stu wrote
I will be playing my next gig in my underpants
Which is of course, an image.
The Chili Peppers were able to put out an image of zaniness that worked for their music. So they could dress in a single sock, or as lightbulbs. But it worked because their fans accepted that their music had a zany angle to it. If one of Bob's English traditional-type song-writers came on stage as a lightbulb, the audience would probably feel they were being mocked and may be extremely displeased.
