Looking forward to Thursday's Mystery Ride

"Last Man Standing" solo acoustic has me most excited

Attending a Bruce Springsteen concert in 2023 promises to be a dramatically different experience than it was the last time he toured in the United States. A lot has changed in the world in the seven years since my last show, February 16, 2016. Considering music only, three new albums’ worth of new songs fight for space in the 26 to 28-song setlist. The inclusion of wonderful new songs means less room for a “classic.” Of course, a person’s determination of what constitutes a “classic” is unequivocally subjective. 

Assuredly, he will not play a personal “classic” of mine. The River, for example, has yet to be played in 2023. Neither has Hungry Heart. Bobby Jean has only appeared once. And while Kitty’s Back is not anywhere near the top of my personal favorites list, it highlights the wonderful horns and other individual talented musicians that make up the 19-person E Street Band. As Bruce says, what other rock band has a horn section?

But what will make Thursday night’s show in Columbus, Ohio different for me is that technology has fundamentally altered how I approach the concert. I did not have SiriusXM in 2016 so I did not experience the thrill of following along with Jim Rotolo and the rest of the E Street Nation. There is a camaraderie among “Spring-Nuts.” To have full shows released in audio format and aired on E Street Radio 10 days from the performance only spurs excitement of the actual event.

Facebook live streams allow us to watch shows in real time. And, while I won’t link to them directly because of copyright gray areas, there is no shortage of YouTube clips and even full concerts to watch. To borrow from basic economic theory, these videos are not, of course, a substitute for the live experience, but they are complementary. Consuming these video snippets (and yes, I have watched, or at least listened to, entire live shows from this tour - DIMEBAGDARYL79 is the man) also create anticipation of the actual event. 

I know I said I would not link to YouTube, but solo acoustic Last Man Standing with Barry Danielian’s trumpet is so powerful. Occasionally Curt Romm takes the horn solo. I am ready to experience this mystery ride in person. When you are 15, life is a lot of hellos. Now it is a lot more goodbyes.

All of this technology means I know the setlist so well that the slightest deviation will be fulfilling. I can only imagine the excitement I would have felt Sunday when Bruce busted out the acoustic guitar and broke into Working on the Highway. And isn’t this part of the thrill of a Bruce show? They are very rarely a replication of a previous show.

I have seen Bruce from the upper deck and from the pit. I have seen solo acoustic shows. I have seen Eddie Vedder sing My Hometown (still get chills) and Darkness on the Edge of Town with Bruce. I have 250-ish shows on digital audio files. I missed Super Bowl XXX in order to see Bruce, a timing conflict that prompted several on-stage jokes from Bruce. 

So as I ready to head south on I-71 to Columbus where I will watch Bruce from seven rows up from the stage, in the back corner nearest to Charlie G and the Horns, what is it I hope? Of course, I would love to hear The River and Bobby Jean. Top to bottom, The River two-album set released in October 1980 might be my favorite but Born in the U.S.A. is the album that introduced me to Bruce.

But what I am most excited about is the chance to be transformed for two-and-a-half hours by the heart-stopping, pants-dropping, hard-rocking, booty-shaking, love-making, earth-quaking, Viagra-taking, justifying, death-defying, legendary E Street Band.