SCOTT TADY

BURGETTSTOWN — Billy Idol peeled off a layer of leather, then another layer, then another — finally finding a comfortable, less bulky wardrobe for the first segment of his crowd-pleasing performance Thursday at The Pavilion at Star Lake.

By night end, he’d be briefly shirtless, setting a high standard for fellow 70-year-olds, and looking utterly stoked to be effectively commanding a stage — and like the title of his leadoff song — “Still Dancing.”

From the jump, Idol grabbed the audience’s attention and never let it wane.  I’ll estimate 9,500 were there, enjoying Idol’s expertly crafted set that featured radio hits “Cradle of Love” and “Flesh for Fantasy” as songs #2 and #3. Later would come popular picks like “Eyes Without a Face” and “Mony Mony,” both receiving slightly tweaked intros that built the anticipation and yielded excitement once spectators were certain what they were hearing.

Idol added quick-to-the-point banter when necessary, like setting up “77” with the explanation it was his 2025 collab with pop-punk rocker Avril Lavigne.

Bookending Idol on stage were two guitar wizards — Steve Stevens and Billy Morrison.

As he did decades ago at the late great Station Square Amphitheater, Stevens proved he’s a vastly underrated six-stringer, unleashing a dazzling arsenal of creative guitar effects, but still keeping his general tones smooth and stinging. In short: Stevens utterly amazed, even adding a few solo snippets of Led Zeppelin’s “Over The Hills and Far Away” and “Stairway to Heaven,” and later a slice of Jimi Hendrix’s “Third Stone from The Sun.”

With two female backup singers helping flesh out the vocals, Idol kept the entertainment brisk and fun. He did his signature fist pumps, tossed a handful of Frisbees into the crowd and saved a little vocal power by flipping the mic toward the crowd for them to sing bits of the choruses.

Many of those who would have been night clubbing in the 1980s gleefully added the naughty word refrain as Idol sang his cover  of Tommy James and The Shondells’ “Mony Mony.”

Stevens took advantage of multiple solo moments to treat fans to a blaze of guitar.

Recognizing his other guitarist is an ace, too, Idol also encouraged Morrison to play a solo and at one point, to pick the next song. Morrison opted for the breezy “Ready Steady Go” from Idol’s pre-solo days leading Generation X — the influential-if-not-renowned band that gave the name to the generation sandwiched between Boomers and Millennials.

Idol did a handful of quick outfit changes, all befitting his post-punk oeuvre.

Song-wise, “Blue Highway” was a nice pick for fans who knew more than just the big hits.

Idol set up the pre-encore “Rebel Yell” with the tale of how he wrote that song after being invited to an early 1980s party where his heroes the Rolling Stones were holding sway. Rebel Yell was the name of the whiskey the Stones were swigging that fateful night.

Many in the Burgettstown crowd collectively danced to “Dancing With Myself,” which launched the encore. Next came “Hot in The City,” for which Idol reminisced about his early impressions of 1979 New York City, where in the summer heat the leather-clad locals looked like characters from the street gang action thriller movie “The Warriors.” Idol said that look inspired what would be come his leather and spikes visual image.

The handful of Star Lake concertgoers wearing costumed wedding gowns got their moment to shine as “White Wedding” brought the concert to a close.

Hooray for Idol, for still being a captivating performer.