XXX is the thirteenth studio album (also including live material) by the American rock band ZZ Top, released in September 1999. The album's title commemorates the band's 30th anniversary.

Reception

AllMusic only gave the album one and a half stars, and in its review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine, he states: "After all, countless blues-based musicians, from Lightnin' Hopkins and Muddy Waters to B.B. King and the Rolling Stones, have aged gracefully, albeit in varying degrees. So why does ZZ Top sound so stiff and useless on XXX, a record celebrating their 30th anniversary? Part of that could be that the songwriting is decidedly weak, but a band as seasoned as ZZ Top should be able to make third-rate material at least listenable."

The album peaked at number 100 on the Billboard 200.

Track listing

Additional studio track on the Japanese edition

Personnel

ZZ Top

  • Billy Gibbons – guitar, vocals
  • Dusty Hill – bass, keyboards, backing vocals, lead vocal on "(Let Me Be) Your Teddy Bear"
  • Frank Beard – drums, percussion

Additional personnel

  • Jeff Beck – guitar on "Hey Mr. Millionaire"
  • Ross Mitchell - spoken vocals on "Introduction by Ross Mitchell"

Production

  • Producer: Billy Gibbons
  • Engineer: Joe Hardy
  • Assistant engineer: Gary Moon
  • Mixing: Joe Hardy
  • Mastering: Bob Ludwig
  • Digital editing: Brad Blackwood
  • Recording: Joe Hardy
  • Art direction: Bill Narum

Charts

Album – Billboard

{| class="wikitable"

|-

!Chart (1999)

!Peak<br>position

|-

|The Billboard 200

|align="center"|100

|}

Singles – Billboard

{| class="wikitable"

|-

!Year

!Single

!Chart

!Position

|-

|1999

|"Fearless Boogie"

|Mainstream Rock Tracks

|align="center"|13

|-

|2000

|"36-22-36"

|Mainstream Rock Tracks

|align="center"|31

|}

References