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span class="caption" style="width: 398px;">JP/Kathy PetiteEven his shiny dark Italian suit, short-cropped hair and dark sunglasses couldn’t shake off the image of his legendary Daisy Duke shorts, blond fluffy hair and that round earring in his left ear.

Well, can you blame me? It’s George Michael we’re talking about. The man whose poster I dated in my school uniform (no I’m not that old, believe me) and haircut I tried to copy.

All these years, despite his rollercoaster rides with drugs and sex, and all that label-wrangling time with Sony, I still have my faith in George Michael. My adoration still burns strong like when he first rose to fame in the 1980s as one of the pop duo Wham!

Standing fit and handsome in his gray tie, the 48-year-old British singer-songwriter musician, whose real name is Georgios Panayioto, was immediately welcomed with loud applause as the curtain went up at the Hallenstadion.

The one-night performance on Oct. 14 was part of his 2011 Symphonica Orchestral Tour, which had its debut in Prague on Aug. 22.

Opening the evening softly with “Through”, Michael continued with something a little more cheerful with a track from his Songs from the Last Century album, “My Baby Just Cares For me”.

Swaying and shaking his booties gaily while singing this piece, Michael convinced the audience that he hadn’t lost his groove. On the contrary, the cool and jazzy “Cowboys and Angels” that came next, after “Idol”, were sung in a profound, calm way as he sat on a chair. The show was a colorful mix of sumptuous ballads and rocking tunes.

The glories of the late-80s, when the album Faith was released and soared to the sky, hit me again when he sang “Kissing a Fool”. My disappointment with the absence of Amy Winehouse’s “Love is a Losing Game” (I’d better stop reading the set lists from previous nights on the tour), was made up with the beautifully mellow “You Have Been Loved”.

“This one is for my mother,” said Michael before he started to sing.

A couple of other tracks that stood out from the first part of the evening included Rufus Wainwright’s “Going To a Town” and Terence Trent D’Arby’s “Let Her Down Easy”. Another track from the album Songs from the Last Century, “Brother, Can You Spare Me a Dime” marked the 15-minute interval.

The spacious, lavish stage was adorned with a huge curtain lit by different hues when Michael was about to appear at the beginning of the performance. The background screen started with some abstract graphics and it slowly changed to more visuals of Michael himself and some other people related to his songs. Hallenstadion was sold out, and filled with a mixed crowd. It was a bit surprising though, to see some young teens, who looked like they belonged more to Britney Spears’ fan club.

Opening with “Patience”, the second part of the evening revealed more of Michael’s moods, with a few surprises. With the unexpected Rihanna’s snappy pop murder ballad “Russian Roulette”, Michael raised some eyebrows among a few members of the audience, yet his rendition was rewarded with clapping and sing-along moments. (See Michael, they didn’t mind).

Apart from his between-songs patter, Michael’s attempt at the local language amounted to no more than just “good evening” and “thank you”. But you could feel some genuine confession and thoughts in some of the words he expressed. His deep emotion seemed to come out when singing “You’ve Changed”. “John & Elvis” was delivered with some visuals of John Lennon and Elvis Presley in the background, while the smooth, lovely “Roxanne” was accompanied by a series of footage clips, which reminded the viewer of some interesting encounters in Amsterdam’s red-light district.

Then a silence descended. No whistles, no yells. Just a simply hypnotized audience as Michael entertained them with the sweet return of another popular old tune with deeply meaningful lyrics, “A Different Corner”. Personally, this produced a shiver down my spine.

The evening ended with the upbeat “Amazing, I’m Your Man” and “Freedom”. The medley created a vibrant energy, leaving the audience up out of their seats and some even running to the stage to form a sea of dancers.

To his faithful fans, this gig was more than just an exhilarating reunion with some tunes from their “school uniform era”. To the world, it was confirmation that, despite the personal storms he has been through, George Michael is George Michael. With his simply divine voice and great songs, he is still loved and listened to. (Even without the Daisy Dukes shorts).