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The final show in Stockholm, which lasted 3 hours and 10 minutes, featured the tour premieres of «The River» (in the place of «The Ghost of Tom Joad») and «Fade Away», the exquisite track off The River that hadn’t been played with the band since 1981 (and only a few times by Bruce solo on the Devils & Dust tour).

For the first time since the public rehearsals «Surprise Surprise» is performed live, though that doesn’t add up to the amount of WOAD songs in the set (still 4) as both «The Wrestler» and «Kingdom of Days» are dropped. «Night», «No Surrender», «Spirit in the Night», «Mony Mony» and «Working on the Highway» make it to the set list tonight.

Springsteen said goodbye to Sweden with 7 encores, that started with «Thunder Road» and «Jungleland» (no «Hard Times» last night) and had a farewell with a delirious «Twist & Shout».

Video: No Surrender

See complete set list.

Photo: Pinkpop Festival 30.5.2009. copyright 2009 René Van Diemen

Stockholm has always got one of Springsteen’s strongest fanbases, and it shows. The second concert at the Stadion featured the longest show of the tour so far, with 29 songs and 3 hours and 7 minutes. Once again the show started with Nils Lofgren on accordion playing «Idas Sommarvisa», followed by «Downbound Train».

A varied set list included «Candy’s Room, «My Lucky Day», «La Bamba/Good Lovin» (for the sign requests collection) and the premiere of another song from the new album: «Queen of the Supermarket». The crowd requests included «Hungry Heart», «Growin’ Up», «Thunder Road» and, later in the set, «Lost in the Flood», a welcomed highlight.

The show, and the 7-song encore, featured many songs off the Born in the USA album, now that we celebrate its 25th anniversary.

See complete set list

Bruce, interview by Expressen.tv:
«We are commited to new material, new growth, new audience. I come out onstage at night, I look into the faces of the audience, an audience that will outlive me. They will want to hear our music beyond what we will probably be able to play. And that’s a wonderful thing. I see so many new kids that just saw us on the last tour or the tour before that one. I met a kid the other night, 18, that never saw us and saw 12 shows on this tour. That new audience is also something that inspires you»

See complete Expressen interview with Bruce

On a rainy day, Springsteen opened the first of three shows in Stockholm with John Fogerty’s «Who’ll Stop The Rain?». Rain didn’t stop, but the show grew in intensity. «Badlands» was next, followed by the return of «My Lucky Day», and then «Prove it All Night».

In the «sign request» department: «I’m Goin’ Down», «Cadillac Ranch», «Because the Night» and «Wild Thing». The return of «The Wrestler» to the set list made the show special: there were 5 songs off Working on a Dream in the set, something that hadn’t happened in a long time.

The encore was extra long, with 7 songs again, including the necessary «Twist and Shout» (now known in Sweden as ‘The Stadium Breaker’).

Video: Who’ll Stop the Rain?
Video: Badlands
Video: My Lucky Day

See complete set list.

There’s a new online home for the Bruce Springsteen Special Collection and you’ll find it at http://www.brucespringsteenspecialcollection.net. The site contains the most up-to-date listing of the more than 11,100 documents in the Collection, including the results of the microfilming project made possible by a grant from the New Jersey Historical Commission to The Friends of the Bruce Springsteen Special Collection. There’s also an expanded «want list» which includes shows for which the Collection is seeking reviews.

The new site is the first step in a long-anticipated reorganization of the Collection that will eventually allow The Friends to begin accepting historic Bruce items in formats other than books, magazines, fanzines and other printed documents. Please change your bookmarks, and check back frequently for updates.

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