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New book tells ZZ Top frontman Billy F Gibbons' life story through his amazing collection of custom automobiles and guitars.

Billy F Gibbons: Rock and Roll Gearhead

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Billy F Gibbons' hot rods and custom car fixation is the stuff of rock 'n' roll legend. Beyond this bona fide bluesman's mastery of the six string and his love for internal combustion, one discovers a noted collector whose designs have manifested in his cars and in hundreds of mind-bending custom guitars.

In Billy F Gibbons: Rock and Roll Gearhead, ZZ Top's iconic ax man riffs on his teenage garage-band years, his four-decade recording career, his experiences with icons like Jimi Hendrix and Chuck Berry and life on the road. He reveals the tales behind dozens of guitars from his collection that numbers more than 600. These include the famous "Furry One", the "Muddywood", constructed from a timber fallen from Muddy Waters' childhood home and commissioned as a fundraiser for the Delta Blues Museum, and, of course, the creme de la creme, "Pearly Gates", his cherished musical companion.

Gibbons also gives the lowdown on 10 of his outstanding rods and customs, including Kopperhed, CadZZilla and the famous red Eliminator Coupe. In addition to exclusive photography by Bay Area shooter David Perry, the book features dozens of images from Gibbons' personal archive.

During the course of their 36-year career, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees ZZ TOP have come to be known as the musical embodiment of the spirit of Texas. Not long after their first blush of success, Billy F Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard were dubbed “That Little Ol' Band From Texas.” That handle that has stood them in good stead through a string of multi platinum releases including Eliminator, El Loco, Tres Hombres and Deguello and such massive hit singles as “Tush,” “LaGrange,” “Gimme All Your Lovin’," “Sharp Dressed Man” and, of course, “Legs.” While these musical and cultural icons have released a total of seventeen albums, 1975’s “Fandango!” stands as a special case. One side was recorded in the studio, the other live at The Warehouse in New Orleans and served as a showcase of the band’s amazing ability to translate their recording artistry to the performance stage.

Billy F Gibbons: Rock and Roll Gearhead

Jacketed hardcover - 10 1/2 x 12 - 192 pages
175 color, 25 black and white photographs

29.95 US, 39.95 CANADA, 18.99 UK

Available in bookstores everywhere or through www.motorbooks.com

BILLY F GIBBONS BOOK SIGNING TOUR

MONDAY - 11/14/05 - New York City
Barnes and Noble - 555 Fifth Avenue
1:00 - 2:30 pm

WEDNESDAY - 11/16/05 - Toronto
Indigo Books Eaton Center - 220 Yonge Street
12 noon - 2:00 pm

THURSDAY - 11/17/05 - Chicago
Borders Books and Music - 150 N. State Street
12:30 - 2:30 pm

TUESDAY - 11/29/05 Los Angeles
Petersen Automotive Museum - 6060 Wilshire Boulevard
6:00 - 8:00 pm

WEDNESDAY - 11/30/05 Los Angeles
Sam Goody Universal Citywalk - 1000 Universal Center Drive
6:30 - 8:30 pm