Last night brought my two-year journey with the E Street Band to an end. I began this road — well as a traveling fan — in April of 2008 in Atlanta, Georgia. Six shows later, I said goodbye to the E Street Band in Nashville, Tennessee last night. I don't know if last night was the end of the road for the E Street Band, but there is no denying that feeling was in the air and on the stage. Maybe they'll just take a break. That's what they've said and it might be true. They may not have even decided, but you can tell it has dawned on them they might be playing — including last night — their final three shows together.
It's been one hell of a ride, filled with highlights and lowlights. As a public service to the mouthbreathers and sycophants incapable or unwilling to understand the complex capabilities of the human mind to love something while simultaneously subjecting it to honest criticism, I'll save that for the end so your precious eyes can skip over it. It's the holiday season and I'm a giver. Let's get to it.
I want to begin with the Main Event of the night, Born to Run in its entirety. I saw them do it less than a month ago so while I was excited about this portion of the show, I had lowered my anticipation just slightly. Big mistake. It was phenomenal, and I was wrong to expect anything less. In my defense, I didn't think it was going to suck. I knew it wouldn't. I'd just seem them do it and the memories were fresh. It was as good as I remembered and, in some cases, better.
"Thunder Road" was played very well by the band. You might think this a given for a crack band playing a song they've played for 35 years. It's not always great. It was last night. Bruce rushed his delivery on the vocal and wasn't quite in sync, but it was still a thrilling rendition. My wife isn't a Nick Hornby type, so she doesn't run around with Top 5 and Top 10 lists for every musical moment but if she did, I know "Tenth Avenue Freeze Out" would be there for Springsteen songs. I've heard it at more shows than I haven't, but I love this song and it was performed with energy. I've seen Bruce hit the knee drop as the song begins with a little more intensity, but they've been on the road for three years and he's 60. That he can do it at all puts him miles in front of me.
Article comments
1 - Lisa McKay
You know how I feel about setlist complaints, and yet I found myself laughing pretty much through this whole piece (okay, and maybe nodding in agreement a little). Nicely done, Josh.
The one show I truly regret missing was The River at MSG, which sounds like it must have been simply amazing.
2 - Josh Hathaway
Aww, thanks, Lisa. I appreciate the slight agreement and the laughs. It was one hell of a night.
11 actually went as far as to check the airfare -- and I can't emphasize how much he does not fly -- for Wild, Innocent night because he's been stalking "Incident" his entire adult life. Mark Sahm and S.Rod told me I should have come and stayed with them in CT and gone to a show at MSG rather than traveling to Missouri. Let's keep this our little secret but they might have been right.
3 - Mark Saleski
looks like a fun show.
p.s. me and my fellow-mouthbreather wife enjoy Waiting On A Sunny Day
4 - Josh Hathaway
Liking "WOASD" isn't what makes you a mouthbreather, Mark. Now get a lap.
5 - John Adams
Wow, I have been seeing Bruce since before he was on the cover of Time and Newsweek, best show ever: Nashville. It made Bonnaroo show pale in comparison. Yes, I like Josh have seen him many times since 1974. I thought the highlights were the covers: Ring of Fire and Higher and Hihger were awesome. It was anice tip of the hat to Nashville which had many empty seats on the upper level. Playing the old album from the seventies when he was "a young man music" as Bruce says was not the best moment and maybe after a few cool songs from the album he played a few that were never great and should have never been done. More people went for a beer during this part of the show. He showed how much he has grown as an artist. I loved the Rising and wish he would have done "you're missing" or the songs from the Divorce album Tunnel of Love. Or that song called Human touch. I also liked the fact that his sulking pissed off wife was not there and Stevie got more male bonding time. Josh while your blood was boiling he did announce that they were planning to do more "shows next year"--maybe you were puking when he did his take (Better than the Johnny Cash version, of Ring of Fire. Questions: When did Patty get the boot? The addition of the tumpet was really good. Maybe Paul McCartney should levarn from Bruce--do the horns and strings with humans and not some plastic keyboard. Did anyone go to to Roberts Western World after to see Nils join Harry Fontana for Peggy Sue and La Bamba? Awesome. Anyway, Josh you need to take ten laps. You just sound miserable, have you been to a Phish or Black Eyed Peas concerts lately? Finally, the Little Girl Singing was nice touch. I think Bruce is better than ever. Best show of the year and beat the SF and TN Bonaroo show. Prediction: Burce will get a divorce and use that to write some new songs--he desrves to be with a super model now. I just hope it is not one of Billy Joel's ex's.
6 - John Adams
Yes, I too loved "Waiting for a Sunny Day" I just wonder why he didn't do more ballads like Phil or "You're Missing or Reno. By the way, do others think that the shows are better without uptight Patty? Maybe its all the smoking she does with Clarence bettween songs?
7 - Glen Boyd
Nice review Josh...and much more balanced than I expected. Thank you.
I wish I'd been there. Just so you know, according to Rolling Stone, the E Street Band is not breaking up, but rather taking a much deserved hiatus. Even Clarence has too many ex-wives to afford a lay-off, according to Steve. LOL...
Also according to the article, Next on the horizon is a WOAD tour DVD, and the long-awaited Darkness box.
So you and your joined-at-the-hip pal 11 can rest easy -- there should plenty more setlists to bitch about in about two years.
-Glen
8 - Herb Lauder
Josh--You went to the wrong concert in Nashville. Its not about bitterness and anger that you but joy, hope and love. You just missed the message. You got to play tribute to the greats and honor them with newly arranged covers--Check out Higher and Higher on Youtube. Wow. Anyway, here is the review from the local newspaer in Nashville along with comeents made by others who attended and saw the show--like me, the author and the comments thought it was one of the best shows ever. I was wondering before I provide the attched link? We know that Patti fell off the horse she rode on (get it?) last April in Boston but what was the excuse in Nashville? I agree the show was much better without her. She just gives these ice cold stares to BS and seems thousand miles away from NJ divorce lawyers. So here is the link
9 - 11
I see that two of my favorite subsets of BruceFan have joined us here. We have 'I Always Hated Patti And Now Bruce Does Too And Their Marriage Is A Sham Guy' and 'Bruce And The E-Street Band Are Immortal And Will Play Forver And Ever And Ever Guy.'
Josh didn't say these are the last shows; he said they could be. As an aside, Bruce has said nothing about any future shows being played, next year or any other time. He did imply that they would be back 'ina little while,' but who knows? No one. They are going to be away for a while at least.
Anything can happen to 10 60-year-olds in three years. They may be back. I hope they will be, but to say there isn't at least a 50-50 shot that this is the last full-scale ESB tour is just denial.
Now for Patti: Patti has not toured regularly with the band since the first part of the Magic Tour. I think there are a couple of reasons for that. Patti was treated extremely rudely by a bunch of mysogonistic mouthbreathers who are convinced that they would be out cruising for chicks with Bruce if only the old ball and chain weren't around. Bruce tried dueting with Patti on her 'A Town Called Heartbreak' and 20,000 of Bruce's closest friends responded by hitting the head at the start of the song without even giving it -- or Patti -- a chance. She has been scarce since. I think the two are related.
Also, let's face it: As a member of the band, Patti is a luxery, but not a necessity. The Springsteens have three kids. They need a mom more than the ESB needs a hot, red-headed backup singer/fourth guitar player.
Patti and Bruce have been spotted together many times out socially since she stopped touring reguarly and since the 'affair' rumors popped up. She played the MSG shows and a couple of the GS shows. They are together. They are going to be together until they aren't.
Plain and simple, Patti loves Bruce, Bruce loves Patti, and people need to deal with it. It's been 20 years people. Accept it.
Also, one day, the ESB will be no more, and Bruce is going to be on to the next thing, permantly. If you can't handle either fact, keep your old records, put them on and cry, and feel free to get off 'this train (get it?)' at any stop.
10 - Amanda
LOL! I'm enjoying this. Thanks, Josh, 11, JOHN and others. My big regret, having traveled from south of Huntsville, AL, for our first overnight away from our 3-year-old son (and both of us, um, "around" age 50; this was actually my DH's anniversary present to me this year), and having been in love with Bruce's music for over 30 years? Not managing to make a sign I'd envisioned, something like "Our 3-year-old loves RADIO NOWHERE and GIRLS IN THEIR SUMMER CLOTHES," because those would have made the night super-complete for us. (We hear those songs in most waking moments as well as in our sleep, because he is OBSESSED with them now. And he sings them WAY better than that 9-year-old sang "Sunny Day"... Sorry, but the curmudgeonliness is catching, you see? ;-D)) We were closer than we'd ever been (I've only been to 5 concerts, alas), about 10 people between us and the back of "the pit," and about 5 people away from his final crowdsurfing moment. The one song I didn't know was "Trapped." (?!?) I wish they'd done a few from Tunnel of Love, Human Touch/Lucky Town, and Magic, but as my DH says, when you commit to performing an entire album (and what a treat that was, truly), that's a big chunk of time. We loved the Irish jig, Higher and Higher, Night, Something in the Night, The Rising, and, well,most everything.
I thought "No Surrender" with the sentimental photomontage of the band's long history was nice, and it felt very elegiac, like a real swan song. :-( I agree about "Sunny Day," Josh, but hey, Bruce is the great democratic rock-poet, heir to Whitman, Dylan and others, so the little tone-pitch girl up there was an example of his egalitarianism, I guess. (I think his having all the instruments drop out and letting her go acapella was a sort of wry joke, underlining that philosophy... but yeah, I'd have MUCH preferred another song. RADIO NOWHERE, for pete's sakes, would have been divine, IMHO. ;-))
11 - Curly
I guess since we probably attend a lot of the same shows it makes sense that I also feel like I am a magnet for Trapped. However, I loved the version in Nashville unlike in Atlanta earlier this year when I let myself get slightly disappointed that it was one of the sign requests.
12 - Jonathan Frapart
I have seen Springsteen 7 times during the Magic/working on a dream tour. Just from your review, I can tell we've been to many of the same shows (Atlanta, Nashville, St. Louis). I enjoyed your analysis, but had some thoughts on your criticism. In regards to song choices like Bobby Jean, No Surrender, and Darlington County, I think there are two things you need to consider.
First, Springsteen tends to understand his crowds. As you could tell by the many empty seats, Nashville is not a Springsteen hot spot. Hence, it would make sense for him to play songs with greater commercial appeal. Even though I rarely listen to it, there is a reason why Born in the U.S.A. holds the record (along with Thriller) for the most top ten singles on one album (7). While a crowd in the east coast or Cleveland may relish the opportunity to hear Thundercrack or Zero and Blind Terry, I believe Springsteen knew a song like Darlington County would resonate at this particular show.
May second point is that in your condemnation of some of his song choices, you fail to consider the context of the show. This is ironic in that much of your articles touches on the palpable finality seen in the band at this point in the tour. When Steve Van Zandt left the E-Street band in 1984, Springsteen wrote "Bobby Jean" as a way to thank Stevie for his friendship and tell him that he supported the decision. Currently, as they are on the verge of going their separate ways for the first time in over two years, the E-Street band would seem to be having many of the same feelings as depicted in Bobby Jean. Sentimental about their friendship, but also wanting the best for one another in the future. Hence, "Good luck goodbye. Bobby Jean."
13 - John Adams
These last two posts were excellent. I just felt sorry for Josh since he seemed so miserable from the Nashville concert and he acted like he just attended NIN concert. All the greats whether it is Paul McCartney, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Cash, Billy Joel (just kidding!) and Stevie Wonder honor the fathers and mothers of blues, rock, gospel, and country. Most of the time it is a risk but it is a humble way of both saluting and showing that sometimes it even better than the original. In the case of Bruce Springsteen he did it better--Ring of Fire and Higher and Higher. Another comment about up and coming bands, good ones do covers and the ones who don't should take a lap. Five days later I still have that WOW feeling from the concert! I mean Bruce is even better with age than the 70's , 80's and 90's and without Patti givng those cold stares to him on stage and not kissing him at Bonaroo when he asked for it. Even afater that show Patti would not hang with him--it was just Bruce and his son attening the late night shows like Band of Horses etc. By the way, Bruce off stage is a super nice guy along with his son. Josh please take a couple of laps and please dont' watch the BS show on HBO next Sunday night--he plays a lot of covers in that show. Best Wishes,
14 - Herb Lauder
The song "Trapped" is about a famous rock star who wants other women to have sex with but he feels trapped in a marriage with a wife that has not aged well. Its a song about yearning. I think that Tiger had this on the ipod or maybe it was Will Smith. Anyway, loved the Nashville show. I just wish the NJ hottie behind me did not have to leave to go back stage. She told me her name was Tinka and she was staying at Dolly Parton's place. By the way, I hung out with the base player at a show and noticed he had a big bald spot and like "magic" he now has a hair piece and cosmetic surgery. Hey the trumpet player was great. OK the Santa's coming to town is getting a big old too. How come that little guitar player, Lofgren, is not doing his tumbling act anymore? I mean his contract states he gets $500 bonus for doing that. Finally, does the violin player have a boyfriend and what about the sparks on stage between her and Clarence? One more thing, I just wish that Bruce brought up Dolly Parton to sing "Trapped" Or "Let's Get Physical" Oh yeah now that would be awesome.One more thing, I noticed the organ player shaved his head and waxed it. Comon get a hair piece, a tat, and some rock and roll clothes. Anyway, Bruce you were great but next time start on time not 45 minutes late. Finally, Bruce should have said something about the crisis in Sudan and made a plea make a donation. One more thing, Hey Bruce you were great. Next time make the screens bigger for us folks with bad eyes. Finally, if you decide to fire anyone from the band, I would do the following: Clarence might be too old to blow those high notes, Patty, OK she is already gone, Lofgren since he refuses to take a tumble for the band, the organ player is kind of a show-off the way he used his hands and feet at he same time, and maybe the show should just last 90 minutes instead of 3 and half hours. How about a warm up band like My Mornign Jacket or Tower of Power. In fact maybe they should back up Bruce. Anyway, I love you Bruce but not like a gay guy would like you but hey you are my hero.