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Dear Friends and Fans, Some notes on the beginnings of Working on a Dream. During the last weeks of mixing Magic, we recorded a song called "What Love Can Do." It was sort of a "love in the time of Bush" meditation. It was a great track but felt more like a first song of new record rather than something that would fit on Magic. So our producer Brendan O'Brien said, "Hey, let's make another one right now!" I thought, no, I haven't done that since my first two records came out in the same year. And usually I don't write that quickly. But that night I went back to my hotel in Atlanta and over the next week, I wrote several songs ("This Life," "My Lucky Day," "Life Itself," along with "Good Eye" and "Tomorrow Never Knows") that formed the beginnings of our new album. Excited by the sounds we made on Magic I found there was more than enough fuel for the fire to keep going. Brendan and I demo'd these songs before we left the studio and agreed we'd somehow find time during the touring year to get this record made. Over the past 10 years with Brendan, our ability to get records done and to work on a variety of projects at the same time (Yes, we can multi-task!) has allowed us to get a steadier stream of our best music out to our fans. This is something I've always wanted to do. We found time to book sessions, get the band while it was hot off the road, write and record a new record, while giving our audience what I hope was some of the best E Street shows we've ever done. We're excited about you hearing this music and I just wanted to drop a line about how it all started. Have a great holiday and we'll see you in the New Year! 
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN'S "THE WRESTLER" -- HEAR IT NOW!
BE A PART OF THE LIVE AUDIENCE AT BRUCE'S SUPER BOWL APPEARANCE
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN NOMINATED FOR TWO GRAMMY AWARDS
"WORKING ON A DREAM" SET FOR JANUARY 27 RELEASE
N.F.L. SCORES DEBUT OF BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN SONG
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN'S COMMENTS FROM THE STAGE AT CLEVELAND'S VOTE FOR CHANGE RALLY
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E STREET BAND
THANKS AT TOUR'S END See the SET LISTS for tonight's show and the rest of the tour on the brucespringsteen.net set list page.
Columbia Records has released Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's 'Magic Tour Highlights' via all digital download stores, including the iTunes Store. The release will consist of four audio tracks with four accompanying videos, all recorded live in concert during the 'Magic' tour. Back in the day when I was a fixture on the Asbury Park boardwalk, I'd often stop and talk to Madam Marie as she sat on her folding chair outside the Temple of Knowledge. I'd sit across from her on the metal guard rail bordering the beach, and watched as she led the day trippers into the small back room where she would unlock a few of the mysteries of their future. She always told me mine looked pretty good - she was right. The world has lost enough mystery as it is - we need our fortunetellers. We send our condolences out to her family who've carried on her tradition. Over here on E Street, we will miss her. --Bruce Springsteen Obituary from the Asbury Park Press. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E STREET BAND END 2007-08 RUN WITH ADDED US DATES IN AUGUSTBruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will wrap up their 2007-08 series of concerts with twelve US dates, seven of which are newly announced. By the last show in Milwaukee on August 30, Springsteen and the band will have performed 100 concerts for over two million fans. Springsteen and the E Street Band are currently on tour in Europe and are earning accolades for their stellar performances. In a five-star review (out of five), London's Sunday Telegraph raved, "Bruce proves music can save your soul." The Observer called a London show "a performance of blood, sweat and tears." In another five-star review (out of five), Financial Times of London dubbed the concert "masterly, memorable and utterly exhilarating." The Daily Mail testified, "as good a show as I've ever seen." Bruce Springsteen's twenty-third album 'Magic' was released October 2 on Columbia Records and debuted at number one on Billboard's Top 200 Albums Chart. Rolling Stone awarded the album five stars, saying, "A firm beat, some Telecaster sting and the robust peal of Clarence Clemons' saxophone can still tell you more about the human condition than a thousand op-ed words." 'Magic' has been certified triple Platinum in Norway; double Platinum in Ireland and Sweden; Platinum in the United States, Czech Republic, Denmark, Italy, Spain, and Canada; and Gold in the UK, Austria, Belgium, Germany, The Netherlands, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E STREET BAND US TOUR DATES
BRUCE OFFERS TRIBUTE TO TIM RUSSERT IN CARDIFF From the stage at Cardiff Millennium Stadium: Saturday June 14. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band blew open London's massive Emirates Stadium with a couple of exciting shows. Two tour premieres the second night: "Downbound Train" and "I'm On Fire", both from the Born In The U.S.A. album. BRUCE'S SPEECH AT THE NEW JERSEY HALL OF FAMEBruce Springsteen was inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame on May 4. Here's a transcript of his speech: When I first got the letter I was to be inducted into the New Jersey Hall of Fame I was a little suspicious. New Jersey Hall of Fame? Does New York have a hall of fame? Does Connecticut have a hall of fame? I mean, maybe they don't think they need one. But then I ran through the list of names: Albert Einstein, Bruce Springsteen... my mother's going to like that. She's here tonight. It's her birthday and it's the only time she's going to hear those two names mentioned in the same sentence, so I'm going to enjoy it. When I was recording my first album, the record company spent a lot of money taking pictures of me in New York City. But...something didn't feel quite right. So I was walking down the boardwalk one day, stopped at a souvenir stand and bought a postcard that said "Greetings from Asbury Park." I remember thinking, "yeah, that's me." With the exception of a few half years in California, my family and I have raised our kids here. We have a big Italian-Irish family. I found my own Jersey girl right here in Asbury Park. I've always found it deeply resonant holding the hands of my kids on the same streets where my mom held my hand, swimming in the same ocean and taking them to visit the same beaches I did as a child. It was also a place that really protected me. It's been very nurturing. I could take my kids down to Freehold, throw them up on my shoulders and walk along the street with thousands of other people on Kruise Night with everybody just going, "hey Bruce...." That was something that meant a lot to me, the ability to just go about my life. I really appreciated that. You get a little older and when one of those crisp fall days come along in September and October, my friends and I slip into the cool water of the Atlantic Ocean. We take note that there are a few less of us as each year passes. But the thing about being in one place your whole life is that they're all still around you in the water. I look towards the shore and I see my two sons and my daughter pushing their way through the waves. And on the beach there's a whole batch of new little kids running away from the crashing surf like time itself. That's what New Jersey is for me. It's a repository of my time on earth. My memory, the music I've made, my friendships, my life... it's all buried here in a box somewhere in the sand down along the Central Jersey coast. I can't imagine having it any other way. So let me finish with a Garden State benediction. Rise up my fellow New Jerseyans, for we are all members of a confused but noble race. We, of the state that will never get any respect. We, who bear the coolness of the forever uncool. The chip on our shoulders of those with forever something to prove. And even with this wonderful Hall of Fame, we know that there's another bad Jersey joke coming just around the corner. But fear not. This is not our curse. It is our blessing. For this is what imbues us with our fighting spirit. That we may salute the world forever with the Jersey state bird, and that the fumes from our great northern industrial area to the ocean breezes of Cape May fill us with the raw hunger, the naked ambition and the desire not just to do our best, but to stick it in your face. Theory of relativity anybody? How about some electric light with your day? Or maybe a spin to the moon and back? And that is why our fellow Americans in the other 49 states know, when the announcer says "and now in this corner, from New Jersey...." they better keep their hands up and their heads down, because when that bell rings, we're coming out swinging. God Bless the Garden State.
DANNY FEDERICI
"Danny and I worked together for 40 years - he was the most wonderfully fluid
keyboard player and a pure natural musician. I loved him very much...we
grew up together." Danny Federici, for 40 years the E Street Band's organist and keyboard player, died this afternoon, April 17, 2008 at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City after a three year battle with melanoma. The Federici family and the E Street family request that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to the Danny Federici Melanoma Fund.
This eulogy was delivered by Bruce Springsteen at Danny's funeral on April 21 in Red Bank, New Jersey: FAREWELL TO DANNYLet me start with the stories. Back in the days of miracles, the frontier days when "Mad Dog" Lopez and his temper struck fear into the band, small club owners, innocent civilians and all women, children and small animals. Back in the days when you could still sign your life away on the hood of a parked car in New York City. Back shortly after a young red-headed accordionist struck gold on the Ted Mack Amateur Hour and he and his mama were sent to Switzerland to show them how it's really done. Back before beach bums were featured on the cover of Time magazine. I'm talking about back when the E Street Band was a communist organization! My pal, quiet, shy Dan Federici, was a one-man creator of some of the hairiest circumstances of our 40 year career... And that wasn't easy to do. He had "Mad Dog" Lopez to compete with... Danny just outlasted him. Maybe it was the "police riot" in Middletown, New Jersey. A show we were doing to raise bail money for "Mad Dog" Lopez who was in jail in Richmond, Virginia, for having an altercation with police officers who we'd aggravated by playing too long. Danny allegedly knocked over our huge Marshall stacks on some of Middletown's finest who had rushed the stage because we broke the law by...playing too long. As I stood there watching, several police oficers crawled out from underneath the speaker cabinets and rushed away to seek medical attention. Another nice young officer stood in front of me onstage waving his nightstick, poking and calling me nasty names. I looked over to see Danny with a beefy police officer pulling on one arm while Flo Federici, his first wife, pulled on the other, assisting her man in resisting arrest. A kid leapt from the audience onto the stage, momentarily distracting the beefy officer with the insults of the day. Forever thereafter, "Phantom" Dan Federici slipped into the crowd and disappeared. A warrant out for his arrest and one month on the lam later, he still hadn't been brought to justice. We hid him in various places but now we had a problem. We had a show coming at Monmouth College. We needed the money and we had to do the gig. We tried a replacement but it didn't work out. So Danny, to all of our admiration, stepped up and said he'd risk his freedom, take the chance and play. Show night. 2,000 screaming fans in the Monmouth College gym. We had it worked out so Danny would not appear onstage until the moment we started playing. We figured the police who were there to arrest him wouldn't do so onstage during the show and risk starting another riot. Let me set the scene for you. Danny is hiding, hunkered down in the backseat of a car in the parking lot. At five minutes to eight, our scheduled start time, I go out to whisk him in. I tap on the window. "Danny, come on, it's time." I hear back, "I'm not going." Me: "What do you mean you're not going?" Danny: "The cops are on the roof of the gym. I've seen them and they're going to nail me the minute I step out of this car." As I open the door, I realize that Danny has been smoking a little something and had grown rather paranoid. I said, "Dan, there are no cops on the roof." He says, "Yes, I saw them, I tell you. I'm not coming in." So I used a procedure I'd call on often over the next forty years in dealing with my old pal's concerns. I threatened him...and cajoled. Finally, out he came. Across the parking lot and into the gym we swept for a rapturous concert during which we laughted like thieves at our excellent dodge of the local cops. At the end of the evening, during the last song, I pulled the entire crowd up onto the stage and Danny slipped into the audience and out the front door. Once again, "Phantom" Dan had made his exit. (I still get the occasional card from the old Chief of Police of Middletown wishing us well. Our histories are forever intertwined.) And that, my friends, was only the beginning. There was the time Danny quit the band during a rough period at Max's Kansas City, explaining to me that he was leaving to fix televisions. I asked him to think about that and come back later. Or Danny, in the band rental car, bouncing off several parked cars after a night of entertainment, smashing out the windshield with his head but saved from severe injury by the huge hard cowboy hat he bought in Texas on our last Western swing. Or Danny, leaving a large marijuana plant on the front seat of his car in a tow away zone. The car was promptly towed. He said, "Bruce, I'm going to go down and report that it was stolen." I said, "I'm not sure that's a good idea." Down he went and straight into the slammer without passing go. Or Danny, the only member of the E Street Band to be physically thrown out of the Stone Pony. Considering all the money we made them, that wasn't easy to do. Or Danny receiving and surviving a "cautionary assault" from an enraged but restrained "Big Man" Clarence Clemons while they were living together and Danny finally drove the "Big Man" over the big top. Or Danny assisting me in removing my foot from his stereo speaker after being the only band member ever to drive me into a violent rage. And through it all, Danny played his beautiful, soulful B3 organ for me and our love grew. And continued to grow. Life is funny like that. He was my homeboy, and great, and for that you make considerations... And he was much more tolerant of my failures than I was of his. When Danny wasn't causing chaos, he was a sweet, talented, unassuming, unpretentious good-hearted guy who simply had an unchecked ability to make good fortune and things in general go fabulously wrong. But beyond all of that, he also had a mountain of the right stuff. He had the heart and soul of an engineer. He learned to fly. He was always up on the latest technology and would explain it to you patiently and in enormous detail. He was always "souping" something up, his car, his stereo, his B3. When Patti joined the band, he was the most welcoming, thoughtful, kindest friend to the first woman entering our "boys club." He loved his kids, always bragging about Jason, Harley, and Madison, and he loved his wife Maya for the new things she brought into his life. And then there was his artistry. He was the most intuitive player I've ever seen. His style was slippery and fluid, drawn to the spaces the other musicians in the E Street Band left. He wasn't an assertive player, he was a complementary player. A true accompanist. He naturally supplied the glue that bound the band's sound together. In doing so, he created for himself a very specific style. When you hear Dan Federici, you don't hear a blanket of sound, you hear a riff, packed with energy, flying above everything else for a few moments and then gone back in the track. "Phantom" Dan Federici. Now you hear him, now you don't. Offstage, Danny couldn't recite a lyric or a chord progression for one of my songs. Onstage, his ears opened up. He listened, he felt, he played, finding the perfect hole and placement for a chord or a flurry of notes. This style created a tremendous feeling of spontaneity in our ensemble playing. In the studio, if I wanted to loosen up the track we were recording, I'd put Danny on it and not tell him what to play. I'd just set him loose. He brought with him the sound of the carnival, the amusements, the boardwalk, the beach, the geography of our youth and the heart and soul of the birthplace of the E Street Band. Then we grew up. Very slowly. We stood together through a lot of trials and tribulations. Danny's response to a mistake onstage, hard times, catastrophic events was usually a shrug and a smile. Sort of an "I am but one man in a raging sea, but I'm still afloat. And we're all still here." I watched Danny fight and conquer some tough addictions. I watched him struggle to put his life together and in the last decade when the band reunited, thrive on sitting in his seat behind that big B3, filled with life and, yes, a new maturity, passion for his job, his family and his home in the brother and sisterhood of our band. Finally, I watched him fight his cancer without complaint and with great courage and spirit. When I asked him how things looked, he just said, "what are you going to do? I'm looking forward to tomorrow." Danny, the sunny side up fatalist. He never gave up right to the end. A few weeks back we ended up onstage in Indianapolis for what would be the last time. Before we went on I asked him what he wanted to play and he said, "Sandy." He wanted to strap on the accordion and revisit the boardwalk of our youth during the summer nights when we'd walk along the boards with all the time in the world. So what if we just smashed into three parked cars, it's a beautiful night! So what if we're on the lam from the entire Middletown police department, let's go take a swim! He wanted to play once more the song that is of course about the end of something wonderful and the beginning of something unknown and new. Let's go back to the days of miracles. Pete Townshend said, "a rock and roll band is a crazy thing. You meet some people when you're a kid and unlike any other occupation in the whole world, you're stuck with them your whole life no matter who they are or what crazy things they do." If we didn't play together, the E Street Band at this point would probably not know one another. We wouldn't be in this room together. But we do... We do play together. And every night at 8 p.m., we walk out on stage together and that, my friends, is a place where miracles occur...old and new miracles. And those you are with, in the presence of miracles, you never forget. Life does not separate you. Time does not separate you. Animosities do not separate you. Death does not separate you. Those you are with who create miracles for you, like Danny did for me every night, you are honored to be amongst. Of course we all grow up and we know "it's only rock and roll"...but it's not. After a lifetime of watching a man perform his miracle for you, night after night, it feels an awful lot like love. So today, making another one of his mysterious exits, we say farewell to Danny, "Phantom" Dan, Federici. Father, husband, my brother, my friend, my mystery, my thorn, my rose, my keyboard player, my miracle man and lifelong member in good standing of the house rockin', pants droppin', earth shockin', hard rockin', booty shakin', love makin', heart breakin', soul cryin'... and, yes, death defyin' legendary E Street Band.
VIDEO: A TRIBUTE TO DANNY View video clip.
VIDEO: SACRAMENTO: SPIRIT IN THE NIGHT
VIDEO: COLUMBUS: YOU'LL BE COMIN' DOWN
VIDEO: VANCOUVER: TRAPPED
VIDEO: SEATTLE: POINT BLANK
VIDEO: PORTLAND: FOR YOU
VIDEO: ST. PAUL: DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN
VIDEO: NASSAU: INCIDENT ON 57TH STREET
VIDEO: BUFFALO: DETROIT MEDLEY
VIDEO: HARTFORD: SO YOUNG AND IN LOVE
VIDEO: MONTREAL: BECAUSE THE NIGHT
NEW BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN GEAR, LITHOGRAPHS, AND CONCERT MERCHANDISE NOW AVAILABLE
ROLLING STONE ROCKED ON LONG ISLAND
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN INTERVIEWED ON NPR
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E STREET BAND 2008 TOUR DATES
REMEMBERING TERRY MAGOVERN
NEW BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN GEAR AND CONCERT MERCHANDISE NOW AVAILABLE |
ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI Something's Happening Here By Jon Phillips I admit it, the St. Louis show snuck up on me. To be sure, it started with a bang -- "Then She Kissed Me" sounded just terrific. It brought the Spector sound into the 21st century, with each brick in the E Street wall of sound clearly delineated, powerful, great. And Bruce sold it -- a song I'd never heard sung passionately, was. It was a solid opening run, but my favorite shows are ones where Springsteen touches on all his eras. So I started to drift a little bit when, after "Adam" and "Spirit," the '70s run continued through the sign portion of the show. ("For You" ... not my thing. There, I said it.) But "Mountain of Love" brought back the joy and "Backstreets" the fire. It wasn't until the ending of "Gypsy Biker" -- a song I've always appreciated more than loved -- that it dawned on me that something really special was happening. The battling guitars were blistering, Steve perhaps playing the best he has the whole tour. And it was on up from there: the "Not Fade Away" intro to "She's the One," a downright spritely "Livin' in the Future," and a never-thought-I'd-get-to-hear-it-live "Drive All Night." And then the show just flat out rocked all the way to the end. So what made St. Louis so special? Sure, there were three Born to Run epics as well as the title track, five oldies, and enough Magic songs to remind you which tour it was. In the end, though, it was Bruce's mood: the hard stuff burned with passion, and the fun stuff couldn't have been more fun. There are nights when he's clearly enjoying himself more then others, and this was one, even more undeniable during encores, where he was both winging it and shaping what was to be the pinnacle of the show. The folks who had been waving the "Jungleland" sign all night behind the stage got the heads-up during "Girls in Their Summer Clothes" that they'd be up next. Okay, so if "Jungleland" is next, that'll take up enough of the encore that the show's almost over, right? Wait, "Detroit Medley"? Wow. Okay, we must be done soon. But even as "Born to Run" seemed to wind the show up, Bruce turned to Steve and said "Dancing in the Dark" loud enough for those in the pit to hear it. Steve shook his head -- was he done for the night or just sick of the song? -- but Bruce nodded firmly and off they went. And there were still four songs ("Litle Queenie"!) to go after that. Kudos to the crowd, too. It's never easy to say how truly great an audience is, because you're usually basing that on the 20 people near you. But after Bruce's extended exhortation during "Mary's Place" that he needed the crowd to take the band "there," the crowd not only did their part but, even more importantly, shut up when they needed to. I counted only one whistle and only one bozo yell during "Drive All Night." That kind of respect gets you the extended encore, I think. So, add one more piece of evidence to the rule that you don't want to miss the penultimate show on a tour. One for the ages. Busted Open in St. Louis By Ray Phillips As a relative new Springsteen fan, I have heard about the legendary shows. You know, the "you shoulda been there" shows. Well, you shoulda been in St. Louis on Saturday night. It was a show that should be talked about for a long time. "Were you in St. Louis in '08?" I was, and it was a mind blowing night of great rock 'n' roll. The encore alone was worth the price of admission. I don't know how long I have waited to get "Detroit Medley," but to get "Jungleland," "Dancing," "Thunder Road," "Twist and Shout" and "Little Queenie," in the same stretch as well? Whew! Not that the encore was it. Opening with "Then She Kissed Me" said this is going to be interesting, but maybe the real eye opener (or should I say ear opener) was "Mountain of Love." The sound of the E Street Band was phenomenal -- it was big, and full, and made me think, "This is one hell of a band!" It goes on. A great performance of "Backsteets." "Gypsy Biker" back in after a conspicuous absence -- along with "Long Walk Home," "Gypsy" represents, to me, the best of Magic. However, the highlight of the opening set, was "Drive All Night." This was as soulful a version of this as I have heard, and Bruce's richer, more mature voice made this sound so much better than the studio version. I can't tell you when I have enjoyed three-and-a-quarter hours more. Forrest Gump's box of chocolates was busted wide open in St. Louis Saturday night. My mouth still hurts from grinning so long and so hard. NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE Jersey comes to Tennessee By Ray Phillips Nashville put away its cowboy boots and twang for a night, and the "The Man from New Jersey" rode into the capital of country music with his motorcycle boots and his brand of Country Music -- U.S.A. style. No hats, white or black, here (whoops, forgot about Clarence). Okay, there were a couple of nods to country music. A surprise rendition of the old Elvis Presley, Sun Records tune "Good Rockin' Tonight" (by request) and an-all-too-short "I Walk the Line." Just Nils and Bruce on the latter, a soulful intro to "I'm on Fire," but I'm still wishing for more. As someone who remembers pre-Elvis rock 'n' roll, it continues to annoy me that country music claims him as its own. This was my first show since Greensboro in April, and it is amazing how the tour has evolved into a three-hour jam session. Sure, a good portion of the show continues to be structured, but there is a lot of "Okay, what should we play next?" From a cohesive setlist with minor changes to Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. To be honest, I'm not sure which I enjoy more, but it is hard to beat the surprises. I remember seeing Bruce grab the "Rosalita Please" sign at the Rochester show and thinking "Hey, that's kinda cool." Little did I know where that was going to lead.
"Growin' Up" is a particular favorite of mine, but the father/son story Bruce inserted made it particularly special. As a father who has some of the attributes of Bruce's, I know where his father was coming from -- and apparently, with a "Here's to you, Pop," Bruce does also. This show had a little of everything. From basic, simple, three-chord rock 'n' roll to blow-me-away guitar work by Nils, Bruce and Steve on "Youngstown" and "Murder Inc." A true rarity in "Held Up Without a Gun," and a fun cover of "I Fought the Law." Any downers? Yeah, I guess, but as Frank would say, "too few to mention." And now on to St. Louis. Okay, Forrest, let's see what we're gonna get!
HERSHEY, PENNSYLVANIA Performance High By Magnus Lauglo Hersheypark Stadium was a curious choice for a Springsteen show, but hopes were high for the last East Coast performance of the tour. Bruce and the band showed no signs of letting up, even on their fourth show in five days; and while the intimate energy of Richmond wasn't quite captured in the large, open air venue, the sound quality had been much improved from the previous night. If Richmond felt almost like a bar band show in a large setting, this had more the feel of a traditional stadium show. Bruce said very little from the stage, and focused on keeping the audience's attention by quite simply rocking as hard as he could for three hours and ten minutes. With only four more dates left, the Magic tour is set to end on a real performance high for the band. At Giants Stadium there seemed to be dozens of request signs, but at Hershey that number had grown to hundreds. This plethora of signs is likely to be a passing fad, but for now it brings a fresh and fun new element to the summertime shows. Bruce pulled out far more signs from the crowd than he could have possibly all played, and let Steve chose a couple. The E Street Band's confidence in tackling these nightly curveballs really demonstrates what Bruce means when he says that the band is "playing better than ever before." After Bruce showed them "Boom Boom" scrawled on a piece of cardboard, Nils spent a couple of seconds explaining the song to Charlie, and moments later the band charged into it, as tight as could be. You'd never have thought the band probably hasn't touched this song in twenty years. Later requests included a welcome return of "Reason to Believe," for the first time since London in May. After "Working on the Highway," Bruce started playing a reggae riff that sounded like something out of the Seeger Sessions tour, and then lead the band through a slowed-down, edgy version of "Part Man, Part Monkey," adding a stinging guitar solo. This Tunnel tour staple wasn't a huge crowd-pleaser, but it certainly made my night; and it demonstrated that in theory at least, no songs were off-limits.
The encore may have been the best part of the whole show, brimming with Born to Run cuts and two monster covers. In a final curveball surprise to end the night, Joe Grushecky and his son Johnny joined the band to close the show with a powerful "Gloria." It was quite appropriate for Joe's son to be onstage together with all the grizzled veterans -- I've seen more young fans at the recent shows than I have at any U.S. tour in the past ten years. Whether by publicly allying himself with Democratic politicians, or by being name-checked by hip, young, up-and-coming bands, or just the cyclical nature of things, Bruce is finally starting to attract a sizeable young following again on this side of the Atlantic. It's about time!
RICHMOND, VIRGINIA Only here for fun By Magnus Lauglo Since Bruce first called out, "Is there anyone alive out there?" last fall, these concerts have evolved beyond recognition. While much of the Magic material has left the set, Bruce is pulling more tricks out of his hat than ever before. The tour is ending in a grandiose fashion, with a string of upbeat, high-energy, massively sprawling shows. They highlight not only the classic E Street Band repertoire, but also the astonishing ability of this top-notch rock 'n' roll outfit to pull out any number of unexpected songs from their past, and to perform them to perfection. The show is unpredictable, spontaneous, loose (but never sloppy), summertime fun -- a sort of hybrid of the 1999-2000 Reunion tour, the 2002-2003 Rising tour, and the early Magic tour all in one. But did anyone dare to believe Bruce would still be playing three-hour shows by the time he was pushing sixty? Compared to the intense spring shows, the current set focuses a little more on material more recognizable to the average fan, rather than Tracks gems and other obscurities. Bruce has figured out which songs make for the really strong openings. "Tenth Ave Freeze-out," which was given the honors at the Richmond Coliseum, has him pacing back and forth along the stage, exhorting the crowd to sing along, before he has even sung a word himself. The sentiment remained throughout the whole show -- those songs that have been granted places in the set every night are for the most part audience participation numbers that get as many as possible of the fans in the nosebleed seats up and rocking. And finally, the essential ingredient of insanity is back in the encores. The big news of the Richmond show, hands-down, was the encore opener, "Crush on You," played by request for the first time since early on the River tour in 1980. Bruce himself was laughingly astounded that someone would request "the worst song we ever put on a record." Often maligned as one of the songs that should have been left off The River, this fun little rock 'n' roll number was played full tilt with a strong vocal. And can anyone seriously say that the lyrics of this River "throwaway" are not in fact cleverer (in a Chuck Berry sort of way) than those of "Quarter to Three," the much-loved cover raveup that followed? Perhaps this should be played again sometime before another 28 years pass? The E Street Band has been described as the "best bar band on a big stage," and this probably applies more now than ever before. Being the first place outside of the Jersey Shore where Bruce could rely on playing to a large crowd in the early '70s, Richmond clearly holds a special place in Bruce's heart, and he made sure to bring his A game. He also brought up an old bandmate from those days, Richmond's Robbin Thompson, to share the love (and the vocals) on the show-closing "Twist and Shout."
CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA Class Act By Linda W. Weber I'm still in total awe after seeing Springsteen and the fabulous E Street Band last night in North Charleston. I've been a huge fan for years, but this was my first opportunity to see The Boss live. My husband, 13 year-old-daughter and I haven't come down yet from the great, great rock 'n' roll, the enormous talent of the band, and the comfortable rapport Bruce had with the audience. From taking requests on posters to singing with several children to expressing his views on current social issues to really showing the audience how appreciative he was, he was a total class act all night long. My husband and I were very happy to introduce our daughter to his music and his legendary reputation as a solid rocker without pretense or drama. My hope is that Bruce will come back down South again soon! We'll be waiting... Post-Magic By Bill Horton The arena was small by Bruce standards (capacity listed at 13,295), and as a result, loud by Bruce standards. Even by Bruce-in-Europe standards. Indeed, Bruce gave an end-of-show shout out to one of the "best crowds in the United States." Even with four songs from Magic played each of the last two nights, given the overall setlist it is hard to consider this leg a continuation of the Magic tour. While the party atmosphere can be enjoyable in its own right -- and Charleston, in particular, was a party -- it is hard to remember the last time that Bruce toured without a story to tell. The absence of that story is somewhat disappointing. Instead we get signs... signs... everywhere a sign. They ranged from the obvious ("Hungry Heart," "No Surrender," "Backstreets," "Rosalita"), to the conceivable ("Brilliant Disguise"), to the are you f-ing kidding me? ("Johnny Bye Bye," "Good Rockin' Tonight," "I Fought The Law, "The Price You Pay," "Drift Away"). The result was a by-request foursome of "Light of Day," "Growin' Up," "Janey Don't You Lose Heart" and the ever-popular "Play Whatever You Want" -- which in Bruce's case proved to be "No Surrender." To the extent that the sign routine results in a true rarity (e.g. "You Can't Sit Down" in Jacksonville) I am all for it. Tonight's biggest surprise -- "Double Shot (of My Baby's Love)" wasn't a product of sign-mania, as it actually opened the show. "Double Shot," introduced as "beach music" by Bruce, was a #17 hit for Greenwood, South Carolina's Swingin' Medallions in 1966. You Gotta Have a Sign By David Gleeson I had the good fortune to be at the fine Charleston show on Saturday night. More importantly, my wife and I had the good fortune to be staying in the same hotel as Bruce and the band. Late Saturday afternoon I met Nils, Max, Roy and Charlie while waiting to see if Bruce would show up. At approximately 4:45 the elevator door opened and out stepped Bruce's bodyguard, followed by the man himself. Bruce stopped and signed, talked, took photos with kids and families while I waited toward the end of the line. Finally, he was in front of me. I told him what a thrill it was to meet him and that I had been following him around since February of 1977 -- and I asked if I could put in a plug for "Double Shot (Of My Baby's Love)." He leaned back toward me and said, "What?" I said, "You're in the home of Carolina beach music, and I wanted to put in a plug for "Double Shot." He stroked the hair below his lower lip for a few seconds and said as he looked at me, "It's not impossible." Then he said, "You gotta have a sign." I said, "Belichick didn't have a sign in Foxboro two weeks ago..." and he looked at me again and said, "You gotta have a sign." So, my wife and I stopped at Harris Teeter on the way to the show and made a sign. As it turns out I didn't need it because, of course, he opened with "Double Shot." I would like to think my brief conversation with Bruce played a small part in his decision. JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA The Kids are Alright By Lowell D. Kern Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band moved back inside to arenas after playing stadium shows in Europe, New Jersey and Boston over the last few months, kicking off this final leg of the Magic tour at Jacksonville's Veteran's Memorial Arena on Friday night. While he has the ability to cut a stadium down to size better than almost any other performer, Bruce recognizes that the fans at a stadium show are more casual, less committed fans than the usual rabid group that can be found in arenas. Thus, the setlists at stadium shows tend to emphasize the pop hits more than some of the more valuable (to me) nuggets in the catalog. As a result, I was hopeful that the return to arenas would bring about a change in the focus of the setlists. And because of that, I felt that the Jacksonville show got off to an inauspicious start, as the first five songs would have been a good opening for less-fervent fans. But the show seemed to turn on the next song, when Bruce spotted a sign behind the stage for the ultra-rare cover, "You Can't Sit Down." Continuing on with the audience sign requests, the question marks on the setlist were filled in with "Does This Bus Stop," "Candy's Room," and "Loose Ends" - a far cry from the radio friendly songs that preceded them. The next trio of songs -- "Youngstown," "Murder Inc.," and "She's the One" -- I'll never tire of, no matter how often and where they are played. But knowing what was likely to come next, I was prepared to say that the middle seven songs of the set were as good as it was going to get. I will repeatedly tell anyone who asks (and even those who don't) that it's not the setlists that matter, it's the performances. But let's face it, no matter how well certain songs are played, if you've heard them too many times or if the songs themselves become excuses for sing-alongs or for Preacher Bruce to make an appearance, they can get tiresome. So no matter how well they were played, "Livin' in the Future" and "Mary's Place" dampened my enthusiasm again. But, just as "You Can't Sit Down" rescued what started out as a pedestrian set, "Back in Your Arms" completely wiped out any dissatisfaction I may have been feeling. Yes, Preacher Bruce reappeared mid-song (backed by the Congregation of Clarence egging him on), and I would have preferred that they let the song speak for itself. But standing there, holding on to my girlfriend for dear life as if she'd disappear if I let go, it was a pretty perfect moment. Then, once again, we were at a juncture where the set list was locked into place for the closing four-pack. (Whatever happened to the beautiful "Devil's Arcade"?). But now it was okay. It didn't matter that I've seen Bruce play "The Rising" around 100 times. It didn't matter that the encores included "Waitin' on a Sunny Day" and "Glory Days." I was satisfied with the show I had seen. But something else happened during the last portion of the show and the encores that changed my perspective. There were three 20-somethings standing in front of us, a little to our right. I'd noticed them a couple of times during the show, in the sense that you're aware of who's standing around you. But after reaching that blissed out feeling after "Back in Your Arms," I started realizing something. These kids -- and since I'd already starting following Bruce around before these guys were born, I feel comfortable calling them "kids" -- were having the time of their lives. The two guys were as pumped up as, well, as I remember being way back before I turned jaded. The girl that was with them, decked out in what would have made a '70s punk proud, was dancing and singing along. And it reminded me, despite my cynicism, that, to borrow from our cousins, there's nothing like a Bruce Springsteen concert. I don't think I'll ever react to "Out in the Street" the way I reacted to "Back in Your Arms." I'll always prefer the four-minute "Mary's Place" to the 14-minute "Mary's Place." I'll keep hoping the crowd will sing louder on "Long Walk Home" than they do on "Sunny Day." And I don't think I'll ever like "Bobby Jean." But when I'm standing in the back of the pit next time around and I'm thinking to myself, "'Hungry Heart' again?" I'm going to try and remind myself of the three kids in Jacksonville (and a couple of other young'uns I've met on this tour) and how much fun they'd be having singing along. And that should put a smile on my face. FOXBORO, MASSACHUSETTS Five years later... By A.H. I'm always nervous about stadium shows. Unless I'm on the field, I feel like I'll be watching a DVD on the JumboTron. But I shouldn't have worried. Saturday night's Gillette Stadium show was five years to the day after Bruce's last Gillette appearance (I was there for both of those performances, too), with an absolutely killer setlist. Rain delayed the start until some time after 9, but Bruce played until past midnight. I think everyone in the stadium knew we would get "Summertime Blues," and after the torrential downpour at about 8:00 ("torrential downpour" doesn't even begin to describe it, by the way; it was more like a waterfall moving sideways), we also expected "Who'll Stop the Rain". Bruce delivered both. "Spirit in the Night" was flawless. Nils once again turned "Tunnel of Love" into a guitar anthem (as he did on night one in Boston in November) and drew a roar from the crowd. Bruce pulled request signs from the crowd and picked "Little Latin Lupe Lu," mentioning that he hadn't played it in a long, long time, and then turning over the sign to reveal that the signmaker had very helpfully included the lyrics on the back. Then: "Does this Bus Stop at 82nd Street?," the sign complete with a drawing of a school bus. That one was rollicking and fun, but it seemed like only the purists were into it. (On a side note, the novice quotient seemed pretty high, at least anecdotally: I was wearing my Stone Pony 30th anniversary T-shirt and a guy behind me in line at the men's room asked what the Stone Pony was.) "Hungry Heart" also came by request and was a sing-along. Bruce didn't just wave the mic at the crowd; he leaned down into small groups and had a couple of quartets singing the chorus. "Who'll Stop the Rain" was spectacular, dedicated to "the Coach." (Had to be for Bill Belichick, given the venue.) "Youngstown" had another blistering guitar solo from Nils, which drew a sustained ovation, louder than the one he received for "Tunnel." The band broke out of "Youngstown" directly into "Murder Incorporated," where Nils again shined on the guitar, but Bruce and Steve were equally spectacular. "She's the One" was as good as I've ever heard it, and it had my almost-15-year-old son, making his Springsteen concert debut, Bo Diddley-ing next to me when he thought I wasn't watching. "Mary's Place" had Bruce in full revival-preacher mode. "Last to Die" was particularly angry. More requests in the encores, including "the rarely played and even more rarely requested" "I'm Goin' Down." My first time hearing it live, and it was a blast. Started out with just Bruce and an electric guitar, with the full band joining in for the second verse. The highlight of the night came as a result of this sign-request: "It's my birthday (yesterday), please play 'Jungleland'." Clarence's sax solo was, in a word, rapturous. Then a fist-pumping "Born to Run" into a light, loose, fun-filled three-pack of "Glory Days," "Dancing in the Dark" and "American Land," followed by "one more fairy-tale," a raucous, riotous "Rosalita." There were a few sound glitches because of the sheer size of the venue, but as for the show itself, a great ride.
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY True Romance By Biba Milioto For several years now, I've tried to explain to my boyfriend how much Bruce Springsteen has taught me about romance. Luckily he got to see it and maybe understand a bit more after last night's show, the final night of the three-night homecoming stand. One of the highlights was a trip down memory lane and a bit of romantic rumination before Bruce performed a rare gem, Manfred Mann's "Pretty Flamingo," as a birthday present for Patti. Or maybe now he just thinks I'm really crazy -- because to an outsider, the wild antics and general party-time crazy atmosphere, the anticipation of the 50,000-strong crowd amped up by the late start time (a nasty wreck on the turnpike pushed the start back to nearly 9:30) could just seem like chaos. An absolutely stellar setlist, studded with more early songs than previous shows on the tour, makes this one of the most memorable shows I've seen. Bruce was on the loose, having fun, letting lucky girls in the audience kiss his cheek and collecting song-request posters from the crowd like a bookie taking bets. But back to the romance: the ribbon that runs through each song, each album, each live show, is an undisputable faith in romance that inspires me over and over again, each time I hear "Two Hearts," "Prove It All Night," even "Brilliant Disguise," which exposes the dark side of taking that leap into love. Am I the only one? Judging by the kissing, hand-holding and slow swaying of couples of all ages surrounding us last night, I think it's fair to say that fans everywhere are always looking for a little bit of romance when they show up, ticket in hand. Besides all that mushy stuff, if all you wanted was some serious rock 'n' roll... well, we got that, too. A marathon stream of "Cadillac Ranch," "Candy's Room," "Night," "Because the Night," and "She's the One" left not one single person in their seats. Bruce teased the audience after "American Land," fanning himself and complaining of the heat, Patti mouthing to him "I want to go home!" After much cajoling, screaming, and applauding, the band got it together to leave us with one of the requests pulled from the crowd, which read, "I'm in love with a Jersey Girl" -- back to that romance again! But that wasn't all. "We've got one more Jersey fairy tale for you," Bruce called out, as they ran head-on into a raucous "Rosalita" to wrap up the three-and-a-quarter-hour show, leaving everyone happy, exhausted, and ready to deal with whatever traffic mess was awaiting us as we left the parking lot. For Bruce, I'd drive all night if I had to.
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY Havin' a Party By Glenn Radecki The second night at Giants Stadium was clearly and completely a "party" night. After playing nothing off The River album on Sunday, the mood of the show was immediately set with "Out in the Street," and several subsequent rockers from that album included a sign request for "Sherry Darling." Bruce was clearly in a good mood, even playfully instructing the band to play "It's Hard to be a Saint in the City" in the key of C ("I know it's in 'A,' but we're gonna play it in 'C,'" he insisted). Night two's setlist kept the audience engaged throughout another marathon performance (approximately three hours and five minutes), with uptempo rocker after uptempo rocker and the band displaying their energy and physical prowess. Bruce was running across the stage from end to end consistently during the first half of the show, visiting each of the five platforms at the front of the stage that extend into the first few rows. Steve was particularly engaged throughout the night, and his spirited sharing of the vocals with Bruce on "Two Hearts" and "Held up Without a Gun" spilled over into the new material, as he and Bruce traded vocals during the vocal spotlight at the end of "Long Walk Home." Such was the energy in the building that the slower-tempo ultra-rarity "Drive All Night" was a welcome respite, even for those unaware that it was only the second E Street Band performance of the song in more than 25 years. Monday was clearly a night for family and friends, with Dave Bielanko of Marah and Jesse Malin joining Bruce on vocals and guitar (Bielanko even took a short solo) during "Twist and Shout," along with Garry's daughter, Springsteen's daughter and a contingent of her friends. Patti Scialfa's birthday is Tuesday, with Bruce leading the audience in a "Happy Birthday" serenade. In a touching (and thrilling) moment, Jay Weinberg took over the drum stool from his father to play on "Born to Run." Fans could see that after the song started, Max walked out to the ramp at the front of the stage to watch his son on the giant video screen. The Good Old Days By Anthony Fischetti There simply is no letup to these shows. As a Darkness tour vet, I grew up with the "anything could happen tonight" Springsteen concert mentality. That feeling as you walk into the venue had kind of fallen by the wayside the last few years, probably since '99-00 -- at least for me. Not anymore. I truly believe that the band is playing at its highest level, seriously approaching its craft and yet enjoying itself to an extent that I have not seen since the summer of '78. Springsteen has once again found a way to make enormadomes intimate (the sign gimmick works to perfection), and whatever sound technology they're using, at least at Giants Stadium, should be bottled. Loud, crisp, and powerful. Sunday and Monday nights were my ninth and tenth shows of this tour, and the band is now honed to a level not heretofore seen by me. I know it sounds crazy, but I had a better time last night than I did in a cozy 13,000 seat minor league hockey arena in Albany last November. The Nils somersault during the "Because the Night" solo was off the hook. This is the best version of "Badlands" I've ever seen. And the instrumental break after the opening harmonica in 'Promised Land' (whether planned or not -- he went back to the water tray, the band grooved for two measures, and then they picked it up again) worked to perfection. Hard for me to imagine these guys making any mistakes anymore. They sound and look that good right now -- the man and his band continue to amaze. And I'm not easily amazed. The symbiotic audience/performer circle is unbroken in a way it hasn't been, in my opinion, in many, many years -- since Born in the U.S.A. To quote Carly, "These are the good old days."
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY Fairytale of New Jersey By Glenn Radecki With only a week off from the last show of the European leg, it was clear from the beginning of the Sunday night performance at Giants Stadium that previous "first night in Jersey" shows -- with a weak performance (Arena, 2002) or a "standard setlist" (Arena, 1992; Stadium, 2003) -- were markedly different from what the audience would get this night. With the band in top form, performances were excellent from the inspired "true fairy tale to open the show," "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out," with Max playing the drum introduction as Bruce and Clarence made their way on stage, through the "true fairy tale to close the show," "Rosalita." Highlights in between included the guitar heroics of Nils on "Youngstown," paired a la the Reunion tour with "Murder Incorporated." At 30 songs and three hours and ten minutes, this first U.S. stadium show of the Magic tour matched, in both show length and number of songs, what the band did at the last stadium show in 2003. The unpredictable nature of the show at this point in the tour, complete with frequent granting of requests via signs from the front rows, was certainly on display at Giants Stadium. Audibles and requests provided some choice rarities, including "Growin' Up" and "Janey Don't You Lose Heart," but also slowed the momentum of the show: the natural pacing and flow of the setlist was disturbed frequently, leading to some very strange (and unfortunate) pairings of songs, including going from "Working on the Highway" immediately to "Tunnel of Love." The show could certainly be improved if Bruce was even just slightly more judicious with his selections of what request he choose and when he chooses to grant them. Also notable was the refreshing discovery that the tour has finally incorporated video production befitting the quality of the musical performance on stage. No offense is intended to the camera operators and director; at Bruce shows in the past -- especially during the stadium tour in 2003 -- the screens were just too small. For this tour, screens that allow for both horizontal and vertical shots with high definition clarity greatly added to the stadium production, on songs such as "Sprit in the Night," when the camera captured Bruce interacting with the crowd at the front of the pit, and "Tunnel of Love," when the screens featured giant images of Patti on the stage left screen and Bruce on the stage right screen as they harmonized together. BARCELONA, SPAIN And the crowd goes wild By Will Hoffman The final city on the European tour, with the first of two shows at Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium. It was a coolish night by Barcelona's standards -- a welcome change from the 35-degree (Celsius) heat in Madrid on Thursday night. The crowd were -- if possible! -- even more boisterous than the Madrilenas. This really added to the experience. Bruce clearly loves the Spanish crowd. He seems incredibly relaxed around them, and as always, he'd done his homework, speaking to the crowd in Spanish on several occasions. Spain really is one of the places to see the Boss. In terms of the experience, in my view, Barcelona is matched only by New Jersey (and perhaps Italy). The evening began with a drumroll as Bruce and Clarence came on stage, with the band then kicking into "No Surrender." Bruce was down on the lower section of stage, interacting with the audience, by the third song, "Out in the Street -- such is the power of the Spanish crowd. "Hungry Heart" and "Waitin' on a Sunny Day" got rare plays, with the crowd singing along from the very start of each. Amongst the many stand-outs were a funky "Summertime Blues," a powerful "Candy's Room," and "Backstreets" performed by request. Nils' solo in "Because the Night" was even better than usual, and came with a set of a dozen twirls. "Janey, Don't You Lose Heart" took the crowd by surprise, but it had them dancing before long. There was plenty of entertaining sexual tension between Bruce and Patti, particularly in "Tunnel of Love" and "Brilliant Disguise." The crowd noted this, and a special cheer went up when Bruce gave her a peck on the cheek at the end. The encore was an astonishing seven songs, including a moving "Jungleland" and the immensely popular "Glory Days." During "Born to Run," a set of four fans hopped onto each other's shoulders, much to the excitement of the crowd (and the Boss himself!). The concert came to an impressive conclusion with an extra-long "Twist and Shout," during which Bruce and Patti's children made a special appearance. Overall, an incredible concert. Though there were no big surprises, the sheer quality of the songs and the wild, "up for it" crowd made the night very special indeed.
MADRID, SPAIN My Love WIll Not Let You Down By Christian Steinle Although everything was in place for a great evening -- a sunny day, beautiful Spanish girls in their summer clothes, a great stadium, and nearly 60,000 people -- this wasn't one of my favorite concerts. I missed getting something special for Madrid. Okay, Bruce played "Brilliant Disguise," since Patti Scialfa is finally back on stage, but that wasn't the song I hoped for. But since this show, Bruce and the band have a new fan. It was my friend's first Springsteen concert, and for him it was an incredible evening -- the best concert he has ever seen, he says. For a non-Springsteenologist, the upside to the setlist was that most of the songs were well-known. Plus, the atmosphere was fantastic, we had a big, shouting crowd, and of course Bruce and the band in a great, playful mood. Now I'm back home in Germany, and I'm sad, because I'm sure Bruce will play two fantastic sets in Barcelona to close this leg. But friends of mine are getting married today, so I had to break off my Spanish tour -- for friends, what else can I do?
HELSINKI, FINLAND Christmas Comes Early This Year! By Mats Prost Finland is quite a new area for the E Streeters. Bruce hasn't been a regular guest here as he has since the mid-70s in the other Scandinavina countries. In fact, this was just the third show in Helsinki ever for the E Street Band, playing the same venue (the Olympic Stadium) they did on two consecutive days in 2003. So the Finns aren't quite as familar with Springsteen and his material as, say, the Swedes -- which meant that he had to put in a lot of hard work. But Bruce rose to the occasion and put in a solid show with quite a few treats for both die-hard fans and newcomers. "Night" was a good start to the evening's proceedings, but what really got the crowd on its feet was the second song, "Out in the Street." By this time Bruce was already down front, greeting audience members and working the 42,000 capacity crowd both up front and in the stands. He soon started his usual round of picking up signs, some big and some very small (one was a tiny, hand-written note). And what a nice selection the Finnish crowd got. The request part of the show had its usual moments of confusion in the band where Nils and Steve didn't know what guitar to play.... but usually two out of three were playing by the start of the song, and the next one joined in later on. During the intro to "Hungry Heart," where the crowd usually sings the first verse, Bruce brought a little girl up on the stage, 11-year-old Amy. A sign said this was her first-ever Springsteen concert. And what a surpise she got! Bruce took the girl for a short spin and then lifted her back in his arms into the audience. This was just too entertaing for the crowd to watch, so everybody stopped singing altogether! "Spirit in the Night" was a welcome choice for all of us more frequent concertgoers, followed by a seasonal trifecta: "Summertime Blues, "Sherry Darling" (for a nice sign with "Is this stadium big enough for her and you?" written on it), and "Sandy," presented as "Danny's favorite song." At this point Bruce mentioned to the crowd that he didn't know that Santa Claus was from Finland. "You really should promote that better!" This discussion of Santa's living quarters would come back around later on. "I'll Work for Your Love" was played by request (that tiny, tiny little note.) "Youngstown" was a scorcher, with Nils contributing some fine finger gymnastics. "Murder incorporated" didn't go down as well with the crowd but saw Little Steven and Bruce in a guitar duel, playing their socks off. From here on the concert took a slight nosedive. "Livin' in the Future" didn't really have that edge that it usually has, then "Mary's Place"... although Bruce's knee-sliding antics were (as always) a joy to watch. "Point Blank" was played by request "for this guy who has been chasing me for a while now". And a real good version it was, with some nice bass playing by Garry. Then it was back to the usual setlist with "The Rising," "Last to Die" and "Long Walk Home." And then came a surprise: the bombastic intro to a very heavy version of "Born in the U.S.A." This was what the Finnish crowd had come for! "Born in the U.S.A." was like a gathering storm, whipping everyone into a frenzy, and by the time of "Badlands" everybody and his uncle were on their feet. The Finns are a hard crowd to get singing, but "Badlands" was an exception to the rule, and more was to follow. Bruce and the E Street Band were sung back on stage for the encore, which lasted for almost an hour! "Girls in Their Summer Clothes" was followed by a mighty version of "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out," and after "Born to Run" Bruce asked Little Steven, "Do you see that sign over there?" Little Steven sure did, and so, for the first time ever in Finland, "Rosie" came out. After "American Land," everybody pretty much thought it was over. But Bruce had some unfinished business with a bearded man from the city of Rovaniemi In Finland. There was a big sign in the stands to the left of Bruce -- he got the cameraman to zoom in. And in the middle of summer, Bruce played "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town." A first? This had everybody smiling and singing along -- who wouldn't want to sing about Santa on the eleventh of July? For "Santa," the video technician even got out the snowflakes for the big screen behind the band. And of course Bruce couldn't end the show with that one -- "Twist and Shout" was a fine closing to an evening full of surprises, taking the show past the three-hour mark. It didn't wreck this stadium either, but it was surely appreciated by everyone. OSLO, NORWAY Tuesday, July 8 Back for More by Michael Stutts I did the full experience for Night Two and waited six hours to get up close... little did I know that other people had waited for many days before the first show and were six-deep in the front! The pit lottery in the States is certainly more comfortable, but the European system gets the real die-hards in the front. As for a show review, everything I said from Night One applies, except the crowd was even rowdier, the city was even more excited, and Bruce and the band were even looser than on the first night. "If I Should Fall Behind" falls way behind for me in songs I hope to hear, but tonight my mind may be changed. It was amazing to watch Bruce lead the band through a song that they clearly had not rehearsed (if they had, they sure acted like they hadn't). Bruce gave Clarence his vocal from the Reunion Tour arrangement, probably as an opportunity to redeem himself for his bungled "Hey You!" shtick during "You Can Look" (so bad that Bruce stopped the song to do it again, but highly entertaining nonetheless). "Twist and Shout" was in response to the best sign I have ever seen in a crowd. Hopefully somebody has a picture or the verbatim quote, but it was something to the effect of "Let's Wreck This Dump Too, Twist and Shout!" Valle Hovin is truly, truly a dump... but at least it prompted a very long, very energetic, and very crowd-pleasing 30 song. And I just saw 47 different songs played over two nights! This tour has become something special that, in my opinion, trumps the Rising Tour -- other than lacking a long summer outdoor run.
OSLO, NORWAY Imperfect perfection by Michael Stutts Tonight was a truly unique experience, my first show outside of the US -- and in spite of taking four flights, running through two airports, and hitching a ride from a group of strangers, I can say with certainty that every Bruce fan should get an international show experience. The opportunity to live out the full-crowd arm-swaying "Highways jammed..." verse in the live "Born to Run" video montage (albeit on "Waitin' on a Sunny Day) is priceless and frankly something that I never thought would happen after 1985. When you see how a city like Oslo responds to Bruce's visit, it becomes starkly clear that U.S. audiences take tour stops for granted. Everyone is talking about the shows, strangers I met on the street compared show histories with me, and the bars are blasting Bruce. Oslo is a metro area of roughly 850,000 residents, and Bruce sold 90,000 tickets in a more than questionable venue (more on that below). I do not even want to look up the Anaheim/LA attendance statistics... Some random thoughts: 1. Bruce's on stage demeanor: People tend to overuse the phrase "it looked like Bruce was having fun up there," but tonight there is no overstating the fact that he was having a ball. In 25 shows I have never seen as much laughing and general foolishness on stage. 2. Cover Me: For a disco song not played in 16 years, "Cover Me" was on fire. Perhaps there was some sandbagging going on with Bruce apologizing in advance for messing it up, but the live performance of that song gives it new life. Bruce added a wicked solo at the end that left no question in my mind that it should show up again. 3. Racing in the Street: My 25th show, my first time hearing it in concert. It was very entertaining to watch what seemed to be a challenge from Max as he pounded the drums, leading Roy into another few bars of the solo. 4. Valle Hovin: Believe what you hear, Valle Hovin is a miserable venue. The concrete floor makes your feet hurt, muck puddles around your feet, there is one entry/exit, the views are bad beyond the mid-crowd speaker towers, and the flat layout makes even the most raucous applause vanish. With all of that said, it only added to what was an incredibly unique experience. After going to seven or eight identical arenas in the States, it was refreshing to see a unique, if imperfect venue. If this is the "night one" set, I can't imagine what will happen tomorrow...
GÖTEBORG, SWEDEN Independence Day Special in Göteborg by Jos Westenberg On Friday, Springsteen and the E Street band played their first of two shows at the Ullevi Stadium. For days, the town had true Bruce fever. Most newspapers had multiple pages dedicated to the upcoming two shows, covering everything related to Springsteen and the E Street band, from Bruce's arrival at the airport to Little Steven buying some small groceries at a local 7-Eleven. At the stadium, people started camping out ten days before the first show. Most of them were young kids, some seeing their first Springsteen show. Before the gates opened, the soundcheck could be heard from outside. Bruce and the played ran quickly through part of "Radio Nowhere," and also worked on "Be True," "Born in the U.S.A.," "Independence Day," and "Drive All Night," which sounded beautiful. It was clear Bruce and the band were planning something special for the Swedes on this Fourth of July. First was the tour premiere of "Born in the U.S.A.," to open the show. The response was incredible -- fans were very enthusiastic from the start. Bruce already had the harmonica for "The Promised Land" when he saw a sign in the crowd for "Two Hearts." (Although it seemed like a spontaneous addition, the song was on the handwritten setlist.) Bruce and Steve sang together at the microphone and added "It Takes Two" at the end. Whenever Clarence was playing a sax solo, people started bowing in a "we're not worthy"-style. Bruce noticed this and also started to bow along during the solo in "The Promised Land." The theme of Independence Day was weaved through the show. Before "4th of July, Asbury Park," Bruce dedicated the song to Danny Federici and the recently deceased Madam Marie. "She was 98 years old," Bruce said (small mistake -- Madam Marie lived to 93) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
