Review by Ivor Whitten for MPM
On a beautiful sunny evening in Belfast one man and his band in the Boucher Playing Fields returned after 11 years to a sold-out crowd of 40,000 to show why he is still the boss.
On arriving to the Boucher Road in Belfast you could witness quite quickly that that Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band had not lost any drawing power as large crowds snaked their way down the road to get into the concert. It was also a crowd of all ages from the very young to the more mature. All with smiles on their faces that they had the opportunity to see one of the greats live. Everyone was in a good mood.
And as the time came to kick off the anticipation was palpable with even the roadies and technicians getting cheers from the crowd. The bustle was building until it went a little quiet before a huge roar erupted as members of the E Street Band walked onto stage before Bruce Springsteen himself came on smiling and waving. The noise in the 40,000 strong audience was deafening.
The music started and Bruce and the E Street Band went straight into “No Surrender”. And there was no time to stop right now as more classic Springsteen tracks were dropped like “Lonesome Day” “Prove It All Night”, “Ghosts” and “Letter to you”.
With Bruce now being over 70 there was absolutely no retiring in sight as he performed with the panache, vigour and strength of someone a quarter of his age. He is still in his prime without any doubt.
With a quick “It’s lovely to be here in Belfast” he led his band straight into Better Days, which is back on the tour menu, not being played since 2017. The crowd all this time were just ecstatic moving along to the music, singing and all with smiles a mile wide.
Then onto “The Promised Land” where the harmonica came out and his first tour of the front row of the audience. Everyone near the front of the barrier was stretching as much as they could just to feel like they were close to Bruce as he moved along the barrier in both directions stopping hands, shaking hands and even stopping to sign one very lucky fan’s t-shirt. The huge smile on the fan’s face said it all.
The harmonica was out as he came down to the audience even taking time to sign one very lucky fan’s t-shirt. All while he was singing. Near the close of the song and before Bruce hopped back up to the main stage he reached out and handed his harmonica off to one very happy boy. Everyone not there was of course jealous, but no one begrudged those lucky enough to be so close to the Boss. Such is the fan base of Bruce Springsteen.
It felt like 40,000 people were caught up in a pure untainted evangelical fervour of delight as Bruce conducted the service. Capiltalising on this he brought the microphone up to his mouth and began saying “Can you feel the spirit? If you can feel the spirit answer me with a yeah, yeah.” And thus, the crowd in a spiritual unison responded to his request as he repeated the question over and over even teasing a little that they can do better with a quick “Come on Belfast”. That, of course was the lead into “Spirit in the Night”.
Once again it felt like he was handing out rewards for those who were there for hours to ensure they snagged their spot at the front by moving up to the barrier and handing out plectrums with even a moment of being handed a little soft toy which he held up to the microphone as he sang. We can all guess that toy is now safely locked away and never to be washed! Bruce seemed to take his time on purpose as he belted out the song so that people could get ‘that’ special photo or video up close.
Then like a 40,000 strong choir, the throng belted out “Hungry Heart” while Bruce and his band expertly kept the tempo. Bruce and some of his band mates were really making sure people enjoyed their time and had something to talk about for years to come as they walked up and down the front the barrier. Bruce even took a moment to stop with one lady and have a quick dance before the next song, a cover of the Commodores song “Nightshift”.
Bruce and the E Street Band knew there was a curfew and they seemed determined not to disappoint anyone by making sure they could pump out as many songs as possible. Yet when there was a lull where the singer normally takes a few moments to talk to the audience, Bruce turned that into a wonderful performance as everyone was hanging off every word he said.
“Good evening brothers and sisters of Belfast.” Was the beginning of a soliloquy that was rapturous, captivating and profound with things like “The E Street Band are here to bring the joy of rock and roll into your life.”, “We need your help tonight as we plan on sending you home your feet hurting, back hurting and your sexual organs stimulated.” And “We have a story to tell of yesterday, tonight and tomorrow. All our hellos and goodbyes in this life. It’s a lot to tell. So, let’s get started.”
And thus began “My City of Ruins” interspersed with band introductions and of course roars of approval. There were full flourishes of Trumpet and saxophone and backing singer solos that all intertwined to create an incredible unique experience.
Then came another welcome soliloquy as Bruce brought the tempo down a bit and had a more reflective mood as he hit home to people starting by asking “Is Belfast in the house tonight?” to obvious massive roars. Then he asked “Are we missing someone? I’m sure we are all missing someone who touched our hearts and our souls. Only thing I can guarantee tonight is if you’re here, and we’re here, then they are here with us. Keep them in your thoughts. Whether Danny (Federici) or Clarence (Clemons) they will always be with us in our thoughts and in our hearts.” The crowd was visibly moved in a way you would never think it would be as it lowed in amongst the joy of the evening a little bit of reflective melancholy and emotional vulnerability and so make the joy feel even more joyous.
It was almost like a spiritual experience, even whether one believed in it or not, you could not be moved even a little in that moment.
Bruce then spoke of his life from when he was 15 and of his journey through his musical career including his first band, the Castiles, which he was part of from 1965 t0 1968, noting poignantly that he was the last man standing and saying “Death brings a certain clarity of thought. Grief is the price we pay for having loved so well.”
This, of course, led in to the very emotional expressive “Last Man Standing” underscored with its acoustic delivery, accompanied for a time perfectly by Barry Danielian on trumpet.
Then to revive moment and move to a more joyous experience they hit home with “Backstreets” and the Patti Smith cover “Because the Night”.
On went the experience with “If I Was the Priest” where Steven Van Zandt showed that he was not just a great actor but a tremendous guitarist too.
Then came “She’s the One”, “Wrecking Ball” and “The Rising” where 40,000 people all clapped in time before “Badlands”, with lots of singing along and Bruce even letting people strung his guitar as he passed along the barrier, and “Thunder Road” finished out the main set. During the last song he took a moment once again to play a game with a fan whose birthday it was and could choose one of two options on a big piece of cardboard.
The one Bruce chose was to give the fan a harmonica. Bruce duly reached into his back pocket and gave him his harmonica. It’s the little things, the little touches that Bruce delivers so well and with such humbling playful charisma.
But this was not the end just yet as the band kept going with “Land of hope and dreams”, “Born to Run”, “Bobby Jean”, Glory days” where Bruce began asking if the band or audience wanted to go home only to be answered with a big flat “No”. And so, the answer was “Dancing in the Dark”, “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” and a full blasting Top Notes cover of “Twist and Shout”.
To highlight the final close of the evening Bruce then played “I’ll See You in My Dreams” and with that over three hours of an evening felt like it had flown by in less than half an hour, such is the experience with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.
Overall, the whole evening was an exceptionally joyous, expressive and fulfilling experience. It was an outstandingly unique well-rehearsed and slick performance from someone who has been in the business almost 60 years and with the E Street Band (on and off) for over 50 years. It was, of course, Bruce Springsteen but it was more. It was also about the E Street Band with all being given their moment during the performance. They were one unit, one very professional band, one group of friends jamming out. They were not just playing music, they were entertaining, they were joyously uplifting and they had a presence individually and as a whole that few bands can ever reach.
So, in short, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are one of the most wholesome, entertaining and talented groups in the world right now and to see them live is an incredibly privileged and unique experience. Without doubt, it is highly recommended that you should at least give yourself an opportunity to experience it for yourself.
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are currently on their 2024 World Tour, having kicked it off in Wales with Belfast being their second night. Find out if they are appearing near you at https://brucespringsteen.net/tour/
Photography by Darren McVeigh for MPM
