Ticket Insider

Classic Rock and Blues in Southern Arizona

August 11th, 2008 Posted by: Pinbyte

This has been quite the rockin’ summer for southern Arizona with quite a few big name acts gracing our desert. But alas, most perform in the Phoenix area and I live in Tucson making attendance inconvenient. Only my absolute favorites warrant the trek. So when a familiar act comes to Tucson, I take notice, even if it is not on my A-list.

All the better they perform at the open-air venue known as AVA with just 1779 reserved seats under cover. It delivers an intimacy that I have not quite experienced at similar amphitheaters with capacities for over 20,000 people. This venue is a reason for Phoenix people to drive to Tucson, rather than the other way around!

So I decided to attend the George Thorogood & Buddy Guy concert at AVA on August 6th, 2008. I’ve also been invited by TickCo to contribute to their Insider blog, so here I go with my review of this show. I can’t say I was ever a huge fan of George Thorogood, but who hasn’t heard “Bad to the Bone”? That and my personal favorite of his “I Drink Alone“, are excellent examples of ‘classic’ rock ‘n roll in my mind, and are just as fun as they are combined with lyrics that make me laugh.

I figured if most of his music is like that, it will be a fun show. I really didn’t know who Buddy Guy was when I booked the tickets. I came to find out he is well reputed to be the inspiration behind some legendary rockers such as Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton. Now that I have seen him perform, I can see why.

Buddy Guy is a consummate showman of the highest order, combining guitar tricks and humor along with singing his heart out expressively and with real soul. This guy is good and his repertoire is diverse. He took us on a roller coaster ride from bluesy blues to rockin’ rock and a few places in between. The well-covered “Mustang Sally”, the only tune I recognized, was rendered with verve and attitude.

During one song, Buddy traversed the entire perimeter of the front tier of seats, bringing even more intimacy to the venue. There was a technician on stage keeping what appeared to be an antenna pointed toward Buddy the whole time. Buddy paid tribute to some of his departed contemporaries as well as pushing his latest CD “Skin Deep.” He performed the title track, a social commentary, which was slow moving and mellow.

All told, I feel privileged that fate led me to see this man perform live. This is one of those instances where the opening act just simply outclasses the headliner. Even though they have the blues in common, it does not seem right somehow that they should be touring together. That is not to say I wouldn’t have gone to see this show all over again, I would.

But, Buddy Guy is a tough act to follow and George Thorogood was not up to the task at first. I like George’s music better, even if it is somewhat formulaic, because it incorporates jazz influences. In fact, the saxophonist was probably the show stealer in that set. But the focus was on George and he looked, and performed, like he just woke up from a nap.

We had just seen Buddy Guy pour his heart out. Then we heard a recording of Barry McGuire’s “Eve of Destruction” just before George Thorogood and The Destroyers came out on stage. George looked more like a robot than a rocker as he and the band played a tune I did not recognize. As time went on however, things started to perk up a bit.

When they got to my favorite, “I Drink Alone”, the bead was not yet spot-on. One of the reasons I like that song, other than the obvious and humorous nods to various liquor brands is the line: “When I drink alone, I prefer to be by myself”. It would have been nice to see that line given a new life by seeing and hearing George perform it. It not only fell flat, but the line was barely understandable.

Still, it wasn’t at all bad, and as the set progressed we saw George getting more and more into it. The climax of the set was the signature piece, “Bad to the Bone” which I got a sense George still enjoys performing to this day. Everybody was up on they’re feet in good spirits and singing along. There is no substitute for a good ‘hook’ in a popular song and this one has it in spades.

I had a few beers in my belly and a big smile on my face at that point in time and realized that I got what I had come for… a rockin’ good time. This tour is still rollin’ as of this writing, so don’t miss it if it comes near you.

- Pinbyte

Filed under: Event Reviews