TAMPA – Up until Saturday, the best-looking concert crowd I had ever seen was at a Rascal Flatts show at Ford Amphitheatre. My oh my: It was like a Hawaiian Tropics bus had crashed into the set of “Hee Haw.”

But the 11,253 men and women at the George Michael gig at the St. Pete Times Forum -- although older than the Rascal crowd by a good 15 years --certainly deserved careful consideration in the hubba-hubba department.

And why not? Ever since his '80s days in boy band Wham!, the hunktastic icon has given equal time to style and substance, delighting fashion-minded fans with both smart soulful pop and the most beloved facial hair since Grizzly Adams.

On his first U.S. tour in 17 years, the 45-year-old Brit, never one for subtlety, brought with him a ginormous toboggan-shaped stage made entirely of state-of-the-art video panels. That monstrosity was flanked by two humbly huge screens. And in between those were three tiers of scaffolding holding up a sprawling umpteen-piece band.

But despite all that glam, all that glitz, the two-hour-plus show often had an intimate, subdued feel. One reason for that was Michael's health. "I have a terrible cold," he said, nevertheless looking faboo in a smooth black suit. "I'm not used to your American air-conditioning." (Perhaps this was why he hit the stage a good 30 minutes late.)

As a result of the sniffles, he had some trouble with his high notes, letting the crowd sing the tough parts on '84 Wham! hit "Everything She Wants." But his mid-range remains a rich marvel, and he flat-out stunned 'em with a gospel rendition of "One More Try" and a smoldering cover of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face."

Another reason for the concert's curious feel was that the singer was often on that giant sled all by his lonesome. Of course, the throngs didn't seem to mind, especially when he shook his golden go-go to such dance-floor burners as "Fastlove" and "Too Funky." (If George was bummed by the smallish turnout, he didn't seem to mind.)

After a brief intermission, things started to get a little friskier, as he kicked things off with the boot-scooty title hit from '87's gone-solo smash "Faith." During the va-va-voomish "Feeling Good," that massive toboggan flashed an old-school striptease. Hot, very hot.

And for the night's most charming moment, he even poked fun at his knack for bad behavior, especially that 1998 bathroom "incident" in Beverly Hills. For the discofied "Outside," he hit the stage in a cop uniform. That kept the crowd going crazy all the way through late-game renditions of "Careless Whisper" and "Freedom! '90."

After all these years, George still looks good getting down. And you know what? So do we.

[Photo by Atoyia Deans | Times]