Springsteen concert: Closers matter
Agnes, Nov. 18, 2001.
"You know what? I don't really like boys much… but if I did like a boy, he would have to like Lifesavers… and he would always let me have the red ones!"
"If I ever like a boy, he will have to know every nuance of the lugubrious yet hauntingly melodic moan at the end of Bruce Springsteen's song 'Jungleland' … and we will howl it together a cappella beneath a full moon of icy blue."
"You might be alone for a long, long time, Agnes."
"I'll wait."
What was amazing as Springsteen and E Street played the Born to Run album in whole tonight was how the highlights weren't the highlights. Thunder Road and Born to Run were solid, but the Backstreets interlude and, best, the close of Jungleland did it for me. I'd seen Jungleland live before but never up close and never that close to perfect. That long, long sax and final wail made me realize how much a great ending was necessary for a great album — more than last notes, a conclusion.
Two other highlights tonight: Friend Jim and I got into the pit, 20 feet from the stage, and it was as wild as always to see the show in high-relief. In Hungry Heart, Bruce ran behind us and crowd-surfed over us. I touched a leg and a boot, and Jim got this photo at the other end:
Third and last highlight before bed was Higher and Higher. Great song, fantastic closing song, brought life into a traditional encore set. I was humming it all the way home and will be humming it tomorrow (today).
