Blogness on the Edge of Town

Photo via @iainsross

1. We Take Care of Our Own

2. The Ties That Bind

3. Jole Blon (sign request)

4. It’s Hard To Be a Saint In The City (sign request)

5. Radio Nowhere

6. No Surrender

7. Wrecking Ball

8. Death To My Hometown

9. My City of Ruins

(Moment of silence for the E Street Band’s “missing brothers”)

10. Spirit In The Night

11. E Street Shuffle

12. I’m On Fire (sign request)

13. Tougher Than The Rest (sign request)

14. Atlantic City

15. Murder Incorporated

16. Johnny 99

17. Open All Night

18. Darlington County

19. Shackled and Drawn

20. Waiting on a Sunny Day

21. The Rising

22. Badlands

23. Land of Hope and Dreams

24. Born To Run

25. Rosalita

26. Dancing in the Dark

27. Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out

28. Twist & Shout

29. Shout

30. Thunder Road

Clarence Clemons Tarpon fishing in Florida Bay 2006 photo by Gayle Morrison

You may have noticed that in the past few days the Clarence Clemons’ twitter and facebook accounts have jumped into action. With tomorrow being the second anniversary of The Big Man’s untimely death, there’s good reason. The Clarence Clemons Trust and Estate is in the process of building Clarence’s online legacy, and there’s more planned for the future. On June 18, 2013 thousands will be tweeting #2Big2Die and #BigMan in an attempt to get Clarence’s online legacy trending. Since Clarence’s online legacy is being manned by those who were close to Clarence in life, please join in and pass on The Big Man’s light!

From the Clarence Clemons Facebook account:

Dear Friends,

It has been a long time coming but we have decided to reignite Clarence’s Facebook to continue on his legacy and refill our hearts with the warmth Clarence all shared with us through social media.

June 18th marks the 2 year anniversary of his passing, and to celebrate his wonderful life and honor his memory, we invite you to post your favourite picture of Clarence Clemons on any of his social media sites – @clarenceclemons

As Bruce Springsteen stated, “The Big Man was too big to die”! Keep The Big Man Alive with Love. We can’t wait to see your pictures!
Add hashtags:
#clarenceclemons #2big2die #longlivethebigman
See you on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram!

Live! Love! Laugh!

Photo by: @HardRockCalling

Setlist
1. Land of Hope and Dreams
2. Jackson Cage
3. Radio Nowhere
4. Save My Love
5. Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
6. This Hard Land
7. Lost in the Flood
8. Wrecking Ball
9. Death to My Hometown
10. Hungry Heart

Darkness on the Edge of Town (Full Album)
11. Badlands
12. Adam Raised a Cain
13. Something in the Night
14. Candy’s Room
15. Racing in the Street
16. The Promised Land
17. Factory
18. Streets of Fire
19. Prove it All Night
20. Darkness on the Edge of Town

21. Shackled and Drawn
22. Waitin’ On A Sunny Day
23. The Rising
24. Light of Day

25. Pay Me My Money Down
26. Born to Run
27. Bobby Jean
28. Dancing In The Dark
29. Tenth Avenue Freeze Out
30. Twist & Shout
31. Thunder Road (solo acoustic)

End Time: 10:34 p.m.

It’s one of those great “Why didn’t I think of that?” ideas — collecting and compiling feature stories, interviews and first-person writings that span Bruce Springsteen’s entire career. But it’s one thing to think of it; it’s another to find, curate and cultivate 40 years worth of material into a single, cogent volume. “Springsteen on Springsteen” is that volume, and apparently Jeff Burger was the man to do it.

A chronicler in his own right — his 1974 Zoo World feature on Springsteen makes an early appearance — Burger clearly has an ear for stories that capture Springsteen’s attitude and outlook. It’s not exactly comprehensive, and given how much has been written about the man, how could it be? But it’s certainly representative of Springsteen’s long career, and by pairing lower profile interviews with excerpted “Bruce Bits” from more mainstream publications like Rolling Stone and the Los Angeles Times, Burger more than covers his Bruce bases.

In general, the verbatim Q&A’s are the most interesting chapters, mainly because they do such a good job of capturing Springsteen’s unique voice. They range from an unpublished 1974 sit-down with Paul Williams — in which a plainspoken Springsteen laments making less than his newspaper reporter girlfriend, despite having released two albums — to his 2010 interviews with Ed Norton and Brian Williams, where he’s more polished and confident, but just as thoughtful. And the artist’s own writings, most notably his SXSW keynote address from 2012, fit right in, expanding and elaborating upon the Springsteen worldview.

The prose pieces are sometimes less illuminating — the older ones, Burger’s excepted, sometimes seem to be more about the writer than about the as-yet-untested Springsteen. (Burger does a fine job of tracking down writers to reflect briefly on their interviews, although I’d love to know if Andrew Tyler, who in 1975 predicted Bruce would become “another averagely regarded also-ran,” ever regretted coming off as such an @&$hole.)

Still, they all do their part to show the progression of Springsteen from searching, striving young buck to seasoned elder statesman. (One who doesn’t listen to his own work, incidentally — he tells Gavin Martin of New Musical Express that  “I’d be insane if I did.”) Many of the pieces make references to Springsteen’s lack of pretension — showing up to interviews alone, making no preconditions, and taking the time to formulate long, serious answers to incisive questions.

Springsteen’s candor is especially evident in interviews like The Advocate’s 1996 piece on gay rights, where his comments on same-sex marriage are amazingly progressive, not to mention prescient:

“It does matter. It’s very different than just living together. First of all, stepping up publicly — which is what you do; you get your license, you do all the social rituals — is part of your place in society and in some way part of society’s acceptance of you … Those are the threads of society; that’s how we all live together in some fashion. There is no reason I can see why gays and lesbians shouldn’t get married. It is important because those are the things that bring you in and make you feel a part of the social fabric.”

The nature of the collection makes it unavoidably repetitive, since so many interviewers tend to ask Springsteen the same questions — yes, he really DID jump over the gate at Graceland, etc. But even the segments that are overly familiar are useful in this more comprehensive context: They reinforce Springsteen as a serious artist, one who understands the delicate balance between resonant work and the listener’s desire to have a good time. They also cement the fact that Springsteen’s relationship with the audience, from day one, has been not only his paramount professional concern, but his reason for getting up in the morning and on stage each night.

In fact, the book does such a good job of capturing the ticking inner workings of both the man and the artist that, at the end of the day, “Springsteen on Springsteen” cements itself as the one Boss book you’d have to take with you to a desert island. Along with your copies of “Darkness” and “Born to Run,” of course.

Could a return trip to Gillette Stadium be in the works for Springsteen and the band? (File photo by Daniel King)

I don’t know about you, but we had just about lost hope for any more 2013 U.S. dates by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, given there hadn’t been even a trickle of scuttlebutt about any post-Europe concerts in the works. (And by the way, if your scuttlebutt is trickling, I think there’s a pill for that now.)

But that was before this week: Suddenly, the Springsteen concert rumor mill is buzzing anew. In the last few days alone, we’ve heard each of the following rumors, all from fairly reliable (or at least reputable) sources:

1) A brief run of summer stadium dates

2) A series of fall arena dates (October/November)

3) Late summer stadium dates AND fall arena dates

4) The band goes back to Jersey and sleeps for six months

Actually, we didn’t hear anything about that last one, but felt we should include it here in case they’re just exhausted.

As usual, check back here for any concert news as soon as it breaks — or better yet, follow us on Twitter and Facebook so you’re sure to hear it first.

Photo by A. M. Saddler

Did you know, “more than 50 million people, including 17.2 million children live in households that experience food insecurity, meaning that they go without food and/or need to rely from time to time on emergency food sources. This represents more than one in ten households in the United States (10.9 percent).“

There are a lot of charity organizations out there, so you may be wondering why we’re focusing on WhyHunger. Not only does WhyHunger support community-based grassroots organizations that fight hunger and poverty, they enlist performing artists like Bruce Springsteen to raise funds and awareness for these organizations fighting hunger and poverty in cities, towns and villages all across the world.

Artists Against Hunger & Poverty is WhyHunger’s program that partners with artists, the music community and the music industry to raise awareness and funds. Through music and the arts artists use their creative voices to make a difference in the world. On June 28th, “Homemade Jams: 100 House Concerts to End Hunger” WhyHunger’s house concert series begins. This DIY campaign gets musicians and music fans engaged in the fight against hunger through fundraising house concerts across the country. Got a favorite local musician or maybe you play music yourself? Pick a date, invite some friends and collect donations for WhyHunger all in the name of ending hunger and poverty.

Or, if you’re looking for some Bruce Springsteen memorabilia or experiences visit WhyHunger’s auction items on CharityBuzz. There you’ll find a limited edition signed A. M. Saddler photograph of Bruce Springsteen singing Thunder Road at Fenway Park 8/15/13 last year, two VIP GA tickets for Hard Rock Calling June 29-30, 2013, the opportunity to guest host on SiriusXM’s E Street Radio in NYC, or if you’ve got a lot of extra money laying around, an autographed guitar by Bruce Springsteen.

Editor’s note: With Bruce Springsteen headed to Wembley June 15, our friend Hannah of Burgers and Bruce — absolutely the best Springsteen-and-hamburger blog EVER — offered to provide a Springsteen fan’s guide to the burgers of London. See her suggestions below, and follow her on Twitter at @BurgersAndBruce.

Hannah of Burgers and Bruce is ready for The Boss.

In less than a fortnight, Springsteen fans from around the world will be descending on my hometown of London to see Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band rocking Wembley Stadium. Two weeks later, Bruce and the band will be gracing the stage of the Olympic Park, to continue what they didn’t get to finish at Hard Rocking Calling last year in Hyde Park.

On each tour I always do whatever I can to travel abroad at least one show to see the band play. It’s a totally different experience depending on the city, with a different set of fans to those I meet at home. In the U.S., I’ve seen more fist pumping than I thought was humanly possible. In Italy I’ve gawked at hundreds of men dressed up as Bruce, little beard and all. For fans travelling to the UK this year, I expect you’ll see crowds of fans huddled under umbrellas, shivering in the rain.

It’s no secret I like my food, so these trips abroad have become as much about the dishes I’m going to eat, as the songs I’m going to hear. Whether it’s a parmo in Middlesbrough, a pizza in Florence or a hot dog in New York, I’ll always make sure that I’m well fed when I’m on my own Springsteen tour.

With Bruce and the band soon playing in London, many fellow travelling Springsteen fans have asked me to share some eating spots in the city. Naturally, it’s only right if this is a compilation of the second ‘b’ closest to my heart. For the Springsteen fans out there who love their burgers as much as Bruce, this post is for you!

Burger Bear 

A Springsteen fan himself, Burger Bear Tom serves up some of the best street stall burgers going in London. The Grizzly Bear burger is a personal favourite, with a sticky sweet home-made concoction of ‘bacon jam’ which is generously dolloped inside. For fans of street food, Burger Bear is one of many great street food stalls available at various food markets in London.
Red Market on Wednesday to Friday and at Harringay Market on Sundays; @burgerbeartom

Byron 

One of the most easily accessible good quality burgers in London, you can’t turn a corner without running into one of these burger joints. Ever reliable and delicious, if you find yourself short on time but still want to get an eat-in restaurant experience, this a great option (with a veggie burger on the menu too – not that I’ve tried it). Make sure you leave room for the mac’n’cheese side and the new Rocky Road dessert.
Various locations, visit www.byronhamburgers.com 

Bleeker Street 

Also a street stall favourite these burgers are super simple yet mouth-wateringly delicious. Influences for these burgers are taken from NYC where the owner Zan lived for 12 years. The only difficulty is choosing between a standard cheeseburger or a blue cheeseburger. One thing is for sure – always go for a double.
Various locations, visit bleekerburger.co.uk

If you read my review of Marc Dolan’s “Bruce Springsteen and the Promise of Rock ‘n’ Roll” when it was released last summer and still didn’t buy the book, well, you have another chance: The paperback edition is out June 10, and it features a new chapter that takes up where the hardcover version left off — one that sustains the book’s accent on the analytical over the personal.

That’s especially apparent in the way the new material deals with the death of Clarence Clemons — at first it seems Dolan is going to mention it only almost matter-of-factly, and when he finally addresses it again later in the chapter it’s strictly in the context of how producer Ron Aniello worked archive audio of Clemons’ sax solos into “Land of Hope and Dreams” for Wrecking Ball.

But that’s par for the course for “Promise,” which trucks primarily in putting Springsteen’s career and themes in context. Dolan does that expertly in his look at the evolution of Wrecking Ball, and its relation to Springsteen’s subsequent decision to get back on the stump for Barack Obama. He also looks at Hurricane Sandy, Springsteen’s changing relationship with N.J. Gov. Chris Christie, and the shift from “We Take Care of Our Own” to “Land of Hope and Dreams” as the current song most representative of Springsteen’s post-Wrecking Ball American vision:

The song Bruce and the band opened 12.12.12 with was, inevitably, “Land of Hope and Dreams” — a song not of anger and challenge but of comfort and inclusion. Because, wherever we are heading, be it gleaming or storm-shattered, we will need to bring everyone along.

Dolan also addresses the elephant in the room — competing Springsteen bio “Bruce” by Peter Ames Carlin — by discussing the significance of Springsteen’s participation in that project, all while praising Carlin’s “diligent reporting.” (Classy move, Mr. Dolan.) It helps cement “Promise” as the yin to Carlin’s yang, filling in the contextual and analytical gaps the way Carlin’s book covered more personal ground.

And if none of those reasons are good enough, you should buy the paperback “Bruce Springsteen and the Promise of Rock ‘n’ Roll” because Blogness gets blurbed among the “More praise for …” section. At least, that’s why we would buy it.

Photo by: Olivia Tallent (Largest Sign Request Ever???)

Photo by: Niccolò Vecchia

Start Time: 8:38 p.m.

Setlist
1. Land of Hope & Dreams
2. My Love Will Not Let You Down
3. Out In The Street
4. American Land
5. GOOD GOLLY MISS MOLLY (sign request) (or did he play Long Tall Sally?)
6. Loose Ends
7. Wrecking Ball
8. Death To My Hometown
9. Atlantic City
10. The River

11. Born In The USA
12. Cover Me
13. Darlington County
14. Working On The Highway
15. Downbound Train
16. I’m On Fire
17. No Surrender
18. Bobby Jean
19. I’m Going Down
20. Glory Days
21. Dancing In The Dark
22. My Hometown

23. Shackled & Drawn
24. Waitin’ On A Sunny Day
25. The Rising
26. Badlands
27. Hungry Heart
28. We Are Alive (This Land Is Your Land (solo acoustic intro))
29. Born To Run
30. Tenth Avenue Freeze Out
31. Twist And Shout
32. Shout
33. Thunder Road (solo acoustic)

End Time: 11:46 p.m.

Photo by: Paola Musso

Photo by: Niccolo Vecchia

Thunder Road solo acoustic photo by: Niccolo Vecchia