That's Bruce in the center, surrounded by the rockin' E Street Band.
Okay, I have no zoom lens on my iPhone,but you can see we had some choice seats for the Boss show at Pepsi Center.
While "Get Out of Denver" cranked, The Boss and his band took the stage and opened with "Badlands." The long, jammin' set included a glorious rendition of "Racing in the Streets" with ethereal keyboards. Springsteen sang "Johnny 99," which seemed politically pertinent with the lyrics "I had debts no honest man could pay/the bank was holdin' my mortgage/ they were gonna take my house away." As if to squealch ugly rumors about extramarital affairs, Bruce and his wife/band member Patti Scialfa harmonized on a touching version of "Tougher Than the Rest," and evidently they're still in harmony. What a cool couple: married 18 years, they have three teenagers, and still manage to make music.
To our surprise, Springsteen's Irish genes surfaced when he launched into a long, Celtic rendition of the "American Land" immigration song from the Dublin sessions. The whole, packed place was dancing the jig and smiling. Thanks to Bruce the rock and roll evangelist, the crowd of predominently middle-aged Anglos mustered more energy and emotion than any of us have probably felt in a long while.
True to his social justice bent, Springsteen made a pitch for Food Bank of the Rockies, too. He's heroic. He's more engaging than any performer I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot. Bruce Springsteen is still The Boss man.
I was gratified to contribute the Bruce Springsteen quiz to yesterday's Denver Post: I hope The Boss had a peak at the piece. I created it sort of a gift back to the musician I've grooved to since I was in high school and whose songs still figure into my personal soundtrack. Bruce Springsteen is my generation's Elvis Presley.
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