MINT SHRINK 1975 Orig "FANDANGO" ZZ TOP GRITTY HOWLIN BLUES ROCK SENSATION

$

41

                             ORIGINAL FIRST PRESS       ..|/\|...............................................|/\|..                          
                     = ZZ TOP =
                 "FANDANGO"                        ..|/\|...............................................|/\|..                                    USA - LONDON RECORDS - SMHL 1660

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BEAUTIFUL ARCHIVE MUSEUM QUALITY!
STILL IN FACTORY CELLOPHANE  + INNER SLEEVE + "TUSH" hit song sticker

The original pressing = 1975 guaranteed ... comes with double sided custom photo inner sleeve ... complete!

ZZ TOP "Fandango" ~~~ the absolute 1975 first pressing/stamped matrix ... this is a very scarce / desirable outing from ZZ TOP. Full cover design sports all cellophane, sharp & square Final upgrade copy with super sound audio.

STILL IN ORIGINAL FACTORY CELLOPHANE

MINT all over!!!

Fandango! was only the fourth album by the legendary ZZ Top, released in 1975. This is not only the first press but is STILL IN ORIGINAL FACTORY CELLOPHANE and sports the very RARE "Tush" hit song sticker on outer shrink wrap! A KILLER final collection artifact of the Hall-Of-Fame blues rock trio!

Half the tracks are selections from live shows, the rest were 1975 songs from the studio.....
In 1966, "Moving Sidewalks" guitarist Billy Gibbons was introduced to bassist Dusty Hill drummer Frank Beard of the also legendary "American Blues" -- who reportedly passed out drunk before he could return the greeting. Impressed with his insane guitar playing, Beard and Hill invited Billy Gibbons to join the band they had just started....ZZ TOP

At first they wanted to call the band “ZZ King” but thought it was too similar to the name of their guitar hero, B.B. King. But then again, an aura of mystery and uncomplicated cool are staples of this extraordinary Texan blues rock band, nevertheless they landed with ZZ TOP.

Gibbons and Hill, twin front-men who share vocal duties and have led the band for 48 years, are recognizable for their dark sunglasses and long, flowing beards. Beard, ironically, has remained clean-shaven but for an occasional trimmed goatee.

The band’s cohesive three-piece sound is characterized by hot, bluesy guitar riffs and freewheeling solos, backed by tight drumming and two-piece vocals. Gibbons had opened for The Jimi Hendrix Experience before starting the band that made him famous. On The Tonight Show, Hendrix advised that Billy Gibbons would be the next big guitarist on the scene.

Their recording debut, unconsciously titled First Album (1970), was followed up quickly with Rio Grande Mud (1972). Their third album, Tres Hombres (1973), contained the hit single “La Grange”, inspired by the Chicken Ranch, the famous bordello that was the subject of the acclaimed Broadway musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. It became the band’s signature tune before hits from subsequent albums (like “Cheap Sunglasses” and “Sharp Dressed Man”).

Worn out after three albums and the ambitious Worldwide Texas Tour that lasted three and a half years, ZZ Top took a break and switched labels. They returned from their hiatus in 1975 and pumped it up with this LP:  Fandango!

Fandango! took ZZ TOP to another level. The A-side featured live recordings of “Thunderbird”, “Jailhouse Rock” (written for Elvis Presley) and a rambunctious “Backdoor Medley” of “Backdoor Love Affair”, “Mellow Down Easy” and “Backdoor Love” that runs for nearly 10 minutes, though the recording is occasionally noisy. Most recognizable among the studio tracks on the B-side is the controversial but timeless smash hit: “Tush” (which peaked at 20 on Billboard Hot 100).

Walking a fine tightrope between the live and studio sounds, and maintaining continuity with the previous album, Fandango! became a watershed record in ZZ Top’s career. Bands with a big stage sound often betray themselves when they enter the studio but ZZ Top had figured their way around that. Fandango! also coincided with a time when the band’s trademark beards started to appear.

With MTV soaking up the music market in the 1980s, ZZ Top’s television-friendly image made them rich and famous. Also durable – for 50+ years is a long time to remain in business. It hardly matters that its members are near 70 years of age, because America’s most electrified blues-rock band still packs arenas. And while they are at it, Gibbons and Hill have refused millions of dollars from Gillette razors to shave on camera.
FANDANGO!
First came the live side, led by the driving “Thunderbird,” paying twin praise to the popular automobile and the low-budget wine, and accompanied by enthusiastic shouts of “Get high, everybody, get high!” Next came Hill's growling rendition of “Jailhouse Rock,” and then a nearly 10-minute “Backdoor Medley,” featuring Gibbons’ naughty “Backdoor Love Affair” split in half with Willie Dixon’s “Mellow Down Easy” sandwiched in between (complete with drum solo), before concluding with John Lee Hooker’s “Long Distance Boogie.”
or its part, side two introduced no less than six, exhilarating new studio cuts, as strong as anything contained on the celebrated Tres Hombres. First there was the badass groove of “Nasty Dogs and Funky Kings,” then the exquisitely soulful “Blue Jean Blues, the raunchy “Balinese” and utterly politically incorrect “Mexican Blackbird,” as well as the heartfelt tribute to border-crossing Mexican radio stations in “Heard it on the X.”
But the best was saved for last: “Tush,” which became ZZ Top’s first Top 20 single, pulled Fandango! right along with it into the U.S. Top 10, and has since yielded more cover versions than one can count. Way back in 1975, though, what all of these new heights of success meant for Gibbons, Hill and Beard was an even more aggressive touring workload. Starting in Huntington, W.V., on Fandango!'s April 18 release date, they played the first of more than 60 concerts before their final date on Nov. 30, in Green Bay.
Here a MINT original first press ... investment artifact in THIS condition!
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Side one

    "Thunderbird" (Live) – 4:08
    "Jailhouse Rock" (Live) (Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller) (Live at The Warehouse, New Orleans) – 1:57
    "Backdoor Medley" (Live) – 9:25
        "Backdoor Love Affair" (Gibbons, Bill Ham) – 1:10
        "Mellow Down Easy" (Willie Dixon) – 3:39
        "Backdoor Love Affair No. 2" (Gibbons) – 2:05
        "Long Distance Boogie" (John Lee Hooker) – 2:32

Side two

    "Nasty Dogs and Funky Kings" – 2:42
    "Blue Jean Blues" – 4:43
    "Balinese" – 2:39
    "Mexican Blackbird" – 3:07
    "Heard It on the X" – 2:24
    "Tush" – 2:15

                 CONDITION: The cover: rated: MINT in factory cellophane with RARE "TUSH" custom designed hit song STICKER on outer front cover...This is a flat & square, 4 sharp corners beauty. Has the original '75 store price sticker on outer cellophane as well. NO netter copy found!  There are no delete marks, no split seams, no bends, and no writing  ...

The vinyl: Rated: M- smooth and clear sides, both A and B...means it plays flawlessly without audio disturbance.  Both LONDON labels are clean - no spindle marks! 
              
      A cool addition to anyone's music library!






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