RIVERSIDE - I suspect Kris Kristofferson was fairly miserable at the start of his sold-out concert at the Riverside Casino on Friday night.

But the 1,141 fans packing the Event Center were thrilled to see and hear the 73-year-old country icon. And by the end of the 90-minute acoustic songfest, he seemed to be feeding off the energy in the room.

He started the show with an unsteady voice, and after just a couple of songs, he apologized “for the involuntary yelps. I'm getting over being a little sick. Actually, it doesn't sound any different than usual.”

With that, he was off and running, mix wit with wisdom, adding little asides in the middle of the lyrics, and pausing every now and then to grab his handkerchief.

“Isn't it great to spend a lot of money for a ticket to a show and watch an old fart blow his nose?”

We didn't care. We were just glad he could manage some jokes and smiles.

He played a string of hits greeted with cheers and bursts of applause, as well as cuts off his latest effort, “Closer to the Bone.” Most of the songs were laid back, with gentle beats, light fingerpicking on his guitar, livened up with some fiery harmonica lines.

He kicked off the concert with “Shipwrecked in the '80s” before launching into the title track of his new album.

It was an evening of essential Kristofferson. Other hits along the way included “Darby's Castle,” “The Best of All Possible Worlds,” “Jody and the Kid,” “Here Comes that Rainbow Again,” “Casey's Last Ride,” “Loving Her was Easier (Than Anything I'll Ever Do Again)” and “Jesus was a Capricorn.”

My two favorites were in the mix as well, with “Me and Bobby McGee” and “Help Me Make it Through the Night.” He even injected some humor into the latter, after singing “I don't care what's right or wrong,” he wryly added “yes I do.”

The prettiest songs were tender odes written for his children, one with the heart-melting lyrics, “I love you from here to forever.”

The biggest laugh came after “Nobody Wins,” when he said, “George Bush and Dick Cheney were singing this song in the shower together.”

So we saw his sweet side, his political side, his socially conscious side and his hilarious side in an intimate evening of music. What more could you possibly want?

Take care of yourself Kris, we want you around for a really long time.