Born on September 28, 1954, George Lynch became the virtuoso guitarist behind Dokken, helping drive the band's mid-1980s rise with the multi platinum albums Tooth and Nail, Under Lock and Key, and Back for the Attack. His playing powered hits like "Alone Again," "Into the Fire," and "In My Dreams," earning him a reputation as one of the most technically gifted guitarists of the era's hard rock scene. Creative friction with frontman Don Dokken eventually led to the band's 1989 breakup, after which Lynch launched Lynch Mob and went on to collaborate on projects like T&N, Sweet & Lynch, and KXM. Decades later he remains active in music while also running his own Mr. Scary Guitars brand, a name drawn from his reputation as one of metal's most feared fretboard talents.

Born on September 28, 1986, in Atlanta, Georgia, Daniel Platzman brought a formal music education to arena rock, studying film scoring at Berklee College of Music and winning the Vic Firth Award for Outstanding Musicianship before joining Imagine Dragons as drummer in 2011. He played on the band's breakthrough Night Visions, which spawned diamond certified singles, and the chart topping follow up Smoke + Mirrors, helping power the band's rise into one of the biggest rock acts of the 2010s. Beyond the kit, Platzman contributed to film scoring work and released his debut solo single, "Show Me That You Want Me," in 2023. After more than a decade behind the drums, he announced his permanent departure from Imagine Dragons in August 2024, closing out one of modern rock's most commercially successful runs.

On September 28, 1999, ZZ Top released XXX, their thirteenth studio album, timed to commemorate the band's 30th anniversary together. The record blended new studio material like "Fearless Boogie" and "36-22-36" with live cuts recorded on tour, including a version of "Hey Mr. Millionaire" featuring guest guitarist Jeff Beck. Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill, and Frank Beard had by then spent three decades refining their blues soaked, riff heavy brand of Texas rock, built on Gibbons' fuzzed out guitar tone and the trio's tongue in cheek sense of humor, and XXX served as both a victory lap and a reminder that the chemistry remained fully intact. While its chart performance was modest next to the band's 1980s peak, it stood as a milestone marking one of rock's longest running unchanged lineups. Produced by Billy Gibbons.