Music
The Boss and the E Street Band Live in New Zealand
Bruce Springsteen, also known as ‘The Boss,’ together with the E Street Band wrapped up their 17 date tour with thousands of lucky kiwis at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland over the weekend. Thousands of fans were in attendance for the 30 song, three hour eleven minute concert. The Boss lived up to his nickname by playing city specific hits for every location. The song of choice for New Zealand was none other than the worldwide hit by Lorde, “Royals.” Royals made for the opening act and was sung as a solo acoustic. Accompanying the eccentric yet mellow tunes with the strums of a guitar and harmonica, Springsteen brought a different light to the song and made it original and almost rustic by switching up the well-known lyrics to a gender specific “you can call me king bee’’. By the end of the show you could sure call him ‘king bee,’ the 64 year old artist and musician showed versatility from taking a teenage hit song and making it his own while at the same time utilizing various different instruments throughout the show, bringing a powerful punch to his tunes with the backing of the E Street Band.
The chosen set list for the New Zealand crowd on Saturday night was the 1975 critical and commercial success ‘Born to Run’ album having sold six million copies in the US by the year 2000. Springsteen is known as an artist who reflects on life experiences when writing lyrics and ‘Born to Run,’ is no exception, drawing from his period as a struggling artist. The lyrics were deep and the band was on top form, creating a great atmosphere amongst the crowd enjoyed by all.
Among the hit songs sung by Springsteen was “Wrecking Ball,’’ (not to be confused with Miley Cyrus’s latest song release). The song is an original Springsteen creation from the year 2012. As Billboard put it; Wrecking Ball “is an entity, human or otherwise, reconciled to its fate but ever defiant,” and is poised to be a classic, the proof of course lies in his live performance.”
The evening also offered fan interactivity, one lucky woman was pulled up for a spot of karaoke during “Glory Days,” surely what is to be an unforgettable experience. Springsteen finished the show with an acoustic version of “Thunder Road,” a crowd favourite and a song that has forever symbolized the unforgettable image of Springsteen running into the late Clarence Clemons arms onstage during countless shows in the 1980s which is no doubt a walk down memory lane for his older fans who have been with him from the start. A grand mixture of nostalgia, reverie and new age beat, the entire show oozed excellence and professionalism.
Cue the applause folks, the man is a class act.
Springsteen’s Saturday New Zealand set list:
Royals (solo acoustic)
My Love Will Not Let You Down
Badlands
Out in the Steet
Loose Ends
Wrecking Ball
Death to My Hometown
High Hopes
Atlantic City
The River
Born in the USA
Cover Me
Darlington County
Working on the Highway
Downbound Train
I’m on Fire
No Surrender
Bobby Jean
I’m Goin’ Down
Glory Days
Dancing in the Dark
My Hometown
The Rising
The Ghost of Tom Joad
Land of Hope and Dreams
Encore
Born to Run
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Shout
Encore 2
Thunder Road (solo acoustic)
