Working on a Dream and 2009 Tour

I don't know of complex and deep but how about boring and stupid?

 

That's what they did with the Magic tour.

 

And given that the later Magic tour shows were the better ones, people in Detroit/Cleveland should stop complaining. They might end up with a St. Louis-type show where he breaks out a rarity like "And then She Kissed Me." And people in Detroit should think about taking a run up to Toronto. I checked train fares yesterday and they're like $128 round trip from Windsor.

 

I was at the Toronto show, early in the tour, and the setlist paled in comparison to the later shows. Way more stuff from Magic - and Patti's number which was a signal to head for more beer - than showed up later on.

 

The past three ESB tours have started with a more static set list and a certain pacing/message which Bruce wanted to convey. By the end of the tour, that was out the window and only a few of those rigid setlist placements remained (such as the five pack from Reunion, The Rising into Last to Die from Magic, etc) and it was a free for all. Generally, the later the show is on the tour, the better.

 

I would guess that this has as much to do with scheduling dates as anything. It looks like mid-May would be roughly when he would have been in Cleveland, judging by some of the other dates scheduled there, and that's roughly the same time as the NBA playoffs. Probably just couldn't guarantee a date.

I mean, I would imagine MSG would get a date, and as Simon pointed out, nothing in South Florida either. Probably all coming after Europe.

 

Webster: In general, I agree with you.

That said, I saw one of the first shows after Danny Federici died, and it was a wholly different vibe: Bruce and the ESB played with a ferocity and purpose I hadn't seen since BITUSA.

It was as if they were all auditioning for their respective parts in the band - blistering solos, passionate vocals, an incredibly intense effort all around.

Caught one of the Meadowlands shows at the end of the tour and it, too, was great, but much more festive and relaxed.

 

Still haven't heard the whole thing but I see Roilling Stone went full brown bunny in its latest issue - with Bruce on the cover - and gave it five stars.

Now there is a pretty good cross-section of opinion from the Bruce fans in these parts but does anybody think this album stands up with his best work?

 

The horns have left Conan to join Bruce in Tampa for the Super Bowl. Hopefully they'll be joining him for the tour as well.

 

Doesn't come close to standing up to his best work. It's his 16th studio release and I'd place it middle of the pack or lower half of those albums.

 

Fun but lightweight. Doesn't belong in the same conversation with "Darkness," "Born To Run," etc.

 

Certainly not his best work but that's a pretty high bar to reach. Not his worst either. It's funny, some of the songs on here, I like the music but not the lyrics and some I like the lyrics but not the music. Too bad they couldn't get together! Seriously though, there's only so many Thunder Roads or Born to Runs in each musician. Even the Yankees don't win the championship every year.