For reasons unknown, after completely butchering the CD releases of their previous 6 albums by remixing and re-recording, ZZ Top saw fit to leave this one lone album and an early Greatest Hits collection alone in it's original form. It's not remastered but at least you can hear the album as it sounded when it was first released on vinyl. So it's a safe buy, but since Tres Hombres and Fandango are now finally available in original mix, remastered form, I would wait for this one to be re-released.

Deguello is a modern blues classic and ranks with Tres Hombres and Eliminator among their best albums. ZZ Top are clearly at their best as a raw blues band and on Deguello they are at their best. Billy Gibbons's vocals and guitar playing sound inspired throughout and the rhythm section of Dusty Hill and Frank Beard are so tight, you can set your watch to them.

Every track here is great with a few ranking among their best. "Cheap Sunglasses" and "I Thank You" are the most popular tracks and are absolutely stunning. The former contains a killer riff and contains some excellent playing by Gibbons during the song's outro. The latter is a cover of the old Sam & Dave song which the band do extremely well. Other excellent tracks include "A Fool For Your Stockings", "I'm Bad, I'm Nationwide", "Esther Be The One", "Hi-Fi Mama", and "Manic Mechanic." There's also an outstanding cover of Elmore James' "Dust My Broom." ZZ Top would never be as raw as this again as they would add synthesizers to their sound starting with the Eliminator album. While albums after this one would sell millions more copies, none of them have aged as well as Deguello. Highly recommended to all fans of the blues.

I can�ft argue with ZZ Top's decision to go slightly techno in Eliminator. Similar to Aerosmith's resurgence, it introduced them to a whole new, "younger" audience and propelled them to mass acceptance. They deserved all the kudos. While Eliminator is a good enough to stand on its own two feet, Deguello is more the heart and soul of ZZ Top.

One thing I've always admired about Billy Gibbons is his penchant for timely yet tasty riffs. He is a master of guitar phrasing and those who rely upon hitting a hundred notes as fast as they can, would do better taking Billy's example of restraint. They are a guitar band, no doubt, but the guitar is part of the overall song in terms of rhythm not full of long, redundant solos to highlight one's skills.

I love every track on Deguello but I'm Bad I'm Nationwide, Lowdown in the Streets, and Fool for Your Stockings really do it for me. Not just a blues band, they always seem to have this "Boogie" groove to their music and results in a Southern-fried kind of sound. The lyrics and feel of I'm Nationwide, really sum up what ZZ Top is all about. Deguello is also an excellent driving selection. Who can�ft see themselves in a convertible with the top down on a hot summer evening listening to I Love My Automobile?

If you like unpretentious, straight ahead, Southern blues rock, Deguello will fit the bill very nicely indeed. For aspiring guitarists, make note of Billy's unique sense of timing.

This album may not be remastered yet on this edition but it's the only 70's record that wasn't 'futurized' when they made the transfer to CD for the first time.

Soon there will be remasters of this disc and every other one from the 70's and most likely the 80's too up through 1990. But this disc is the original mix. It's the real thing! You'll notice it never was included on the ZZ Top Six Pack. They skipped this album but included 1981's El Loco instead. Don't ask me why. Or else it would have reverb added and had the drums redone and mixed differently to sound more like their 80's output. (Eliminator, etc.)

So everyone out there listening to non-remastered versions of ZZ Top's First Album, Rio Grand Mud, Tres Hombres, Fandango, Tejas and El Loco OR The ZZ Top Six Pack, OR Greatest Hits or One Foot In The Blues are hearing futurized versions of the original vinyl. Sad but true. But this album has been pure all along on cd and will only get better on the remaster. It'll be nice if we see it soon. :)
Long live The Top!

I think that on DEGUELLO, ZZ TOP was really firing on all cylinders. I just love this album. It is a slab of now frills blues based rock music that keeps the listener hooked in to the songs. All the songs here rock, I cant find any filler material here. On this album, we have the classic tracks I'M BAD, I'M NATIONWIDE, CHEAP SUNGLASSES, and I THANK YOU. Those 3 songs are reason enough to buy this album. The good songs dont stop there however, if you want more good music, I suggest that you listen to DUST MY BROOM, A FOOL FOR YOUR STOCKINGS, MANIC MECAHNIC. Like I said earlier, there isnt a single song on this album that doesnt rock, and I like listening to the whole album. If you are a fan of real music, than ZZ TOP is a band whose music you should have.