The Springsteen Thread

[d-d-d-dAz]

It'll be interesting to see how much of the setlist does change tomorrow, and for the rest of the tour.

Spotify are now aggressively advertising the 'Official Land of Hope and Dreams Tour Setlist' as a playlist now, and with the show being thematically quite tight (and shorter than his usual, coming in around 2h35 all in) I wonder whether Bruce is going to change it less than he otherwise would.

Plus, at his age, it would surely be easier if he was performing the same show each night.

[HarmonicGenerator]

Someone’s not happy

(from Patton Oswalt on BlueSky, I’m not on Truth Social, I promise)

[d-d-d-dAz]

16 hours ago, HarmonicGenerator said:

Someone’s not happy

(from Patton Oswalt on BlueSky, I’m not on Truth Social, I promise)

If this leads to Bruce playing No Surrender in response tonight, I'm all for it.

It'll be interesting to see how the rest of the tour is pitched, as his comments have been so well publicised internationally he can't just repeat them as if it's a scripted part of the show. He sort of has to respond, and potentially get in a tit for that with a bunch of tit's, or just ignore it. And I can't see him doing the latter, really.

Edited May 17, 2025 by d-d-d-dAz

[Panhead]

I'd pretty much resigned myself to not ever getting to see Springsteen live. The last time I'd tried to get tickets was for Edinburgh a few years ago. When I got to the front of the queue, it had gone up to £450 a ticket. 

 Fast forward to 2025. Me and my Mrs are separating after 18 years together. We're getting on ok, but obviously it's been a rough time. A couple of weeks ago, she told me that she'd won tickets through Sky VIP for one of the Manchester shows. She could have quite easily told me she was taking someone else, but she asked me to go with her. 

I still didn't believe it was actually going to happen until we were sat in our seats. I couldn't help but have high expectations for it, but it somehow exceeded them. I can't even describe the feeling of it. It was overwhelming at times. I feel like I've come back from space or something today. 

 

 

[d-d-d-dAz]

Yeah, last night was a tonne of fun.

And I use that phrase deliberately. It was a different show to night 1, in that it was just more... fun. That's not a criticism of either night, I loved both but Night 1 had an edge, he was angry and it came through in what was a very tight, edgy set. Last night was much more loose and freewheeling, and was much more reflective of what Bruce is great at.

He seemed to be having a lot of fun. The political beats were all there, but the tension had dissipated as he'd already said it all and the backlash had happened.

Some of his jams last night with Steve in particular were joyous.

Loved it. Can't wait for Tuesday. My only criticism of last night is I don't personally love the full band version of Atlantic City, but that was literally it. Otherwise it was incredible... again.

[SaitoRyo]

11 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

Loved it. Can't wait for Tuesday. My only criticism of last night is I don't personally love the full band version of Atlantic City, but that was literally it. Otherwise it was incredible... again.

The acoustic version is superior tbf. 

Is there a particular song from the past two gigs that stands out above the others? The setlists have been great. My only hope is he switches out Bobby Jean for Glory Days in Prague. Nothing against the former, I just love the latter. 

[HarmonicGenerator]

I hope ‘My City of Ruins’ stays in the set for Lille on Saturday, it’s been ages since I heard that one live.

Our dream song inclusions are ‘Jungleland’ (me) and ‘New York City Serenade’ (Mrs HG). One’s a long shot and the other’s even longer but we can hope.

[d-d-d-dAz]

4 hours ago, SaitoRyo said:

The acoustic version is superior tbf. 

Is there a particular song from the past two gigs that stands out above the others? The setlists have been great. My only hope is he switches out Bobby Jean for Glory Days in Prague. Nothing against the former, I just love the latter. 

Across both gigs, I'd say Youngstown, Because The Night and Murder Incorporated have been standout on both shows. 

The first night I found The Rising really powerful, and on the second night, Long Walk Home and My City of Ruins really stood out.

I'm hoping, praying, crossing everything that over the UK shows Glory Days, Adam Raised a Cain, Prove it All Night and Spirit in the Night get a run out. They'd be my dream inclusions. Maybe Rosalita too.

[d-d-d-dAz]

Another good show.

I'd say this one started incredibly (opened with No Surrender, so already at a million out of ten) and finished incredibly (Bobby Jean was replaced with Glory Days in the encore and it was sensational) but maybe had fewer high points through the middle. Seeds and Something in the Night didn't really take the crowd with them.

It was another freewheeling show, much like Night 2... with a few bum notes and missed cues, but in a charming way that didn't really impact the show. The Boss' voice seemed to be going a bit earlier in the night too, but it returned well enough. The encore was absolutely phenomenal, and a great way to end the Manchester run. They all seemed to be having such a good time.

So, maybe, Night 1 was my favourite overall show but Night 3 had my favourite moments. That's probably fair.

It also didn't help tonight that there was a Manchester MAGA cunt booing, calling Bruce all sorts and saying Joe Biden deserved cancer. That put things a little bit on edge.

 

[SaitoRyo]

7 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

Another good show.

I'd say this one started incredibly (opened with No Surrender, so already at a million out of ten) and finished incredibly (Bobby Jean was replaced with Glory Days in the encore and it was sensational) but maybe had fewer high points through the middle. Seeds and Something in the Night didn't really take the crowd with them.

It was another freewheeling show, much like Night 2... with a few bum notes and missed cues, but in a charming way that didn't really impact the show. The Boss' voice seemed to be going a bit earlier in the night too, but it returned well enough. The encore was absolutely phenomenal, and a great way to end the Manchester run. They all seemed to be having such a good time.

So, maybe, Night 1 was my favourite overall show but Night 3 had my favourite moments. That's probably fair.

It also didn't help tonight that there was a Manchester MAGA cunt booing, calling Bruce all sorts and saying Joe Biden deserved cancer. That put things a little bit on edge.

 

My brother was there and was absolutely chuffed with Reason to Believe. Worth the drive from (and then back to) Newcastle alone, in his opinion. No Surrender is a hell of an opener.

[d-d-d-dAz]

I'm glad I decided to financially cripple myself going to all 5 UK shows, as I don't know if we'll see him back in Europe again. I very much doubt, if we do, it'll be in the normal Bruce way.

I obviously love the man, and the gigs have been phenomenal with each show having a different personality in that very Springsteen way, but I do think in subtle ways (and some unsubtle ways with his grey bonce and hearing aids) his age is starting to show.

It's such a big ask of a 75 year old to do this, nevermind in a few years when we might usually expect another tour.

Edited May 21, 2025 by d-d-d-dAz

[SaitoRyo]

4 minutes ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

I obviously love the man, and the gigs have been phenomenal with each show having a different personality in that very Springsteen way, but I do think in subtle ways (and some unsubtle ways with his grey bonce and hearing aids) his age is starting to show.

Yeah, I have the feeling Prague is the last time I'll ever see him and the band live.

Which I'm fine with. He is still a phenomenal performer, obviously, but having to do a 2hr45min (plus) show must be incredibly taxing for a man in his mid-70s. I am actually slightly worried that he'll be in rough shape by the time he comes here after the gig was cancelled last year. Fingers crossed all's well. 

He's played down any reports of a 'farewell' tour and claimed the E Street Band are not going to stop anytime soon, but they can't go on forever and, as great as they are, I don't want to see the main man struggling through shorter gigs that will no doubt be increasingly pricey to attend. 

The best time I saw him was probably at Hampden in the summer of 2013. He did three-and-a-half hours and never seemed to tire. It was incredible and watching him power through extra-long versions of Rosalita, Twist and Shout & Shout during the encore was a real sight to behold. 

[Abe_Knuckleball_Schwartz]

10 hours ago, d-d-d-dAz said:

It also didn't help tonight that there was a Manchester MAGA cunt booing, calling Bruce all sorts and saying Joe Biden deserved cancer. That put things a little bit on edge.

 

Was this actually inside the arena? 

I could possibly understand (certainly not agree with) someone outside spouting verbal diarrhoea, but to actually pay for a ticket to go inside and be a total wanker is a whole new level of being cunty IMO and is one reason I struggle with large gatherings these days.

How busy was the Etihad campus last night? I can imagine it being a bit mental with Man City playing as well.

[d-d-d-dAz]

2 minutes ago, Abe_Knuckleball_Schwartz said:

Was this actually inside the arena? 

I could possibly understand (certainly not agree with) someone outside spouting verbal diarrhoea, but to actually pay for a ticket to go inside and be a total wanker is a whole new level of being cunty IMO and is one reason I struggle with large gatherings these days.

How busy was the Etihad campus last night? I can imagine it being a bit mental with Man City playing as well.

Yeah it was inside the arena. I spent most of the show wondering how you could get to the point where you're spending that much money on tickets but don't know a little bit about what the man himself is all about.

Both the gig and the football spilled out at the same time, and they shut the usual walking route back to the city. As it turns out, the walk through the car park and left onto Bradford Road turned out to be just as efficient but there were lot of people really put put. I think the tram stop was closed too.

[d-d-d-dAz]

Apologies for the double post, but they've released an EP of the anti-Trump sections and associated songs, which you can stream now.

Spotify link; https://open.spotify.com/album/1wWm7MPHSIpBX7Wiw8LAAq?si=vikdOUs_TuiJjoJP4KWZAg