George Thorogood: Bad to The Bone, the Blues, and the Stories Behind a Rock and Roll Legend

Tony Mantor's : Almost Live..... Nashville

 Show Notes

Rock and blues legend George Thorogood joins Tony Mantor for a candid conversation about a career that has spanned decades and continues to inspire generations of music fans.

From his early days studying the blues legends who shaped his sound to becoming one of rock's most recognizable performers, George shares the stories behind the music, the challenges of staying authentic, and the moments that defined his remarkable journey.

The conversation explores the unexpected success of "Bad to the Bone," his recent induction into the Musicians Hall of Fame, life on the road, the evolution of the music industry, and why performing live still fuels his passion.

George also opens up about family, legacy, overcoming disappointment, and the importance of giving audiences everything he has every single night.

This episode is filled with humor, wisdom, and unforgettable stories from one of rock's true originals.

In This Episode

  • The blues legends who influenced George's guitar style
  • The surprising story behind "Bad to the Bone"
  • His induction into the Musicians Hall of Fame
  • How classic rock radio transformed his career
  • Why live performance has always come first
  • Touring Europe and continuing to perform worldwide
  • The evolution of music from vinyl to streaming
  • The story behind his signature Epiphone guitar
  • Family, legacy, and giving back through charity
  • Staying motivated after decades in the music business
  • Why he believes you're only as good as your last performance
  • Advice for anyone chasing a dream: "Find another wall until one cracks."
  •  https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__conta.cc_417u5Tg&d=DwMGaQ&c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&r=XEporPxybqP9gZ8FtlvO5frIjBq7Jq73gQrvKUXe06Y&m=SojJMWOYQqDNezfByrTrmLHaiQFjm0c59R6jE-bLpGaVIt9VNMSfruGIy3H4Q8kS&s=BcaOgn7thaTqtlVFIy6B8ukuKs_vBOOWv20Q4LhuVPE&e=
  • https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__i.craftrecordings.com_gtd-2Dbaddestshow&d=DwMGaQ&c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&r=XEporPxybqP9gZ8FtlvO5frIjBq7Jq73gQrvKUXe06Y&m=SojJMWOYQqDNezfByrTrmLHaiQFjm0c59R6jE-bLpGaVIt9VNMSfruGIy3H4Q8kS&s=XO-bcg3E399j0WCBf3C2-UEI0ebsn8P42W4X29591y4&e=

Whether you're a lifelong fan or discovering George Thorogood for the first time, this conversation offers an inside look at the passion, perseverance, and authenticity that have made him a rock and blues icon.

Don't forget to follow Almost Live Nashville so you never miss another great conversation with the artists and entertainers shaping music and culture today.




2026-06-16 29 min Transcript 7 chapters

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Hi, I'm Tony Mantor.
Thanks for joining us today.
Welcome to Almost Live Nashville, where music, entertainment, and great conversations come together.
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This way you stay up to date, never missing the great conversation and guests coming your way.
Joining us today is legendary rock and blues icon George Thoroughgood.
With a career spanning decades, he helped define American rock with unforgettable hits like Bad to the Bone, Movin' On Over, and One Bourbon, One Scotch, One Beer.
His unmistakable sound, high-energy performances have earned him fans across generations.
Today we talk about the music, the journey, and the stories behind a career that continues to leave its mark on rock and roll.
Thanks for joining us today.
Thank you, Tony.
You say that like you mean it.
I do.
It's a pleasure to have you here.
So let's kick this off with what you're currently up to.
Well, we're currently touring right now, is what we're doing.
Touring the United States.
We've got done playing uh several dates in Canada, and uh we're bouncing all over the U.S.
Uh, we're going to go to Europe in the summer.
Oh, nice.
There's some London gigs, Germany, Amsterdam, a few places.
So you were busy, Tony.
That's a very good thing.
It never hurts to be busy.
Yeah, that's right.
When people hear your music today, they hear rock and roll.
But your roots started much deeper in rhythm and blues.
Correct.
That's right.
As you were finding your sound early on, was there a moment where you realized things were naturally evolving into something bigger, into that sound that ultimately became George Thorgood?
Well, it just kind of was a natural evolution, Tony, you know.
Uh I I think the blues thing was just um something I was just going through at the time.
I was trying to learn the guitar.
Sure.
Uh, you know, and I I I just um studied the same people that all the cats I looked up to, like Elvin Bishop and Keith Richards and Jeff Beck and all those people.
So I just listened to Robert Johnson and Helen Wolfe and John Hooker and all the rest of them, just so I get a grip on the guitar.
Yeah.
And then let's see where that would take me.
Yeah, you just mentioned Keith.
I understand both of you just got into the musician's Hall of Fame.
How do you like that, huh?
That's nice.
I would have never guessed that in a million years.
Him, him, yes.
I don't know about me.
Yeah, you can't sell yourself short.
You've done a lot of great things.
Thank you.
So, with all that happening, what kind of emotions were you feeling going into that Hall of Fame?
Uh, it was pretty uh surreal, actually.
Um, they had some kind of outstanding musicians there.
Uh I always thought of myself more as an entertainer.
Okay.
As a showman.
Sure.
And I used the guitar and the music as part of my uh my prop, my stick to do what I do.
So to be included as a musician, well, that was that's quite an honor.
Um, because I'm always thinking about the live show, the live show.
Right.
That's what I'm thinking about.
And I'm kind of, well, I'm kind of leading the way on the stage in that uh category.
So this was kind of a this this is something to get my head wrapped around.
Over the years, you've made a lot of great records.
In the studio, there's a certain polish and refinement that goes into creating that sound.
But your live shows brought a completely different energy, raw, powerful, and real.
How did you bridge those two worlds?
Well, we were playing live for a long time before we got into the studio and finally made that first record.
So it wasn't much of an adjustment right there.
Yeah.
Um, the first two albums was probably material that we had been doing for a long time.
So um that fell into place pretty fast.
Yeah, that makes total sense.
When you put Bad to the Bone out into the world, did you have any sense at the time that it would take on a life of its own and become the iconic song that people still connect with decades later?
Uh no, I didn't, uh, Tony.
I uh I thought it'd be another good song for our show, uh, which it was.
And the thing that did it was classic rock radio.
That's what did it.
About eight years later, they picked up on that and they slotted us right in there with songs like Rockin' Me Baby.
Uh you know, I can't I I came home from the uh, it wasn't Bad the Bone, but I came over to the gym one day and Burbon Scott Shiver was on the radio.
And I was listening, it was KLOS in Los Angeles, and I listened to it, and I said, Well, let me just see what they have to say when the song's over.
And the lady said, Well, that was a block of Clapton, Thoroughgood, and Hendrix.
I went, What?
I immediately went into the house and started practicing my guitar a lot more.
So it was classic rock radio that made those songs classics.
Your roots came from blues and that rich musical tradition.
Over time, you built a sound that became unmistakably your own.
How did you honor those influences while still carving out your own path?
Um, well, I I think we do with the songs we we do.
And um, you know, some of the stuff we do, our arrangements are you know still close to Chuck Berry.
Sure.
Some of them are still close to John Lee Hooker and Bo Diddley.
That is something we think is necessary to include in our show.
Uh, because they're the stepping stones of what made us today.
Right.
So we try to stay true to that as much as we can.
And adding our own twist to it.
Sure.
You know, uh a little more high octane version of bourbon scotch and beer, you know.
When you look back over your journey from where it all started to where you are today, what are some of the turning points or transitions that you reflect on the most?
Uh well, I don't really have enough time to check out what phases are out there.
I mean, I'm busy, man.
I'm laying out sound, you know.
I mean, there are changes.
It's um the um the industry now is booming in in the way that this is the this is the time of uh of women in music.
Right.
I mean, Amy Whitehouse, rest in peace, knocked the world on its ear.
Oh, yeah.
Um uh Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga are the biggest things in music right now.
So, you know, there are those kind of things.
Um I don't know if it's gonna change or whatever.
Um, like when um, you know, when rap music or hip hop became up became popular and that got the world's ear.
Yeah.
So, you know, there are different things.
And I people come to me and say, Well, during all these different phases, George, you stayed true to what you do.
Well, that's just not true, Tony.
This is all I know how to play.
Sure.
Okay.
You know, this is what I do, yeah.
Period.
Yeah.
So if I could still make a living during all these monster changes in the world of rock, I'm very fortunate.
Yeah, and you've lived through an incredible evolution in music from vinyl records and tape to streaming and digital platforms.
Not only has it changed the industry, but it also has changed the artist's experience as well.
Well, you know, that's what that's what happens.
Technology changes everything, you know.
Yeah.
The evolution of technology, you know, it's not like the old days when we had a record and it skipped and you had to put a quarter on a needle and tape it down, you know, because thank God it's gone a long way from that.
Yeah, I remember those days so vividly.
Yeah.
The beauty in looking back at some of those classic records, part of what made them special was that imperfect perfection, the rawness, the energy, the humanity in it.
It wasn't always about making everything flawless.
It was about capturing a feeling.
Well, that's, you know, I mean, that wasn't done on purpose, believe me.
We were trying as hard as we could to be technically perfect.
But hey, let's Paul I am not.
Okay, let's put it that way.
So I I try every time you're gonna say to clean up what I do, and it just doesn't work.
So now I just let it wail and let nature take its course.
Yeah, I think that's the best thing because that's being true to yourself and getting the sound that you want.
Well, uh, you know, I I myself am not perfect.
So why should my playing be perfect?
Now you just mentioned Les Paul.
I understand Epiphone has recently done something for you.
Yeah, we played a 125 for years, Tony, and then I just wore them out.
They're very fragile guitars, and I have a very uh heavy and aggressive approach, attack on the guitar, and they stopped making those guitars around 1970.
So I was all out of guitars, and it's the only kind I know how to play.
Yeah, I've tried every other kind of guitar, no dice.
Yeah.
I said, well, I guess this is it for me.
And then uh Adam Condi, our manager, got together with Epiphone and our guitar tech, and they designed an Epiphone after the 125 that I used to play.
And it's more of an advanced style of the guitar I had before.
So I got a big break then.
Another thing is, Tony, I got them all donated.
What do you think of that?
Yeah, that's a very good thing.
Yes, it is.
If you could go back and tell your younger self something, what would you tell them?
Uh what would I tell my younger self?
I would have said to myself, you should have got started a little earlier on this thing.
Okay, now let's go fast forward a little bit.
When people listen to your music 20, 25 years from now, what do you hope that they take away from it after they hear it?
Ha ha, Tony, I just hope they are listening to me 30 years from now.
That's enough of a reward for me.
Okay.
Oh, that's great.
You know, I've asked that question to several different people.
That's the best answer I think I've ever gotten.
There you go.
You know, that's that's really good.
With everything that you've done, the accolades, the accomplishments, what still drives you?
What keeps you going?
Well, you know, there's still a demand for us, Tony, and we and we can we can deliver.
Yeah, that's great.
So there's all these things, the elements involved, we call them the three D's, the demand, the desire, and the delivery.
And all three of them have to flow together.
Yeah.
So as long as those things are um apparent in our spirit, then we will continue.
Yeah, that's great.
Now, there's a time where everyone goes through their ups and downs.
Was there ever a point in your career where you really thought about, you know, I need to get away from this?
Many times I uh wanted to pull out.
But you know, I um late in life I had a daughter.
Um I wanna I wanted to get some money and put it in a trust fund for her.
Uh-huh.
You know, those kind of things.
When when you have children, sometimes you have no options to go to work.
Right.
You know, you you have to do it.
Right.
So that that was part of it.
Okay.
Now, you mentioned your daughter.
I understand that you both have a charity that you work on together.
Yeah, well, she started a charity for my deceased wife for um research for ovarian cancer.
Okay.
And my daughter actually was instrumental in that.
That must give you a lot of pride that your daughter is out there helping people as much as she possibly can as well.
My daughter makes me feel good no matter what she's doing.
That's awesome.
When success hits, a lot of times expectations grow.
How do you find yourself to stay grounded and not lose what made you different?
Well, I think that what happened was the um that it took me so long to get this thing launched and get this thing going, um, that you are uh motivated to make sure it doesn't slip away.
Yeah.
Um, you know, two artists that I've seen many times, and I get up front and still have a hungry look in their eye.
One of them is Paul McCartney, and and the other one is Tom Jones.
Um, they still have a hungry look in their eye.
Yeah.
Uh, especially Tom Jones.
He you know, he came from a mining town or something in Wales.
Yeah.
Uh I'm sure he doesn't want to go back and do that.
Okay.
You know, so they they still have that that just that little edge.
And I think that's important to um and I don't think that's something, I think that's something that's natural.
You you're you're um you're you're constantly saying, I want to hold on to the job, Tony.
Okay, how's that?
Yeah, exactly.
Was there a moment when you were out there that you were struggling?
And was there any particular moment that you remember that you kind of felt like, you know, this is working.
I've arrived.
Now I can expand.
And the way to keep it working is to keep releasing new and exciting material.
I think that's the key.
Have you heard Thurgood's latest?
Well, that's called Get a Haircut, Get a Real Job.
Okay.
Have you heard The Rolling Stones Latest?
Yeah, it's called Tumbling Dice.
I think that, and then you can get to a spot where you can go, okay, that's our catalog.
We're cool.
Maybe we don't need any new new tunes.
We we can we can ride with what we got.
Sure.
See what I mean?
Yeah, absolutely.
Now, when you're on stage and when you're looking out in that crowd, what excites you about a great crowd and just everything going the way that you hoped that it would go?
Even though sometimes you might have a bad night, but they don't know that.
You know, they're they're only listening to the sound that you're putting out.
What keeps you rocking that way?
Well, Tony, when you see some very excited women paying big bucks to come see you and they're screaming loud like the Beatles, well, if that's not inspiration, nothing is.
Okay.
Yeah.
Now, when you step on stage, pick up that guitar, you hear the crowd react.
There's a moment where everything connects the music, the energy, the audience.
What goes through your mind when you know you and the audience are right there together?
The feeling is to keep it going, Tony.
Yeah.
To make sure what's happening at that moment, you want to continue right to the end of the show.
And that's what we so are we got it going, we got to keep it going.
Uh there's an old saying, um, you're doing good, but you got to keep doing good.
Right.
Like the old saying, you're only as good as your last hit record.
You got it.
You're only as good as your last show.
Yeah.
That's how we we look at it and say, well, well, who's your competition?
I said, Myself.
Right.
I want to be better than George Thoroughgood was last night.
Yeah.
That's the only way I can look at it.
Yeah, you know, in everybody's path of doing what they do, there's always sacrifices along the way.
Did you have anything that you looked upon and you go, man, I gave that up, but it's okay?
No, nothing.
Because Tony, I had nothing to begin with.
I had no hobbies, so I didn't sacrifice anything.
Nice.
Uh, was it a lot of times we tried to get guys in the band, we were struggling, and they had a car, and oh, uh, I don't want to give up my car.
Yeah.
And I said, Well, why don't you sell your guitar so you can get a better guitar?
And once we make it, you can buy 10 cars.
Okay.
Yeah.
So I didn't have anything to give up because I didn't have anything to begin with.
Yeah.
So that made it easy.
Yeah.
Now, there's always moments in the industry when you get signed by a label that they think that they know more than you do about your sound.
They always come in and say, hey, you got to do this, you got to do that.
Did you ever run into those instances where you had to fight to keep your sound the way that you wanted it against what the suits that the labels thought?
Well, yeah, a little bit, but not too much.
Um, because um what EMI did when they signed us up and other record labels, they knew what they were getting.
Um, and to to, you know, change that or to well, of course they wanted to enhance, they want hits.
Sure.
You know, I mean, that's all record labels want to make money and make hits.
Right.
That's understandable.
But, you know, to kind of, you know, mold you into something you're not is an expert in futility, okay?
And say, well, you know what you're getting when when Chich and Chang go on stage, right?
Right, right.
Okay, you know what you're getting.
So don't hire them unless you expect that.
Exactly.
Now, at some point the spotlight fades and you start slowing down like everybody does.
When you reflect on your career, what's the thing that you're gonna say that you're most proud of?
Um, probably the selection of material in the early days.
The research that I did for non-original music to get us known to expose us.
Right.
Uh, that's the thing I'm most proud of.
And I got a lot of flack from that in the beginning.
Right.
Well, you're never gonna make it with these things.
I said, Well, wait a minute.
These are good songs.
Right.
Somebody's got to expose them.
And if I'm proud of anything, I'm proud of that with the first two records, which, you know, that makes up 50 to 60 percent of the songs people want to hear us play live anyway.
Yeah.
So obviously, we did the right thing.
Yeah, yeah, that that's a big statement right there.
Now, if things stop tomorrow and you just said, that's it, could you sit back and be happy of what you've done and still find some things that would make you complete moving forward?
I could walk away from it tomorrow, Tony.
Everything now is gravy, everything now is icing on the cake.
But if I had to walk away from it tomorrow, I'd be satisfied.
I would be happy.
Nice.
However, there's still some things to do, and that's cool.
But yeah, I mean, I'm kind of I mean, I just got into the musicians hall of fame, baby.
Yeah.
I mean, you know, so I'm gonna be riding at the crest of that for the rest of my life.
And that that's a nice thing.
It is.
It's not that you want to say, oh, I can relax and rest on my laurels.
I have no laurels.
Yeah.
I have hardy, but I have no laurels.
Okay.
Yeah.
Yeah, there's a selective group of people that's not gonna understand that, but that's okay.
I did.
That was great.
So what's left to do?
What's unfinished?
What is something that in your back of your mind that you still want to do?
Well, there's still a few markets left that are still ripe for us that we haven't done.
That we um there's still some meat on the bone, as our manager puts it.
Okay.
Um, places we can go and, you know, alter the set a little bit, not dramatically or drastically.
Uh-huh.
So there's still some things that we can look at.
So there's still a few things left you can do, still some markets that you can still hit and make an impact.
Yeah.
Now, if someone is out there chasing a dream like you were, they keep hitting that wall after wall after wall.
What would you tell them from your own experience?
Go find another wall.
Okay.
How's that?
Yeah.
Eventually you'll find a wall that cracks.
Yeah, I like that.
What's the difference between the persona and the perception of what people see you on stage versus the one that's off stage after the show is done?
I don't know if there is a persona.
You tell me.
I don't know what you're talking about.
Well, you have that certain image, you know, when you go on stage, you're larger than life, you know.
So how does that relate to you in your daily life?
Well, it's kind of a uh a fantasy of mine that I want an outlet to go out there and uh, you know, I mean, uh we all grew up watching movies with Steve McQueen and Sean Connery, yeah, uh, you know, and Paul Newman and people like that.
Right.
You know, and uh, you know, I want to be Batman, I want to be Zorro, you know what I'm saying?
It's a male fantasy.
Um, and I feel I'm able to um, you know, pan that out on the stage, live that out for the 90 minutes I'm up there.
Uh one song I can be Johnny Cash.
The other song I can be Bo Diddley.
I mean, all things that go into that.
So I'm fortunate with the job I have um to explore, exploit those dreams, those passions or whatever.
Now, if people person me as being that guy, well, that's very flattering.
Yeah.
You know, but you know, this is um, you know, this is leave it to beaver who wants to be Clint Eastwood.
How's that?
Yeah, good, good.
Now, if you could relive one specific moment in your career, not to change it, just to experience again because it was so damn good.
Do you have one in mind?
I think all the experiences I've had, um uh Mike Cup runneth over.
Um, you know, I've met Dylan three times.
Yeah.
Uh Jeff Jeff Beck came to see me play.
Yeah.
Uh how many people can say that?
All right.
Um, Mick Jagger came to see us and got on stage and sang with us, my childhood hero.
So, you know, looking back on all that, it's I am beyond blessed.
Yeah, that's awesome.
Now, was there ever a decision in your career that scared you?
You know, it's like, am I doing the right thing?
You had those doubts, but then you kept moving?
I think what scared me was the um popularity level that I got to, um, which was very awkward for me.
Yeah.
For a, you know, a fat pimpley kid in Delaware, and some people were close to me.
When people come up and make a big fuss over me, I would really play it down.
And I was like, nah, no, you got the wrong guy.
And like Jim Hud, who you spoke to, said, Look, maybe you just think you're just some joker who got lucky, but this kid really looks up to you.
He thinks you're a great rock star.
So just be that rock star for a minute, George.
That's because that's what they want.
Okay, enough said.
Um, that took me a while.
I don't think I'm ever gonna totally come to grips with that.
You gotta remember what I grew up with Elvis Presley, right?
Lennon and McCartney, Dylan.
Come on.
Yeah.
I mean, I grew up with the Hendrix era, uh, yeah, you know, Zeppelin, the whole bit, man.
I mean, the the greatest rock in the world ever.
Yeah, yeah, me too.
You know, I I got to meet Eric Clapton.
I was just like, you know, I I thought it was gonna piss my pants, you know.
Yeah.
And he sat me down like I was just one of the gang, you know, and that's that's not easy for me.
I know.
All right, that's been a struggle for me.
I can relate to that.
I've had the opportunity to work and be around musicians that I grew up listening to, and it's like all of a sudden they're calling me and talking to me like they've known me for years.
It's a great, great feeling.
Well, when Taj Mahal comes up to you and goes, ba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba, you know you've arrived.
What have you learned to let go of, you know, so that way that you can just focus on what you're doing?
I can very be very hard on my myself for things that didn't happen to me in the past.
I can there's things that I've really worked on not to be bitter about.
Right.
And there were things along the line that I said, you have to shake this loose, George.
This is um a waste of your energy and your time to be about bitter things that never happened, but look where you are now.
Yeah.
So just enjoy what you have now, as opposed to looking in the past, say, I'm bitter about this, I'm bitter about that.
It's no good.
Um, it's not a good way to live, you know?
What did it take to get there?
That's a tough thing to do, let go of those type of things.
Yes, it is.
Well, what helps is going on stage every night.
And the response we get, just walking on the stage.
And of course, delivering a show that they want to see, they got their money's worth.
That erases a lot of bitterness and a lot of doubt.
Has there ever been a time when a fan came up to you and told you something about your music that you didn't realize that it made the impact that it did?
Oh, yeah, that's happened.
And you know, it's funny that um when people would do that, some people would say, Oh, oh, this got me through college.
Your music got me through college.
I had a bad car accident, I thought about you in the hospital, things like that.
And then when I ran into Keith Richards and spoke to him, that what he meant to me, they were the same way.
They were a little stunned about, oh no, no, no, Chuck Berry's the man.
I'm not the guy, you know?
Yeah, and I thought that was pretty cool that that they could still tang on to that a little bit.
You know what I'm saying?
Yeah.
And that's that's that impresses me.
And it's very humbling when you've got fans coming up and telling you how you actually help them in difficult parts of their life.
It it is touching.
I have to tell you that.
I have to be truthful, you know.
And after a while, Tony, if enough people tell you that, then there must be some truth in it.
Right, right.
I mean, because you've affected so many people, you know, and you've been very fortunate to have this career and touch these people, and now you're still able to continue doing it.
Well, I'm trying to, you know, uh emotionally, uh, financially, whatever, reap the awards of my past, of my struggles, you know, which which got me to where I am now.
And say, why don't you just enjoy and you know stop worrying about it?
You you're here.
You got here.
Yeah, you're not going anywhere.
Yeah.
You know, when when you just before you go on stage, the club owner comes up with a calendar and wants to sign you up for a year and a half from now before you've played.
Now that's something.
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Do you have a website where people can follow you and and see where you're headed?
We do, George Thorgoodandthedestroyers.com.
Okay.
So George Thoroughgoodandhedestroyers.com.
All right, good.
That way they can follow you.
So, what would you like to tell people now, just in closing, that you think is important they hear about what you're doing?
Well, what they should hear about it, what's important?
Yeah, yeah.
Anything that you think is important for them to listen to or hear.
Every night we give our sincerest best, whatever that best is at that moment.
You know, there's a lot of bullshit with Thoroughgood, but there's no lying.
You got it?
Got it.
Yeah, that's good.
Well, you know, in closing, I won't say that I owe an awful lot to, let's face it, MTV.
We all do.
Yeah.
When especially when you're starting out.
However, when they started making videos of the music, where something's gained, something's lost.
Right.
Because when I was a kid listening to Dream by Everly Brothers or Ali Oop, I had a vision in my mind as a kid.
There was no um, there's no visual to take me someplace.
It was my imagination.
Yes.
Like that's why I never wanted to go see Chichin Chong live.
Because when I listened to the records, I used my imagination of what these cats look like.
Right, right.
You know what I mean?
Yes.
And that added to it.
So you said, well, you got to see them live.
No, I don't think I want to do that.
I like their movies, yeah, but I like listening to them because it kept the mystery there.
You know what I'm saying?
You know?
I love that because I remember when I was in high school, I would buy an album, Chicago or whatever, and I'd listen to it.
I just love the fact that I could go into my own little world of what I thought they were doing or what I thought they looked like.
And I had no concept of it.
And that's sometimes that could be healthy, that could be fun, you know.
I think so.
Because when you see everything and it's so visual, sometimes it takes away your mind and your creativity of what you can dream about.
Yeah.
Well, that's the thing about you know, the modern technology, computers and phones and all that, it kind of stops the mental progress.
Yes.
Or the mental um process.
I agree.
Of dealing with your own thoughts and your own feelings without somebody, you know, dictating it to you.
Yeah, yeah.
Because when you're thinking about the music and you're listening to it, you have no idea what the person that wrote it was writing it about.
It's only what how it perceives and perception to you.
Yeah.
And then you can get into like disputes or mild arguments with your friends.
Yeah.
Oh, he meant this by it.
Oh, this Dylan song means this.
Exactly.
And that's a lot of fun.
That's a lot of fun.
It is, it is.
But when you see the video and you see all the new marketing that they put into, it kind of takes away that imagination of everything.
Yeah, yeah, it does.
Oh, I love that.
It does.
Well, I really appreciate that.
This has been great.
Really?
Yeah.
All right, Tony.
Well, glad glad to be of service.
Yeah, I've enjoyed it.
It's uh always nice to you know talk about history and music, and that's what I love to do.
Yeah, how many people in the world can actually make a living with their passion?
Not very many.
Exactly.
Yeah, it's about 3% of the people in the world who are doing exactly what they want to do and getting paid for it.
So God bless you for that.
If you uh if you hadn't have been doing music, what would you what do you think you would have been doing?
Oh no, I don't know.
Um boy, that's a scary thought.
I mean, uh, let's face it, man.
I mean, rest in peace.
Can you see Tom Petty working on a telephone pole?
Um uh, you know, can you see my man Keith Richards uh working as an accountant for a big corporation firm?
I don't think so.
So I I I shudder to think about that.
Um if this didn't happen, what would have happened?
Um, that's scary.
Yeah.
Yes, it is.
It is scary.
I've looked at the same thing.
I mean, I've done music my whole life, and I've been very fortunate to work around some great people, and now I'm doing my podcast.
And it's just nice to hear the stories like you tell and just the overall thing.
And like you say, not very many people get to do what they really love to do.
Yes, that's true.
So I'm very fortunate.
Thank you.
Yeah, yeah.
Well, like I say, this has been great, and I really appreciate you taking the time to join us today.
Our pleasure, Tony.
It's been my pleasure.
Thanks again.
Thanks for spending part of your day with us.
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