burn out factor of any song i've ever heard.it never ever gets old.and sometimes i still play it 2 or 3 times in a row.zz top,greatest rock band that ever lived.
• Mike from Lincoln Park, MiThis song is featured in the 4th or 5th song set in Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock.
• Mike from Peachland, NcI second Brian in CT's comment. The re-mastered-for-digital La Grange always makes me mentally wince at that first drum hit, it just sounds pasted in. I wonder if the original-airplay mastering is around anywhere in digital format?
  Anyone? (Ben Stein) Anyone?
• Mike from Peachland, NcI second Brian in CT's comment. The re-mastered-for-digital La Grange always makes me mentally wince at that first drum hit, it just sounds pasted in. I wonder if the original-airplay mastering is around anywhere in digital format?
  Anyone? (Ben Stein) Anyone?
• Adam from La Grange, TxI am from La Grange Tx. and most of my family is in La Grange or Schulenburge and around that area. I hear alot of interesting stories about the Chicken Ranch, My uncles and some of the high powered friends/Government officials and business men from all around the country payed visits to the Chicken Ranch. I have too much history to even write about on this site. However, one much less talked about fact is that when the Chicken Ranch was shut down, they sold off parts of the land and it just so happens that my Great grandfather Eubanks was around to buy some of this land that it was on. The deed to this land hangs on the wall inside every house i've lived in. It is also well known by the locals that ZZ Top does still visit La Grange for friends and family. Actually many famous people do. but because it is a close community in the "old community" its not talked about or advertised. also Willie Nelson is known to visit the La Grange area often.
• Zakk from Ponoka, Abthis song is the best song on guitar hero 3 along with one, and welcome to the jungle!
• Bryan from Atlanta, GaP.A. in Paris, those are called "harmonics." Depending on where along the string your thumb brushes it, different harmonics are produced. I used this technique sometimes in my guitar-playing back in the 70s.
• P.a. from Paris, FranceGibbons used pinched harmonies like crazy in the solos. This is when you strike the string normally but then let your thumb rub against the string. It is usually done once or twice to accentuate a particular note, but here he does it on nearly every note, mostly in the second solo. This produces the scream like sound and at some point the notes seem to be random.
• Bryan from Spring, TxMarvin Zindler, the popular Houston reporter who exposed the brothel in LA Grange, died July 29, 2007 from cancer.
• Guy from Woodinville, WaThis song illustrates the blues roots of rock 'n roll just brilliantly! It starts out sounding for all the world like an old bluesman picking out a tune on his acoustic quitar. The quiet riff then segues into those perfect rockin power chords! What a coup--it's just perfect.
• Joshua from Twin Cities, MnJames from Westchester: Yes, they probably do hire a third guitarist for tours. (Just as they presumably hired a dedicated keyboardist to play in their 1980s and '90s tours, when their sound became heavily synth-laden.) This sort of thing is pretty commonplace in concert tours in general. Another prime example is post-Peter Gabriel Genesis. Once Phil Collins became their frontman, they needed to bring in a dedicated drummer for tours. The same went for lead guitar after Steve Hackett left.
• Johnny from Los Angeles, CaI agree with you all. ZZ TOP also covered Boom Boom.
• Ben from Pensacola, FlA "Ten to get in" was the price. It is doubtful that the Top ever patronized it, if they did it was when they were young, as there was a strict dress codes for patrons. (thanks, gary - La Grange, TX)
  
  Too funny, what does a dress code have to do with getting into the 'Chicken Ranch' ? I have a hard time believing ZZ Top would be turned away at the door. On top of that, what makes you think ZZ Top couldn't meet the dress code ?? Apparently you have missed music awards where they are all dressed in suits.
• Warrinder from A Town, CanadaThe "how how how how" part was inspired by John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom."
• Jim from Aurora, CoOne of the places where ZZ Top's genius shines is in their ability to compose songs that use more instruments in the studio than they play live, and when you hear the live concert you don't miss the extra instruments at all. Yes, there is another guitar on La Grange, but it is a part that they simply ignore when playing live. There's another guitar in 'Tush,' too. Ditto 'Jesus Just Left Chicago.' But they don't add the extra parts for concerts. Sometimes they do use taped accompaniments when playing live - horns for 'She Don't Love Me She Loves My Automobile,' an extra guitar lick in 'Gimme All Your Lovin,' synthesizers in 'Legs.' But these parts are usually frilly extras that aren't really needed. The last time I saw them (last summer) they played 'Legs' with nothing but the three of them, even though there's lots more going on in the studio version, and it sounded just fine.
• Stefanie from Rock Hill, ScThanks Jole. I wondered if I was the only one who noticed the similarities in the two intros. I didn't know "Shake Your Hips" was a Slim Harpo tune though. I haven't heard any Slim Harpo songs, and I have "Shake Your Hips" on Exile on Main Street.
• James from Westchester, EnglandI have a question about this song, and I hope I can word it accurately. How do they play this live? If you listen, you can distinctly hear three non-percussive roles. The bass layer (which sounds frightfully boring to play), some rhythmn guitar keeping along with Beard, and the soaring lead guitar. I understand in the studio how you can lay tracks over each other, but when they play this live (which must be, uh, all the time, right?), do they bring a third guitarist out?
• Dave from Latham , NyVan Halen supposedly borrowed the soft guitar in the intro and break during the breaks for 'Hot For Teacher'
• Dave from Latham , NyZZ Top's 'La Grange' is a blues rock standard in terms of cover songs. Joe Satriani, Stevie Vai, and John Patrucci come together for a killer jam off the song, and it can be found as a video online if you look.
• Brian from Meriden, CtWhen I first started to listen to rock music as a kid, radio stations would play vinyl records. I loved this song and the drum lead-in that preceeds the main guitar/bass line that makes up the song's structure. Since its digital format became the only played medium I don't like it as much. That drum piece's high end sounds, now more pure or more limited, are regardless muted and the recording suffers. A perfect example of why sometimes analog is just better. Another example very similar in the same way with now-muted drums is the Beatles' "I Feel Fine."
• Joel from Arlington, VaThis song sounds like it's borrowed from Slim Harpo's "Shake Your Hips". The Rolling Stones cover this on Exile on Main St.Listen to the intro...
• Phil from San Jose, CaBilly Gibbons is such a great guitarist, Jimi Hendrix admired him, and Jeff Beck speaks very highly of him as well. His flowing style, mixed with blues, rock, and lots of funk is truly original.
  Frank Beard and Dusty Hill one of the best rhythm sections in rock, also they hold the record for the longest running original member rock group!
• Chuck from Louisville, KyThis was a cool song that we jammed to in high school since we were from LaGrange KY....
• Cody from San Antonio, TxOne of the greatest songs of all time
• Blackdog from New Milford, NjPerfect song to cruise down the highway to
• Evan from Acworh, Ganot the biggest zz top fan either but love the song...great song to jam to with your buddies.
• Brian from Paoli, InCool song, I'm not ZZ Top fan but I love when this song comes on the radio.
• Eddie from Missoula, MtI have heard that the line "...and a Ten to get yourself in- hmm, hmm..." was originally "...and intend to get yourself infected..."
• M from Merrill, WiThis song started out as a "jam session."

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