bottom end, and take it to the Top.' He meant it, amigo. He really did." Rock musicians and contemporaries paid condolences through social media, including Paul Stanley, Ozzy Osbourne, John Fogerty, Flea, Zakk Wylde, Warren Haynes, Tony Iommi, David Coverdale, Scorpions, Foghat, Kentucky Headhunters, Blackberry Smoke, Steve Miller Band, 38 Special, and the Allman Brothers Band. On August 6, Hill was featured in the BBC Radio 4 obituary program Last Word. Duck Dynasty star Phil Robertson said he had been asked by Hill's widow to give the eulogy at the funeral service. Hill was buried in a private service on August 7, 2021. Musicianship Hill cited the Cream bassist Jack Bruce and the jazz bassists Stanley Clarke and Charles Mingus as early influences. He said he once played more complicated bass parts, but came to prioritize composition over complexity: "Sometimes you don't even notice the bass – I hate that in a way, but I love that in a way. That's a compliment. That means you've filled in everything and it's right for the song, and you're not standing out where you don't need to be." The New York Times described him as a "precise musical mechanic" complementing Gibbons' "showy virtuoso". Michael Hann of The Guardian wrote that Hill's bass tone was as crucial to ZZ Top's sound as Gibbons' guitar. Hill described his tone as "big, heavy, and a bit distorted because it has to overlap the guitar. Someone once asked me to describe my tone, and I said it was like farting in a trash can. What I meant is it's raw, but you've got to have the tone in there." Hill sang lead on several ZZ Top songs. The Guardian described his vocals as a "high, true" tenor contrasting against Gibbons' "radioactive growl". Discography ZZ Top American Blues American Blues American Blues 'Is Here' (1968) Do Their Thing (1969) References External links at Ultimate Classic Rock - lead vocal by Hill 1949 births 2021 deaths 20th-century American bass guitarists 21st-century American bass guitarists American male bass guitarists American male singers American rock bass guitarists American tenors Blues rock musicians Musicians from Dallas Singers from Texas ZZ Top members