remnants: Bruce Springsteen & The Seeger Sessions Band, Asbury Park Convention Hall, April 26, 2006 + bonus Good Morning America

This post is called, “I had planned on writing some new things but I am drowning in finishing my book proposal so here are some reruns.” Usual caveats about editing apply but I did not do a bunch of cleanup because I am supposed to be working on the proposal. This means you are reading something I wrote almost 20 years ago, please be kind.

Bruce Springsteen & The Seeger Sessions Band: Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ April 26, 2006

So, Bruce is now out on tour with the Seeger Sessions Band. I don’t know if you’re going or not, but you need to think about going, if it comes to your area. Even — especially — if you don’t like Springsteen with E Street.

The essential concept to understand is this: This show is not, at all, what you think it is going to be. Not only is it not what you think it is going to be, it is a million times more than you could have ever imagined it would be.

Don’t judge it on the record; in my opinion, the performances on the record are flat, and with a few exceptions, probably won’t resonate with you strongly unless you’ve seen the live show. Don’t worry about needing to listen to the record before you see the show — this is one show you don’t need to do your homework for. The songs, along with the exuberance onstage, are inviting enough.

Is it a straight-ahead rock and roll show? no. it’s not Bruce solo, it’s not Bruce with the 92 band, it’s not Bruce with E Street. You can’t compare it to any of those things because it’s nowhere in the neighborhoods of the above. You can’t expect to react to this show the same way you do to a Bruce Springsteen show in the past simply because his name is on the ticket. It is not the same animal. The band does not possess the dynamics of longevity present in E Street, and the material doesn’t provide the emotional touchstones you are accustomed to. This can end up feeling disconcerting if you focus on their absence, instead of looking beyond that to what is going on onstage.

Bruce gets to be Bruce; as he astutely pointed out at the last rehearsal show, the whole reason Frank Bruno Jr. is on that stage is so that when he’s out front shaking his ass, someone is actually playing the guitar. And that comment tells you a lot about why Bruce embarked on this project: they’re not his songs, so there are no sacred cows to worry about slaughtering. There are 17 other people on that stage for you to look at — there is a LOT going on, besides the aforementioned ass-shaking. Compare that to Devils & Dust where you could, sometimes, hear a pin drop (by royal command). He doesn’t have to hand out little flyers as you walk in the door insisting that you engage in all nose-blowing before the show starts, lest your coughing disturb the maestro. And (also very much unlike D&D) it is the kind of show for which cold beer at a reasonable price is almost a downright necessity.