# ZZ Top has lost its Beard **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [August 18, 2026, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405 "2026-08-18T20:00:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/1 "2026-08-18T20:00:09Z")
ZZ Top’s Frank Beard, ironically the one without a beard, has died. > **[ZZ Top drummer Frank Beard dies at 77](https://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/music/2026/08/18/frank-beard-zz-top-dies/91311435007/)** > > ZZ Top's signature sound had as much to do with the drumming of Frank Beard, who died at 77, as their Texas-blues guitar. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/2 "2026-08-18T20:18:24Z")
RIP ☹ No disrespect to the folks who filled in for them but Frank and Dusty were irreplaceable. (Yes, they were sidelined for _Eliminator_, but in most people’s imaginations the Tres Hombres of ZZ Top will always be Billy, Dusty and Frank) ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/3 "2026-08-18T20:21:06Z")
It’s all you now, Billy. RIP, Frank. I can’t say I _loved_ ZZ Top, but I can readily say that I enjoyed their music immensely. I think there is a difference. They were a good-time band that probably brought smiles to millions of faces over their half-century-plus run. And that damned sure … ain’t nuthin’. A-haw haw haw-haw Heh, a-haw haw-haw ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/4 "2026-08-18T20:31:43Z")
I saw them when they opened for Tom Petty. Loudest fuckin’ concert I’ve ever been to. I didn’t know much about them beyond their radio/MTV hits, which I always liked, but I had no idea what I was in for. ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/5 "2026-08-18T20:37:41Z")
> [@DavidNRockies](#): > > a good-time band This is a really good description. Fun shows, fun videos, no ~~sex~~ drugs or violence … and back when I lived in Texas I had the occasion to drive through La Grange a couple of times. You can bet I cranked that sucker up. I work in a restaurant kitchen now, and they’re great background music. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/6 "2026-08-18T20:46:07Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > > [@DavidNRockies](#): > > > > a good-time band > > This is a really good description. > > Fun shows, fun videos, no ~~sex~~ drugs or violence … and back when I lived in Texas I had the occasion to drive through La Grange a couple of times. You can bet I cranked that sucker up. > > I work in a restaurant kitchen now, and they’re great background music. I’m not sure what you mean. No drugs at the shows? No drugs in the videos? Maybe. But at one time Frank Beard famously did all of the drugs. He did manage to get sober long ago but he put a lot of hard miles on that body. ---
**Author:** ![Stratocaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stratocaster/32/16393_2.png) [@Stratocaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stratocaster)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/7 "2026-08-18T20:55:17Z")
Classic roadhouse band. Billy is one of my favorite guitarists. I agree, with Dusty and Frank gone, so is ZZ Top. ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/8 "2026-08-18T21:09:14Z")
> [@DavidNRockies](#): > > I think there is a difference. They were a good-time band that probably brought smiles to millions of faces over their half-century-plus run. Yeah, the world is absolutely a better place for having had ZZ Top in it, so good work, boys. I’ll eat some barbecue and drink some beer in honor of them. With _Tres Hombres_ playing, of course. ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/9 "2026-08-18T21:12:16Z")
> [@purplehorseshoe](#): > > Fun shows, fun videos, no ~~sex~~ drugs or violence … Ahem, have you seen the cover of “El Loco”? 🧐 [![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/28/ZZ_Top_Leila.jpg?utm_source=en.wikipedia.org&utm_campaign=index&utm_content=original) ](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/2/28/ZZ_Top_Leila.jpg?utm_source=en.wikipedia.org&utm_campaign=index&utm_content=original) Anyway, ZZ Top were my first arena show concert, in 1986 when I was 18 at the Westfalenhalle, Dortmund. Unforgettable, they had the first laser show I ever saw. Been a fan of the band for over forty years, saw them again around 1994 in Cologne. Yeah, Frank Beard always was their problem child concerning drug abuse. RIP, 77 is a good age compared to how young other addicted rock stars died. ---
**Author:** ![DZedNConfused](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dzednconfused/32/15991_2.png) [@DZedNConfused](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DZedNConfused)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/10 "2026-08-18T21:16:29Z")
Now I really am feeling old… I had heard he was in the hospital, but damn. RIP Frank Beard ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/11 "2026-08-18T21:28:18Z")
> [@dirtball](#): > > I’ll eat some barbecue and drink some beer in honor of them. With _Tres Hombres_ playing, of course. Barbecue? If you’re listening to Tres Hombres, I think this meal might be more appropriate: [![](https://www.dixiechicken.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/20240126_120416-2048x990.jpg) ](https://www.dixiechicken.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/20240126_120416-2048x990.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/12 "2026-08-18T21:34:51Z")
I reckon so. But when I added barbecue, I was thinking of this: > **[Chrome, Smoke & BBQ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrome,_Smoke_%26_BBQ)** > > Chrome, Smoke & BBQ is a 4-CD box set by American rock band ZZ Top. Released in 2003, it is a compilation album of material from the band's tenures with London Records and Warner Bros. Records, recorded from 1967 to 1992. An abbreviated 2-CD version of this compilation, Rancho Texicano: The Very Best of ZZ Top (2004), was released the following year. At the time of its release in 2003, Chrome, Smoke & BBQ was noteworthy because it was the only CD release, except for the greatest hits album The B... ---
**Author:** ![Lancia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lancia/32/17174_2.png) [@Lancia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lancia)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/13 "2026-08-18T21:41:55Z")
Personally, I be having a TV dinner tonight in his memory. RIP Frank. ZZ Top was on life support when when Dusty died. With Frank gone, there is no more ZZ Top. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![dirtball](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dirtball/32/18772_2.png) [@dirtball](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dirtball)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/14 "2026-08-18T21:43:20Z")
> [@Lancia](#): > > Personally, I be having a TV dinner tonight in his memeory. Yes, that’s it! While wearing cheap sunglasses. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/15 "2026-08-18T21:50:57Z")
They’re booked to play at the Calvert Marine Museum on Sep 11 - wonder if that’ll still happen? ---
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/16 "2026-08-18T22:27:18Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > at one time Frank Beard famously did all of the drugs. He did manage to get sober long ago but he put a lot of hard miles on that body. I did not know that. > [@EinsteinsHund](#): > > Ahem, have you seen the cover of “El Loco”? No, but I’m about to. **Shoe** got schooled today. ---
**Author:** ![P-man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/p-man/32/3606_2.png) [@P-man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/P-man)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/17 "2026-08-18T22:28:54Z")
I saw them in 1982, on the Eliminator tour. My brothers went to see them in the early/mid seventies, but didn’t take 10/11 year old me. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/18 "2026-08-18T22:47:37Z")
I read a few days ago that he’d basically gone off-line and his publicist wouldn’t say why. Most likely, he knew he was dying and wanted to keep it private. RIP, Frank. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/19 "2026-08-18T23:20:07Z")
> [@Loach](#): > > But at one time Frank Beard famously did all of the drugs. I think he was a step beyond with Heroin. Not just an addict, but was _enthusiastic_ about it! Big reason each member had their own tour bus. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 18, 2026, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405/20 "2026-08-18T23:49:22Z")
> [@Lancia](#): > > ZZ Top was on life support when when Dusty died. With Frank gone, there is no more ZZ Top. Billy Gibbons is the last man standing, and playing. All three members had been together since 1969. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/zz-top-has-lost-its-beard/1032405.md?page=2)