Thousands of fans of the jam band Widespread Panic turned out Friday night in Orange Beach for the band's performance at the Amphitheater at The Wharf, a show some Orange Beach city officials said earlier they wish had never been booked.

Many of those fans came determined to put their best foot forward in response to comments about mayhem and "floppiness" from Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon and Mayor Pro Tem Jeff Silvers, referencing previous Panic shows in Orange Beach. Hundreds came dressed in some variation of their Mardi Gras ball attire, and attendees donated thousands of cans of food to the Bay Area Food Bank.

The gathering, referred to on Facebook and in t-shirts and posters as the Flopper's Ball, drew several hundred people to The Hot Spot and Ginny Lane before the concert.

"I had to look up floppiness in the dictionary, and it's not in there," said Wayne Jones, one of the organizers. "It was open for interpretation, so this is our interpretation of floppiness."

That take on floppiness included several women in sparkling Mardi Gras gowns and men in suits, bowties, even a few tuxedos, or at least tuxedo t-shirts. Many of the men also wore flip flops with their more formal attire above the ankles, and some wore shorts or bathing suits with their formal tails.

One of those at the Flopper's Ball, Rosemary Steele, said after Kennon's comments, she felt compelled to explain to her 12 year-old daughter that she was not a bad person or a drug user just because she liked Widespread Panic.

"When the leader of our town makes a broad statement like that, I don't want my child to get the wrong impression of everyone who listens to this band," said Steele, who runs DeSoto's restaurant in Gulf Shores with her husband Chris. "We went and got cans earlier and I brought her down to see the truck full of cans and that people here weren't bad people.

"I did tell her in any group there are going to be some bad people, but it was really important for her to understand that I'm not a bad person hanging out with a bunch of druggies every time I go to a Widespread Panic concert."

In addition to the Flopper's Ball event, a beach clean-up event is planned for Saturday.

"I want to change (Kennon's) mind," said Nicholas Kaiser, an Orange Beach resident and business owner who helped put together the beach clean-up. "I want him to know who we really are. We really do care."

Kaiser said he feels that the negative attention was not entirely warranted and he does not believe the city should stop The Wharf from booking Widespread Panic in the future. He doesn't hold a grudge though, and said the critical attitudes from city officials has inspired better behavior from the fans.

"Something that could have been negative, it has totally been turned into a positive," Kaiser said. "I'd like to pat (Kennon) on his back for that and thank him for lighting a fire under the rest of us.

"We might have all just come and enjoyed a show like Jimmy Buffett or The Beach Boys or Mullet Toss or Kenny Chesney or anything like that, but we're not going to leave a travesty like that on the beach. We're here to clean it up."