Meaning Behind the Appealing “Gimme All Your Lovin’” by ZZ Top

Siri: What is the greatest rock and roll chorus of all time? If you asked your favorite search bot this question, chances are the AI program would spit back ZZ Top’s “Gimme All Your Lovin’” and you’d nod your head. It’s just that good.

Like the accompanying music video, the song is an oasis of beauty. The story behind the iconic “Gimme All Your Lovin’” is below.

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MTV

When talking about “Gimme All Your Lovin’,” or ZZ Top in general, or even this time period in music, it’s hard not to escape the influence and general existence of MTV. The channel that made music videos the preeminent media format had a huge impact on the telegenic ZZ Top—then including Billy Gibbons, Frank Beard and the late Dusty Hill—and this especially telegenic video.

Released in 1983 on the band’s album, Eliminator, “Gimme All Your Lovin’” hit No. 37 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 10 on the U.K. Singles chart, marking the group’s highest-charting original song in the U.K. (and tying with their cover of Elvis Presley’s “Viva Las Vegas”). But it was the visual aspect of the video—and ZZ Top, in general, to be sure—that brought this song to massive audiences.

The Music Video

The song was produced by ZZ Top’s longtime manager Bill Ham, who helped hone in on the trio’s sound and look. But the video was made by filmmaker and director Tim Newman, who was cousins with iconic songwriter Randy Newman (of “You’ve Got a Friend in Me” fame).

The concept for the video is simple and, of course, it accentuates the song’s simple but powerful meaning. Picture this: a lone gas station in the middle of the desert. No water, shade or love prospects for miles. But then out of nowhere, a bright red car, the color of Saturday night lipstick, arrives, as if a mirage. But no, it’s real!

That is the setup for this video. A young (handsome) male gas station attendant sees the car—a 1933 Ford Coupe Eliminator, which the ZZ Top album is named after—and it pulls into his station. The only other person around is the attendant’s grouchy boss. But who steps out of the car? Not some businessman. Not some wealthy athlete. No. It’s three glamorous women. The lonely attendant is smitten.

The video got off the ground because Warner Bros. Records exec Jeff Ayeroff saw how powerful MTV was becoming, so he recruited Newman, who also directed videos for the band’s songs “Legs” and “Sharp Dressed Man.” From there, the world knew ZZ Top, from beard to toe.

The Models

The now legendary women in the video were Jeana Keough (a former Playboy model from Wisconsin), Danièle Arnaud (a model from France) and a third model Kymberly Herrin (and former Playboy centerfold) who, according to the book I Want My MTV, fell out of contact and never received pay for the video. These three women, known as the Muses, had various recurring roles in other ZZ Top videos, including the songs “Legs,” “Sharp Dressed Man” and “Sleeping Bag.” (As did the car.)

The Meaning

“Gimme All Your Lovin’” is one of those songs where the title tells the tale immediately. In that way, the song is simple. But its message of long-lasting loving is one that has been heard throughout the universe since the beginning of communication. In that way, it’s timeless. The gang vocal chorus, especially. So, with the help of the visually appealing video, the song becomes forever and of the now all at once. Sings Gibbons,

I got to have a shot
‘Cause what you got is, oh, so sweet
You got to make it hot
Like a boomerang I need a repeat

Gimme all your lovin’
All your hugs and kisses too

Gimme all your lovin’
Don’t let up until we’re through

You got to whip it up
And hit me like a ton of lead
If I blow my top
Will you let it go to your head?

Photo by Ross Halfin / Courtesy Bob Merlis