The very title of
Goin' 50 suggests
ZZ Top are considering their 50th anniversary as an event to be celebrated with a sense of humor. That's appropriate. Good spirits and lascivious jokes always have been integral to the trio's appeal, and they can be heard in abundance on this triple-CD/five-LP set that tells their story from beginning to end (there is also a single-disc edition that rounds up the highlights). The set breaks down into three easy acts: the band's greasy early years, spanning from "La Grange" to "Pearl Necklace," are on the first disc; the second installment covers their MTV glory days; the third CD traces the aftermath of
Afterburner, beginning with "Viva Las Vegas" and ending with the 21st century barnburner "I Gotsta Get Paid" (plus recent live versions of "Waitin' for the Bus" and "Jesus Just Left Chicago," which brings this full circle to the beginning). Other compilations cover similar ground more succinctly -- if you want just the hits, look elsewhere, or grab the single-disc incarnation of this 2019 set -- but
Goin' 50 tells
ZZ Top's story in detail, proving that the "Lil' Ol' Band from Texas" was one of America's great bands. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine