Yeah, I know what you’re thinking. It’s…you went to see Boy George this Summer? Really? I went for two other reasons. The first was this show being a joint trip with my friend and co-worker Ayako who likes Culture Club. The second was to see the opening act, Tom Bailey who is known as the lead member of the Thompson Twins.
Much like most teenagers in the Eighties, Culture Club was seen as weird and at the same time, lame. Obviously Boy George’s appearance was off-putting then. Was he trying to be a drag queen? Was this for attention to rise above a crowded field of other bands? The list went on and cruel descriptions usually followed with many people. Heck, there was a pseudo Country/Comedy act that did a song mocking him called “Where’s the Dress?” Their music also sounded a tad more Adult Contemporary or a novelty to me. My opinion of them improved when they released “Church of the Poison Mind” which had a strong Soul/Gospel element I liked. As I got older, I’ve been alright with the bulk of their hits because I came to a similar conclusion my friend Steve Bryant once made about the Police, these two bands along with the English Beat made Reggae safe for White Americans.
The concert was excellent. It was the original line up with a large back-up band. Four back-up singers, an extra guitarist/keyboardist, a percussionist and a horn player. They opened with Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” and continued with their hits. I think there was some new stuff, they released a new album around late October. For the encore, they had invited a local guitarist to join them in a cover of Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” before closing out with what is probably their most famous song, “Karma Chameleon.”
There’s no set list of Austin but what I found for the Dallas show, it looks pretty similar.
I was glad to see Boy George in good spirits. He looked healthier than he had been in the late Eighties through the Nineties. He kicked his drug habit and the First World has become more accepting of his appearance along with homosexuals, transgendered and whatever floats some people’s boat, unless it’s hurting somebody.
Tom Bailey was who I really came to see and he didn’t disappoint. His back-up band was all women about half his age which was amusing, nothing like having to teach “the kids” how to play your hits. They kicked off with “Love on Your Side,” an interesting choice given it was the first song I ever heard by the Thompson Twins on KLOL but not easily recognized by the crowd. Tom threw in a couple new songs from his just released solo album, his first new work in 25 years! I liked what I heard. Other surprises were a couple deep tracks from Into the Gap, “Sister of Mercy” and “You Take Me Up.” They also reworked “King for a Day” into a ballad, nice touch and he joked about how one of his songs ended up in a movie, “If You Were Here,” which my generation knows from Sixteen Candles‘ ending, for younger people it’s an episode of Bob’s Burgers. “Doctor, Doctor,” “Lies, Lies, Lies,” and “Lay Your Hands” were played and the set concluded with “Hold Me Now.”
The Thompson Twins were a band I truly wish I got to see in their prime but I lived in the physical boonies (North Dakota) and cultural boonies (Indiacrapolis) when they toured. Better late than never. Tom’s famous red hair is all silver/gray now too. I gotta’ admit, many rock/pop stars I loved from the past are aging pretty well. I hope I share their luck.