Concert in your area for Folk & Blues, Rock, Indie & Alt, and Country.
Initially a minor-league baseball player, George Thorogood decided to pursue a music career after seeing a John Paul Hammond performance in 1970. This was to be a sensible choice for the blues man, going on to release over 20 albums, selling 15 million records worldwide. Whilst his music may be dismissed by blues purists, he has become widely popular through his loud, lively hits that gained significant radio exposure in the 80s. His raucous blues channels the Chicago blues sound of the 50s, with a rampant rock & roll backed by his longterm band The Destroyers.
Through regular performances on the blues club circuit, the band were discovered by Rounder Records, releasing their eponymous debut in 1977. The band's second album, "Move It on Over" (1978) was to find them huge popularity, with a cover of Hank Williams' track receiving heavy radio airplay, boosting the album's sales which reached the American top 40 and became certified Gold.
In 1982, George Thorogood signed to major label, EMI Records, releasing their major debut in 1982, titled "Bad to the Bone." The album's title track became a massive crossover hit, appealing to a wide audience and finding extensive radio airplay and rotation on MTV. The song has gone on to be featured in several films and television productions over the years. The album went Gold and spent almost a year in the charts. This success continued for Thorogood's next three albums, all becoming certified Gold.
At the start of the following decade, Thorogood's popularity waned, although he continued to release albums and tour extensively to moderate success, drawing large crowds to his performances. In recent years, Thorogood has recorded two albums of bar blues covers, releasing "The Dirty Dozen" n 2009 and "2120 South Michigan Ave.," in 2011 as a tribute to Chess Records.
Formed in Spartanburg, South Carolina, USA, it might surprise you to learn that the original line up which came together in the late 60s/70s, did not contain a single member by the name of Marshall Tucker. Instead their slightly misleading name was accidentally borrowed from a local piano tuner and was set in stone when their album of the same name was released in 1973 and certified gold just two years later.
The band followed up their album with the start of a relentless, decade-long touring schedule which saw them playing more than 300 shows a year. They began to impress fans and fellow musicians on the road including the likes of fiddler Charlie Daniels and blues guitarist Elvin Bishop.
The band soared through the 70s, finding huge commercial success for albums like ‘Searchin’ for a Rainbow’ and ‘Carolina Dreams’ however the 80s brought hard times for the band. Their bass player and co-founder Tommy Caldwell was killed in a car accident and whilst a replacement was bought in, the band was never able to recapture the success they experienced in the 70s.
As the band moved into the twenty first century they have continued to release albums and are still a popular live act playing up to 150 and 200 shows a year. They even experienced crossover success when the band were mentioned in Nelly’s remix of the song cruise which eventually went 6 times platinum.
George Thorogood was the headlining act at the House of Blues. He opened the show with “Rock Party”. It was a party, all right, with George Thorogood as the host. The crowd was wild, enthusiastically cheering and singing along the entire night. Thorogood was all over the stage, never seeming to tire, relentlessly flirting with the women in the crowd. He thoroughly enjoyed himself, as did everyone else. Highlights of his 13-song set were “I Drink Alone,” “Get a Haircut", “Bad to the Bone", and "House Rent Boogie / One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer". At the end of the night, Thorogood returned to the stage, and closed out the night with “Talk Too Much" as an encore.
Fun trivia: Before making a career out of music, George Thorogood's first pursuit in life during the 1970's was baseball - he played on the semi-professional Roberto Clemente League in Delaware, and was awarded the "Rookie of the Year" title. After leaving baseball to pursue music, George Thorogood went on to record sixteen studio albums, including two that were certified Platinum, six that have been certified Gold, and has sold over 15 million albums worldwide.
The Marshall Tucker Band has been around for almost 35 years. It is really hard to believe they have been around so long. They are one of the best pure Southern Rock bands that came out of that era. Their line up has changed over the years but they are still touring the country playing small towns and small venues.
I saw them at an outdoor concert in a small town in Western North Carolina. There were about 1,000 people at the show and it was nice night. The band set up was very simple but the music was timelines. They did all their classic rock stables including “Can’t You see” and “Fire On the Mountain”. They closed with their rock anthem “Heard it in a Love Song”. The crowd sang to almost every lyric and they were left with wanting more. I am not sure how many of the guys were originally but they were all good and it was a lot of fun. It made me feel very nostalgic for that time and age. It was also a very cheap concert and the crowd was very good and into the music. If they ever swing through your town you should check them out. It is well worth it.
George Thorogood,has been a part of my life since i was a child listening to him with my dad and older brothers then, with me as a high school-er living bad to the bone. I love George Thorogood and i hadn't had a chance to see him yet. When I heard he was coming for his 40th anniversary tour i had to go, but as with aging rock stars i was not expecting greatness, but that is what we all got from him and the destroyers Sunday night at the riverfront park.
He rocked like a young Thorogood would i imagine from guitar solos to his amazing rock persona i left felling very pleased and excited at the prospect of him coming back as he said at the end he looks forward to a long and rocking relationship with Veter stone amphitheater.
By Jordan