In 1993, ZZ Top signed with RCA Records, which produced Antenna (1994), Rhythmeen (1996), and XXX, the latter of which marked the band's thirtieth anniversary and received mixed reviews from critics.

Gibbons produced the project and wrote most of the songs, collaborating with the engineers Joe Hardy and Gary Moon, as well as band members Dusty Hill and Frank Beard.

After taking a lunch break at a Mexican restaurant, ZZ Top hired a father-and-son marimba duo from Chiapas, Mexico.

"Two Ways to Play" is a hard rock-inspired track in which Gibbons' guitar is tuned down a whole step from standard pitch.

"Buck Nekkid" is a moderate swing, while "Goin' So Good" is a slow ballad on which Gibbons used a 1949 Fender Telecaster prototype and played Steve Cropper-tinged licks; he traded phrases in call and response form with a pedal steel guitar.

The tour spanned three months in the US with Ted Nugent (featuring drummer Tommy Aldridge and bassist Marco Mendoza) as the middle act, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd (with Double Trouble) as the opener, with a European leg visiting twelve countries and included a concert in Helsinki, Finland, as special guests with The Rolling Stones.

After returning to the United States for more performances, ZZ Top appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno; they played at the Compaq Center (previously known as The Summit); this was the last event to be held in the venue.