Not the beard!

I’d like to raise my 10-gallon hat and say a massive thank you to David Fricke for his outstanding interview with Billy F Gibbons [MOJO 333]. The experiences provided by Billy’s musical director dad and sitting in on a session with BB King were no doubt profound moments that would shape the future he would take, though I would suggest that the greatest impact was provided quite simply by his family’s housekeeper, Stella Matthews. I have no doubt that the education provided by Stella and Billy’s discovery of grassroots blues artists in venues such as Houston’s Fourth Ward cemented his destiny. It was also fantastic to read how even after 50 years Billy maintains the love of writing songs, and how this has resulted in his incredible solo record Hardware. It’s interesting that whilst this record deviates from Billy’s blues focus to a more surf-rock vibe, he has clearly been keen to maintain a close connection to ZZ Top through the album’s Ford Coupe Eliminator-style artwork. Craig Isherwood, Poulton Le Fylde