It was Classic Rock Night at The Palace Theatre as perennial favorites ZZ Top, that little Texas trio, made a stop in Albany, NY along with alt-rockers The Sedonas. It’s the first time seeing them since the 2021 passing of Dusty Hill, but it was nice to see his handpicked successor, Elwood Francis, solidly accepted as a full member of the band. Vocalist/Guitarist Billy Gibbons looked at Francis, not as a hired gun, but compatriot throughout the evening all while drummer Frank Beard (the one without a beard) locked in to the low end. Francis and Gibbons came out wearing some suits that would have made Nudie Cohn (The Dresser to the stars) happy, sporting some fine rhinestone work, and again, when they came out for the encore with new spiffy duds.
In case anyone had any question as to the type of show before them, ZZ Top opened with one of their bigger hits off their Eliminator album, “Got Me Under Pressure,” and we knew the night would rock. While the show was a retrospective of their career, Eliminator was heavily represented with four songs, aside from “Pressure,””Gimme All Your Lovin’” came up mid set with the final two songs of the set being what may be their biggest hits, thanks to MTV, “Sharp Dressed Man” and “Legs” had everyone up and dancing. Tres Hombres was next with three songs, “Waitin’ For The Bus,””Jesus Just Left For Chicago” and the grand finale, “La Grange.” Of course, they played their hits, but it was nice to see some of the deeper tracks, including a cover version of Merle Travis’ “16 Tons” which they made their own with a rocking up version of the country hit. Another song they made their own was the Sam & Dave classic, “I Thank You” off Deguello, which has been tied to ZZ Top over the years, it’s hard to remember it’s a cover.
Starting off the Encore, they reached all the way back to ZZ Tops First Album (yeah that was the title) with “Brown Sugar.” During the next song, “Tube Snake Boogie” Gibbons got the entire audience singing the hook, “She won’t do it but her sister will.” As mentioned the entire evening came to a close with the classic “La Grange.”
Opening the show were The Sedonas. This quartet from Knoxville, Tennessee played a fusion style of psychedelic, blues alt-rock with frontman Jame Connor Wike a constant blur as he moved around the stage while delivering solid vocals. He even brought out a megaphone for the song “Happens Right.” Their short eight song set featured songs from their various albums. One of my favorite points in the set was “Too Tired (For Common Sense)” off their The ’79 Session album, which also featured “You Know (“You Ought To Know).” While the guitarist, Ryan Sise, didn’t move much, he did put down some fine solos while the rhythm section kept a solid beat.
While the crowd filled close to ¾ of the theater, it was a surprise to find that the show wasn’t sold out as it has been awhile since ZZ Top has been in the Capital District (October 14, 2022). From the solid opening of The Sedonas, to the finale of “La Grange,” the audience seemed to really enjoy the show. There was a constant stream of people walking up the aisle to photograph/video their favorite songs, although security was right there to make sure they didn’t linger. They finally gave up approaching the end of the final song. All in all, it was a great evening of fine music plus, one of my favorite music quests is to find new bands who I enjoyed listening to, and The Sedonas were that band this time.
The Sedonas Set List:
Live My Years, You Know (You Ought To Know), Too Tired (For Common Sense), Mind, Too Bad, Living Fastly, Happens Right, Til I Say Amen
ZZ Top Set List:
Got Me Under Pressure, I Thank you, Waitin’ For A Bus, Jesus Just Left Chicago, Gimme All Your Lovin’, Pearl Necklace, I’m Bad, I’m Nationwide, I Gotsta Get Paid, My Head’s In Mississippi, Sixteen Tons, Just Got Paid, Sharp Dressed Man, Legs
Encore: Brown Sugar, Tube Snake Boogie, La Grange
