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ZZ Top: That Little Ol' Band from Texas

  • 2019
  • 1h 31m
IMDb RATING
7.5/10
1.9K
YOUR RATING
ZZ Top: That Little Ol' Band from Texas (2019)
The story of how three oddball teenage bluesmen became one of the biggest, most beloved bands on the planet.
Play trailer1:05
1 Video
2 Photos
DocumentaryBiographyMusic

The story of how three oddball teenage bluesmen became one of the biggest, most beloved bands on the planet.The story of how three oddball teenage bluesmen became one of the biggest, most beloved bands on the planet.The story of how three oddball teenage bluesmen became one of the biggest, most beloved bands on the planet.

  • Director
    • Sam Dunn
  • Writers
    • Ralph Chapman
    • Sam Dunn
  • Stars
    • Billy Gibbons
    • Dusty Hill
    • Frank Beard
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.5/10
    1.9K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Sam Dunn
    • Writers
      • Ralph Chapman
      • Sam Dunn
    • Stars
      • Billy Gibbons
      • Dusty Hill
      • Frank Beard
    • 16User reviews
    • 4Critic reviews
    • 64Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination

    Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:05
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    Photos

    ZZ Top: That Little Ol' Band from Texas (2019)
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    Top cast

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    Billy Gibbons
    Billy Gibbons
    • Self
    • (as Billy F. Gibbons)
    Dusty Hill
    Dusty Hill
    • Self
    Frank Beard
    Frank Beard
    • Self
    ZZ Top
    ZZ Top
    • Themselves
    Robin Hood Brians
    • Self - owner of Robin Hood Studios
    • (as Robin Brians)
    Josh Homme
    Josh Homme
    • Self
    • (as Joshua Homme)
    Terry Manning
    Terry Manning
    • Self
    'Country' Winston Marshall
    • Self
    • (as Winston Marshall)
    Steve Miller
    Steve Miller
    • Self
    Howard Bloom
    Howard Bloom
    • Self - publicist for ZZ Top from 1976 to 1979
    Ralph Fisher
    Ralph Fisher
    • Self - animal trainer and former rodeo-clown
    Billy Bob Thornton
    Billy Bob Thornton
    • Self
    Tim Newman
    Tim Newman
    • Self
    Dan Auerbach
    Dan Auerbach
    • Self
    James Brown
    James Brown
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    • (uncredited)
    Johnny Carson
    Johnny Carson
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    • (uncredited)
    Roky Erickson
    Roky Erickson
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    • (uncredited)
    Mark J. Goodman
    • Self
    • (archive footage)
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Sam Dunn
    • Writers
      • Ralph Chapman
      • Sam Dunn
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Dave Wakefield played the cook. He comes from Ojai, CA, and played in the funk band Wonderbug in the 1990's. His drummer was legendary pop punk producer, the late Jerry Finn, who produced Blink 182, Sum 41, and Rancid.
    • Quotes

      Frank Beard: Clapton only snorted heroin, you know, which is like, so fucking... not cost-efficient!

      [laughs]

      Frank Beard: You have to do like, five times as much to get the same buzz! But he was making more money...

      [laughs]

      Frank Beard: But it's not cost-efficient.

    • Connections
      Referenced in Front Row Flynn: ZZ TOP: THAT LITTLE OLE BAND FROM TEXAS Premiere, Intro, Q&A: Billy F. Gibbons, Dusty Hill, Sam Dunn, moderator Bob Merlis (2019)
    • Soundtracks
      Sharp Dressed Man
      Performed by ZZ Top

      Courtesy of Warner Bros. Records Inc.

      By arrangement with Warner Music Group Film & TV Licensing

    User reviews16

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    8/10
    Solid, informative, fun
    The makers of this documentary have struck a fine balance between their various tools -- fuzzy historic stills and video clips of the band's earlier incarnations (Hill and Beard based in Dallas with Lady Wilde and the Warlocks; Gibbons with The Moving Sidewalks down in Houston), brief animations of key early moments (especially those involving their late manager Bill Ham), very short concert clips in their early prime, and memorable footage from their first music videos directed by Tim Newman for MTV in the early Eighties.

    There are also testimonials from fans such as Billy Bob Thornton, Steve Miller, Josh Homme of Queens of the Stone Age, Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys, and others.

    But the strongest two elements are the interviews with the individual members throughout -- recalling their origins, early choices, war stories (the best involve opening for Hendrix, the Rolling Stones in Hawaii, an early Memphis Blues Festival, Beard's dissection of his substance abuse problems in the late Seventies) -- and footage of the band "today" (that is, 2018) playing some favorite, signature tunes at historic Gruene Hall expressly for this film as they closed in on an astonishing 50 years as a working unit with no personnel changes.

    What comes across clearly -- especially if, like me, you were not a rabid fan and follower of this band's career -- is that there was more to ZZ Top than met the eye. Though they had a distinct and unmistakable sound (a brand, if you will), this band also were both smart and lucky enough to hire very good people to handle their promotion, sound production, video work -- everything that was ancillary to the actual music, but crucial to helping it find the massive audience it eventually did.

    That, and the fact that the band managed to absorb interesting currents from the larger music industry as it evolved, such as disco and punk, and were sharp enough to plunge immediately into MTV to promote their work.

    The ZZ Top "mystique" was largely cultivated by their manager. They would have liked to appear on Johnny Carson and do interviews, but Ham nixed all of that. Do your music, and make everybody come to you, he said. (Other than Beard's brief mentions of leaving Dallas with a wife and a kid, and destroying a relationship with his substance abuse, there isn't a whiff of a mention of their personal lives otherwise. You get no idea whether Gibbons or Hill ever married or have any children.)

    The story pretty much ends with 1983's _Eliminator_ album and the "Gimme All Your Lovin'" and "Legs" videos. That's all that's essential to tell the story of the band's origins and success; the rest is disposed of in two sentences on a black screen.

    But the movie goes on to finish with a live performance of "Blue Jean Blues" (going all the way back to 1975), intercut with each of the band members talking about why they think they stuck together so long. It's nicely done.
    helpful•14
    0
    • dloft59
    • Aug 29, 2019

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 4, 2019 (Australia)
    • Countries of origin
      • United Kingdom
      • Canada
      • United States
    • Official site
      • Official site
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • ZZ Top: Старая добрая группа из Техаса
    • Filming locations
      • Gruene Hall, Gruene, Texas, USA
    • Production companies
      • Eagle Rock Entertainment
      • Banger Films
      • Tower Top Tours
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $14,879
    • Gross worldwide
      • $14,879
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

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    • Runtime
      1 hour 31 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.78 : 1

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