Well, I'm here to tell you that Hollywood has misled us. Dewey Cox is apparently a real person, a former chart-topper that has somehow been forgotten over time (think Chris Daughtry in five years). He died some years back, but, thanks to a time-travel device created by some ingenious scientists in Pasadena, Calif., he's back.

And, coincidence of all coincidences, he looks and sounds a lot like Reilly.

On Monday night, the singer-songwriter-guitarist brought his seven-date "Cox Across America" tour to the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco. Fans were properly prepped for the event with a pre-concert screening of the film at a nearby theater. Reilly was in attendance and introduced the film, though, oddly enough, he was nowhere to be seen while Cox was onstage at the Great American.

Supposedly born in Springberry, Ala, sometime in the late '30s or early '40s, Cox looked fairly young - like, say, 42 - when he took the stage with his band, the Hard Walkers. He wore a red matador outfit as he charged like a bull through such classic Cox cuts as "Guilty as Charged," "(I Hate You) Big Daddy" and other selections from the film's soundtrack.

Along the way, Cox seized the opportunity to shed light on some lesser-known chapters of popular music. For instance, he played the blues standard "Got My Mojo Working" and clarified that he was the one who taught the tune to Muddy Waters. Who knew?

He also talked of how Bob Dylan copied the sound and style of Cox's wordy, rambling "Royal Jelly." He then played the track and Dylan's treachery was apparent to all. Shame on you, Mr. Zimmerman.

Cox recalled being a part of the Bay Area flower power movement and played some of his more topical tunes from the period, although tracks such as "Dear Mr. President" and "Let Me Hold You (Little Man)" (the anthem of the "Short Panthers Party") might seem politically incorrect in 2007.

The singer touched on his past alcohol and drug abuse by covering the Amy Winehouse hit "Rehab," proving that nothing, not even death, can keep Cox from staying current with what's hot in the music world.

He ended the show with two of his best-known tunes, the signature "Walk Hard" and "Beautiful Ride." He also played his own tribute song "(Have You Heard the News) Dewey Cox Died," a clairvoyant composition that Cox wrote to help the world deal with the shock of his own passing.