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Dusty Hill
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Joe Michael "Dusty" Hill (born May 19, 1949) is the bassist and vocalist with Texas Boogie-Blues-Rock group ZZ Top. Hill is noted for his solid, unadorned bass playing, "leather-lung" vocal stylings and his love of Elvis Presley.
was born in Dallas, Texas and grew up in the Lakewood neighborhood of East Dallas. He attended Woodrow Wilson High School.
Hill formed ZZ Top in late 1969 with drummer Frank Beard (with whom Hill had played in the bands American Blues, the Warlocks, and the Cellar Dwellers) and Moving Sidewalks' guitarist/vocalist Billy Gibbons.
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Encyclopedia
Joe Michael "Dusty" Hill (born May 19, 1949) is the bassist and vocalist with Texas Boogie-Blues-Rock group ZZ Top. Hill is noted for his solid, unadorned bass playing, "leather-lung" vocal stylings and his love of Elvis Presley.
History
Hill was born in Dallas, Texas and grew up in the Lakewood neighborhood of East Dallas. He attended Woodrow Wilson High School.
Hill formed ZZ Top in late 1969 with drummer Frank Beard (with whom Hill had played in the bands American Blues, the Warlocks, and the Cellar Dwellers) and Moving Sidewalks' guitarist/vocalist Billy Gibbons. After honing their trademark Texas Boogie-Blues-Rock style, they released the aptly titled ZZ Top's First Album on London Records in 1971.
The band rolled on, intensively touring and recording/releasing albums until 1977, when they took a hiatus. Their long-time manager/producer/image maker Bill Ham used this time to negotiate a deal that allowed the band to keep control of their previous recordings, which would be distributed by their new label, Warner Brothers Records. They reunited two and a half years later in order to start recording under a new Warner Brothers contract. Unbeknownst to the other, both Dusty Hill and Billy Gibbons had grown the chest-length beards that quickly became a part of their "wildman" image. Drummer Frank Beard, ironically, does not wear a beard.
The band hit international prominence and their commercial peak with the release of 1983's platinum-selling disc Eliminator. Named after Gibbon's customized 1933 Ford Coupe (which, along with leggy party girls, was featured in several music videos), Eliminator featured the hits "Legs", "Gimme All Your Lovin'", "Sharp Dressed Man" and "TV Dinners".
In 1994, the band signed a five-disc deal with RCA Record. Many fans feel that the recordings of this era are as artistically strong as the earlier London and Warner Brothers recordings, but have expressed disappointment with RCA's promotion of these releases.
In July 2000, while on tour in Europe, Hill was diagnosed with Hepatitis C, the treatment of which cancelled several dates in that tour. Hill has since made a remarkable recovery, joking, "You just can't keep down ZZ Top!"
In 2003, a comprehensive collection of recordings from the London and Warner Brother years entitled Chrome, Smoke & BBQ was released. Also in 2003, ZZ Top was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. They have the distinction of being the only band with a 35 year plus history with all of the original members.
As of 2006, it is reported that ZZ Top is recording their 15th studio album.
Dusty Hill has appeared as himself in the 11th season episode of King of the Hill, "Hank Gets Dusted", in which Hank Hill is said to be a cousin of Dusty's. He can also be glimpsed among the mourners attending a funeral in the 1998 film A Simple Plan.
On May 16, 2007, a press release from ZZ Top announced they were cancelling their European tour because Dusty Hill needed to undergo treatment for a benign growth (acoustic neuroma) in his inner ear which is affecting his hearing.
Musical equipment
Throughout his career Hill has used many different basses and amplifiers in different combos, and has a large collection of vintage and custom basses. However, he claims he prefers simple and non complicated basses with a single pickup with a single volume knob and sometimes with an additional knob for tone control.
Bass guitars
- Vintage Fender Telcaster - Only used during recordings.
- Custom Fender Telecaster - Fitted with custom wound DiMarzio pickups.
- Custom reversed Telecaster
- Custom Telecaster - With reversed headstock.
- Dean (Gibson Explorer-like) custom - Covered in sheep skin, with spinning unit. (http://www.deanguitars.com/articles/worlddean.htm)
- Fender Precision Bass
- Bolin Guitars custom - White hollowbody bass.
- Dean Z
- Danelectro Longhorn
- James Trussart SteelCaster
- 044, 063, 080 and 102 gauge strings
Effects
Amplifiers
Discography
American Blues albums
ZZ Top albums
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