Courtesy RNZ

American rock band George Thorogood & The Destroyers are best known for their 1977 cover of 'One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer' and the original 1982 hit 'Bad to the Bone'.

As they prepare for two NZ shows this May, The Destroyers' 74-year-old frontman is rocking as hard as ever… and contemplating a tattoo of a kiwi.

Thorogood told Saturday Morning's Susie Ferguson that he and The Destroyers discovered their special gift for popularising old songs when the dance floor went bananas at their first-ever gig in 1973.

As an aspiring teenage guitarist in the era ofJeff Beck and Jimi Hendrix - "the greatest guitar players ever" - Thorogood said his chances of becoming a professional musician, let alone a highly successful one, seemed slim at best but he had to give it a go.

"I couldn't sing, I couldn't write a song. But I got people's attention playing the guitar. I got some attention there. I said 'If you have a road to success this is going to be it'."

At the time, Thorogood said music was all that he and his friends thought about.

"We didn't think about girls, we didn't think about sports, we didn't think about politics, nothing, nothing but the music. Music, music, music, That was all there was.

"All of us had it in our mind that we were going to get involved and make it in the music industry in one way or another."

Back in December 1973 when George Thorogood & The Destroyers played their first-ever gig at the University of Delaware, Thorogood said the band knew from the crowd's reaction that they were on to something.

"The whole dance floor just went bananas. I said 'We've got something going here'."

"If we stick with this thing we'll get better at it and we pick the right tunes I think we can survive," drummer Jeff Simon predicted.

From the outset the band's "whole purpose" was bringing to life old songs that audiences would really dig, Thorogood said.

"We rarely selected a song for our own personal purposes. No, no, no. We selected them for the fans or fans we might have someday. That's been our MO ever since day one."

The ability to take a little-known song, put a twist on it, refine it a little bit and make it popular was Thorogood's proudest achievement.

In the '70s, he and the Destroyers found success covering 'Move It On Over' (Hank Williams) and 'Who Do You Love?' (Bo Diddley), and Thorogood says only just beat singer Linda Ronstadt to 'One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer' (Rudy Toombs).

"I was thinking these are obscure tunes but I better make a move on them or somebody else might grab them and I'll be left at the dock.

"If Ronstadt had got a hold of 'One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer' and done it in a higher key or whatever she would have blown me right out of the water."

Looking back to his younger days, Thorogood was proud to have met The Rolling Stones before they were famous - even managing to appear "very casual" with drummer Charlie Watts' request for his autograph - and been personally selected by Bob Dylan as a support act.

"I can always say 'No matter what happens, Bob Dylan sent for me. And I can look at someone and say 'Who sent for you?'"

Fifty-two years after their first gig, George Thorogood & The Destroyers still give their utmost every time they hit the stage, he said.

"I don't want anybody to come see our band and say 'Wow, you should have seen him 20 years ago, he was really something'. No, no, no, I want to outdo what I did last night."

On previous visits to New Zealand, Thorogood had been intrigued - and somewhat inspired - by the number of tattooed bodies.

"Every time I go down there I try to get up the nerve to get one… maybe a kiwi."

Courtesy: WBAB.com

George Thorogood and The Destroyers are coming to The Paramount in Huntington on February 19, 2025. We caught up with George via Zoom to talk about the show, what he’s listening to, the Bob Dylan movie and a lot more. Watch our conversation here.

George Thorogood and The Destroyers are coming to The Paramount on February 19, 2025. We recently caught up with George to talk about the show and more. When George and I speak there is always a lot of joking around, and that’s right where we started this time as well. The last couple times George and The Destroyers played The Paramount were sold out shows. We are certainly expecting that kind of energy again. The show falls just days before George’s 75th birthday. That could certainly add to the party atmosphere for the night.

When I mentioned that to George, he informed me that it was actually actor Lee Marvin’s birthday. In fact, if Lee were still alive, it would be his 101st birthday. We did dive into some discussion of Lee and his career. George shared that being on the road for so long that they’ve “Seen a lot of movies, over and over and over.”

The Destroyers last visit to The Paramount was filmed. I tried to pin George down on if we are expecting the release of that show. George did mention Scorsese during the discussion. I think I’d be safe in guessing that his name was mentioned in jest.

Very often George and I discuss older music. It prompted me to ask him who are the younger artists catching his attention. George did give a mention to Gary Clark Jr here. “He could become the next Buddy Guy, maybe.”

George’s career not only includes his compositions, but he’s also scored with many cover songs. I asked George if his interpretations of these songs were just how he heard the tunes. His response was “No, it’s just the way I play it.” He also joked that “I know one chord and I pound it until someone takes notice.” That’s when he gave a shout out to Bo Diddley and John Lee Hooker and all they were able to accomplish with just one chord.

We then started to talk about Bob Dylan. George has been a long time Dylan fan. That’s where we began to discuss the film “A Complete Unknown.” He said, “They nailed it.” George even voiced his support for Edward Norton to win the Oscar for playing Pete Seeger. He mentioned having met Bob three times. And then really dove into speaking about the film. We discussed Dylan first getting on George’s radar around 1963. He spoke about AM radio playing folk music back in those days. George mentioned his older brother bringing home a Live, Peter Paul and Mary album including Dylan’s “Blowin’ In The Wind.” He had never heard the song before. George clearly gives Dylan the credit for inspiring him to hit the road.

I asked George who he was listening to most recently. He mentioned a name I had never heard before, Alice Gomez. Alice is an internationally acclaimed Latina composer, inspired by her own Mexican culture. Do not expect Alice Gomez to sound like any of the other artists that we had discussed up to this point. She is quite different for sure. Certainly, more of an instrumental composer. George described her music as hypnotic and beautiful.

George and I spoke about so much getting lost in music these days by the search for perfection. One of the last things George said to me was “Baby, let me tell you something. There is nothing more boring than perfection.” “Something without some flaws to it, it’s just not natural.”

Congratulations to the Boogie People Fan of the Month for February 2025, Michael W! Learn more about Michael below!

Where are you from?: Colorado Springs

How many years have you been a fan?: 25 years

What is your favorite George Thorogood song: "You Talk To Much"

How many times have you seen George Thorogood live? What was your favorite show? 21 times. Red rocks with Buddy Guy.

What’s one thing that sets you apart from other George Thorogood fans?: I have never seen George Thorogood less than eight rows away.

Want a chance to be featured as the Boogie People Fan of the Month? Join NOW!

Congratulations to the Boogie People Fan of the Month for February 2025, Michael W! Learn more about Michael below!

Where are you from?: Colorado Springs

How many years have you been a fan?: 25 years

What is your favorite George Thorogood song: "You Talk To Much"

How many times have you seen George Thorogood live? What was your favorite show? 21 times. Red rocks with Buddy Guy.

What’s one thing that sets you apart from other George Thorogood fans?: I have never seen George Thorogood less than eight rows away.

Want a chance to be featured as the Boogie People Fan of the Month? Join NOW!