Happy Birthday to the Boss

I thoroughly enjoyed the Seeger stuff. He was having fun with it in concert. He recorded the majority of it in 1997 when he was working on a contribution to a Seeger tribute album (the only track that made that tribute album was We Shall Overcome). Then revisited it earlier this year when listening to stuff for Tracks 2, felt he had something and went with it.
Although very few of the songs on The Seeger Sessions were written by Pete Seeger its a fun exploration of early folk music.
I too am waiting for a new album of Bruce Springsteen songs, but this detour has been a lot of fun.

 

I always thought Springsteen could do a lot with a cover of 'Lost in Emotion.'
Maybe he should think about 'The Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam Sessions.'

 

My favourite Manfred Mann song, although he does an okay job on it too.

 

i'll always maintain that the only artist i'd pay mainstream top dollar to see right now (that i haven't seen before) is the boss. i'd at least three figures to see him at the meadowlands in all his jersey glory, giants stadium of byrne arena. msg would be awesome as well. i respect his seeger work, but i won't pay inflated prices unless i can see him with the e street band. my friends don't get it, too bad for them.

 

As someone who has seen him at the Meadowlands Arena, Giants Stadium, MSG and in Philly, spend the extra travel time and go see him in Philadelphia. Although the homestate shows are great and the MSG shows are always top-notch, the shows in Philadelphia go up another level. There's something about Philly that pushes him and the band to their highest level in terms of performance and rarities.

 

Wild Billy - I was sure that Spirit in the Night would be your # 1 . What will Crazy Jane think.

 

1. Darkness On The Edge Of Town
2. Backstreets
3. Cadillac Ranch
4. Johnny 99
5. Paradise By the 'C'
6. Candy's Room
7. Two Hearts
8. Tunnel Of Love
9. Badlands
10. Ramrod

Some of my fave covers: "Quarter To Three" from the London live CD, "Detroit Medley" (in any of its incarnations), "High School Confidential" (from a bootleg I have of a Washington show on the Darkness tour) and "Viva Las Vegas", from an Elvis tribute CD a few years back.

 

His slow and folk stuff, I have no use for. Fine if you do, but it's two entirely different entities, and it's perfectly fine to like one and not get into the other. And I like the Manfred Mann versions of Blinded by the Light, Spirits in the Night and I Came for You better. Anyhoo:

1. Prove It All Night.
2. Glory Days.
3. Jungleland.
4. Out on the Streets.
5. Born to Run.
6. Backstreets.
7. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town.
8. Cadillac Ranch.
9. I'm on Fire.
10. Thunder Road.

 

BTW, Bruce hates being called the Boss. As a loyal fan, I have never and will never refer to him as the Boss.

 

Can't believe that it has been 7 years since I saw him in Philly in what supposed to be his first post-50th birthday show (an earlier show got postponed and took place on 9/24/99 at the Spectrum). The biggest holy shit moment to open a show, with the first performance of Incident on 57th Street in about 20 years. I've been to 61 shows and that was the best moment of them all.

I don't think that the Seeger sessions has anything to do with Seeger, other than the fact that he first recorded some songs for the tribute album. It is somewhat self-indulgent, but the music is great and I think that he's at his best when the focus is on the strings and the horns. As I mentioned an an earlier thread, Bruce is at a good stage right now -- he is still at the top of his game, he isn't so popular that you have to see him in a football stadium and he realizes that time is running out and he doesn't need to be picky about his stuff. In the past four years, he's put out a very good album with the ESB, done a fanstatic tour with them, put out a dark solo album with an interesting solo tour and doen the Seeger Sessions CD and tour. The shows on this tour are really fun, and a song like "How Can a Poor Man" are as good as anything that he's done.

Top 10 songs (today):

1) Incident
2) Thunder Road
3) Badlands
4) The Promised Land
5) Brilliant Disguise
6) Shut Out the Light
7) Long Time Comin'
8) Born to Run
9) Meeting/Jungleland
10) Human Touch

Hon Ment (11-20): Stolen Car (Kiss the Bride version), Devils and Dust, NYC Serenade, How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live (I consider it an original), Wreck on the Highway, Spare Parts, Better Days, Real World (acoustic), Lonesome Day and My City of Ruins

Plus: Pilgrim in the Temple of Love -- easily the best song about a shopping mall Santa receiving oral favors in the parking lot of a strip club which has even been written.

Top 5 covers:

1) Drift Away (with Stevie on the BITUSA tour)
2) I Don't Wanna Go Home (acoustic with Stevie, Soozie on the violin)
3) Pay Me My Money Down/Oh Mary, Don't You Weep No More (my daughter's two favorite songs for me to sing her to sleep)
4) Seven Nights to Rock
5) It's My Life

Top 5 average songs which are great in concert:

1) Ramrod
2) Dancing in the Dark
3) Darlington County
4) Sherry Darling
5) Kitty's Back

Top 3 concert stories:

1) Adam and Even in the Garden of Eden (Pink Cadillac)
2) The River -- getting drafted
3) Ducky Slattery -- And the Band Played

 

I remember that 9/25/99 show too. I was there, about 10-12 rows up behind the stage. Went alone and when he played those first notes my jaw dropped and I was in utter shock by mid-song the fans sitting around me and I were high-fiving at our luck in getting to hear this one. After the amazing 50th birthday show the night before I didn't think anything could top it, but this opener did. Plus later in the show we got NYC Serenade, Jungleland and an encore closing Raise Your Hand. Amazing night of music.

In terms of covers, the version of Drift Away from the Born in the USA tour with special guest Steve Van Zandt was amazing (I've only heard it on tape, didn't get to witness it). Plus that acoustic I Don't Want to Go Home from the Asbury Joad shows was just as much fun to watch as it was to listen to.

Including the handful of times I've caught him in bars and the '02 Today Show performance I was in the building for, I've seen him 88 or 89 times. Can't wait to see what number 90 brings.

 

Did they do "Smoke from a Distant Fire"?