Saturday, February 11, 2017

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Sydney, Thursday 9 February 2017



The train was on its way out of the station when I consulted the iPhone and noted that the time was 11:01.
On that basis, I’d been right when I'd remarked to the male half of the duo who had claimed the seats beside me that I thought the show had been a little short.
For once, I had an accurate note of the starting time (7:47), and the most recent time check during the concert, around 10:20 had been just over the two-and-a-half-hour mark.
From there, Bruce has surprised a few people with an acoustic Thunder Road, after that the venue had started to empty,  I'd made my way to the station, and we’d had a bit of a wait before things got moving.
So it seems fair to say but the interval between the gospel number coming over the public address and the train's departure was comfortably over fourteen minutes.
Consequently, it seems safe to assume that the concert room comfortably short of three hours.
I did not, however, raise the point because people might think I was confusing quantity with quality.
As far as shows go, this was one of the best, despite the odd distraction in the neighbour department.
A seat on the floor at the back of section D had me more or less across the way from where I’d been sitting on Tuesday, but this time the view to the front remained clear.


When I arrived, I found a couple two seats away on my right. Preshow discussion revealed he was either an American or had stayed there long enough to add an American inflection to his accent.
And he was Deadhead, with a concert count roughly equivalent to Hughesy’s tally of Springsteen shows.
But it was his first time for Bruce.
She was less inclined to chat, but I suspect she was Australian, which probably explained why her other half was in the country.
The seats on my left were taken by an Indian couple who were unsure about the visual side of things, being at the back of the floor and all. They were also new to the Bruce live experience.
He was, however, big Rolling Stones fan, and seemed to rate Bruce alongside Mick Jagger as far as reputations about live performances were concerned.
They both remained seated throughout the show, with his better half occasionally getting to her feet for a brief look at things that weren't coming up on the video screens.
And it was well into Lonesome Day when the two seats on my immediate right were occupied by two large gentlemen bearing beer and a liberal supply of sideways conversation which may not have been Bruce related.
In between regular resupply runs, they remained on their feet for much of the show which, in turn, raised issues for me as far as standing was concerned.
I could've spent much of the concert on my feet, but that, in turn, would've blocked Mrs. India’s view of the three screens.
Seated, she was never going to see much of the stage.
But, not to put too fine a point on it, I was very much the worse for wear and quite happy to remain seated for most of the show.
It had been very hot during the day and I would probably have been better off making my visit to the Australian National Maritime Museum yesterday rather than today.
Weather permitting, of course.
But it didn't, so I did, and paid the price during the night.
There were frequent yawns through the twenty-seven song set and encore, but they nothing to do with boredom.
How can you get bored in a Springsteen show that adds three numbers to your song matrix, includes Rosalita, and it is completely devoid of kids being hauled on stage to sing a verse of Waiting on a Sunny Day?
Sure, we had the regulation crowd surf during Hungry Heart and the inevitable selection of dancers from the pit at the end of Dancing in the Dark.
But they’re probably inevitable and are all part of the show.
Equally inevitable, it seems, is Shout, and tonight confirmed notions about its value in the set list.
No Shout, would probably have meant no Bobby Jean and quite possibly no acoustic Thunder Road to finish it off.
Running through the setlist itself, New York City Serenade sparkled the way it always does.
I just wish Bruce would find somewhere else to use those strings.
From there, the four-song, up-tempo salvo got everything moving before things dropped back a notch with Spirit in the Night, played with the usual infectious groove.
Out in the Street lead nicely into the night's second set piece (that's assuming you count the opener as the first) while Death to my Hometown slotted in around where it fits best
Adam Raised a Cain was a sign request, probably a definite one since it hadn't been played it since Berlin in June last year.
The River, Youngstown and The Promised Land could be rated among the usual suspects
Throwing in Rendezvous and Be True shook things up a little before the rising crescendo that reached its peak with a boisterous Rosalita.
With the house lights on but no other indication that it was encore time if Born to Run was predictable, the Detroit Medley wasn’t.
But, boy did it fit!
The Dancing in the Dark routine depends largely on the calibre of the dancers Bruce hauls out of the pit and this bunch was better than average.
And, from there, things almost proceeded by numbers.
Until, of course, the acoustic Thunder Road that should have had people who'd made their way out of the venue while the band was taking their curtain call kicking themselves.
Hughesy is cagier.
While I’ll start making my way towards the exit, there's no way I'm going to leave until that the gospel number comes across the PA.
At that point, you can be reasonably assured that the show is over.


New York City Serenade (with strings) 
Lonesome Day
The Ties That Bind
No Surrender
My Love Will Not Let You Down
Spirit in the Night
Out in the Street
Hungry Heart
Death to My Hometown
Adam Raised a Cain
The River
Youngstown
The Promised Land
Rendezvous
Be True
Working on the Highway
Because the Night
The Rising
Badlands
Rosalita
* * * 
Born to Run
Detroit Medley
Dancing in the Dark
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out
Shout
Bobby Jean
Thunder Road (acoustic)

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