“It took me 40 years to get up here sweetheart, and I’m going to enjoy every f***ing second of it.” 

 

After assembling in 1973, over 15 albums and five decades later, 73-year-old George Thorogood & The Destroyers reemerged in Las Vegas on their North American tour celebrating 50 years of Rock. 

 

Rock Party was the perfect song to start the night, as its title accurately described the next couple hours that lay ahead of the night. Who Do You Love was next, then followed by Shot Down. 

 

Being in the audience, you weren’t only hearing Thorogood’s voice but also how incredibly the instruments sang. Buddy Leach skillfully played the saxophone while guitarist Jim Suhler and bass player Bill Bough also helped carry the musicality of the night. And of course, it wouldn’t be The Destroyers without drummer Jeff Simon, who has been by Thorogood’s side since day one. 

 

The band then continued with Night Time, a great piece to groove to. Following that was my personal favorite, I Drink Alone. Its lengthy intro combined with the flickering bright lights keeping you on your toes wondering what song was next. After ripping off his bandana, the show went into Thorogood’s independent monologue of One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer. 

 

Get A Haircut came next. Thorogood has obviously proved every single person that’s told him to “get a haircut and get a real job,” wrong now that he is still performing, living his dream after all these years. Speaking of years, while watching the show, I couldn’t help but ask myself, “He’s 73?” Considering his flamboyant personality, energetic stage presence and his voice sounding just like his younger self, one wouldn’t assume Thorogood was a day past his twenties. Not to mention, his confident interactions with the audience in front of him. 

 

Then came the infamous and everyone’s favorite, Bad To The Bone. This iconic song had everyone, and I mean everyone, on their feet. This moment felt unreal, as if the song you usually hear on the radio while riding in your dad’s car had just come to life. 

 

After Move It On Over, the show finally came to an end. 

 

Or so we thought. For one final last show, George Thorogood & The Destroyers, accompanied by opener and guitarist Hamish Anderson, gave the cheering audience an insane encore one last time by finishing off with Born To Be Bad with amazing solos from each band member. 

 

This performance by The Destroyers wasn’t just a concert. It was a time machine. As I watched the band perform, I couldn’t help but to also observe the audience. There were women with white hair dancing like they were the only ones in the room. There were men with bald spots holding their rock signs into the air like the rockstars they are. Here I was, probably the only 20-year-old in a room full of middle aged people revisiting their youths through rock and roll. And it was amazing. I felt like I was taken back to the 70’s, an era I wasn’t even alive to witness. Yet, this show did just that. 

 

George Thorogood & The Destroyers not only delivered a masterpiece of rock and blues but they continue to show off the rock and roll spirits that live within. As long as this band lives and thrives, so will rock music.