Philadelphia Thursday 29th March 2012 - show 6

OK so no travelling today.

I've deleted the expletives in these couple of paragraphs but if you want to read the unexpurgated version together with the things the writer did like about the show it's  here .

This was the first two-night stand of the Wrecking Ball tour. It's understandable and reasonable he would play songs from his new record both nights. It's understandable he would repeat some of the classics of the Springsteen songbook that fans pay to hear. What's neither understandable or reasonable is playing "Waiting On A Sunny Day" both nights of a two-night stand. 

My outrage overflows, my anger knows no bounds, my bewilderment is infinite. I would prefer hordes of locusts and a hip hop remix of Barbra Streissand's greatest hits. Who am I kidding? What's the difference? One night. One night. He really can't let that teeming piece of a song sit on the bench for one night? Would it really kill him to play something else? It's not like he hasn't played it every night this tour, including last night in this same city! He gave "American Skin" a night off. "Waiting On A Sunny Day?" Noooooooooo. Can Bruce fans really not attend a show where some kid doesn't come on stage and sing with him while the horn section makes balloon animals and the background singers pantomime YMCA? There's simply no acceptable reason for this and I'm not prepared nor apparently able to let it go.

I suspect a lot of us would agree, but perhaps, not quite so emphatically.

A treat today. Not only the Atlanta set list but Philly nights 1&2 so you can compare.  

Which show would you have liked to have been at?  No - you can't say both!

My first reaction when I saw the second night set list was that it wasn't as good as the first. Not keen on Kitty myself. If she doesn't come back again I wouldn't be bothered. Streets of Philadelphia isn't in my list of faves either but I suppose, given where Bruce was playing, it had to be given an airing. No Land Of Hopes And Dreams would have been a disappointment for me had I been at the show. On the plus side he played Trapped and Darkness which has to tip the scales towards night 2.  

So:

Night instead of Badlands - I like both but Badlands for me - night 1

Thundercrack replacing Seaside Bar Song - Thundercrack because it reminds me of MSG - night 2

Trapped instead of Does This Bus Stop - no contest Trapped (although against another song I might choose Does This Bus Stop) - night 2

Prove It rather than Atlantic City - I love Prove It but as I have to choose it's Atlantic City - night 1

Darkness in place of She's The One - Darkness although I like She's The One as well - night 2

Philadelphia replacing American Skin - American Skin - night 1

Kitty's Back instead of LOHAD - definitely LOHAD - night 1

It's a difficult choice but on balance I would plump for night 1.  I would have missed Trapped and Darkness but Atlantic City and LOHAD swing it for me.

Having just spent an hour or so making a decision about something which is, ultimately, irrelevant I have decided I really must get out more!!

Atlanta 18/03/12 Time 8.10 to 10.44	Philadelphia 28/03/12 night 1  Time 8.19 to 11.11	Philadelphia 29/03/12 night 2 Time 8.24 to 11.11
We Take Care Of Our Own	We Take Care Of Our Own (5)	We Take Care Of Our Own (6)
Wrecking Ball	Wrecking Ball (5)	Wrecking Ball (6)
Badlands	Badlands (4)	Night (1)
Death To My Hometown	Death To My Hometown (5)	Death To My Hometown (6)
My City Of Ruins	My City Of Ruins (5)	My City Of Ruins (6)
The E Street Shuffle	Seaside Bar Song (1)	Thundercrack (2)
Jack Of All Trades	Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street (2)	Jack Of All Trades (6)
Seeds	Jack Of All Trades (5)	Trapped (1)
Easy Money	Atlantic City (2)	Easy Money (6)
Waitin' On A Sunny Day	Easy Money (5)	Prove It All Night (2)
The Promised Land	She’s The One (2)	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (1)
The Way You Do The Things You Do	Waitin’ On A Sunny Day (5)	Waitin’ On A Sunny Day (6)
634 -5789	The Promised Land (5)	The Promised Land (6)
Shackled And Drawn	The Way You Do The Things You Do (5)	The Way You Do The Things You Do (6)
Lonesome Day	634-5789 (5)	634-5789 (6)
The Rising	American Skin (41 Shots) (3)	Streets Of Philadelphia (1)
We Are Alive	Lonesome Day (3)	The Rising (6)
Thunder Road	The Rising (5)	We Are Alive (6)
Rocky Ground	We Are Alive (5)	Thunder Road (6)
Land Of Hope And Dreams	Thunder Road (5)	Rocky Ground (6)
Born To Run	Rocky Ground (5)	Kitty's Back (1)
Dancing In The Dark	Land Of Hope And Dreams (5)	Born To Run (6)
American Land	Born To Run (5)	Dancing In The Dark (6)
Tenth Avenue Freeze Out	Dancing In The Dark (5)	Tenth Avenue Freeze Out (6)
	Raise Your Hand (2)
	Tenth Avenue Freeze Out (5)

Philadelphia Wednesday 28th March 2012 -show 5

The distance from Boston to Philadelphia is just short of 320 miles.  Total travelled to date 2488 miles. 

So back to back shows in Philly.  Many fans reckon the Philadelphia shows are the best of the tour.  As this review says " Philadelphia loves Bruce and he loves us right back."

We also have back-to-back shows at the same venue for the first time this tour.  We shall see whether the second night rule applies.

I've checked through some reviews and I like this bit from Philly.com

There’s a Bruce Springsteen quote on the wall of the National Constitution Center, which is currently housing an exhibit called From Asbury Park to the Promised Land. It reads: “The American idea is a beautiful idea. It needs to be preserved, served, protected and sung out. Sung out.”

Four miles south at the sold-out Wells Fargo Center on Wednesday night, Springsteen went to work, putting enthusiastic emphasis on those final words.

The nearly three hour show that ensued was - remarkably, considering the gravity of the State of the Union subject matter on his defiant new album Wrecking Ball, and the fact that, let’s face it people, the guy is now 62 years old - every bit the ecstatic revival meeting and master class in rock and soul catharsis that Springsteen’s ardent fans have come to expect over the course of a 40 year career.

Actually this review isn't all good as the writer suggests certain parts of the show still need polishing up a bit but I quite like a few rough edges myself.

Well Seaside Bar Song must be a bit of a rarity.  I haven't researched this so feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.  It's a bit early in Bruce's career for my taste but it's OK.  What has happened to Shackled And Drawn? It's one of my favourites from the album.  Perhaps Bruce doesn't think it's working vey well live.

Atlanta 18/03/12 Time 8.10 to 10.44	Philadelphia 28/03/12 Time 8.19 to 11.11
We Take Care Of Our Own	We Take Care Of Our Own (5)
Wrecking Ball	Wrecking Ball (5)
Badlands	Badlands (4)
Death To My Hometown	Death To My Hometown (5)
My City Of Ruins	My City Of Ruins (5)
The E Street Shuffle	Seaside Bar Song (1)
Jack Of All Trades	Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street (2)
Seeds	Jack Of All Trades (5)
Easy Money	Atlantic City (2)
Waitin' On A Sunny Day	Easy Money (5)
The Promised Land	She’s The One (2)
The Way You Do The Things You Do	Waitin’ On A Sunny Day (5)
634 -5789	The Promised Land (5)
Shackled And Drawn	The Way You Do The Things You Do (5)
Lonesome Day	634-5789 (5)
The Rising	American Skin (41 Shots) (3)
We Are Alive	Lonesome Day (3)
Thunder Road	The Rising (5)
Rocky Ground	We Are Alive (5)
Land Of Hope And Dreams	Thunder Road (5)
Born To Run	Rocky Ground (5)
Dancing In The Dark	Land Of Hope And Dreams (5)
American Land	Born To Run (5)
Tenth Avenue Freeze Out	Dancing In The Dark (5)
	Raise Your Hand (2)
	Tenth Avenue Freeze Out (5)

Boston Monday 26th March 2012 - show 4

The distance from Tampa to Boston is about 1193 miles (flight time approximately 2hours 40 minutes) so total so far from show to show is 2168 miles.

Not much time tonight so this will be brief.

Here is a review from The Boston Globe

Bruce Springsteen always seems to arrive just when you need him.

Bad day? Terrible news? Feeling rundown? Looking to put a name to that restless feeling you have been having?

Monday night, Springsteen and his stalwart contracting and expanding E Street Band brought their restorative powers to a sellout crowd of 18,210 at the TD Garden and did the most elemental thing you could hope for: Banish distractions and aggravations in favor of some fun

That’s exactly what Springsteen promised during his cheeky street-corner-preacher testimonials, at one point assuring the crowd that they would go home with hands, feet, and voices hurting.

That he and the band managed to deliver the fun while still digging deep emotionally into many of the painful and pointed songs about the divided times in which we live from his latest album “Wrecking Ball,’’ as well as pay tribute to those they have personally lost, was a tribute to their commitment.

The indefatigable showman and his cohorts played for 2 hours and 50 minutes with an energy that bordered on superhuman, with Springsteen himself seemingly serving as the power source as he ran, knee-slid, and crowd-surfed his way around the arena. The group moved as a unit with grace and spirit through a sometimes puzzling set list that ignored a wide, popular, and quality swath of Springsteen’s considerable catalog but still brought the fire. (With the exception of an encore of “Dancing in the Dark,’’ the set consisted almost completely of songs from 1980 and earlier, or 2001 and later, overlooking almost everything that came between “The Rising’’ and “Wrecking Ball.’’)

The band - swollen to 16 with the addition of a 5-piece horn section and a trio of singers and singer-percussionist - slid from sound to sound with dexterity working itself into a righteous lather on a medley of the soul classics “The Way You Do the Things You Do’’ and “634-5789,’’ which Springsteen prefaced with a comically souped-up rap about his recent show at the Apollo Theater. The band ratcheted up the tension, building the crescendos of anthems like “The Rising’’ and “Badlands’’ to an ecstatic crest. It moved poignantly through the sobering “American Skin (41 Shots),’’ bringing to mind images of Trayvon Martin. Then the band eased nicely into folkier and Celtic flavored tracks, including “Death to My Hometown.’’

Without naming names, Springsteen paid touching tribute to dearly departed members of the E Street family, keyboardist Danny Federici and sax player Clarence Clemons. During a breakdown of the soulful “My City of Ruins,’’ he took a roll call of the band and then said some people were missing.

But, Springsteen said to the audience “as long as you’re here, and as long as we’re here, they’re here.’’

Atlanta 18/03/12 Time 8.10 to 10.44	Boston 26/03/12 Time 8.15 to 11.05
We Take Care Of Our Own	We Take Care Of Our Own (4)
Wrecking Ball	Wrecking Ball (4)
Badlands	Badlands (3)
Death To My Hometown	Death To My Hometown (4)
My City Of Ruins	My City Of Ruins (4)
The E Street Shuffle	Thundercrack (1)
Jack Of All Trades	Jack Of All Trades (4)
Seeds	Jackson Cage (1)
Easy Money	She’s The One (1)
Waitin' On A Sunny Day	Easy Money (4)
The Promised Land	Waitin’ On A Sunny Day (4)
The Way You Do The Things You Do	The Promise Land (4)
634 -5789	The Way You Do The Things You Do (4)
Shackled And Drawn	634 - 5789 (4)
Lonesome Day	American Skin (41 Shots) (2)
The Rising	Lonesome Day (2)
We Are Alive	The Rising (4)
Thunder Road	We Are Alive (4)
Rocky Ground	Thunder Road (4)
Land Of Hope And Dreams	Rocky Ground (4)
Born To Run	Land Of Hope And Dreams (4)
Dancing In The Dark	Born To Run (4)
American Land	Dancing In The Dark (4)
Tenth Avenue Freeze Out	Raise Your Hand (1)
	Tenth Avenue Freeze Out (4)