A Religious Experience In Rome

No, not the Vatican.

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band.

I don't remember why I Google'd (hey, it was before Bing launched. Gimme a break) Bruce Springsteen's tour originally, but when I saw that he was playing at Stadio Olimpico in Rome on July 19th I knew I had to extend my stay in Rome by an extra day. I had never seen him live and I'd heard great things about it, plus how can you pass up that kind of opportunity?

The concert was supposed to start at 8:30 but it was postponed until 10:00pm because of a conflict with the swimming world championships, and then they started half an hour late on top of that. People were getting pretty restless.

The first song was Badlands, the last one was Twist and Shout, and the concert was THREE HOURS LONG with no opening act. During the entire act there were maybe half a dozen times where there was actual silence; at the end of most of the songs the band just kept playing the last chord while Bruce changed guitars (he changed between almost every song).

The set was pretty straightforward except for one small part in the middle. During that section he walked around the front of the stage and collected a bunch of signs that people had made that included the names of his songs (clearly people knew about this in advance). Then he'd just pick up a sign, show it to the band, say "1, 2, 3, 4" and they'd play that song.

Shortly before 1:00am the house lights came up and they finished with Born to Run - or so we thought. They walked off for about 15 seconds (everyone except Clarence Clemons, who appears to have some health problems; he sat down during stretches) and then came back to play seven more songs.

The last section just brought the house down. The first one was one he said they hadn't played for a while, My City of Ruins, which was a really nice touch in Rome. And thankfully I got to see Thunder Road, which they didn't play the previous show (?!).

Every time they finished a song the crowd assumed that was it; they were probably ready to go home. And then he'd walk back and pick up another guitar and people would just look at each other and say "no way!". At least that's what I assume they were saying by the looks on their faces. Did I mention I no capeche Italiano?

When they played Bobby Jean (which I don't remember hearing before) things just came unglued. The two keyboardists were playing accordions, the musicians in the back came up front and they just kept going. Then all of a sudden to ladies in the 70s (at least) came out and started dancing behind Bruce as he was playing. He turned around and had no idea what was going on, but he went along with it. By the end of the song the entire band was just laughing their heads off.

The last song was Twist and Shout, which included some weird part of La Bamba, and it went on forever. When they finished everyone including the fans were exhausted, but if he would have kept on playing I'd still be there watching.

And yes, he did bring out a young girl to dance with during Dancing in the Dark.

I love to see U2 whenever they're in town because they're such showmen, but after watching this I think I've seen the pinnacle of showmanship. Keep in mind: on September 23rd Bruce Springsteen will by SIXTY years old. He - and his band, who were all awesome - were still going strong at 1:30 in the morning when people half his age were ready to go to bed. They've been playing some of these songs for thirty years, and far from mailing it in, they act like they're brand new. And the production value of the show was unlike anything I've seen. There were two huge screens next to the stage, which is nothing new, but the video looked like they were filming for the DVD or something. It was awesome. And did I mention everyone was outside in shirtsleeves until 1:30 am? Gotta love Roma in July.

It was an incredible performance, and should you be so fortunate as to have him come to your town you really need to go. The tickets are expensive, but it's totally worth it. I know I'll be going if he ever comes back to Seattle.

Summary: I enjoyed the show.

OK, that's it for me. Time to get on a plane for Paris.

Because tramps like us, baby we were born to run.

Update

Here's the review of the show and the set list, from brucespringsteen.net. Turns out the two old ladies were his mom and aunt!

Rene van diemen Rome

ROME, ITALY
Sunday, July 19, 2009

The Most Beautiful City in the World

By Guglielmo Latini

The first Springsteen concert in the biggest stadium in Rome, and definitely a concert that the Roman audience (though I should say Italian audience, because there were people from every single town of the country) won't forget for a long time. The concert was delayed by the local authorities to avoid coinciding with the Swimming World Championship, so it actually started at 10:30 p.m.--an unusual time for a Bruce show, but a good occasion to fully enjoy the magic in the Roman night.

The first emotional moment came with the opening music during the entrance of the band, which was the wonderful theme from Sergio Leone's Once Upon a Time in The West by Ennio Morricone, played with all the lights down. It's a tune that's been used several times by Bruce to open his Italian concerts, and also the one that acted as an intro for "Badlands" during the River tour. This mix of melancholy and epic really moved the crowd and prepared it well for the sudden explosion of "Badlands," which was quickly followed by "Out in the Street" and perfect "Outlaw Pete," which continued the homage to Morricone, as a composition in the same style of the Roman Maestro. The audience really felt it and sang even the guitar solos like they were well-known melodies, overwhelming the volume of Steve's guitar with their voices.

Rene van Diemen Rome

"No Surrender" was a punch of energy and was followed by "She's the One," which always does its work to excite the audience. During "Working on a Dream" Bruce spoke in Italian and referred to Rome as "the most beautiful city in the world," adding that the Band would bring the music, but the audience had to bring the noise! The "Recession trilogy" was embellished by a powerful "Atlantic City," and "Seeds" had very, very strong guitar work by Bruce himself.

After Bruce gathered the request signs, "Raise Your Hand" was played entirely (Bruce jumping on the piano like in the good ol' days), followed shortly by a "Hungry Heart" sung by the whole Stadio Olimpico and by a rare "Pink Cadillac." Then Bruce showed a sign made by a couple about to marry in a week, requesting "I'm on Fire," and "the wedding singer" surely didn't deny it. Another sign referred to someone's birthday, and the occasion was a good one for a happy, joyful "Surprise Surprise," but the mood changed quickly with an extraordinary rendition of "Prove It All Night", rocking the house with a superb Nils solo. The man can really play guitar!

After "Waitin' on a Sunny Day" (with a funny child trying to sing it without knowing any lyrics!) and "The Promised Land," it was time for one of the most moving moments of the entire show: a long, passionate, unexpected "American Skin," which first made the entire stadium silent and then made it explode with applause. "Hard Times" didn't make it tonight, but Rome was enough lucky to have it replaced by "Thunder Road" and another emotional moment strongly felt by the audience: a welcome "My City of Ruins" dedicated by Bruce to the city of L'Aquila, which in April was destroyed by a terrible earthquake with hundreds of people dying. The day before the concert a group of fans from L'Aquila, during a radio interview, told Stevie about this particular request, and he was great to pass it to the Boss and make this gift possible. Grazie, Steve and Bruce--we needed it.

Then... it was all fun! Starting with a wild "You Can't Sit Down" that made the whole stadium dance like crazy, "American Land" saw the special guest-starring of Bruce's mom and aunt! The Boss was singing his song as usual, when Mrs. Adele Zirilli, Italian heart, appeared on the stage and went beside her son to his surprise, and the crowd went nuts, watching these two "not so young" women dancing on stage like it was a tarantella.

But it wasn't the end: "Bobby Jean," an Italian audience favorite, had Clarence in perfect shape (in fact, he didn't miss a note the whole night); "Dancing in the Dark" had a girl dancing on stage after holding up a sign that read, "Shall we dance, Mr.Bruce?"; and for the climax we had a completely wild "Twist and Shout," with Bruce dancing like a flamenco dancer, a red hat on his head, and the crowd singing "La Bamba" along the way. Another memorable night for the Italian audience which, 24 years since Bruce's first concert here, still loves him with the same passion and heart and is still repaid with the same feelings.

Set List
Badlands
Out In The Street
Outlaw Pete
No Surrender
She's The One
Working On A Dream
Seeds
Johnny 99
Atlantic City
Raise Your Hand
Hungry Heart
Pink Cadillac
I'm On Fire
Surprise Surprise
Prove It All Night
Waiting On A Sunny Day
The Promised Land
American Skin (41 Shots)
Lonesome Day
The Rising
Born To Run