Tom Petty Is The New Bono

June 20, 2008

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You didn't know that? Me either... But, hold on a minute...

In the Bravo Bullion this ayem is: what did you think of last night's premiere of "Flipping Out"? And can I give a shout out please to tonight's premiere of the me-hosted "Top Chef Chicago Reunion" at 10 EST? Thanks for letting me plug myself, so to speak. Tonight you'll find out who wins fan favorite, what's behind Lisa's scowl, on which chef Gail is crushing, and you'll giggle at never been seen footage.

Oh hey have you missed Liza Persky's "39 Second Single" as much as the rest of the universe at large? Well, she's back with a bonus episode that takes place entirely in a jacuzzi with her gay boyfriend, me. So click HERE to see Liza and me talking about stuff in a jacuzzi. (And then click back and read the rest of this blog.)

OK so last night I went with my pal Dave to a Tom Petty concert at Madison Square Garden. You may be asking yourself, "Who gives a crap about Tom Petty?". Apparently EVERYONE. It was sold out and like the straight version of a Madonna concert. Wait, that would be a Bruce Springsteen concert but you get my drift. I was the only gay there, which was kind of like being back in high school, but it didn't matter a bit.

Steve Winwood opened the show, if you can believe it. Steve Winwood seemed like a bigger star than to be opening for Tom Petty to us. Anyway he was great and sang "Dr. Mr. Fantasy". And that made me happy. Dave and I were enthralled, though, at what makes one artist- Tom Petty- able to sell out Madison Square Garden while a ton of other hitmakers from his era (like John Mellencamp?) can only hope for a gig at, say, the Beacon.

Petty pretty much answered that question when he got up and played solid gold hit after platinum classic doublehit. He carries himself with some kind of Bono-esque RockGod stage dominance that I don't know from him, but I got no probs with. The crowd LOVES HIM and we drank a lot of beers, which is what you're supposed to do.

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