My Meeting with the Boss: Recapping the Bruce Springsteen "Book Signing" in Chicago on November 28, 2016

Anyone reading this blog that actually knows me--and perhaps even some who stumble upon Seth Saith with any regularity--knows that I am a huge Bruce Springsteen fan.

I've written fondly about "The Boss" many times, including a recollection of the first time I saw him live in 1984 with the E Street Band, reviews of several more recent shows in Chicago (1, 2, 3) and elsewhere, album reviews, lists of favorite songs and much more. (If you're viewing this in web format, note the Springsteen label link at top and the [Search Bar] at right.)

I've openly shared that Bruce Springsteen is my all-time favorite musical artist and concert performer (by a vast margin), and while I'm also a great aficionado of theater, film, art, comedy, etc., etc., he's my most beloved entertainer or creator in any genre.

Except for family and friends, the Boss has probably meant more to me than anyone, and the 49 times I've seen him live in concert--mostly with the E Street Band, since 1999, but also without and well before, in Chicago, Milwaukee and far-beyond--have not only provided hours of soul-enriching, life-enhancing entertainment, but been the impetus for numerous road trips that have brought other joys.

But although I had once touched his shoulder on the Wrigley Field outfield during a 2012 concert, until Monday afternoon I had never met the man.

Thanks to an appearance Monday afternoon at Books-A-Million at Clark & Adams in Chicago's Loop, I now have, with photographs to prove it.

Though, perhaps apt given the title of Bruce's new autobiography, Born to Run--famously also the name of his watershed 1975 album and its title song--it was an encounter that went by at Usain Bolt speed.

Not that I didn't cherish the opportunity.

Garnering excellent reviews and becoming an instant best seller, the Born to Run book was released on September 27, just four days after Bruce's 67th birthday and less than two weeks after Springsteen completed his latest world tour with the E Street Band, on which I saw him five times (Chicago, Milwaukee, Columbus, Chicago, Washington).

The first two weeks after the book's release found the Boss doing in-store appearances, in his hometown of Freehold, NJ, New York City, Philadelphia, Seattle, L.A., other West Coast stops and back to Boston, but with no Chicago event scheduled.

So I had bought an unsigned copy on Amazon, which I quickly started reading with zest and enjoyment, but put aside during the Chicago Cubs' playoff run and have been lax to get back to.

Then somewhat out of nowhere--with the book's promotion now leading to the Dec. 6 release of an audiobook, read by Springsteen himself--last Monday my friend Brad, also a big Boss fan, texted me that Bruce would be doing a Chicago appearance.

From accounts of the earlier book tour events, I knew that--unlike most "book signings"--Bruce wouldn't actually be signing books at the store. Rather, those who wished to attend needed to buy an advanced ticket, entitling one to a signed book and a quick chance to meet the Boss and get a photo taken.

Fortuitiously, I was able to get a ticket as soon as they went on sale last Tuesday, and separately so did Brad.

Yes, I already owned the book, but this was a chance to meet my hero, and autographed copies of Born to Run have been selling for about $500 on Ebay so another $38 was a bargain in any regard.

The event was listed on the Books-A-Million Chicago Facebook page--which now has several photos of Bruce with fans--as lasting from Noon to 2pm, but we were alerted that the line to get in would begin at 9am and that Springsteen was known to begin early in other cities.

Brad works downtown but I was heading there from my home in north suburban Skokie, so we decided to meet at the back of the line at 11:00am, figuring our ticket assured us of a meet-and-greet and a signed book by 2:00pm.

Of course, at 11:00am, there was already a line in the alley just north of the store, stretching from Clark to Lasalle, down Lasalle to Adams, back east the whole block to Clark and north to the store entrance.

So Brad and I--who have several common interests in the realms of music, movies and politics--had plenty of time to talk, and even engaged a friendly stranger just in front of us, in what wound up being roughly 3 hours of banter.

Especially as it was a bit chilly and rainy--though not terribly so--I was certainly quite glad not to have been waiting on my own (though years of attending Bruce concerts solo have brought numerous fun interactions with other fervent fans).

Given the length of the line, and the pace with which it moved while still taking 3 hours to reach Bruce--I believe he showed up around Noon--it quickly became clear that there wouldn't be much time to converse with the Boss.

Even far less than the rather brief dialogue I had imagined.

I had read that Books-A-Million, as elsewhere, had provision to collect cards and gifts fans wanted to leave for Bruce--whether he'll actually see or read them is anyone's guess--so I made and wrote a card saying what I really wanted to tell him. (Which, I imagine, approximates what many others might say.)

This took some pressure off, as I knew I wouldn't have the time to say all that I wrote, nor likely the poise to be glib and conversant without peeing down my leg.

I kind of wanted to ask Bruce something I had long wondered about whether two of his songs on 1978's Darkness on the Edge of Town album--"Racing in the Street" and the title cut--are overtly meant as an intertwined pair, with the same characters invoked in both, as something of a continuing narrative. (It seems possible, but I've never heard confirmation of this theory.)

But I figured this query, and my attempt to ask it, might well confuse Springsteen on the spot, and while in line and certainly once in the store, it became abundantly clear that such an esoteric line of questioning wouldn't be apt.

So I essentially settled on wanting to say something along the lines of:

"The Cubs won the World Series and I get to meet my hero [and you won the Presidential Medal of Honor] in the same month. It's been a pretty damn good month, the election notwithstanding."

(Bruce was vocally anti-Trump and appreared with Hillary at a rally the night before Election Day.)

Yet while I had years, months, weeks, days and even hours to plan things out, when the line finally approached the Boss, it was clear that there was almost no time for conversation. 

To its credit, the Books-A-Million store organized everything very well, including taking people's coats before they approached Springsteen, and having several staff members to take cameras from each guest and shoot photos (even knowing to use the iPhone's burst mode). 

So I had dropped off my card, was wearing my Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band baseball cap and "Show a little faith there's magic in the night" (from "Thunder Road") t-shirt, had my iPhone ready for the designated photographers and had traded digital cameras with Brad, as we were hoping to take a few more pix of each other with the Boss.

I was still kind of futtering around with Brad's camera when I was at the front of the line and someone was saying "Go up there." They even said it twice, "Go up there." So I did.

I approached my idol, shook his hand, put my arm around him, muttered, "This is a real honor" (probably twice), posed for a photo, said "Thank you for everything," shook his hand again and moved on. 

If Bruce Springsteen said anything to me in return, I honestly can't tell you what it was.

But that's OK.

I met the Boss and wound up with a satisfactory photo, and actually several more than I expected (though all basically the same).

It was really, really damn cool, something I'll never forget and forever be glad I did. I now have an autographed copy of Born to Run, and my regard for Bruce Springsteen was only elevated.

And I have nothing but praise for how the event was organized and handled. I'm happy I got to hang out with Brad and even made a new friend, who's now connected on Facebook.

But as I soon was asked by friends Dave and Paolo if meeting Bruce was better than the Cubs winning the World Series, and if it was the "greatest day of my life," I will convey--clear-eyed, honestly and with no lack of sentimental apprecation--the answer to both questions is definitively "No."

Certainly, "meeting the Boss" was a thrill, but let's be honest, I didn't really meet the Boss. It's not like I hung out with him at a bar after his motorcycle broke down (never trust one built by Billy Joel, I guess). 

This was more of a blur with a couple of mumbles and the pressing of an iPhone shutter button.

So just in terms of encounters with heroes, I can't say this matched the time I bumped into Muhammad Ali in Las Vegas. This doesn't make for a story like the time a then-married Kim Basinger and Alec Baldwin came into the Kinko's I worked at in Tarzana, CA to get passport photos taken. Or, though I wasn't there, when Frank Thomas happened to show up at the Champaign, IL bar where my best friend Jordan happened to be on my birthday (circa 1995).

Even in terms of book signings, ones accompanied by enjoyable speeches--by Elvis Costello, and my favorite author, Harlan Coben, just 2 months ago--or a bit more interaction (Wayne Gretzky, Cal Ripken Jr., George Carlin, Roger Ebert, Pete Townshend) have offered more in the way of acute and/or or active gratification.

I'll never forget interacting a bit with Buddy Guy and Paul Westerberg after shows, and once saw Jeff Tweedy of Wilco perform in a living room.

In seeking autographs at stage doors, I have "met" Billy Crystal, Hugh Jackman, Antonio Banderas, Chita Rivera, George Hearn (who coolly recorded this for my sister's birthday) and will always relish Denzel Washington telling everyone just to line up down 44th Street before he signed everything and joshed with me upon fumbling to take a photo. (He's probably the coolest celeb I've ever encountered, though I've also met many sports legends at card shows, including the delightful, now-deceased Tony Gwynn.)

Meeting Bruce, as I did, was not as enriching or fulfilling as seeing one of his phenomenal 3-to-4 hour concerts, nor would I say it tops my beloved Cubs finally winning the World Series or my having attended three of the Series games.

I don't know a means for measurement, but this was not "better" than other sensational concerts, brilliant theatrical performances, life-changing travel experiences or wonderful personal interactions and events.

I've had several blessed moments in my life--including just over the past few months--and this was just one more of them.

Though I guess I can forthrightly say...

It was the best meeting with the Boss I've ever had.

A Truly Outstanding Boss: Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band Rock the United Center for 3-1/2 Impeccable Hours -- Chicago Concert Review

Concert Review

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band
United Center, Chicago
August 28, 2016
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Last weekend, with my beloved, first-place Chicago Cubs playing the Dodgers in Los Angeles, I made a point of listening to the L.A. radio feed through the MLB At-Bat app so that I could hear Vin Scully announce the first 3 innings of each game.

After 67 years of broadcasting Dodgers baseball, dating back to their years in Brooklyn, the 88-year-old Scully is retiring at season's end.

So barring a meeting in the postseason, Sunday marked the last time the legendary announcer would call a ballgame involving the Cubs.

Hearing Scully once again was an absolute joy.

Working solo--i.e. without a color commentator--he regaled fans with his trademark storytelling between pitches, and was as brilliant as ever. (Sunday he also simulcasted the 3rd inning on Comcast Sports Net in Chicago, so geared his narrative toward Cubs fans.)

Belying his years, he sounded sharp, vibrant, buoyant and much the same as he always has.

As I remarked on Facebook, I believe Vin Scully has done his job better than anyone else I know of has done his or hers.

On an ongoing basis.

I say this with tremendous regard for many other superb baseball announcers, superlative artists and musicians and writers and others I regularly praise on this blog, as well as for the millions and billions busting their tails in obscurity.

I'd have to assume that, in truth, there may be others who do what they do as well as Vin Scully announces baseball games.

Certainly, Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt just reiterated that they deserve to be considered the greatest ever in their respective fields.

But especially if you factor in longevity and age, there's only a handful of people I would put in the same ballpark as Scully; two that come to mind are Stephen Sondheim and Paul McCartney.

Yet while I will eternally cherish, admire and appreciate the songs those men have written--and just 3 weeks ago saw Sir Paul prove that at 74 he remains one of the world's best concert performers--when it comes to the art of playing live rock 'n roll, there is no one who comes close to Bruce Springsteen.

I say this after not only seeing & relishing McCartney yet again, but just a week after attending two phenomenal shows at Wrigley Field by Pearl Jam, a band that exudes Boss-like earnestness and shares his affinity for changing up the setlist every night.

As regular readers of this blog know, I see a lot of concerts, and love most of them.

I don't bestow my highest, @@@@@ rating as easily as some may think, but have felt Pearl Jam, Paul McCartney, U2, the Rolling Stones, AC/DC and several others have readily earned it.

But on my 5@ scale, what Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band did Sunday night at the United Center--my 48th time seeing him, and 4th this year--truly merits @@@@@@.

Less than a month from turning 67, Springsteen--with most of his band in the same demographic--played for over 3-1/2 hours without leaving the stage.

This came just days after shows at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey clocked in at 3:52 and 3:59, so the fine citizens of Chicago--and those who traveled from Europe and elsewhere--could theoretically feel a tad shortchanged.

But beginning with a nearly 15-minute "New York City Serenade" lushly augmented by a guest string section--Bruce had opened the NJ shows likewise--all 32 songs played sounded tremendous.

Obviously, I love Springsteen and have for 35 years, and know all the lyrics to all his songs--like much of the crowd. I also own every studio album and concert DVD he has ever released, and a good number of the live recordings he has begun to release in recent years, of all current shows and specially-culled past highlights going back to 1975.

And still I can't wait for the chance to buy the "official bootleg" of Sunday's Chicago show. The selections played were that terrific, and Springsteen & E Street still sound as good as ever.

Although the current run of shows are still being promoted as part of The River Tour 2016, unlike the initial U.S. leg earlier this year they do not include a full playing of The River, a double album from 1980 re-released last year with 30+ outtakes as The Ties That Bind: The River Collection.

Eight of The River's 20 original songs were performed Sunday at the UC, including "The Ties That Bind," "Hungry Heart," "Out in the Street," "Cadillac Ranch" and the title track, but not sequentially.

Although I greatly enjoyed the full River shows for what they were--and even wished more of the outtakes were included--this was a much more free-form affair, very cool for me to see due to having no clue what might come next for most of the show.

As on tours over the last decade, Springsteen selected signs from the audience to determine ad hoc song choices. These included "The Promised Land" and a beautiful "Racing in the Street"--with brilliant piano playing by Roy Bittan--plus the rare Born in the U.S.A. outtake, "None But the Brave," and "Mary's Place."

The latter is a song from The Rising that became a setlist staple in 2002-03, and isn't a particular favorite. But Bruce clearly loves playing it, and coming unexpectedly, it was really fun to hear.

Similarly, The River's "Sherry Darling" isn't a song that would ever make my "What do you want to hear him play?" list, but the way the band delivered it made it a true delight.

I loved hearing "My Love Will Not Let You Down" and was completely thrilled that my favorite song--by anyone--"Backstreets" opened the encores (by sign request).

Springsteen has always written songs about economic disillusionment, blue collar struggles and other social issues, but has become much more strident about his humanitarian beliefs in the second half of his career.

With a word spoken about it, his activism was most appreciable during a quintet of songs mid-show:

"Death to My Hometown," "The River" (centered around his brother-in-law losing his job), the recent ode to working class dignity amid Wall Street malfeasance, "Jack of All Trades"--resplendent with the string section brought back onstage--followed by "American Skin (41 Shots)" chronicling a death at the hands of the police (saxophonist Jake Clemons poignantly stood with his hands up throughout the song) and with considerable resonance in Chicago, "Murder Incorporated."

The boundless energy expounded by The Boss and his bandmates--including drummer Max Weinberg, guitarists Steven Van Zandt and Nils Lofgren, bassist Garry Tallent, Bittan, Clemons, keyboardist Charlie Giordano and fiddler/singer Soozie Tyrell--was again rather astonishing to behold,  and one of my favorite moments came 3-1/2 hours into the show when Bruce flashed a huge grin during the closing "Bobby Jean."

In additional to youthful exuberance, at any age, actual youth was also celebrated as Bruce repeatedly noted a boy in the crowd (and made a point of shaking his hand), brought a young girl onstage to sing along with "Waiting on a Sunny Day" and danced with other youngsters during "Dancing in the Dark."

It made me happy to know that parents (and grandparents) are still introducing kids to the wonders of Bruce Springsteen, even live and in person.

And as I sang along, badly but loudly, to "Badlands," "Born to Run," "Rosalita" and much more, it made me ecstatic to witness such a spectacular performer once again.


One who has brought immeasurable joy--and much more--to my life.

With a nod to the similarly singular Vin Scully, nobody does it--or just about anything--better.

And per the second song played, it was truly blissful to see Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band once again "Prove It All Night."

(See Bruce Springsteen's full Chicago setlist here and read more about the show at Backstreets.com)

An Uplifting Ride Down to 'The River': Springsteen, E Street Band Deliver Quality & Quantity Like No One Else -- Chicago Concert Review

Concert Review

Bruce Springsteen
and the E Street Band

United Center, Chicago

January 19, 2016

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Between the brilliant Bowie, the seemingly indestructible Lemmy, the unforgettable Natalie Cole and the original Eagle, Glenn Frey, the last few days and weeks have brought not only sad losses of musical greats, but grim reminders of our own mortality.

While these passings, at age 69, 70, 65 and 67, respectively, all came far too soon, hitting even closer to home was the death of Scott Weiland at 48--just a year older than me--and also that of a Chicago musician I really enjoyed, Kevin Junior of The Chamber Strings, at just 46.

The tragic loss of the son of longtime family friends, at only 52, himself a beloved musical instrument merchant, served to make the gravity, sorrow and sense of ephemerality all that much more acute, although I didn't know him personally.

So while certainly not lessening the losses, for me, seeing Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band yet again on Tuesday night could hardly have come at a better (largely meaning worse) time.

Attested to by this Chicago show being the 45th time I've seen Springsteen in concert, not only is the Boss my #1 musical hero, he is essentially my psychiatrist, religion, booze, dope and other coping mechanisms, stimulants and/or emotional support systems rolled into one.

And with great admiration for and deference to the thousands of artists I've seen onstage in rock, blues, jazz, classical, theater, opera, ballet, comedy and other genres, Bruce Springsteen is the greatest live performer I've ever witnessed.

Still.

At age 66.

And accompanied by nine E Street Band members mostly of a similar demographic, Springsteen played for 200 minutes at the United Center without leaving the stage.

That's 3 hours and 20 minutes for the mathematically-challenged.

During which time, 33 songs were played.

After opening with--with the house lights still up--"Meet Me in the City," an outtake that just surfaced a few months ago as part of The Ties That Bind: The River Collection box set, the next 20 songs were, as advertised, those contained on 1980's The River album.

Played in album order, this got us to about 2 hours, roughly the length of most "generous" concerts--whether by still-great legends like The Rolling Stones & The Who or relative youngsters like Arcade Fire.

In fact, for many artists, 90-100 minutes is about the norm.

But the Boss & Co. then proceeded to play another 12 songs over approximately 80 more minutes, ending near 11:30pm.

Now, as a Springsteen diehard who knew every lyric sung, I loved what I heard.

All of it.

That said, it was a bit of an adjustment--though not a detriment--to hear The River in order, as part of the joy of seeing Bruce, so many times, is the element of surprise as no two setlists are the same.

So to know exactly what was coming, over the first two hours--I'd previously seen Born to Run, Darkness on the Edge of Town and Born in the U.S.A. played in full, but the double album River is much longer--was a bit unusual.

Yet especially as Springsteen introduced the album and songs like "Independence Day" with poignant soliloquies, hammed it up with Steven Van Zandt on "Two Hearts" and others, crowd-surfed during "Hungry Heart," added lovely extended intros to "I Wanna Marry You" and "Point Blank"--the latter featuring the great E Street pianist, Roy Bittan--and delivered great renditions of several songs rarely played live, including "Fade Away," "Stolen Car," "The Price You Pay," "Drive All Night," and album-closer "Wreck on the Highway," the album recital, at least for me, was glorious. (See Setlist.fm for the full Springsteen Chicago song list, and Backstreets.com for more detailed documentation.)

Not that this would be the show I'd most avidly recommend to Springsteen haters, doubters, disbelievers, newbies or middling, latent or populist fans.

Even among the three aficionado friends I went with--though all we could get were single seats at the four ends of the arena--there was discussion afterward about the length and density of The River, which combines bar band rockers with several long, slow (and to some, laborious) character-study ballads.

But not only was this promoted as The River Tour--I still rue being a bit too young to get to the first one in 1980-81--with the full-album playthrough no secret, Bruce has shared (in The Ties That Bind documentary included in the box set and aired on HBO) that after having initially submitted and pulled back a single album in 1979, his aim with The River was to make a "big" record that captured the sonic balance of his famed live shows.

Hence the dour "Point Blank" leading into the buoyant "Cadillac Ranch" and "I'm A Rocker," then sobered again by "Fade Away."

And several other like examples.

So akin to how I valued coming to much more know and appreciate Stevie Wonder's Songs of the Key of Life double album leading up to--and during--his 2014 concert performing it in full, Springsteen fans who didn't holistically know or recall The River could well have studied up (easily in the age of Spotify) and/or reveled anew in hearing it en masse.

And though this was just the second show of the tour, after Saturday in Pittsburgh, Springsteen did provide some great surprises in his selections after The River wound up.

I went into Tuesday's gig kind of hoping he would replicate "Badlands," "Backstreets"--my favorite song by anyone, ever--"Because the Night" and his tribute to David Bowie, "Rebel Rebel," that were played in Pittsburgh.

Yet though I would have loved to have heard those songs, I was just as happy to have them, unsuspectingly, replaced with "Night," "No Surrender"--Bruce botched the opening twice, but then "remembered how it goes"--a searing "Cover Me" and a touching solo acoustic "Take It Easy," in memory of Glenn Frey.

Also played were "She's the One," "Thunder Road," "Born to Run"--making for half of the Born to Run album, along with "Night"--"Human Touch," "Dancing in the Dark" (on which Bruce danced with a delighted gray-haired lady), "The Rising," "Rosalita" and more.

So those looking for greatest hits can't really say they didn't get them.

Though if anything--with the awareness that it's silly to kvetch at all about a near-perfect, nearly 3-1/2-hour show--I would have relished hearing a few more River outtakes.

As I compiled and sequenced in this 25-song Spotify playlist, Springsteen recorded enough first-rate material in 1979-80 to have put out a second double album just as good, if lacking the stylistic diversity of the finished product.

Along with "Meet Me in the City," songs like "Party Lights," "Roulette," "Dollhouse," "Loose Ends," "Be True," "Stray Bullet" and many more would have been a joy to hear performed by the mighty E Street band, including Bittan, Van Zandt, Garry Tallent, Max Weinberg, Nils Lofgren, Jake Clemons (nephew of the late Clarence), Charlie Giordano, Soozie Tyrell and Bruce's wife, Patti Scialfa.

But I have tickets for Bruce in Milwaukee on March 3, so who knows?

Still, as I've hopefully conveyed, I loved this show, in part because of its uniqueness. My friends did too, and what may have sounded like booing was simply the packed house effusively yelling, "Bruuuuuuuce!"

And especially with the concert coming when it did, there was something genuinely inspiring about seeing a 66-year-old guy with an equally veteran band rocking out for 200 minutes with a smile on his face the entire time.

Who knows how much time we and those we love--whether personally or artistically--have left on this Earth?

Hopefully a lot, but for me the real wish is that we all find fulfillment in how we live, give, share, love and enjoy each and every day.

For me, no one has ever provided a better example of giving your best, every time out, than Bruce Springsteen.

And no entertainer--or anyone for that matter, other than family and friends--has ever made me feel more alive.

Or glad to be.

Repeatedly, and on this particular Tuesday night.