Book Excerpt: For You. Story #2

South Bend USA
Fall of 1996, Tom Joad Tour in Cincinnati
Dr. Damian D. Dieter

I had already been to two shows on this tour, but on a whim called the theatre in Gatlinburg to see if there were any tickets left. I was traveling there anyway, so why not. The woman at the ticket office informed me that they had just released seats in the orchestra pit and, if I’d like, I could have two seats in the second row center. Now, I had seen about 15 or so shows since 1985, but never had I had anything other than nosebleed seats.Being right there and hearing Bruce’s voice not from the speakers but from his mouth and gut was just amazing. If you listen to “Across the Border,” particularly the cries at the end, you know what I mean. The same can be said of “Long Time Comin’,” which at the time was still unreleased.Anyway, I knew that after “The Promised Land,” as he had done in Kalamazoo and Indianapolis, Bruce was going to put down his guitar, go to the front of the stage, wave, and then shake hands with a few of the people in the front row. During the last few songs I practiced my speech, knowing that I was about to have a ten second conversation with my favorite artist. Now I’m a relatively stable guy. I’m a board-certified surgeon, a pilot, and I play bass in a rock & roll band. Well, the moment of truth came. I walked up to the front of the stage and was the first person to put out my hand. I meant to tell this man how meaningful and important his music was to me. Instead, eye to eye, hand shaking hand, I blurted out “awesome” three times. Bruce laughed and said, “Kid, let go of my hand!” and I felt like Chris Farley interviewing Paul McCartney. Idiot!

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