Dewey Cox Makes a 'Hard' Return to the Stage

You've seen the posters everywhere of a shirtless Dewey Cox, the man celebrated in the upcoming mock biopic, 'Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.' Now, in anticipation of the sure Cox-mania, the singer-songwriter (actor John C. Reilly) is returning to the stage for a brief two-week tour that kicks off Wednesday at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. To prepare, Cox and his Hard Walkers warmed up before an adoring invite-only crowd, which included Garbage frontwoman Shirley Manson and actor Chris Parnell, at the Roxy.

Wearing a black Spanish-style suit and a red shirt, for part of the show, Cox kicked off his first performance since 1984 with the defiant and rousing 'Guilty as Charged.' After '(I Hate You) Big Daddy,' Cox, a master of the between-song banter, picked up a guitar for a rollicking '(Mama) You Got to Love Your Negro Man.' When the crowd roared at his expected guitar prowess, Cox responded, "What did you think, i was just going to sing for you mother f---ers? I guarantee you'll get your money's worth tonight."

And Cox, who explained to the audience he was part of a "Time continuum experiment" from JPL Laboratory in Pasadena, delivered his guarantee, showing off his musical skills in a variety of styles. Whether it was the crooning 'Take my Hand,' the pointed social commentary of 'Dear Mr. President' and 'Let me Hold You (Little Man)' -- a ribald song in defense of little people -- Cox showed off his unique style: a hybrid of Elvis, Johnny Cash and Tom Waits.

Cox, who also regaled the crowd with tales from his life, including one about how Robert Dylan had visited him in the studio before leading to 'The Times They Are-a-Changing,' seemed very comfortable on stage, despite a warning to the audience. "This is my first performance since 1984," he said, "so you'll have to forgive the stops and starts." For a guy who's part of a time continuum experiment and hasn't performed in 23 years, Dewey Cox is still very capable of getting a crowd riled up.