| Rio Grande Mud | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | April 4, 1972 | |||
| Recorded | September 1971 – January 1972 at Robin Hood Studios, Tyler, Texas | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 40:51 | |||
| Label | London | |||
| Producer | Bill Ham | |||
| ZZ Top chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Rio Grande Mud | ||||
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Rio Grande Mud is the second studio album by the American rock band ZZ Top. It was released in 1972 by the London Records label. The album title was inspired by the Rio Grande, the river that forms the border between Mexico and Texas.
ZZ Top frontman Billy Gibbons said of the album:
It was the first record that brought us into step with the writing experience. We started documenting events as they happened to us on the road; all of these elements went into the songwriting notebook. As we went along, we were keeping track of skeleton ideas as they popped up. The craft was certainly developing. [3]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [2] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | C [4] |
| Rolling Stone | Mixed [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
| The Daily Vault | A− [7] |
The only single released from the album was "Francine", which peaked at number 69 on the Billboard Hot 100. The A-side was the album version, while the B-side featured the song with the vocals re-recorded in Spanish. [8] Another 45 version was released in the UK and Germany backed with "Down Brownie". Various official ZZ Top releases throughout the years, beginning in 1972, have used the alternative spelling "Francene", especially on the various 45 releases both within and outside the United States as well as the first edition of the LP.
In 1987, the album was remixed for CD release. On January 11, 2011, Rhino released a remastered version from the original 1972 mix on vinyl only. This album was put up for download on Amazon's MP3 store and iTunes as a digital download in 2012, and features the original mixes of the tracks that are on Chrome, Smoke & BBQ , and the 1987 remixes of the tracks that are not from that box set. The original mix of the album was released on CD in June 2013 as part of the box set The Complete Studio Albums (1970-1990). [9]
AllMusic retrospectively gave the album 3.5 stars, stating: "With their second album, Rio Grande Mud, ZZ Top uses the sound they sketched out on their debut as a blueprint, yet they tweak it in slight but important ways." [2]
The album peaked at number 104 on the Billboard 200 in June 1972. [10]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Francine" | Billy Gibbons, Steve Perron, Kenny Cordray | 3:33 |
| 2. | "Just Got Paid" | Gibbons, Bill Ham | 4:49 |
| 3. | "Mushmouth Shoutin'" | Gibbons, Ham | 3:41 |
| 4. | "Ko Ko Blue" | Gibbons, Dusty Hill, Frank Beard | 4:56 |
| 5. | "Chevrolet" | Gibbons | 3:47 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Apologies to Pearly (instrumental)" | Gibbons, Hill, Beard, Ham | 2:39 |
| 2. | "Bar-B-Q" | Gibbons, Ham | 3:34 |
| 3. | "Sure Got Cold After the Rain Fell" | Gibbons | 7:39 |
| 4. | "Whiskey'n Mama" | Gibbons, Hill, Beard, Ham | 3:20 |
| 5. | "Down Brownie" | Gibbons | 2:53 |
| Total length: | 38:55 | ||
| Chart (1972–1974) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums (Kent Music Report) [11] | 85 |
| US Billboard 200 [12] | 104 |
ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in 1969 in Houston, Texas. For 51 years, it was composed of vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard and bassist-vocalist Dusty Hill, until Hill's death in 2021. ZZ Top had developed a signature sound based on Gibbons' blues guitar playing style and Hill and Beard's rhythm section. They are popular for their live performances, sly and humorous lyrics, and the matching appearances of Gibbons and Hill, who wore sunglasses, hats and long beards.
Afterburner is the ninth studio album by the American rock band ZZ Top, released in 1985. Although critics' response to the album was lukewarm, Afterburner was a moderate success, going platinum and launching one hit single: "Sleeping Bag" which peaked at No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks and at No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100.
ZZ Top's First Album is the debut studio album by American rock band ZZ Top. It was produced by Bill Ham, and released in January 1971, on London Records. Establishing ZZ Top's attitude and humor, the album incorporates styles such as blues, boogie, hard rock, and Southern rock influences. Thematically, the album is about personal experiences and sexual innuendos. "(Somebody Else Been) Shakin' Your Tree" was the only single released from the album.
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"La Grange" is a song by the American rock group ZZ Top, from their 1973 album Tres Hombres. One of ZZ Top's most successful songs, it was released as a single in 1973 and received extensive radio play, rising to No. 41 on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1974. The song refers to a brothel on the outskirts of La Grange, Texas. The brothel is also the subject of the Broadway play and film The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas.
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"Francine" is a song recorded by the American rock band ZZ Top from their 1972 album Rio Grande Mud.
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