Billy Gibbons is returning to his roots for a planned solo project -- but they're not the roots you might have guessed. Instead of slow-cooked Texas blues, the ZZ Top guitarist is delving into Cuban music.

“When I was 13, I got a guitar and my dad -- being the consummate entertainer -- sent me to New York to study Latin percussion," Gibbon told Rolling Stone. “I learned maracas, timbales, clavas, bongos -- you name it. And having lived in Mexico a couple of years, I know just enough Spanish to get me in trouble.”

Completing the album won't be easy for Gibbons, who is also resuming a hectic touring schedule with ZZ Top after longtime bandmate Dusty Hill's recovery from a tour-bus tumble last fall. Gibbons recently appeared on a track by Tim Montana and sat in with Weezer on Jimmy Kimmel, as well.

Gibbons assured fans that the wait for this adventurous side trip will be more than worth it. “It’s turning out to be such an obtuse, oddball, unexpected left turn from ZZ Top," he said. "But there is something to it.”

You Think You Know ZZ Top?

See the Yearbook Photos of Billy Gibbons and Other Rock Stars

More From Ultimate Classic Rock