November 22nd: Buffalo

Bruce Springsteen said goodbye to the Working on a Dream tour (but not to the E Street Band!) in Buffalo with a historic performance. 34 songs in 3 hours and 27 minutes of pure joy and ecstasy. A memorable night that exceeded any expectactions. The performance of Bruce's debut album Greetings from Asbury Park NJ was superlative, but right after it ended the show never went down an inch, it grew and grew and grew in intensity, featuring a big variety of songs and a buch of rarities.

The highlights of the show (there were probably too many!) were a beautiful "The Angel" (with an unknown viola player), a magnificent "Growin' Up" which included a long story about the day Bruce met Clarence, a crazy version of "Spirit in the Night", plus a devastating "Lost in the Flood" that let us completely stunned. Best ever version? Probably. Bruce's and Max's work at the end of the song (and the whole band, indeed) was simply mesmerizing.

Those alone were worth the trip and the show, but there were tons more. The initial "Wrecking Ball" (sounding better than ever) followed by an inspiring "The Ties That Bind", and the fun crowd-surfing on "Hungry Heart". And then the world live debut of the superb "Restless Nights", upon Stevie's request as it was his birthday, plus a great "Surprise, Surprise", again dedicated to Stevie after guitar tech Kevin Buell brought a b/day cake onstage.

The requests section included "Merry Christmas Baby", "Santa Claus is Coming to town", the rare "I Don't Wanna Hang Up My Rock'n'roll Shoes" (need he say more?) -last performed with the band in Saginaw, Michigan in 1978-, inmediately followed by a rockin' "Boom Boom" and a megapowerful "My Love Will Not Let You Down". Moments later, Steve shone again with his vocals on "Long Walk Home", and after the usual "The Rising" and "Born to Run", Springsteen added an extra one to the main set, which ended with a tremendous "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" ("the history of the band").

Was that enough? Not for Bruce, who went on as if he never really wanted to leave that stage. Encores arrived, with more surprises and lots of energy to spend yet. A beautiful and fast-paced "I'll Work For Your Love" opened the encore set, followed by "Thunder Road". By the time he got to the fabulous "Higher and Higher" (with Willie Nile as guest), there was no way to stop Bruce, who finally closed the set, the show and the tour with a fantastic long version of John Fogerty's "Rockin' All Over the World", with thanks to all his fans from every country in the world, and him naming every name of everyone in his crew and finally saying: "We appreciate you coming out to see The E Street Band. So we're gonna say goodbye, but just for a little while, a very little while, because, because... I like it, I like it, I like it", and then resuming the song again to a glorious end.

photo: copyright 2009 Raul Nieto

See complete set list completo de Buffalo.

Watch to believe...

Nov. 20th: Baltimore

After a great concert in Nashville, Springsteen offered in Baltimore the penultimate show of the tour, where he announced that he would take a break but would return in the future because "we're shutting down for a little while, but we will see you in the future, further on down the road, because we have miles to go before we sleep!" (Steve Van Zandt said recently in an interview that he saw no reason to quit and the band would keep playing together in the future).

This was the first time that Bruce played in Baltimore since 1973, and he celebrated it with an enthusiastic and powerful show, full of energy and 3 hours and 20 minutes in lenght, one of the longest of the tour so far. The usual and excellent full performance of the Born to Run album was followed by "Waitin 'On A Sunny Day" and "Spirit in the Night", plus many spectacular moments: the instrumental "Green Onions" made its debut on the tour and was played while Bruce collected sign requests. And those brought "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town", "The E Street Shuffle" and a splendid "For You", with Bruce solo at the piano.

The pace did not come down and a wave of unstoppable rock came next, with Springsteen going full speed with "Radio Nowhere", "My Love Will Not Let You Down" and an exciting "Long Walk Home", with Van Zandt exploding his most soulful side with some terrific vocals. A request for "Ramrod" opened the encores, which included a rare and welcome "Land of Hope and Dreams" and the usual encores, for a total of 8 songs, ending with "Higher and Higher", always impressive, and the added bonus of "Glory Days".


See complete set list for Baltimore.

Hall of Fame Anniversary concert to air on HBO

A 4-hour special with highlights from the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Anniversary concerts at Madison Square Garden will air on Nov.29th on HBO, beginning at 8pm. The show will be re-broadcast various times in December. It will include songs from the performances by Jerry Lee Lewis, Stevie Wonder, Metallica, U2 and others.

It has been confirmed that the special will contain the following Springsteen performances:

"Because the Night" (U2 with Patti Smith and Bruce Springsteen)
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" (U2 with Bruce Springsteen)
"Hold On, I'm Coming" (with Sam Moore)
"Soul Man" (with Sam Moore)
"The Ghost of Tom Joad" (with Tom Morello)
"Fortunate Son" (with John Fogerty)
"Oh, Pretty Woman" (with John Fogerty)
"Jungleland"
"A Fine, Fine Boy" (with Darlene Love)
"New York State of Mind" (with Billy Joel)
"Born to Run" (with Billy Joel)
"(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher" (with John Fogerty, Billy Joel, Darlene Love, Sam Moore and Tom Morello)

Nov.18th: Nashville

See complete set list.

Springsteen plays for Autism Speaks

At Carnegie Hall, Bruce Springsteen and Jerry Seinfeld performed last night for 'Autism Speaks'. Springsteen was onstage for about 20 minutes and sang 4 songs with his acoustic guitar.

See complete set list.

Nov. 15th: Milwaukee

A fantastic show, according to all accounts. Lots of energy and great songs. To begin with, "Cadillac Ranch" into "Badlands" to open and set the tone for the night. Once again, Born to Run from top to bottom, with great versions of "Backstreets" or "Jungleland", plus a fabulous set of sign requests that included "Santa Claus is Coming to Town", "Loose Ends", "Jolè Blon" and "Growin' Up".

Bruce joked with the State name again, saying during the "Working on a dream" speech: "Good evening, Ohio... er Wisconsin... I'm just fuckin' with ya. I'm back on my meds!". The kid singing on "Waitin' on a sunny day" requested Bruce for one of Max's drumsticks, and got it. "Into the Fire" showed up right before "The Rising", and the main set ended with "No Surrender".

The encores brought more: the rarely performed "Living Proof", by request, followed by a long "Kitty's Back", then "American Land", "Dancing", "Rosalita" and "Higher and Higher". During "Dancing in the Dark" a lady showed a sign asking to dance with Steve. She was taken onstage and danced with Steve while Bruce was joking about it.

See complete set list.

all pics copyright 2009 René Van Diemen

The last show: Greetings from Asbury Park

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will perform the album Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. during their concert in Buffalo, NY, on November 22, the final date of their 2009 Working on a Dream tour.

Released in January, 1973, Greetings marked Springsteen's debut as a recording artist; it is the first time this album will be performed in its entirety. Bruce and the band have performed the albums The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle, Born to Run, Darkness on the Edge of Town, The River and Born in the USA during their fall tour.

Bono, Mick & Bruce

Bono, Jagger & Springsteen appear in the cover of the latest issue of Rolling Stone, which includes a special feature on the Rock'n'roll Hall of Fame's 25tyh anniversary concerts.

Nov. 13th: Auburn Hills

Saying "good evening Ohio" is certainly not the best way to open a show... in Michigan. Bruce also changed the lyrics of "Wrecking Ball" to suit "tonight Ohio is going down in flames". In the introduction to "Working on a Dream" Bruce once again mentioned Ohio for the third until Steve Van Zandt informed Bruce of his mistake, after a few boos. Bruce shouted out "Where Am I?" a few times during the show, getting a strong answer (Detroit!!!) from the audience.

The concert continued the trend of the tour, with an intense version of "Prove it all night" (Nils back in the phenomenal guitar solo), the full Born to run album, and some interesting sign requests, with "Ramblin Gamblin Man", from local hero Bob Seger, followed by the inevitable "Detroit Medley" and then "Because the Night" with a scorching solo from Springsteen included. Fifteen minutes of unbridled rock in the hands of the E Street Band.

"Born in the USA" makes an appearance in the encores (not much new besides this one), culminating with the explosive "Rosalita" and "Higher and Higher".

See complete set list.

Nov. 10th: Cleveland

After two spectacular concerts at Madison Square Garden, Bruce and the E Street Band continue their tour of America. The next stop was Cleveland, a city that houses the Rock'n'roll Hall of Fame & Museum (currently showing an extensive exhibition on the artist). The concert included agin the full Born to Run album, plus the usual requests from fans (this time it was "Red Headed Woman," "Pink Cadillac" and "Back in your arms"), the return of the powerful "Radio Nowhere" and an encore set that ended with the double fun provided by "Higher and Higher" and "Rosalita".

Springsteen's final words indicate a temporary farewell of the E Street Band: "You've just seen, at least for a while, the legendary E Street Band".

See complete set list.

Madison Square Garden

Thousands of fans, many of them from all over the world, experienced last weekend two historic shows. On the last leg of the tour 2009 (let's stop calling it "Working on a dream", for it has ceased to be for practical purposes), Springsteen has decided to theme concerts, mainly devoted every evening to play a full classic album.

To date, Born to Run is the album chosen to be played at most shows, with occasional performances of Darkness on the Edge of Town and Born in the USA. The surprise was the announcement that in New York Springsteen would play The Wild, The Innocent and The E Street Shuffle, the first night, and The River the second. Two masterpieces that motivated the thousands of fans to move heaven and earth for a ticket. And it paid off.

Point Blank was there and enjoyed two memorable concerts (although it may sound topic) with a delivery of quality, excitement and energy that exceeds that of any of the best concerts we have seen since 1981. It was simply overwhelming. In attitude, strength, performance and emotion. In all aspects.

foto: copyright 2009 Point Blank. MSG 8/11/09

See complete set list for the Nov.7th show (The Wild)
See complte set list for the Nov.8th show (The River)

Read the great reviews at Backstreets.

New York City Serenade: MSG Nov.7th

Brown Eyed Girl

Charlotte, NC, Nov. 3rd 2009

I Fought the Law

Charlotte, NC, Nov.3rd 2009

Breaking news: The Wild and The River to be performed at MSG

After weeks of mystery, it's been announced: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band will perform two complete albums at the upcoming Madison Square Garden shows. And the albums are:

Sat. Nov. 7th: The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle
Sunday Nov. 8th: The River

Big news indeed that have happily surprised every one.

Last night the tour stopped in Charlotte, and Bruce delivered another great show: with the full Born to Run album, "Seeds" and "Darlington County" opening, four great sign requests: Van Morrison's "Brown Eyed Girl" -a tour premiere-, Bobby Fuller's "I Fought the Law", "Sherry Darling" and "So Young and In Love". If that wasn't enough, the show once again finished with "Rosalita" and the absolutely amazing "Higher and Higher".

Next stop: NYC, where two masterpieces will be performed.

See complete Charlotte set list.

First "Light of Day" show in NYC

"Light of Day" comes to New York City for the first time. The event will take place at Bowery Electric on Friday, Nov.6th at 6:30 pm, and will feature performances by Joe D'Urso & Stone Caravan, Outside the Box and Sarah Solovay. Tickets can be purchased at Ticketweb. Light of Day is a yearly Benefit Concert to raise money and awareness for Parkinson's Disease.

More info at Lightofday.org

Crowd surfing in Washington

November 2nd: Washington

The WOAD tour resumed yesterday with a show in Washington DC. The good news are that Bruce is back on the road and "Higher and Higher" stayed in the set list, closing last night's show.

It was a fairly short show (at 2 hrs. 40 mins), which saw the return of "Outlaw Pete", this time opening the set, a full album performance (Born to Run) and some rockin' requests ("Stand on it" -tour debut-, "Pink Cadillac", "Growin' Up" and "Seven Nights to Rock"). Ally Weinberg, Max's daughter, guested on "American Land". The show was dedicated to the late Lenny Sullivan.

The tour stops tonight at Charlotte, NC.

See complete set list.