Another year, another Bruce Springsteen concert. Last year it was at Hyde Park. I enjoyed it very much – the song selection was great – but we were standing in a field watching the nearby big screen. The concert could have been in Regent’s Park for all that we watched what was happening on the actual stage.  It’s not often that you can say that Wembley Stadium feels intimate, but it did tonight in comparison with Hyde Park.

Two tours in two years felt unusual too. As long as I can remember it’s been every three to five years, usually to tie in with the release of an album. I did wonder whether this tour, so soon after the other with no album tie-in, might be a last hurrah for Bruce and the E Street band. They are all in their 70s after all. But honestly, after the sheer verve, the energy, the spirit of tonight’s show, I think they might be going for a few years yet. This felt like one of the best Bruce concerts I’ve seen, and I think I’m in double figures by now.

The London dates – Thursday 25^th and Saturday 27^th   –  weren’t great for me as they clashed with Latitude festival; but when my friend Dave alerted us to the concerts, I didn’t even think about it and said yes to a ticket. And after he’d bought them I remembered it was Latitude! Thankfully we decided to go on the Thursday, which was manageable.

There were four of us: Dave, Jon E, Tony and myself. We had a very nice meal at a place in Marylebone called the Potting Shed before heading up to Wembley on a train from Marylebone station in time for the prompt 7.15 start. Bruce and the band had a three and a quarter hour set to play. In their 70s – think about that. Truly amazing.

And what a set! From start to finish, never a dull moment. Once again a magnificent journey through the back catalogue, with plenty of old favourites and some interesting detours into rarely explored territory. I loved it all. Here’s the setlist, courtesy of Setlist FM:

Lonesome Day – Seeds – My Love Will Not Let You Down – No Surrender – Ghosts – Letter to You – The Promised Land – Hungry Heart – Spirit in the Night – Reason to Believe – Atlantic City – Youngstown – Long Walk Home – The E Street Shuffle – Nightshift – Racing in the Street – Last Man Standing – Backstreets – Because the Night – She’s the One – Wrecking Ball – The Rising – Badlands – Thunder Road. Encore: Land of Hope and Dreams – Born to Run – Bobby Jean – Dancing in the Dark – Tenth Avenue Freeze Out – Twist and Shout. Encore 2 (solo): I’ll See You in my Dreams.  

The first eight songs were relentless, no pauses in between. Blows you away. Seeds was particularly brutal, verging on metal. In contrast there was a wonderful sequence of slower, contemplative tunes that are rarely played. Two from Nebraska – Reason to Believe and Atlantic City, then the beautiful despair of Youngstown from The Ghost of Tom Joad. Reason to Believe was turned into a searing blues, which I really liked. There were two two jazzy classics from the early days – Spirit in the Night and The E Street Shuffle – which were pure indulgent joy. And then there was Racing in the Streets, with an extended piano by Roy Bittan, which gave the song even more of an epic feel. We were singing along to that one! I also liked the fact that Nils Lofgren was given more opportunity than I remember before to let rip on the guitar. He must be the best guitarist in the band, and tonight he got a chance to show it.

The singing – ours anyway! – really got going with the last two of the main set: Badlands and Thunder Road. And it continued for much of the encore, notably Born to Run (of course) and Dancing in the Dark (though Jon always boycotts that one, for reasons we still don’t understand!). There were the usual heartfelt tributes to past members of the E Street band no longer with us in Tenth Avenue Freeze Out, with the Big Man, Clarence Clemons, to the fore. Twist and Shout went on for a while and crossed over the 10.30 curfew. But there was no turning off the power tonight: Bruce came back for a solo encore, the poignant I’ll See You in my Dreams. It could be a goodbye, but more likely just a reflection on the passing years.

See you next time, Bruce!