Bruce

I recently interviewed someone who has been to hundreds of Bruce Springsteen concerts dating back to 1973. Obviously, this person has seen every tour since the E Street Band Reunion in addition to all those great shows of the 1970’s and 1980’s. However, I now want to focus on the best show since the 1999 E Street Band Reunion. This time span includes (and not only E Street tours) the Reunion Tour (1999-2000; with the E Street Band), the Rising Tour (2002-2003; with the E Street Band), the Vote For Change Tour (2004; with the E Street Band); the Devils and Dust Tour (2005, Solo), the We Shall Overcome Tour (2006; with the Sessions Band), and the Magic Tour (2007-2008; with the E Street Band).

After a long conversation, I asked this person to name the best concerts that he witnessed since 1999. He said, without a doubt, that three concerts stand out in his mind as the best shows. It should come as no surprise that all of these shows involved the E Street Band. Here are the three shows in order by date (not rank):

1) September 24th, 1999 (The Spectrum - Philadelphia, PA)

2) August 11th, 2003 (Lincoln Financial Field - Philadelphia, PA)

3) August 23rd, 2008 (Scottrade Center - St. Louis, MO)

What is really cool, in my opinion, is that each show came from a different tour. So, listening to the bootlegs of each of these three shows will yield a much different listening experience.

For more information (like reviews and setlists) for each of these shows, see:

http://www.backstreets.com/setlists.html

This is an awesome audience-shot video of “Badlands” from the Richmond, VA, show on August 18th, 2008.

This was the lead off song on Springsteen’s 1978 “Darkness on the Edge of Town” LP and is still a staple of his concerts to this day.

Enjoy!

This song has always been special to me. When I was younger, my dad always sang it to me. Now I see why…because BRUCE sang it too!

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band played two memorable shows this weekend in St. Louis (Saturday) and Kansas City (Sunday). For all intents and purposes, these were considered to be the last shows of the “Magic Tour” with only the 105th Harley Davidson gig to go.

Let’s start with St. Louis which, as many reviews are claiming, was thee show of the tour. The show started with a song that Bruce hasn’t played since 1975. “Then She Kissed Me” was a wonderful opener and a great flashback to the days of the “Born to Run Tour.” Also played, or unplayed since 1975, whichever way you look at it, was “Mountain of Love.” This was done as a request but has recently been soundchecked by the band. Other sign requests for this show included “Rendezvous”, “Backstreets”, and a terrific full-band version of “For You.” The encore brought out gems including “Jungleland”, “Detroit Medley”, and an awesome version of Chuck Berry’s “Little Queenie.” Bruce closed the show with one final request, “Twist and Shout.” This was quite possibly the best show since the E Street Band reunion.

The following night in Kansas City brought rarities right out of the gate. The show started off with the world premiere of “Ricky Wants a Man of Her Own.” This song segued into another great song from “Tracks” as Cynthia was played for the first time since October in New Jersey. A peculiar sign requesting a song from the Mighty Max Weinberg brought on the E Street Band’s rendition of “Boys” in which Max got some of his own microphone time. In the encore, a very special version of “Save the Last Dance for Me” segued into “Dancing in the Dark” adding to a phenomenal final stretch that kicked off with “4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)” as a dedication to Danny Federici and Terry McGovern. The show closed with “Rockin’ All Over the World” which hasn’t been played since the last show of the “Born in the U.S.A. Tour!”

Overall, this was one of the best Springsteen weekends in recent history. The St. Louis show was undoubtedly the stronger of the two shows but Kansas City was no “average” show either.

The E Street Band is currently planning a tour for 2009 that will most likely begin in February. The Superbowl is not set-in-stone just yet but those close to Springsteen feel that the chances are good.

Words can’t describe the excitement of these opening moments.

Just watch and enjoy!

Even though the audio/video is off, this is still one of my favorite videos. You will laugh when you see this. Enjoy!

What can you say about “It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City?” This is truly one of the greatest Springsteen songs of all time. It was originally published on the “Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ” LP in 1973 and now makes a few appearances at Springsteen’s live shows here and there; this makes it very special when you finally do get it!

This song sort of reminds me of Bob Dylan’s “Desolation Row” because of the complexity of the lyrics. In this sense however, “complex” translates into “genius.” The words flow so wonderfully into a great old tune in Springsteen’s repertoire.

Enjoy this clear mastery of song-writing!

Enjoy this video of the first ever performance of “Long Walk Home.” This is from the “Sessions Band Tour” but as we know, this song would be recorded for “Magic” and played at every show on the 2007-08 tour.

Since this performance, it’s fair to say that the song has truly evolved. If you listen close, you can hear some different lyrics from those recorded for “Magic.”

Today I am going to review the “Magic” album in terms of it’s live renditions. Now, this is fair to do in my opinion because all of the songs have been played at least once. I will give a grade and a review of all songs on the album in order.

1. Radio Nowhere (A): This song opened up most of the shows on the 2007 U.S. and European legs. Honestly, this song is great on the album but even better live. Most of the crowd knows the song which helps.

2. You’ll Be Comin’ Down (A): Unfortunately, this song has only been played one time (3/24/08) but it sounded terrific. It’s a shame that he hasn’t played it more on this tour.

3. Livin’ in the Future (B+): I give this one a strong B because I feel that it was pretty darn good in the beginning of the tour. Since then, however, I feel that it has gotten a bit stale and might need a bit of a break. Yet, with the election on the horizon I don’t see this happening.

4. Your Own Worst Enemy (A-): I thought that this one sounded pretty good live. But, to be poerfectly honest, I don’t think it’s one of the better ones on the album so that is the reason for the weaker A.

5. Gypsy Biker (A-): This is another song that I did not fall in love with on the album. Yet, I think it is very good in a live settling. Having said all of that, I don’t need to hear it for the rest of the tour.

6. Girls in Their Summer Clothes (B): I honestly love this one on the album itself. Yet, I think it lacks a little something in concert. While I still enjoy hearing it, I could do with something else in that first encore slot.

7. I’ll Work For Your Love (A): No complaints about this one. It’s great on the album and great in concert.

8. Magic (B-): This one is just so-so for me both live and on the album.

9. Last to Die (A-): This is a very powerful rocker that even gets the casual fans into the end of the main set. In the beginning of the tour I really did not like hearing it but now I have gained a greater appreciation for the song.

10. Long Walk Home (A): I thought this was great in the beginning of the tour and I now think it’s even better with Steven’s added vocals. AWESOME!

11. Devil’s Arcade (B): I like this one on the album but I could live without it in concert. This is not to say it’s a “bad” live song, but it’s enough already. I am glad he has dropped it from the set in recent months.

12.Terry’s Song (A): I think this is a wonderful tribute to Terry McGovern and sounded wonderful in concert the one time it was played. I definitely have no complaints here.

Wow! What a great opener for the third night at Giants Stadium. This one really had the crowd going!

Here’s to more great nights with the E Street Band come August 15th!