Like many of you I’m a big ZZ Top fan… and when I heard Billy Gibbons do “Thunderbird” (a song with an interesting and sordid history) on “Live At Daryl’s House” with such a great band and a great sound, I was hooked.
First, here’s the tune for your listening pleasure… notice what Billy does at the 3:06 mark, it’s the same lick over and over for 12 bars.
And for today’s video, here’s how to play that particular idea and why it sounds so darn cool…
The lick, written out, looks something like this:
65 replies to "Fun With 4 Against 3"
interesting…Neil Young does this alot too. Still try’n ta get that fingers to work right but I do not quit…thanks again Griff
Enjoyed that Griff.
I never figured out how Daryl got Joe Pesci to play drums for him
Sounds like the Louisiana Blues riff.
Griff, is it just my imagination or does Billy Gibbons play just a very minuscule bit behind the beat? I’ve been a fan of his and ZZ Top as long as they have been playing and I have always been able to sort out Gibbons guitar playing without actually knowing he was somewhere in the mix. Figured I would ask because I know you count, I’ve always counted, but what he does is almost more of a “feel” than anything I could count. BTW, feel free to give us any of the Reverends licks. He does a lot with a little.
Pandemic over… tell Gibbons grooming now available.
I gonna put that on the wall to work on…..
Nice vamping riff. Thanks.
Still, would be more interested to learn Rev Billy’s nice intro licks.
who is the bass player in that vid?
Such a great lick. Thanks, Griff.
Griff after all these years i am no longer getting emails from yu, whats up?
Does Billy not just bounce back and forth with two notes of 2. While you have the single note in. Or maybe you just play it cleaner.
That’s what is sounds like to me too.
Hi Griff. I don’t know the guys name that he usually plays with. He has a long beard just like Billy. Is he still around. And secondly, u always refer to ur fret board hand as ur left hand and u picking hand to ur right. It’s no big deal but u could just mention something like or if ur a lefty. Just feeling left out ( no pun intended). There’s a lot of us left handed players out there 😊👍
No, Dusty Hill passed away on 7/28/21. ZZ Top continues today with Hill’s guitar tech, Elwood Francis, on Bass per Dusty’s wishes.
Lord Have Mercy! Give me strength!!!
Griff.your the best you always have good stuff I see youhavethe New Rock program out.I have learned a lot from you.also I was talking to Papastash last week he’s out there in your area.I learn a lot of stuff from him too.you Guy’s are Great
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Thanks for another multi-informational video! ZZ Top, Billy Gibbons, Thunderbird, 4-3, and copyrights!
I hadn’t listened to much of ZZ Top, but liked this one. Almost became a fan (of ZZ)…until I read the “sordid history” of the song. They STOLE it and then had the nerve to copyright it – AND won a lawsuit against the Nightcaps who originally wrote the song!!! What a bunch of A@#$holes!!!! Screw Billy and the ZZ Thiefs!
Great lesson, though, Griff!
Easy Tiger, I am a huge fan of Billy Gibbons 🙂
Never was a Hall and Oates fan but I love the at “Daryl’s House” so cool he gets some really good jams going with different people. Check it out http://www.livefromdarylshouse.com/
Seems more like their labels’ lawyers doing their due diligence than any ZZT assholiness… just because you write, record, & distribute something, my understanding is that no copyright exists until you take the legal action of filing for it with the appropriate authority … imho…
Maybe you needed to be a working musician around that same time frame to get it, but nearly everyone was lifting good songs from just about everyone else. (Happens in Blues music all the time). My guess is that the song more than likely got copyrighted when ZZ Top’s label found that it wasn’t. If the Nightcaps didn’t copyright it, it’s on them or their management.
Great introduction to polyrhythms!
As a drummer I used to play a lot of jazz and prog rock back in the day. The 3 over 4, and 4 over 3 polyrhythm is used a lot. Love it when I see it in other styles of music, like the Blues.
You continue to amaze me all the time.
Thanks for pointing this out, and for sharing it with your great ability to present it and explain it as only you can.
Hey Griff,
Thought I would share a period of my much younger days after seeing this mail….
I had the pleasure of going to high school with Billy Gibbons. He was in my home room at RE Lee Sr High in Houston Texas, played hand ball during lunch etc way before he became musically famous, we horsed around in his garage playing and experimented with sounds etc..
You probably won’t see this mail but in the event, here it is my friend…
Thx,
Phil
Griff,
Your videos are amazing. You’re the only web teacher I’ve found that combines high level playing skill with the facility to articulate and explain what’s going on, and to motivate me to get to the guitar every day.
But I think this video is one of the rare times you missed something. Playing triplets over 4/4 time for beginners is a pretty difficult concept to get, rhythmically and as a matter of physical and mental coordination. When you were demonstrating the licks, the notes simply sounded like they were in sets of 2 or 4. I don’t think it’s possible to get the idea across unless you demonstrate playing the triplets slowly against a jam track in 4/4 time, and, as you so often rightly teach, count as you’re doing it. Now that would be a video really worth watching!
Keep up the great posts. You’re an inspiration.
My full support as for your second chapter. Playing this over a jamtrack would make things absolutely clear.
Nevertheless, thanks to Griff, who’s doing an awesome work for all of us here.
Hey Griff,
Great Lick, I like some of ZZ Top but this Lick is great.
I will keep it up my sleeve for an add on in same tempo in Key of C.
Michael- Sydney- Australia- March 2016
Hey Thank’s Griff, again you bring the past with a blast! where can I get the Jam Track?
I found it very interesting and when are you going to cover the
Z.Z Top tune “I Got the Six”.
Griff I’ve been a trying to order this for a bit know. It seems my social security disability just ain’t giving me enough to pay all my bills plus out food on the table for my family. I’ve learned to eat one meal a day all though I’m sick as well so it’s kinda been easy to do. I had a stroke a free years ago and lost the complete use of my right side. My arm and leg were dead no feeling or movement at all. Well I gained my right arm back threw the grace of the good Lord. I do play the guitar know as I have years past in church. I love playing the guitar very much and I’ve been looking at your video & would love to have them. But unfortunately I can’t afford them. Hopefully one day I’ll be able toget them. Please keep sending the one you do threw the email so at least I can work with those. God bless you and your family and one day I’ll be playing as you can I hope.
Sincerely,
Mr. Gerald Benson
1280 hwy49
Rector, AR
72461
geraldbenson40@gmail.com
This is another cool trick, cheers Griff.
Rob
West Australia.
Griff,,I,m going up to N.J. next month. The best part of my trip will be jamming with one of my all time heroes.I,m strictly rhythm and he,s “Mega Studied”! I,m 58 year,s old and I,ve been playing since I was 12. How do I overcome being intimidated? Dom
Although I am no big ZZ Top fan, I, find this very nice to listen to. However it is good to learn from everyone you can.
I really dig anything from ZZ gang but this Rev Billy Gibbons blows it out of the water.
Thunderbird was an inexpensive ‘burn’ wine sold by the Gallo Brothers that was popular back in the late 50s and early 60s. Their advertising tag line was “What’s the Word ?, Thunderbird. What’s the Price?, Forty twice…”
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Cheers Griff
For the video and lesson and for the interesting history behind the track
Did notice you start the lick in C but the tab shows D# and G
So, after 70 years, i finally know the meaning of the term “COOL”
very confusing!
Very cool indeed… NJ
Interesting.
+1 Griff. Nice one.
Great ZZ Top lick.I grew up with Billy as he used to play at our High School dances. Would like to see his ‘Blue jeans Blues’ tabbed out. Anyway, keep up the great work Griff! I really appreciate all your hard efforts through the videos and tabs series.
Nice easy lick to learn. Love all these little lessons of yours. May the blues live forever.
Thanks for this sharing this lesson/lick and extremely cool rhythmic idea Griff! This relates very well to some of the triplet drum patterns I do where the bass drum and snare fall on the down beat but at different places in a bar of music. I noticed that when you played this example in the video it actually started on the 2nd triplet of what you wrote in TAB, which could be a bit confusing (though maybe that’s how Billy G played it..) but I get the idea of the feel and timing you’re demonstrating here . Also, I can hear how it is going to be trickier than it sounds to play in time with a shuffle/triplet rhythm!
I bought your 5 DVD licks last week and there asome
thanks griff that’s cool can’t wait to try it
A Billy Gibbons ZZ Top solo with no pinch harmonics? I’m not even convinced it’s them! 😉
Brilliant griff- the picking will be hard to master – practice makes perfect!
Hmmmm. Interesting. Huge ZZ Top fan. Had a Cort SG copy. Miss it.
I’m going to try this. As long as you feel you have something to offer,
I’m going to check it out. Thanks. Really cool man.
I have a very stupid question for the blog members: if Im going to play a q2 bar in say A, then do I play the 4 and five chords from say box one with an A root or slide down to A’s natural minor and play box ine from an F Root?
Thanks, John
This is more difficult than it appears.
Brilliant bring on more of the same.
good stuff griff,what model/year is the Sg by the way
Cool stuff saw ZZ on the VH1 awards one year Billy was playing a tele with one humbucker in it man did he scream thanks Griff for the lesson and all you do for us !!!!
cool stuff Griff,what model is your gibson sg,what year
Very Cool!
Neo, I can’t be 100% sure but that guitar looks exactly like my 2010 SG Faded Series. When I bought mine it was around $700. I’ve since had mine modded with upgrade PUP’s and Maestro Vibrato Tailpiece, similar to a 70’s era SG Special I had back in the day.
Thank you Griff,
I have been enjoying your e-mails and my guitar once again. In time I know I will be fluid.
Thanks again Griff
Ruben
Griff,I have been listening to “Live at Daryl’s House ” for a while now, and have the complete video recorded. I have been going back to it . Thanks for writing the lick out . Mike
cool beans get high high high whatz the word thunder bird
revisited this one again . the vocals got a bit fouled but it was darrels goof . I have not really got into this one just because well just too much going one already. Been learning a ac/dc tune the girls got rhythm . rhythm always have a tough time remembering how to spell rhythm . the fingering part is pretty cool sounding and then throw in the rhythm part . Its pretty quick playing going up passing a string and back and getting the missed string putting a glaze on it and back . I find that tune a challange to learn but some got it know it and god bless them I got to pratice that this too .
Good stuff! Thanks Griff. At the 4:16 mark, Billy uses some cool rhythm ideas until the end of the song. If you’re looking for some more topics, it might be cool to go over what he’s doing there.
Awesome..
That lick is also the rhythm for screenwriters blues by soul coughing
Thanks Griff..
Drew
Or not. Lol
Thanks Griff. Going to the les Paul straight away to woodshed. Where did the sg come from?? Best wishes from Perth,Chris.
Thanks for sharing, Griff! Love this song — I heard it on the X when I was down at the Balinese!
It would be nice if you could teach the “opposite” thing as well. I’m thinking of Clapton in “While my Guitar…”, when he clearly plays “long” triplets over straight time.