After going to New Orleans, I swore to myself I would never see this tour again. Was completely blown away in NOLA ? the show felt alive, vital, fragile and strong. The faces on the musicians were full of wonder and mission ? rising up with the music and delivering it to a crowd mixed in Bruce e street culture and new Orleans gumbo ? singing to a city in true need of salvation. The words were important and they got under everyone?s skin ? City of Ruins and When the Saints Come Marching In. It was the unfinished quality and passion that drove the day. And it was timeless and incredible.
So yesterday I found myself in Los Angeles for work ? and going against my promise, went over to the Greek. It was a beautiful night and the Greek is a wonderful venue. The crowd was very un-LA ?they were up in their seats ? singing loud ? on cue. No one left for one minute until the end (that was the most un-LA of all, stacked parking does make an early exit impossible). And yet, what they saw was so different from where this tour started. Bruce is obsessed with tightening and tightening his work until it loses all sense of spontaneity. Each lick, each note, each ending all perfect. If he fucks up a lyric, or plays one new song that is supposed to replace the mission of a night of great musicians making LIVE music. This show is great, but it is starting to feel canned, just like the reunion shows slipped into caricature. It is such a shame that each night cannot be a new adventure musically. Bruce?s anger and passion are now a fake smile ? okay maybe a real smile, maybe he is having the time of his life ? but these songs need the authenticity he brought to New Orleans and cannot stand up to the perfected anthem delivery he has now settled into. I don?t want to see Bruce Springsteen smiling on a big video screen with all perfectly bleached teeth!
Pete Seeger ? whether you liked him or not ? brought a sense of urgency to the music everytime he got out there ? whether one of the thousands of benefits he did for crowds of dozens or millions. He could come off as alittle too sincere and over the top ? granted ? but he was (and continues to be) the real deal.
Bruce is posing in front of these songs right now ? great musicians, brilliant arrangements, inspired set list ? but the core is missing and it shows.
We all do go to Bruce shows for the connection he promises ? with him, with ourselves, and with the music. What he had in April, and what you know he has inside ? seems to be slipping away on stage as this tour plays out.
In the meantime, does anyone have a good seat for MSG?
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