Degüello

First released in 1979, Deguello was three years in the making. Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard had disappeared into the sagebrush to recharge their batteries following their grueling World Texas Tour. They returned with a new antic sense of themselves that first appeared in songs like "Cheap Sunglasses," "She Loves My Automobile," and "Esther Be the One" and came to fruition almost four years later with Eliminator. Deguello forges the last link to the band's early blues-rock years, before they became the sleeker, less threatening entity that graced MTV during the '80s.

Tunes like their rendering of David Porter and Isaac Hayes's steamy "I Thank You," the salacious "Hi Fi Mama," and the boastful "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide" careen on the edges of good taste, but these guys didn't give a damn who they offended as long as they entertained. And, of course, they did entertain legions of fans with their ribald lyrics, off-kilter timing, and Gibbons's daredevil guitar wizardry.

But ZZ Top isn't all hard edges and pinup fantasies; the heartbreakingly beautiful intro to their eccentric love song, "Fool for Her Stockings" rivals the lyricism of Jimi Hendrix's "The Wind Cries Mary." --Jaan Uhelszki