George Thorogood & the Destroyers were one of America’s great bar bands when they surfaced in the ‘70s. Blues-rock based and without a hint of flab, they put on powerful shows and released albums coupling dynamic originals with demolition derby covers.
On their new Blu-ray and DVD release, Live at Montreux 2013, Thorogood and band continue to hammer out the basics of their sound, even when surrounded by unnecessary arena rock trappings. The laser lights are lame and the rear screen video of shooting flames suggests nothing as much as a gas fireplace under a giant magnifying glass.
But the crowd came for the old songs and they weren’t disappointed. Although Thorogood’s voice has sunk into a less expressive register, his guitar hand is still nimble enough with those revved-up Chuck Berry riffs. The rhythm section still pounds away like a cement mixer during the aggressive work out of Bo Diddley’s “Who Do You Love?” and Johnny Cash’s “Cocaine Blues.” Thorogood still shouts “Bad to the Bone” with glee, but his greatest moment remains the sullen anthem to alcoholism, “I Drink Alone.”
