The music and cultural icon is currently performing rescheduled tour dates from 2023
I’d like to start this article with a message to The Boss: Mr. Springsteen: you don’t need to work this hard. You really don’t.
It’s a wonder that Bruce Springsteen would have anything left in the tank for his next stop in Asbury Park, NJ. Because he gave the Baltimore audience at Camden Yards everything he had. Every ounce of energy. Every note. Every lyric. And when it seemed he ran out, he dug inside himself and found even more.
Springsteen opened with—and pardon the nickname pun—a boss move. Instead of singing a word, he let the crowd kick it off by singing the opening verse to “Hungry Heart” as the E Street Band backed them.
Springsteen’s image as the working man’s rock star is not a put-on. His white shirt and crisp black vest are his uniform. His guitar—often slung behind him with strap proudly across his solid sternum—his tool belt. From note one, he went to work on the music. And the sounds of the E Street Band barely let up across three hours and 30 songs.
Much has been said about Springsteen’s voice over the decades, but it is still strong in a way that commands attention. The musical arrangements of the E Street Band are as forceful as the Boss’ voice. Fiddles, horns, and even an accordion round out that inimitable big rock sound. Also a shout out to the sound crew: the sound mix was incredibly nuanced, allowing the ears of even those in the far reaches of the stadium to pick up every instrument in the massive band.
Steven Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren are a match made in harmony heaven. Their respective highlights during “Youngstown” whipped the crowd into a frenzy. The E Street Choir nailed their transcendent vocals on a cover of “Nightshift” by The Commodores. And pianist Roy Bittan shined on “Racing in the Street.”
To describe each moment where members of Bruce’s band proved themselves to be the world’s top musicians would make this article 60 pages long. Each player had their moment, but as a band they were otherworldly. The true definition of a sum greater than its parts.
But at the night’s most poignant moment, those parts went away. Springsteen stood center stage and delivered a monologue from his acclaimed Broadway run. It led to an acoustic “Last Man Standing,” with only Barry Danielian backing him with touches of trumpet.
Perhaps the most telling thing about Bruce Springsteen is not in the music but in the design of his stage. At the three-tiered behemoth’s lowest level, there’s a ramp that delivers him to the barricade of the standing pit. He made the rounds a few times, like a political figure along a rope line.
But the Boss is not a politician. He’s a musician. And the music is how he connects to his fans, and vice versa. That a man of his stature wants to rip away the walls between himself and the people as they experience his music speaks volumes about how much that relationship means to him. Not to mention, it’s another Boss move.
