Billy F Gibbons: Rock + Roll Gearhead

Description

Imagine stepping out of an air-conditioned Kwik-E-Mart and into the hot summer sun, cold soda in hand, when a long-and-low baby blue '62 Chevy Impala slowly trolls into the parking lot. How about rolling to a stoplight in West Hollywood and spying a bearded motorist with an 8-ball logo on the louvered and striped hood of his BMW? There's no mistaking the common thread in these remarkable scenarios - Billy F Gibbons, be-shaded axe-man extraordinaire from ZZ TOP and certified Texas Grade-A gearhead. As with many rockers, Gibbons' jones for hot rods is the stuff of legend. But beyond this bonafide bluesman's mastery of the six-string and unrepentant love for internal combustion is a noted collector whose own designs have manifested themselves in his cars and in hundreds of mind-bending custom guitars. In "Billy F Gibbons: Rock + Roll Gearhead", Gibbons riffs on his Texas youth, four-decade recording career, and life on the road, but also reveals the history behind dozens of guitars, including the Famed Pearly Gates, the red Gretsch given to him by Bo Diddley, and the Muddywood guitar commissioned as a fundraiser for the Delta Blues Museum. Also profiled are 10 of Gibbons' outstanding rods and customs, including Kopperhed, CadZZilla, and the Eliminator coupe. In addition to exclusive photography by Bay Area shooter David Perry, this book is illustrated with dozens of images from Gibbons' personal archive.

Billy F Gibbons is known worldwide as the lead guitarist in ZZ TOP, a band that has sold millions of albums and CDs globally in its long career. He is regarded as a cherished institution in his home state of Texas and has been honored for his work on behalf of charities in Houston, his hometown. Tom Vickers has worked in the music business for 30-plus years as an A&R man, journalist, and producer. He lives in Los Angeles, California.

"New York Times", Nov. 10, 2005"In addition to the hundreds of guitars he has acquired, Mr. Gibbons has a celebrated stable of hot rods and custom cars ... Both collections are chronicled in the just-published "Rock & Roll Gearhead". It's a combination memoir, band scrapbook and catalog of his favorite autos (including the 'CadZZilla' and the 'Slampala') and six-strings (like the cowhide-covered Fender and the Gibson in the shape of Texas) ... 'Rock 'n' roll and automobiles have always had this synergistic connection, ' Mr. Gibbons said. He will be signing copies of the book on Monday from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the Barnes & Noble store at 555 Fifth Ave."