Say what you like, he can still handle an audience.
Bruce Springsteen may have become older, more mature
and less commercially-viable, but much of what made
him a star is still there.
Some of the tricks
feel terribly old, like the exclaim "I'm just a
prisoner... of rock'n roll" including a long,
crowd-stirring pause in the middle, or his matching
statuesque pose that seemed to last half an eternity.
In spite of this, Bruce Springsteen is still one of
rock music most persistent marathon men.
And when, after 8
encores and a total of 3.5 hours, he starts to play
yet another song in front of a sea of Springsteen
fans billowing like clouds in a storm, it really
feels like a special night. Like he is working extra
hard... just for us, just this night. The fact that
he has built his entire career on this sort of
drawn-out, exhausting climax is a whole different
story. It still feels like you get more than what was
intended. That's nicely done. But he has to work
harder now just to keep up with his past.
At the peak of his career, during his
visits in 1981 and 1985, his shows were brought forth
with a whole different atmosphere, a sort of spartan
plainness that reflected what was really important.
Bruce Springsteen ruled the stage with relaxed
confidence, told long monologues with an astounding
sense of cozy intimacy, and played music which seemed
to have a sort of ecstatic rejoicing at heart, even
the sad songs.
From the artistic
point of view, this was a long time ago. The
Springsteen of pondering. He today is older, more
subdued, more still wants to be the high-explosive
rocker and commanding stage presence he now he's not
driven by the same power once was, but anymore. He
has to work harder and it takes a longer time.
Much of the build-up
of the show is otherwise similar; he's striving for
the same goals now as then. But most of the songs are
new, and of a shorter format than their predecessors.
And in spite of being backed up by five pithy gospel
voices, the "framing" feels more square and
less fluid.
But above all it's
excitement that's missing. Bruce Springsteen, today,
is a confident and reliable artist, whose most
surprising move is to choose some unexpected cover,
like Jimmy Cliff's "Many Rivers to Cross".
The concert in the
Stadium this Friday was competent, professional and
worth it's price, but it was less than exciting. Now
this is something that characterizes most of the
middle-aged arena-rockers, from Rolling Stones to
Dire Straits. You get genuine hard work, not brash
nerve.
It seems, in some way,
to be built into the arena-concert format itself. In
the light of this, the effort Springsteen gives pays
off. He hasn't become lazy or cowardly. His concerts
are longer than most and he plays far more than just
the songs the fans are expecting. And perhaps most
importantly, he doesn't give up.
When most of the other
artists would have had time to gone home, showered,
and entered Café Opera, he starts to play yet
another encore, and then yet one more.
And then a glimpse of
his former glory shows. But it's hard work to get
there.
