On March 19, 2016, Bruce Springsteen, 66-year-old legend and the E Street Band performed at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena for the very last time. Don’t worry, Springsteen’s health isn’t in jeopardy or anything (thank God), in fact I think he’s thriving more than ever.
This famous sports arena located on the University of Southern California’s campus was due to close its doors for good after Springsteen’s final performance. It was first erected in 1959 and hosted the Democratic National Convention in 1960 presiding John F. Kennedy’s presidency. Supposedly one of Springsteen’s favorite places to perform, he nicknamed it “the dump that jumps.” The walls oscillated with every guitar strum, potentially dislodging the crusted layer of popcorn on the cement ground. This 45,000-person area was packed to the brim with an eclectic mix of die hard fans of all ages, groupies and children of all ages experiencing their first Springsteen performance.
In this day and age, where hundreds of thousands of independent (indie) recording artists are creating new sounds and trends by the minute. It seems hard to imagine Millenials such as myself and my cousin who attended, to take a liking to aging rock and roll artists like Bruce Springsteen. As an avid listener to all genres of music, but with no musical talent whatsoever, I can assure you, Bruce Springsteen is talented in more ways than one. The eloquence of his music brings a sense of youth to his voice, his face still wrinkle less. This concert was like nothing I’ve ever experienced before. I’ve been to my fair share of concerts, mainly teeny-bopper or one hit wonders, as I’m sure many of you can relate.
But this was not just “a concert.” This was a real, live, fully-enthused performance by not only Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band but the entire crowd.
Springsteen performed whole-heartedly for almost four hours, barely taking breaths in between songs as the music transitioned onto the next song. Springsteen changed his instrument so many times I lost count, switching between various guitars and the harmonica (excuse my musical ignorance.) He crowd surfed and danced with fans on stage. I’ll eternally be jealous of the person who touched his butt as they carried him across half the arena. I’m hoping you can live vicariously through the amazing night I had.
Luckily, I was accompanied by my aunt, this being her 10th show or so of Springsteen’s. She knew every fun fact about Bruce’s life. In the lulls of the crowd’s cheers, she’d whisper a little something about each band member, Bruce’s children, wife or ex-wife. It was through these memoirs that I realized Bruce’s fan club more closely resembled a family, traveling across the nation or world, through each tour for the past 40 years. Crowd members held signs stating the number of shows they had attended and pleaded for a dance on stage with the man himself. When montages of the late Clarence Clemons, saxophonist for the E Street Band, came on the various projector screens, the whole crowd applauded and mourned this loss for a moment. Clemons’ nephew, Jake Clemons, 36, joined the E Street Band in 2012 and started playing in his uncle’s saxophone role. Clemons' solos left the crowd awestruck by every breath and movement of his fingers. The inclusion of Clemons into Bruce Springsteen’s musical family kept a sense of unity throughout the band.
It seemed like fate when our rental car had a New Jersey license plate on it (Bruce’s home state.) I knew I could always mutter the lyrics of "Hungry Heart" if it came on the car radio, but I never expected to be so mesmerized by a man who captivated my mom’s heart at the young age of 18. She still raves of the night she saw Springsteen perform in 1985 at a large amphitheater on the grounds of a castle in Co. Meath, Ireland. Whether you’re old or young, into rock and roll or folk music, you need to attend a Springsteen concert at least once. I’m truly converted to being a lifelong Springsteen fan. All it took was one night. Long live the Boss!
