George T. On Stage

We attended the George Thorogood concert at the Minnesota Zoo. I wonder what the animals thought. I'm sure they've never heard it so loud before. As George approached the stage, everyone stood up to get a better look and we never sat down again. Everyone stood for the entire concert. Was he b-b-b-b-bad to the bone? Oh, yes, he was bad. He was raunchy. Like all bad boys he wore black jeans and a black t-shirt. The weird thing was he wore white shoes. White shoes? Not white tennis shoes either, they were white loafers. AND white wrist bands. With a black bandanna. Sometimes when he is onstage he will eye somebody in the audience and walk forward in short little steps with his jaw set. I kept thinking, who does he remind me of? I see a little Mick Jagger in his performance. But the wrist bands, the headband, the prancing little steps and the hand on his hip. Oh, for god's sake, he's part Richard Simmons! I had to banish that thought because thinking he's Richard Simmons would totally ruin the night for me. George really knows how to work the audience. He had us eating out of his hands. He's full of himself but he's self-deprecating too so that makes him lovable. At one point he stopped to laugh and said, "Sometimes I'm so full of sh== that even I can't believe it." I think the best part of the show is the obvious enjoyment he gets out of performing. He just did not want to quit. The concert is supposed to be over at ten o'clock but George wasn't done yet. He kept riffing on his guitar, adding extra verses to songs. He came back out twice. After each set, he'd lay on the stage floor as if he was too exhausted to stand up. His fellow band members had to pick him up. Then he'd start playing again. As we were walking up the amphitheater steps to go home, he came out AGAIN! He just couldn't get enough of us I guess. That last time he didn't come out to play, he came out to pick up this 9 year old girl who sat in the front row. Earlier he had used his guitar to "knight" her. At the end he picked her up and held her above his head while the audience cheered. Who would bring a nine year old girl to a George Thorogood concert anyway? I have a feeling he's really not a bad boy. He uses that image to promote his image. He put on a great show.