When I listen to Springsteen on my IPOD I play things in order -- first album, first song, second song, etc. Never have I ever heard of a concert that follows that method...until now.
In something Springsteen described as "something we've never done before and you're not gonna see anywhere else" the Band played their benefit gig for the Count Bassie Theatre in Red Bank and it was just that, Darkness and Born to Run in their entirety...and in sequence:
Setlist:
Badlands
Adam Raised a Cain
Something in the Night
Candy's Room
Racing in the Street
The Promised Land
Factory
Streets of Fire
Prove It All Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
* * *
Thunder Road
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out (w/ horns)
Night
Backstreets
Born to Run
She's the One
Meeting Across the River (w/ Mark Pender)
Jungleland
* * *
So Young and in Love (w/ horns)
Kitty's Back (w/ horns)
Rosalita (w/ horns)
Raise Your Hand (w/ horns)
Wow, to have been there...just couldn't come up with the $1000 a ticket.
May 8, 2008
Darkness and Born To Run...THE concert
Apr 1, 2008
Report from the Road: Victoria NEAR Victoria
BC that is. The final report for a while from Victoria and she was blessed with 2 back-to-back great shows.
Don't take my word for it:
At 8:15 p.m. in Vancouver, Bruce and the E Street Band took the stage to polite applause. Bruce quietly moved to the microphone that was bathed in light. “Well, they blew up the chicken man in Philly last night…” The rest of the band joined in and so it began. It was a totally unexpected but wonderful opening. Magic was in the sixth slot and it was the best live version I’ve heard. With this song Soozie has come into her own - her violin and vocals complement Bruce beautifully. The Boss gave us another powerhouse trio combo: Trapped – Reason to Believe – Because the Night. (I thought Reason was an audible as the mic wasn’t readily available. Looking at the original setlist, Murder (Incorporated?), was in that slot. Perhaps something for the fans in Sacramento to look forward to.) The truly special moment of the night was “an obscure song we have never played live”. Bruce continued to give hints: it’s an outtake from Born in the USA (some light applause) – it’s still an outtake, and you’re not gonna know it ‘cause it isn’t on any album. But as soon as the band started the intro, I recognized it from Essential – None But the Brave. I got goosebumps just like I did when I heard County Fair at Darien Lake in 2003. What a treat!
The rest of the set was the same as Seattle (why mess with a good thing?) with The River substituting for Point Blank and audible Dancing in the Dark. I’m happy to report that Tenth Avenue Freeze-out and Rosalita kicked off the encore – it is a terrific 1-2 punch.
Clarence appeared to be tired tonight. His solos were good but not exceptional like in previous shows. Despite labouring, he still evoked a huge response from the crowd whenever he picked up his sax.
Short snippets.
- During Bruce’s prologue to Living in the Future, someone yelled out “move to Canada!!”.
- There were a lot of signs including Pink Cadillac, E-Street Shuffle, Seeds, Jersey Girl.
- Overheard at 8 p.m.: “What’ya mean there are no seats on the floor?” from an incredulous fellow about to descend the stairs to GA.
I had great seats in the 100 level, one section from the stage. Behind me sat two lifelong Springsteen fans who had attended the Portland and Seattle shows. After we reminisced and raved about the Seattle show, I asked where they were from….Oregon. Uhm…I quickly decided not to tell them about the customary behaviour of Vancouver concert crowds. However they soon found out when a considerable number of the sold out crowd sat through the entire show (and believe it or not, some were still firmly rooted during Born to Run!). Bruce worked very hard to get the crowd to its feet. He raised his arms, cupped his ears, strolled the front and back walkways and attempted to entice sing-a-longs. Did the patrons need an interpreter?
It wasn’t a note perfect outing but pretty damn close. It was yet another stellar performance with memorable highlights. To date, I’ve seen seven shows on the Magic tour including 42 unique songs. Every show is entertaining, exhilarating and inspiring. Bruce, Max, Little Stevie, Gary, Soozie, Patti, Nils, Clarence, Charlie and Roy: THANK YOU!! Today I will be purchasing lottery tickets with the hope of winning enough cash to see more shows. If this doesn’t happen, I have some great memories to last a lifetime. See you down the road!
Mar 30, 2008
Report from the Road: Sittin' in Seattle
Victoria makes another stop, this time for a stellar show from start (can you say TRAPPED?) to finish.
Here is how it all went down:
Seattle seemed like an oasis after the drive from Portland through periods of intense rain, sideways sleet and fast falling hail. Bruce and gang arrived at 5:45 p.m. in a downpour and promptly drove directly into the dry confines of Key Arena. Less than three hours later they took the stage by storm opening with the power trio: Trapped – Radio Nowhere – No Surrender.
And the surprises didn’t end there. Bruce was focused with a bounce in his step and it was obvious he was having a ball. He goofed around with the members of the band and hammed it up for the appreciative sold out crowd.
The band was tight and cohesive which made the song transitions seamless.
Nil’s searing guitar solo on Because the Night, Stevie’s vocals on Long Walk and Max’s relentless drumming were exceptional. Tonight’s show featured nine different songs from the previous night in Portland.
During the intro to Point Blank I heard someone yell out “holy f***”, then I realized it was me. That utterance was in response to just having heard the first notes of the rarely played song after a beautiful version of My Own Worst Enemy. Fans continue to make requests via signs and Bruce continues to accommodate. First it was Waitin’ on a Sunny Day, a small banner that Bruce autographed before returning it. Then Tenth Avenue Freeze-out (where the crowd took turns singing with Bruce who was clearly enjoying himself) followed by a rousing-all-out Rosie to kick off the encore.
I often read reviews about other shows and wish I had been there – this time I feel very fortunate to have attended this one. I can’t imagine a better combination – Bruce and the band in top form, an outstanding setlist and a lively, energetic crowd.
A few comments about Key Arena. It is a basketball only venue with concert seating for 15,100. There are no seats directly beside or behind the stage. It appeared that perhaps there were too many GA tickets sold as people continued to stream onto the floor as late as 8:15 p.m. The mixing station was located at the end of the arena and was surrounded by fans – there wasn’t an empty floor spot to be seen. It became obvious to me why Seattle is a coffee town – there is no alcohol allowed in the stands which translates to high java sales and that (along with getting a beer fix) explains the excessive fan movement throughout the show.
I suppose everyone needs a day of rest – so I’ll take mine tomorrow along with Bruce and the legendary E Street Band. We’ll hook up Monday at GM Place in Vancouver, B.C for the last of three northwest dates.
Mar 29, 2008
Report from the Road: Victoria in Portland
Thanks to Victoria for her review of last night's show in Portland! She's in Seattle tonight so come on back for another review tomorrow (or whenever she calms down from the show).
The Pacific northwest is known for welcoming an early spring. However
winter isn’t quite over as snow and sleet battered I-5 and the cherry blossoms lining the interstate. The weather cannot damper my spirits, which are very high in anticipation of the Portland show at the Rose Quarter.
I noticed that tickets were still available three hours before concert time so anticipated some empty seats. I attended the “Bruce watch” before the show but left at 6:00 p.m. as he had yet to arrive. During this time I was told his last show in Portland, during the Rising tour, was not well attended with one third of the venue empty.
First a few observations about the Rose Quarter. At full concert capacity it seats around 16,000. Since it is primarily a basketball venue, it is a bit smaller than a hockey arena. The first seven rows were covered in black tarp making “H” the closest row to the stage.
Now onto the show. Bruce appeared to be a bit under the weather. He was not quite in sync with the band right from the opening song, Night. It seemed to me that he was struggling to catch his breath as he did a bit
more talking and pausing between songs. His voice sounded a bit strained
and not as robust as usual. This was my first west coast Springsteen concert and I was told the crowds would be more subdued and laid back – just like the lifestyle. This held true. However the fans, about 14,000 strong, really got going during songs from BTR and Darkness including Candy’s Room. The E Street Band was in top form, especially Max who held together the band when the timing of some songs went a little wonky (Gypsy Biker, Reason to Believe). Bruce seemed to gain some energy during Flood and it continued to the end of the show with more strolling, smiling, swinging around the microphone stand and a trip to see Max. He was in good humour too. He joked about the pot drafts coming up from the pit and made reference to someone stealing his passport. During American Land he improvised the chorus ….” The Blacks, the Irish, the Italians, the Lesbians and the Jews”….a nod to the group in the pit wearing “Lesbians (Heart) Bruce” t-shirts.
There were a few personal highlights – Nils blistering solo on Prove It All Night; the one-two-punch of For You followed by Lost in the Flood; a passionate version of Jungleland. The last three were acknowledgements by Bruce to the many signs held by fans.
One unusual sighting - cotton candy in the pit??!!
Despite a few bumps, tonight’s show was terrific. Tomorrow it’s a 3 hour
drive north on I-5. Needless to say, I’m Key’d up for the show in Seattle
tomorrow.
Mar 26, 2008
Mar 21, 2008
Danny's Back!
Now, I focus exclusively on news related to Springsteen himself but this deserves a huge mention as Danny came back to play 9 songs last night to a half-full arena in Indianapolis. From what I read on Backstreets.com, the majority of the fans didn't seem to get the significance of the moment but I'm sure they do now!
I'll post pics and videos as soon as I find them.
Mar 15, 2008
Detroit Medley finding its place...
The setlist from last nights show from Omaha:
1. No Surrender
2. Radio Nowhere
3. Lonesome Day
4. Adam Raised A Cain
5. Gypsy Biker
6. Magic
7. Reason To Believe
8. Because The Night
9. She's The One
10 Living in the Future
11. Promised Land
12. Waiting on a Sunny Day
13. The River
14. Devil's Arcade
15. The Rising
16. Last To Die
17. Long Walk Home
18. Badlands
19. Girls in Their Summer Clothes
20. Thunder Road
21. Jungleland
22. Detroit Medley
23. Born To Run
24. Dancing In The Dark
25. American Land
A seven song encore -- they must have been exhausted after the TR, Jungle, DM and B2R combo! 25 songs, I like the trend. Watch out St. Paul!
Mar 10, 2008
Incident and Ramrod in Nassau
Well, back to 24 songs but this time Incident and an obvious audible in Ramrod as one of six songs in the encore that included Jungleland (did I mention how GREAT that was in Montreal?).
Here's the unofficial setlist for the show tonight:
1. Night
2. Radio Nowhere
3. Lonesome Day
4. Adam Raised a Cain
5. Gypsy Biker
6. Magic
7. Reason To Believe
8. Because The Night
9. She's The One
10. Livin' In The Future
11. The Promised Land
12. Waitin' On A Sunny Day
13. Incident on 57th Street.
14. Devil's Arcade
15. The Rising
16. Last to Die
17. Long Walk Home
18. Badlands
19. Girls in Their Summer Clothes
20. Jungleland
21. Born to Run
22. Ramrod!!
23. Dancing In The Dark
24. American Land
Mar 9, 2008
Umpy's report from the Road: Rochester & Buffalo
Well, he was there and boy our man Umpy was treated to two VERY fine shows. His report:
Our trip to see two more Bruce shows was in doubt after having received fifteen inches of snow in my hometown the day before we were supposed to travel. However, nor rain, nor sleet, nor snow will keep me from seeing a Bruce show.
It was a beautiful day in Rochester. A perfect day for "stalking". Bruce and the band arrived late, getting to the arena at 6:45 pm. Neither Bruce nor the band stopped to sign autographs.
Bruce and the band took the stage at 8:30. Bruce was in a very playful and excellent mood. He was joking and hamming it up for the capacity crowd as he was very loosy goosy.
The chair that Clarence had previously been using during the first leg of the tour has been replaced with a much more comfortable looking gold plated throne.
The Blue Cross Arena was built in 1955 and has a capacity of about 12,000 people. The quality of sound in the arena was fantastic. Bruce even commented on the arena by saying that older arenas are the best.
This was one of the best crowds that I have seen on the tour. Bruce commented on their enthusiasm after "Waiting on a Sunny Day" by telling them that "that was someof the best singing in the United States".
Aside from Bruce, Nils has been my personal highlight of every show. I do not know how much credit he gets as people seem to be infatuated with Clarence and Little Steven, but his work is very underrated. His performance during his solo during "Because the Night" is something to behold and listen to. It is truly amazing.
Both of Roy's pianos malfunctioned during "She's the One". The roadies were scrambling to fix the issue and finally rectified it about 3/4 of the way throught the song. This is not the first time that this has happened on the tour.
Every Bruce show always has some sort of OMG moment. Tonight's OMG moment was definitely "Rosalita". Bruce took a sign from a young fan, which said, "Roasalita Please", slowly turned it around to show the crowd, then leaned it against the microphone stand and then went into an audiblized version of ROSY has the crowd went nuts.
A personal bonus tonight was that Bruce didn't perform "Dancing in the Dark". It was replaced with "Jackson Cage" earlier in the show.
All in all this was a very strong show; a top 5 show that I have seen on this tour...so far.Whereas Rochester had beautiful weather, It was a cold, windy and blizzardy evening in Buffalo as the city was being hit with a snow storm.
I realized early that The Buffalo show had a completely different crowd atmosphere to it. As I took my seat, the person sitting behind me asked if I was going to stand for the whole show. I told him "absolutely, this is a Bruce Springsteen show!!"
The side stage and rear stage seats were much further away from the stage than other arenas that I have seen. There were at least nine section of seats in the 300 level that were completely empty.
Bruce and the "biggest little bar band" in the land took the stage at 8:26 pm. Bruce was much more workmanlike tonight. It appeared that he had to work harder to raise the crowd's enthusiasm as compared to the previous night in Rochester.
Bruce performed seven songs which he did not sing the night before including an impromptu version of "Buffalo Gals". He started it acoustically and then instructed Suzie to join him on the violin. Shortly thereafter, they were joined by Nils and Max on the drums.
Tonight's OMG moment may have been the OMG moment of the tour so far as Bruce audiblized into a exceptional version of "The Detroit Medley". Who would have seen this coming? Certainly not me.
All in all, this may have been the best double shot of the tour so far.
I'll have to reflect and give it some thought as the two shows in Chicago very excellent.
As an aside, to date, I have heard sixty songs played at least once.
Hopefully there are many, many more to come.
Next stop...I am sick and tired of the winter and snow...I need some sunshine...Florida can't get here quick enough.
Mar 7, 2008
Jesus! What a setlist from Buffalo!
26 songs for the first time since Shea Stadium 10/4/2003 and what a setlist! Ties, Be True, I'll Work for your love, Buffalo Gals, Detroit Medley, Thunder Road...Wow.
1. Ties That Bind
2. Radio Nowhere
3. Lonesome Day
4. Be True
5. Gypsy Biker
6. Magic
7. Reason to Believe
8. Night
9. Because The Night
10. She's the One
11. Livin' In The Future
12. The Promised Land
13. I'll Work for Your Love
14. Working On The Highway
15. Devil's Arcade
16. The Rising
17. Last to Die
18. Long Walk Home
19. Badlands
20. Buffalo Gals
21. Girls In Their Summer Clothes
22. Thunder Road
23 Detroit Medley
24. Born to Run
25. Dancing in the Dark
26. American Land
Mar 6, 2008
Rochester gets Rosalita
The setlist from tonight's show in Rochester - Loose Ends, Jackson Cage and Rosalita, nice!
1. Night
2. Radio Nowhere
3. Lonesome Day
4. Jackson Cage
5. Gypsy Biker
6. Magic
7. Reason to Believe
8. Because the Night
9. Loose Ends
10. She's the One
11. Livin' in the Future
12. The Promised Land
13. Waitin' on a Sunny Day
14. Racing in the Street
15. Devil's Arcade
16. The Rising
17. Last to Die
18. Long Walk Home
19. Badlands
20. Girls in Their Summer Clothes
21. ROSALITA
22. Born to Run
23. American Land
Mar 5, 2008
More tales from the road!
Here is Victoria's report from the road -- Hamilton to be precise. We thank her for this contribution and hope there will be many more!
Hamilton welcomed us with light rain and 16c / 60f temperatures. It was a nice change from the cold and snowy conditions in Montreal. I scored a couple of third row side stage seats during the afternoon ticket drop as did everyone in our section – needless to say we were all very pumped!
The arena was full. To my eye, there were no empty seats – unlike Montreal where behind the stage the crowd was sparse. I wasn’t sure what to expect from the Hamilton crowd…..
The crowd was very lively and into high gear immediately as Bruce opened with a rousing version of No Surrender then continued into Nowhere Radio. From this point on, the set list was identical to Montreal – with an audible of Darkness to replace Prove It All Night much to my disappointment. The pacing and energy was improved from the previous night (perhaps adding credence to the rumour that Bruce hada touch of the flu in Montreal). And it only got better when he played the dynamic combo: Thunder Road and an excellent Kitty’s Back. The crowd was in a frenzy and it escalated into Born to Run, audible Dancing in the Dark and American Land. Clarence was in top form all night, neglecting his comfy chair. His solo in Kitty’s Back was a highlight. Bruce seemed to feed off the crowd all night with a lot of smiles – even when an over zealous fan made it onto the stage. Most of the 18,300 were on their feet and singing for the entire 2.5 hours - the energy in the arena was tremendous. If Monday night was any indication fans will be in for a great show on his next stop – Rochester.
Mar 4, 2008
'Reason to believe' from Montreal
Not the best quality but still captures the essence of the show...and what a show it was!
Mar 3, 2008
Report from the Road: Umpy's take
Once again we can rely on Umpy for giving us his report from the road. Your's truly was there with the other Rob's and a Rod and once I recover enough to write my own review (ok, once I get my voice and wits back) it will be here.
In the meantime, here's what our intrepid road warrior had to say...we ended up sitting 2 seats apart and I watched as he was handed a setlist at the beginning of the show.
His review:
After over three months of "jonesing" for a Bruce show and suffering from post Bruce depression, we finally hit the road in order see Bruce perform in Montreal last night.
Bruce was late arriving at the arena as he showed up at the Bell Centre at 7:00 pm. As a result a sound check was not done.
The Bell Centre is one of, if not, the largest venue that Bruce has played in North America as capacity for hockey and concerts is over 21,000 fans.
There were a lot of empty seats in the arena. Most if not all of the level 200, 300 and 400 sections behind the stage were unoccupied. There were also patches of upper level seats in front of the stage that were not sold.
Prior to the show, an impatient crowd started doing a very energetic wave.
Although some of us thought the weather was awful, things heated up inside The Bell Centre once Bruce took the stage and started his set with Night.
I did not think that this was one of better shows that I have seen on the tour however there were some definite highlights. Because the Night and Jungleland were excellent. Clarence's work on Jungleland was very good.
With the exception of Racing in the Streets being replaced with The River, Bruce's choices of audibles were a welcome delight. Darkness on the dge of Town replaced Working on the Highway and the aforementioned Jungleland replaced the either/or of Bobby Jean and Thunder Road.
An unsubstantiated report on Montreal radio stated the Bruce is suffering from a bit of the stomach flu. Here's hoping that he is well for our next show...next stop Thursday in Rochester and Friday in Buffalo.
Feb 28, 2008
Hartford put to bed.
Here's the setlist from the first '08 show. SOOOO good to say that. See you all in Montreal!
1. SO YOUNG AND IN LOVE
2. Radio Nowhere
3. Lonesome Day
4. Gypsy Biker
5. Magic
6. Reason To Believe
7. LOOSE ENDS
8. She's The One
9. Living In The Future
10. The Promised Land
11. Waitin On A Sunny Day
12. JANEY DON'T YOU LOSE HEART
13. The River
14. Devil's Arcade
15. The Rising
16. Last To Die
17. Long Walk Home
18. Badlands
19. Girls In Their Summer Clothes
20. Backstreets
21. Kitty's Back
22. Born To Run
23. American Land
Feb 20, 2008
Max's Kansas City '73 concert on Wolfgang
Awesome. Go listen to this show on Wolfgang's Vault from Max's Kansas City in NY from January 31, 1973.
Setlist:
Mary Queen Of Arkansas
Bishop Danced
Wild Billy's Circus Story
Spirit In The Night
Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street?
Thundercrack
Saga Of The Architect Angel
Song To The Orphans (Outtake)
Follow this link to make your day.
Feb 15, 2008
Next leg to begin in 13 days
The next leg of the Magic Tour is set to begin in 10 short days from now when Springsteen and his troupe visit Hartford.
Here is the complete next leg as a refresher.
2/28 Hartford, CT HC C Arena
3/2 Montreal, QC Bell Centre
3/3 Hamilton, ON Copps Coliseum
3/6 Rochester, NY Blue Cross Arena
3/7 Buffalo, NY HSBC Arena
3/10 Hempstead, NY Nassau Coliseum
3/14 Omaha, NE Quest Center
3/16 St. Paul, MN Xcel Center
3/17 Milwaukee, WI Bradley Center
3/20 Indianapolis, IN Conseco Fieldhouse
3/22 Cincinnati, OH U.S. Bank Arena
3/24 Columbus, OH Schottenstein Center
3/28 Portland, OR The Rose Garden
3/29 Seattle, WA Key Arena
3/31 Vancouver, BC GM Place
4/4 Sacramento, CA Arco Arena
4/5 San Jose, CA HPPavillion at San Jose
4/7 Anaheim, CA Honda Center
4/8 Anaheim, CA Honda Center
4/13 Dallas, TX American Airlines Center
4/14 Houston, TX Toyota Center
4/18 Ft Lauderdale, FL Bank Atlantic Center
4/19 Orlando, FL Amway Arena
4/21 Tampa, FL St. Pete Times Forum
4/25 Atlanta, GA Philips Arena
4/27 Charlotte, NC Charlotte Bobcat Arena
4/28 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Coliseum
4/30 Charlottesville, VA John Paul Jones
Hope to see some of you out there.
Dec 20, 2007
The tour bookend...Santa Clause is coming to town from London
Perfect way to end this leg of coverage...Enjoy!
