At Philly concert, Bruce Springsteen talks about his illness
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at MSG: “Prove it all night long”
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band perform “Prove It All Night” at Madison Square Garden on the first night of Metro NYC shows.
Asbury Park Press
Bruce Springsteen is feeling better, thanks.
The Boss and the E Street Band performed a thrilling three-hour concert at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Friday, August 23. A year ago, he wasn’t feeling well and was scheduled to play with the E Street Band in Philly.
“So there I was on the New Jersey shore,” Springsteen, 74, said during a musical break in “Growin’ Up.” “I think it was last summer because my stomach was killing me (space). Whatever I did, my stomach hurt. When I tried to sing, my stomach hurt. When I tried to play guitar, my stomach hurt. When I tried to kiss my baby, my stomach hurt! I laid there thinking (space), I’d rather be in Philadelphia!”
The shows on Friday and Wednesday, August 21, were make-up performances for last August, when Springsteen postponed the E Street Band tour due to a stomach ulcer.
On Friday, a few changes to the setlist from Wednesday kept fans on their feet. The opening track “Seeds” was delivered with burning intensity and Steven Van Zandt delivered a solo for “Prove It All Night” on his black and purple Fender guitar to start the show.
“My Love Will Not Let You Down,” recorded for “Born in the U.S.A.” in the early ’80s but finally released on the “Tracks” compilation in 1998, was another surprise in the early set.
“Reason to Believe,” “Atlantic City,” and “Long Walk Home” worked well as a dark and stirring theme for the middle of the set. A glimmer of redemption and hope when the night is at its darkest.
Better – and funnier – days will come. Later in the show, Springsteen had Philly Elvis sing part of “Thunder Road” in the front row, and Springsteen and Van Zandt tiptoed across the stage like two Fred Astaires in “Glory Days.”
In Philly, anything was forgiven, including missing both shows last summer and making references to the Meadowlands and the Giants in the song “Wrecking Ball,” which drew boos, not “bruuuces.”
Springsteen also gave another speech in Philly about the band’s situation, following up on his statement on Wednesday that they would not give up.
“We’re not doing any farewell tour nonsense,” Springsteen said. “For God’s sake, no farewell tour for the E Street Band! Absolutely not! Farewell to what? Thousands of people screaming your name? Yes, I want to stop that!”
The crowd responded with a stadium-sized “Bruuuuce.”
“That’s it, that’s all it takes,” Springsteen joked. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Next up is September 7 at Nationals Park in Washington, DC, September 13 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards in Baltimore, and then September 15 at the Sea Hear Now festival on the beach in Asbury Park.
More: Bruce Springsteen classic “Born in the USA” rocks DNC and Tim Walz in Chicago
More: Review of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band in Philadelphia: A concert with a message
Shows are scheduled through November 22 of this year, with four replacement dates planned in Europe for the summer of 2025. The European shows were postponed in May of this year due to Springsteen’s “vocal issues” following a May 22 performance at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, England, on what fans said was a chilly and rainy day.
“We don’t give up,” Springsteen said at the Aug. 21 show. “We don’t stop – what the hell? Why do people stop?”
E Street Band members Steven Van Zandt, Roy Bittan, Garry Tallent, Jake Clemons, Anthony Almonte and Curtis King Jr. visited Asbury Park on Thursday, August 22, for a TeachRock benefit event at Asbury Lanes. Photographers Pam Springsteen (Bruce’s sister), Nicki Germaine and Rob DeMartin also attended. Filmmaker Thom Zimny emceed the event and journalist Brian Williams moderated.
Attendees of the expensive event, the proceeds of which benefited Van Zandt’s educational initiative TeachRock, were shown rare footage of E Street Band performances from the 1970s to the more recent past.
Springsteen, E Street Philly Night 2 Setlist
- Seeds
- Prove it all night
- My love will not disappoint you
- Two hearts
- Darkness on the outskirts of the city
- The Promised Land
- Hungry Heart
- Waiting on a sunny day
- Reason to believe
- Atlantic City
- Long way home
- The E Street Shuffle
- Grow up
- Night shift
- Last man standing
- Backyards
- Because the night
- I’m on fire
- She is the one
- wrecking ball
- The uprising
- wasteland
- Thunder Street
- Born to run
- Rosalita (Come out tonight)
- Glorious days
- Dancing in the dark
- Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
- Turning and screaming
- I will see you in my dreams
More: 6 historic moments with Bruce Springsteen in Philly
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Jersey Shore native Chris Jordan covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Reach him at [email protected]
