Bruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuce
The calls for the famed New Jersey singer could be heard echoing throughout the arena well before he hit the stage at First Niagara Centre on Friday night.
The man is a legend, after all. His tireless work ethic, marathon shows and the seemingly unbelievable ability to remain connected to the people while having more money than most Pacific island countries has garnered Bruce Springsteen some of the most loyal and intense fan followings out there.
I wasn’t one of those people.
Friday night was my first Springsteen experience. Up until last week, I had barely scratched the surface of the Boss’s extensive discography.
My primary reasons for going to see this Bruce Springsteen show were
a) seemed like something a music fan should do at least once
b) would be cool to see a working class hero in a working class town
c) friends were going, wanted wings
As a complete newbie to the live Springsteen phenomenon, here are some thoughts on the show.
I thoroughly enjoyed the show. Most bands take their time to build up the show to the climax. With this show, it seemed like Bruce just took it from 0 to 100 right away. The man gives it up to the crowd and there is no wasted moment, every song was given full and proper attention and it was all pretty good. Three hours passed by pretty quickly, if this was say, The Dears, I might have maimed myself already by the two hour mark.
The energy of the crowd was absurd, most of the audience were up and dancing for the entire duration of the show. They sang along to the songs and gave great appreciation to all the members of the E Street band, especially newcomer Jake Clemons who as we all know, is replacing the late Clarence Clemons. It’s not easy to replace a legend, but the crowd was quick to make the man feel at home. The crowd was all ages and there were fans from little kids to senior citizens. Bruce did the classic performer trick of bringing up a little child to stage. The first time, it was to sing the chorus to Waiting on a Sunny Day, the next time, to dance to Dancing in the Dark. I’m sure he pulls this out every set, but it’s still super cool to see live.
Panic Manual graphic designer Vik has a question.
Vik: Did he start off every song with ‘hun two three fo!’ and spin around?
Ricky: Yes
Vik: another one, was silvio from the sopranos playing drums?
Ricky: max weinberg?
Vik: steve van zandt
Ricky: he doesn’t play drums
Vik: oh yeah, guitar
Vik: was he there?
Ricky: he plays guitar
Ricky: and ya he was there
Okay, back to thoughts about the show. Here are some other highlights
– Bruce crowd surfing about half the rink floor. It’s pretty impressive to see the man get surfed about 200 feet
– American Skin (41 Shots) was pretty good, I have never heard it before.
– The silent tribute to the late Clarence Clemons was touching
– Born to Run is pretty epic, probably always will be.
– Nice/professional touch from Bruce to play and engage crowds on all sides of the stage, good stage coverage
All in all, it was a great experience.
Springsteen plays Toronto in August, I’ll probably be there.
Setlist:
We Take Care of Our Own
Wrecking Ball
The Ties That Bind
Death to My Hometown
My City of Ruins
Rendezvous
Mountain of Love
Jack of All Trades
Prove It All Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Shackled & Drawn
Waitin’ on a Sunny Day
The Promised Land
Apollo Medley
Point Blank
American Skin (41 Shots)
The Rising
Lonesome Day
We Are Alive
Thunder Road
Rocky Ground (with Michelle Moore)
Ramrod
Born to Run
Dancing in the Dark
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out
