From: owner-luckytown-digest@luckytown.org (LuckyTown Digest) To: luckytown-digest@luckytown.org Subject: LuckyTown Digest V9 #67 Reply-To: luckytown@luckytown.org Sender: owner-luckytown-digest@luckytown.org Errors-To: owner-luckytown-digest@luckytown.org Precedence: bulk LuckyTown Digest Tuesday, August 13 2002 Volume 09 : Number 067 NOTE: Sale/trade posts should be emailed to luckytown-ads, *NOT* to luckytown. That includes tix wanted/tix grovels, post them to luckytown-ads, please. Contents: MSG 8.12.02 ["John Moye" ] DC show and GAs [Wanda Husick ] Mebbe Al & Tippy would like some counterfeit tickets??????? [OmanIV@aol.c] Lets all get along..... ["Daniel C Laursen" ] MSG Magic & belated Asbury Park comments ["Ron Cecchini" ] General admission question. (What time to get there?) ["Aaron Hunter" ] radio two Sheridan Morley show ["j.robertson9" Subject: MSG 8.12.02 Just got back from Bruce at MSG...Setlist and song selection were pretty much the same as what he has been playing, with a few minor tweaks (BOBBY JEAN was a nice addition) and he switched the order around a lot which made (in my opinion) for a much nicer flow. The show was about 100 times better than the Jersey show last week-- not really in terms of setlist, but just in terms of energy and "vibe." He was having more fun tonight, leaping around, (doing the hop during Land of Hope and Dreams), and the sound was much better as well. Band seemed more confident and less stilted now. Crowd is warming up to the new material (Waitin on a Sunny Day continues to be this tour's 10th Avenue Freeze Out-- i.e. one big arena sing a long), and Mary's Place seems to get more rowdy at each stop... I have just two thoughts: 1. Land of Hope and Dreams may be one of the best songs he has written in years, invoking Woody Guthrie's "This Train" and then melding it with a metaphor about companionship, death, dying, and the afterlife. It's simultaneously touching and fist-pumping-- which to me is Bruce in the best sense. It really got me going tonight....just a great way to wrap up the night with Mighty Max's furious pounding and that moving chrus of "This train carries whores and gamblers/ This train carry's lost souls/ This train dreams will not be thwarted/ This train your faith will be rewarded..." WOW. 2. He still needs to find a better way to wrap up the show. The Countin on a Miracle>>41 Shots>>Into The Fire just doesn't seem to do the trick. Again, this is just my opinion. I still can't help but feel like Mary's Place gets the crowd going, but then it kinda deflates with these last three tunes. INTO THE FIRE, depsite how much I love it on the record, is sounding hollow or kinda stale live. That said, it was an amazing show...100 times better than Jersey last week. Can't wait to see how these guys sound in a few more months!!!! Setlist: The Rising Lonesome Day Prove it All Night The Fuse Darkness on the Edge of Town Empty Sky You're Missing Waiting on a Sunny Day The Promised Land Bobby Jean Worlds Apart Badlands Mary's Place Countin on a Miracle 41 Shots Into the Fire Encore 1: Thunder Road Glory Days Born to Run Encore 2: My City of Ruins Born in the USA Land of Hope and Dreams Outro: Bruce on the screens above the stage, doing a strange finger-pickin version of Countin on a Miracle in a creepy, plaintive falsetto. _________________________________________________________________ Join the world's largest e-mail service with MSN Hotmail. http://www.hotmail.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Aug 2002 03:06:11 -0400 From: Wanda Husick Subject: DC show and GAs Hi All! Well, the DC show was fabulous! I wanted to say thanks to the guys running the line outside. It is a LOT of work to do and I appreciate their doing it. I thought people might want to know more how the DC GA was run since it was different from the CAA GA. I think the MCI center security did a great job on the outside protecting the integrity of the line. They cordoned us off at about 4pm. I think that went a long way to keep the line jumpers out. I think it also helped that they ushered into the building all 350 of us going into the pit very quickly. However, letting us all in at one time later caused some difficulties. Once in the doors, we all went to the station to get our first set of wrist bands. This was not set up well and was quite haphazard. Then we went down a half-flight to a set of double doors. Already, at this time, the people who were #10, were next to people with #210. For some reason they held us at the double doors for a while and the people backed up, conditions were very tight with general crowd surging. The situation made me nervous about what was going to happen when they finally let us through the double doors. When they did let us through, it was to wide open space. People were running, but the crowd was no longer close together so it was not too dangerous. Then came the real mess. Right outside the pit was where we were supposed to get our second set of wristbands. There were only a few people giving out the wristbands. The MCI Center security did not impose any kind of structure to the process, so people were really pushing and shoving here. Some people were pushing and shoving because they wanted to get in first, but I think most of the crowd was pushing just to try to see what was going on so they could figure out what they should do next to get in. It was so packed, I did not have a clue where the wristband people were - so I had no idea what direction to move myself. I eventually figured out to go in the direction of where the people were holding their arms up l with the blue bands. I did not feel threatened during this process, although we were packed like sardines. Luckily, there were only 350 of us. Someone else told me that there were some real jerks barreling their way through and that it was amazing that no one got hurt (also that some of the security guys looked quite angry and that he was surprised they did not hurt someone). After getting the second wristband, we went straight into the pit. In the pit there was plenty of room for everybody. Unfortunately, due to the way the MCI center ran things, the people who were early in the line outside, did not necessarily get the better positions. I am not lamenting for myself. I thought I ended up in a good situation for my number. Overall, I thought everything went okay - just not as smoothly as I had heard that the GA went in East Rutherford. I am curious about what the experience was for the GA people who were not in the pit. If they let all of them in the same manner they let us in, I would expect big troubles. Thanks to Fred and and Melissa for the trades, and thanks to Brian for sharing GA info with me. Wanda Husick ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 12 Aug 2002 00:12:12 EDT From: OmanIV@aol.com Subject: Mebbe Al & Tippy would like some counterfeit tickets??????? There were 100 (1 news story) or 100's (another news story) of counterfeit tickets at the Washington concert. No details yet.... Also Al & Tipper asked for comps for their whole office, for the Gore-y details, and a funny picture, see: http://www.salon.com/politics/feature/2002/08/09/gore/index_np.html Most Washington fans really liked the show, the Wash Post "posted" a lot of their comments and reviews: http://discuss.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/zforum/02/entertainment_springsteen08 1002.htm Johnno ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 12 Aug 2002 11:33:32 -0400 From: "Daniel C Laursen" Subject: Lets all get along..... I was lucky enough to be with my wife in DC on Saturday Night. GA seats with the double wristband. Right up front. The front section was so polite and friendly it was like standing at a backyard BBQ. We made friends with a bunch of people around us (hello Chris and Amy). We were the second line of people from the stage in front of Patty it was a great show. There was some pushing and bumping from behind but nothing bad. A few projectiles landing near or on us but that's the front. I do have to just remind people to be polite. Towards the end of the show my wife was getting tired and was leaning on the stage between people (just one hand to steady herself) and this was going on for awhile. Not trying to ease into the spot just rest a weary knee that is having surgery in two weeks. A small women up front with all the room in the world starts elbowing her and some words were exchanged. Others in the front were spreading out to make room for her. Thanks to all around us. So this couple spread out trying to take as much space as possible I told this woman and her George Costanza like husband that she is just leaning, relax we are in the encores here. . Of course the typical 45-50 year old response you would expect would be for him to put his hands over his ears saying I can't hear you????? over and over. I explained she had a bad knee and she is having surgery in two weeks, and had been doing this leaning most of the night, relax. This man actually twisted my wife's arm behind her back telling her to leave his wife alone. Luckily I missed this or I would have been thrown out at this point. This came to a little scuffle between tough guy and a few girls around us. I was just holding back the Mrs. thinking the girls were not getting along. Over and forgot in five minutes. Lets remember people if you can't handle GA stay in the back. It was not bad, up front, it was polite, except for the Costanzas, but we are all fans. I did not find out till later that the Costanza guy actually put his hands on my wife or I would never have said lets forget about and shake hands with all involved after the show. A polite front section except for one incident and that was really just people who were tired, older, and probably bit off more than they expected going to the GA front section. It was calm and relaxed except for that and a great show. Great album, great tour in my opinion. Sorry for the long story but I figured it people would want to know about the small front section problem if they saw it. Patty looked down at the Costanzas and mouthed be nice, so a few people noticed. It was during My City of Ruins believe it or not. [text/html attachment deleted] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Aug 2002 06:41:05 -0400 From: "Ron Cecchini" Subject: MSG Magic & belated Asbury Park comments "Good evening, New York . . . been thinkin' about you alot lately." And with that began another Beautiful & Magical Night with Mr. Springsteen. The 4 hour drive down from Boston (& immediate 4 hour drive back) has wiped me out & is preventing me from giving a full review of the evening, but needless to say - it was nearly perfect ... making up for the sorta less-than-stellar time i had in Asbury Park on the 30th [*]. Bruce's voice hit new notes that gave me shivers ... & (don't laugh) but i think my eyes teared up about 3 or 4 times. The crowd was really good (except for 2 morons almost getting into a fight, & me getting splashed across the face with some beer...), & i was surprised that everyone in my behind-the-stage section 317 seating stood up for almost the entire show. The set list was really good (i was *so* psyched i got to hear Countin' on a Miracle!), though i could have done without the BitUSA nostalgia threesome of Bobbie Jean, Glory Days & the CD version of BitUSA. Yada yada yada ... i'm sure someone will give an in depth review ... but i just had to express how damn great this show made me feel. ... And, maybe a little late for this, but i really love this entire damn album! i can't believe some of the criticism it's been getting - esp. the digs aimed at Waitin' on a Sunny Day & Mary's Place. Those 2 songs fit the "concept" of the album much better than, say, the awesome Further On and Let's Be Friends, as they both start off with the narrator sorta hinting that he's been going through a tough time or something & that he can't wait for things to get better on their own or is wondering how to make 'em better, resp. Further On, while a great road tune, doesn't fit the rest of the album; and Let's Be Friends ... well, i wouldn't have minded if Bruce left that one in his notebook. One last random comment about the album... If i see one more review call Mary's Place a "barn burner" & compare it to Rosalita, i may scream ... It's apples & oranges. Musically, Mary's Place is simply not the "barn burner" that Rosalita is, & lyrically it's quite a bit more introspective & a tad melancholy, as compared to the wild, youthful sexual abandon & bravado of Rosalita. Anyway, i'll end that mini-rant now... ... [*] Okay, so it's also a bit late for this additional rant, but ... The Stone Pony really pissed me off on the 30th. Granted, i was soaking up as much of the "ambiance" of the evening - the whole evening, & morning, inside & outside the club - & was trying to capture it in my memory for all time (thinking, "How many more times will i get to see something like this in Asbury?") But freakin' A, i couldn't believe how unprepared they were for this event... 1. the Pony let in the entire state of New Jersey. 2. there was *NO* air conditioning 3. some bars kept running out of beer & water & were totally understaffed 4. the paper towels in the bathroom were not restocked at all during the entire night &, the thing that pissed me off the most, i was was so completely surprised - shocked even - that they didn't give away A SINGLE STINKIN' PAIR OF TICKETS to the Today Show concert. i could not believe that ... not for the life of me. So much for the much advertised "contests & giveaways", giving all us hopefuls a major false sense of hope. i think there were about 3 "giveaways", & they were CDs for bands that, really, no one gave a crap about. i really hope the Pony management has gotten wind of just how many people i talked to were pissed off that they didn't even offer a single pair of tix ... i think most of us were expecting, like, a dozen or so to be given away. but nope, not a one. ... i was also a bit, um, irked that no one really knew for sure what, if anything, was going on that evening as far as the much-rumored concert ... i guess we were all in the same boat as far as that one goes, but it would've been nice to know for sure whether or not there'd be a concert, whether or not any tix would go on sale or be offered to those who weren't already inside for the Today Show, & just how many might be offered. ... although, truth be told, after being awake for 30+ hours, spending 6 hours getting fried in the sun, being totally dehydrated & starving, i think even if i knew for sure there was going to be a chance at a 6 pm show that i still would've headed home. i was totally dying by 11 am. (damn, am i getting old???) ... At least my "famous" "Will wrestle Al Roker 4 tix" banner made it on TV, as Access Hollywood's Billy Bush called it his favorite banner of the day when interviewing Roker. Big Al said it must've been one of the other stations trying to get at him... Alas, Al was a big ol' chicken & never took me up on the offer (even after i yelled to him "C'mon, Al, don't be afraid!"). The banner is on page 5, frame 200 (bottom-right) of the NBC Pix page: http://www.NBCpix.com event code: 138874 i'm not in that picture... those were the unfortunate people next to me who chose to try to see all day over the monstrosity that was my banner. FYI, i'm on page 1, frame 18 & 19. (hopefully you can tell who i am...) BTW, if anyone knows the bee-yoo-tee-ful Stacy & Amy of Pt. Pleasant, NJ, who are in the picture with me, tell 'em i said hi and ... uh ... give 'em my email address. (yeah, that's it.) ... Okay, sheesh, *NOW* it's time to go to bed! After all, i'm heading to Iceland later today... Later all. Ron ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 12 Aug 2002 10:38:12 -0500 From: "Leopold, John" Subject: DC Barnstorming Review I had a few thoughts on the DC show on 8/10. As for the show overall, I couldn't believe how intense Bruce was throughout the show. He has a purpose for this tour and it came across in his setlist, his singing, his playing, and his attitude. We had the "Shut the F*** Up Tour" for Tom Joad, and now we have the "I'm not F***ing Around Tour" for the Rising. And that's exactly what I wanted. I love the album, so I loved the setlist. I loved the whole show. I had a blast. For me, the setlist doesn't matter when Bruce's intensity is so high. It is breathtaking to watch. I don't think we would get that intensity if Bruce was playing songs he didn't want to play. A prime example for me was Thunder Road. I think that's a song for the fans, and while it was performed well, it felt like a dud to me. I don't think Bruce was into it, like he is the new material. While I loved the show overall, I have only one complaint, but it's a huge one: THE SOUND WAS HORRIBLE. It has been called a barnstorming tour. Well, mission accomplished, it sounded like we were in a barn. I cannot stress how bad the sound was for this show. The last time I heard sound this bad was . . . gee. . . the last Springsteen tour. If I didn't know the words to all of these songs, the show would have lost a lot. It is unfathomable that a show that features (for me) the best band, best lead singer/performer/songwriter, and best songs in the business is saddled with sound that can't compete with a high school gymnasium. I had friends throughout the arena, and the feedback on the sound (no pun intended) was the same from all of them--HORRIBLE. Don't blame the venue either as all of the other inferior acts I have seen were at least audible. I saw 8 shows on the last tour in 5 different venues, and it was lousy at each of them as well. I am reminded of that great shot in the LIVE 75-85 book of Bruce walking through an empty hall listening to the band play. I remember the legendary stories of how he would walk through an arena to make sure the sound at every seat was great. Well, Bruce, you need to start taking those walks again. You are not going to like what you hear. What's the problem? Too many instruments? Too many vocalists? Should the company providing the audio be fired? I don't know but something has to be done. So, we can argue setlists, the length of shows, and whatever else we care to, but if the sound doesn't improve, what's the point? Thanks, John ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 11 Aug 2002 10:17:18 -0500 From: "Aaron Hunter" Subject: General admission question. (What time to get there?) Does anyone know what time one should get in line to get the closest to the stage as possible for the general admission? This will be for the St. Louis show. Thanks in advance for your help. Aaron. [text/html attachment deleted] ------------------------------ Date: Mon, 12 Aug 2002 12:20:16 -0400 From: kmfronek@firstenergycorp.com Subject: Cleveland Bruce Pre-party Hi Fellow LTDrs : I had a pretty big group already planned to meet so I thought I'd share the spot with you all coming to Cleveland. Pre-Party @ The Clevelander Bar & Grille @ 834 Huron Rd at 9th St (next to Panini's). We'll be there right after work and the owner agreed to play Bruce for us, have happy hour prices and open the upstairs for more room. They also serve food. Hope to see you there. Kim ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 11 Aug 2002 20:41:31 +0100 From: "Bill Matthews" Subject: Simple Thoughts from Scotland Another first time poster to this great list. With just a couple of thoughts, neither of which are particularly original. 1. The Rising is (imho) a very good album. Not great, but very good. I've had it on in the car since the day it came out here, and it has all the hallmarks of a good piece of work. I don't think there is a track that stands out as being either very good or very poor, but there is such musical diversity that I'm now on my fourth, different, favourite track. It's a grown up album, and I suspect that it will really stand the test of time. 2. There has been a lot of talk about the 9/11 'hype'. Actually - I think history will remember the point in time when it was written, but won't remember it specifcally as an album about 9/11. And yes, the record company may use the context to promote it, but I don't think an artist like Bruce need worry about his artistic integrity after decades of consistent, great material and performances. It's not like it's a 'Pop Idol' or 'American Idol' hype thing .. At least our man has talent through and through ... BTW, anyone got definite details on when and where the tour will swing through the UK (apologies if I've missed it). Fat chance of Scotland being on the itinerary, but we live in hope. Later, Bill ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 11 Aug 2002 22:10:41 -0400 From: Andy Strote Subject: Bruce and Prince Mike Walk was saying..... > >Where's Prince, where's Michael Jackson, where's Rod Stewart? They are all >irrelevant now. But not Bruce Springsteen. His new CD went gold in one week. >It debuts at #1 in 11 countries. And it is powerful material! Can't speak for Michael or Rod, but last month I saw 2 Prince shows in smaller halls (he still plays to 15,000+, but these shows were in 2500 - 4000 seat halls), and those shows smoked! Similar to Bruce, Prince has a new album and the show features it heavily. The true Prince fans danced all night long, sang along to the new ones, and of course dug the old ones too. No, his album didn't do much on the charts, but it's been a while since Prince cared about the charts. After his fight with Warner Brothers, he's making albums he pleases and leases them to record companies. Oh, and if you join his fan club, you get 4 CDs of unreleased music a year, and advance tix guaranteed to be in the first 15 rows. Yeah, it's $100 U.S. a year, but hey! Prince just turned 44, and the nights I saw him play, he was definitely the hardest working man in show business. And again like Bruce, there was a lot of interaction with the fans, getting them up on stage to dance, sing with him etc. The shows rocked hard, and everyone came out of there sweating and smiling. Experience of a lifetime! Now, what were you saying? Oh yeah, Bruce is still a vital artist. You're right. Andy - -- You always got to be prepared But you never know for what "Sugar Baby" - Bob Dylan ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 10 Aug 2002 19:25:16 +0100 From: "j.robertson9" Subject: radio two Sheridan Morley show Stand to be corrected- but have been informed that the Sheridan Morley art show on Radio 2 Friday 23rd at 22.30 there will be a peice about Bruce and the new great album. Of course this information is just crumbs for us U.K. fans, who will be fighting over just one (thats one!) concert this year so to all posting bitching remarks about not playing oldies and the concert only lasting 2.30 hours (only!) i hope next year he leaves your town out, so he can play in Europe more where we appreciate him much more. getting fed up? time to jump off the "old band wagon" with you. Catfish Jim -U.K . [text/html attachment deleted] ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 13 Aug 2002 13:36:48 EDT From: Newman541@aol.com Subject: Did Bruce mention Ticketmaster Last night at MSG I thought I heard Bruce make a comment about Ticketmaster. I believe it was right before the "Shut the F Up" portion of the show. Did anyone catch what he said? Rob P.S. My 2 cents High point: Empty Sky acoustic was Beautiful Low Point: Retire Bobby Jean ------------------------------ End of LuckyTown Digest V9 #67 ****************************** ********************************************************************* ** LuckyTown WWW URL ** The LuckyTown FAQ, back issues, web-based subscription/unsubscription, and many other things can be found on the LuckyTown WWW Page: http://www.luckytown.org ** LuckyTown mailing list addresses ** You can send email to go into the next LuckyTown Digest to: luckytown@luckytown.org You can send email to go into the next LuckyTown-Ads Digest to: luckytown-ads@luckytown.org Any questions for the list admin should be emailed to: owner-luckytown@luckytown.org To unsubscribe, send email to majordomo@luckytown.org with message body: unsubscribe luckytown-digest To get further information on how to subscribe/unsubscribe/change your subscription address, as well as the other available commands, send email to majordomo@luckytown.org with message body: help ********************************************************************* The contents of this digest are not necessarily approved by the list admin.