George Thorogood
March 20, 2026
The Grey Eagle Casino & Resort, Calgary, AB
One legendary act, one of the provinces top venues (The Grey Eagle), and one critical mistake on my part.
Now for those of you who don’t know me, I took on a new job a few months ago which has me working 11 1/2 hour days.
The show was on a Friday night, which meant I had to leave work and head straight to Calgary (a 3 hour drive), I get off work at 5:30, George Thorogood was set to hit the stage at 8:45 PM. I am up for work at 4:30 AM, so I threw my camera bag into my car, took my batteries off the charger, and headed to work in the morning. After parking at the venue, I headed in just in time for the house lights to go down on the intro music to start playing. I set up my camera, walked across the venue to get my first vantage point, and fire off a couple of test shots. OH NO. No memory card. Sprint back to my Camera bag to grab my case of backup cards… It’s not there. It was conveniently on my kitchen table where I had set it down after throwing a couple of extra cards in it..
Sadly I was unable to take photos of the show.
I was absolutely gutted. George Thorogood is one of those artists that has indirectly had a huge influence on my love of music since I was a kid. I mean who didn’t have a “WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT” the moment when hearing was opening cards of bad to the bone? The way the song settles into the groove is just so full of swagger, and that song it’s just so ballsy and full of attitude. Even at his age, Thorogood still delivers. His voice has the grit, the riffs are still just as epic and groovy, and the man played an 18 songs set that was chock full of hits. He’s has spent his career fusing rock, and blues and there are a few who do it with the style and class that George Thorogood and the Destroyers do. Hearing these anthems that helped shape my love for Music was an unforgettable experience. The crowd was on their feet the whole time despite being a seated event, and everybody I saw seemed to be having an incredible time!
Hopefully I can catch him again in the near future.
First time in 10 years I’ve forgotten a memory card and I’m still kicking myself in the butt for it.