Review: Bruce Springsteen in concert

This year Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band journeyed to England’s own “Badlands” – the ‘grim’ North – to perform shows in Manchester and Sunderland in support of ‘Wrecking Ball’, a record widely regarded as a return to form despite the tragic loss of iconic sax player Clarence Clemons in 2011.

With my ticket expressly stating that the show started at 7pm I went along to the rather wet Etihad Stadium a few hours early, expecting the usual pre-show ritual of a stadium gig: mediocre support band, followed by a “they-were-alright-I’ll-look-them-up-when-I-get-home” support band followed by a squashed smelly wait, followed (eventually) by the headline band themselves. Instead I was greeted by some quaint country music over the speakers and a stage set ready for the E Street band to arrive. To my left, a geography teacher and her mother enjoying a packed dinner. To my right, a couple (clad in Bruce memorabilia) sharing a miniature bottle of whiskey to help beat back the pouring rain. A real air of peace and camaraderie existed throughout the over-prepared, beer bellied, middle aged fans who dominated the crowd: a band of brothers harking back over 30 years ago to a time when they first fell in love both with Springsteen and with each other over classics such as “Born to Run” and “Thunder Road”. It was weird.

True enough, 7pm heralded the arrival of The Boss delayed only by the keyboardists, backing singers, Steve Van Zant and the lute player making there way to the stage. It’s a nickname he’s never really warmed to, preferring to see himself as the “quarter back” of the E Street band and indeed it’s obvious that he calls the shots as he drives the band through the opening gambit of “Badlands” and “No Surrender”. Its an opening which sets the tone for a night of joy and celebration. The show cleverly links classics, new material and seemingly forgotten gems such as “Prove It All Night” – the inclusion of which almost causes our friend the geography teacher to drop her cucumber sandwiches.

Indeed there is an omnipresent feeling that this is a show for seasoned Springsteen fans with poignant reminders of the loss of Clemons scattered throughout the show including a moving tribute during set climax “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out”. Springsteen greets the fans like old friends telling us that “he’s learnt a lot since he was last here” to which the audience responds with a deep call of “Bruce” – a cry which to me sounded like an outright derogatory boo.

At 62, Springsteen has lost none of his vitality and showmanship. He still parades around the stage at every given opportunity, being careful to honour the younger members of the audience, handing out guitar picks and harmonicas to anyone that looks anywhere close to the right side of 30 and grabbing a young boy out of the crowd to sing a chorus in crowd pleaser “Waitin on a Sunny Day”.

You can’t help but be impressed. Two and half hours into the show the set is only just reaching its climax with an encore loaded with hits and a riotous cover of “Twist and Shout” – which featured trumpet player Curt Ramm crashing to the floor as he eagerly made his way to the front of the stage. It’s just one of many moments which has the audience, and Springsteen himself, grinning ear to ear and shows that, even after years of experience, no show is perfect. Yes it was a stadium gig so most of the sound seemed to get sucked out of the Etihad before the sound engineer found the ‘volume +’ button; yes there was perhaps a lack of laser beams and confetti that is present in other stadium tours in the UK, and yes he didn’t play Born in the USA (for obvious reasons). However, although there was an awkward feeling that I was part of a minority of people too young to remember the “good old days” when the Boss and the Big Man conquered the world and too old to be one of that groups son or daughter, there is plenty here to be admired. The musicianship is unquestionable, and the set time (a whopping three and a half hours) unparalleled. He may not like it, but Springsteen certainly is a Boss in the music world – one that will command authority and respect for many years to come.

Image: menmedia.co.uk