Bruce Springsteen is my hero

On Saturday, March 29th, Sarah and I went to the Springsteen show at Key Arena. Originally, Willie and Ginger were going to go, but the show sold out too quickly. Also, our friend Melinda was going but prices from places like stub hub were at least $150 (our tickets were $110 including all the charges). We had general admission tickets, which were for the floor. No seats, standing room only. When I heard that I was psyched. Of course I thought it would be first come-first served, and the weirdos who can go three days without a proper bathroom break would be camped out and at the front of the line. But luckily, it was a lottery to see who would get into "the pit", right in front of the stage. From 2 pm until 5 pm, GA ticket holders could pick up a wristband at the gate, and the wrist band had a number on it. At 5:15, a number would be randomly drawn out of a jar, and the person with that number would be first in line. Awesome!


Sarah and I dropped Johnny off with Grammie and Papi about 2pm. We then drove to our old neighborhood and parked, and walked to the Key Arena entrance. I had these horrible visions of a 2 hour line to get wristbands, and was a little disappointed when we got our wristbands without waiting in line at all...at 3:15. Our numbers were 335 and 336 (I felt that having Patrick Ewing's number IN my number must be a good sign). We killed an hour and a half listening to street performers, convinced that I could play for an hour at Seattle Center without getting ridiculed. At 4:45 we went to the gate to find hundreds of Bruce fans buzzing in anticipation for the drawing, lined up by number. It turned out 750 wristbands had been given out, with 300 getting in the pit. I like those odds! We stood in line, and I was surrounded by Bruce fanatics. One guy was from Philly, and this was his tenth show...this tour. A large number were talking about the Portland show the night before, and I felt like I should at least join the fan club when I get home. A little before 5, it started raining. Oh yeah, there was snow in the rain. What a joke. A Key Arena representative got on the bull horn, said something I didn't hear, then the number 292. We all started jumping up and down, thinking we got into the pit! Not only that, I might catch some sweat, a pick, or even a harmonica. Front row! Unfortunately, it was not the lottery number, she was only looking for someone. Bummer. It started raining harder. Sarah was cold and miserable, and we were both tired of waiting in line. About 5:20, they picked the number. They pulled some dude out of the line, pulled out a jar, and he picked a number. I have been a Bruce fan since the 4th grade. Our wedding song was "Valentine's Day" off Tunnel of Love. My first youtube post was me playing guitar and harmonica while singing a rough version of "The Promised Land". I have a picture of him in my classroom. I sing the songs that have "Johnny" in the lyrics to my son to help him sleep. I deserve pit access. I did not get it. The number picked was 550. When I told Sarah it was my fault for wanting to get there early, she just said "Don't do that." I stopped. But I was bummed. Really bummed. And the harder it rained, and the longer we waited, the more bummed I became. I thought that we were going to have a crummy view, and I was really hoping to be close to the stage. We stayed in line in the rain. Even though we had no shot at the pit, we were told if we stayed in line, we would be let in by number, ahead of everyone else (not all GA ticket holders were there for the lottery). It kept raining, and we all went from negative self-pity, back to excitement about the show. I talked with a woman from Jersey who after we all laughed at a girl for wearing 3" spike heals with her designer jeans (waiting in line for 2 hours, waiting for Bruce for 2 hours inside, and then a 2.5 hour show), revealed she wears a jog bra to Bruce shows. Another revealed that inside his sweats were two microphones that cost $1500 each from Germany, which he used to record bootlegs. A family in front of us included an 8 year old girl, and a mom that would use the f-word regularly, then look down and say "No f-words in school." It was actually pretty fun. Bruce fans are very pleasant. And they are all about my mother's age.

At 6:30 Bruce finished his sound check and they started to let us in. We were soaked, and freezing, and could not wait to get inside. When we got in we ran (following some die-hards, figuring they would know where to get the best spots) and made it inside. I was surprised at how close we were going to be. About 40' from the stage, dead center. Yes! We sat and waited almost 2 hours for Bruce to come out. This is my third Bruce show. I sat about a mile away from him at the Tacoma Dome in 2000, and Sarah and I saw his Devils and Dust show in 2005 with decent seats but still at the opposite end of the basketball court (also Key Arena, ps Greatest Live Show Ever, see top five below...). At this show we were on the stage side of the half court line if the court the Sonics play on were visible. Pretty close. Close enough I did not look at the video screens, and close enough to see the sweat spray. He is incredible. He plays for 2 hours before the encore (which is another 30 minutes), and you hardly catch your breath. He runs to switch guitars between songs, and he and the band were WORKING. I have seen amazing concerts in my life, but Bruce and the E Street Band are on another level. I think there is a mystique around their live shows, and the way the crowd is involved, that is truly a wonderful experience for me. I sang all the songs, I danced the whole time, the music was great, and it made me incredibly happy to be there. My feet hurt, the guy behind me drank too much (or was just TOO into it) and kept yelling in my ear, but it was still awesome. He played some of my favorites: No Surrender, Promised Land, Radio Nowhere (is there anyone alive out there?), Rosalita (the name of my fantasy football and baseball teams), and Born to Run. My ears were ringing, I was hungry and dehydrated, but that was an amazing show. I actually looked at tickets for the Vancouver show (tonight) and the Sacramento show (Friday). Alas, my lifestyle does not allow for such shenanigans. But man, I am glad it did for one night! BRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCEEEEEE!!!!

Setlist:
Trapped
Radio Nowhere
No Surrender
Lonesome Day
Gypsy Biker
Magic
Reason to Believe
Darkness on the Edge of Town (this was dedicated to John, probably for either me or my son)
Because the Night
She's the One
Livin' in the Future
The Promised Land
Waitin' on a Sunny Day
Your Own Worst Enemy (this one was dedicated to Ed, probably Vedder)
Point Blank
Devil's Arcade
The Rising
Last to Die
Long Walk Home
Badlands
* * *
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out
Rosalita
Born to Run
American Land

Top five live shows, and approximate dates

1. Bruce Springsteen, Aug 11th, 2005 at Key Arena in Seattle; This solo show was unbelievable. A lot of songs from Nebraska and Devils and Dust; just Bruce, his electric and acoustic guitar, harmonica, pump organ, and piano. Goose bumps baby.

2. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, March 29th, 2008 at Key Arena in Seattle. See above.

3. Pearl Jam, July 22nd, 2006 at the Gorge in George, Washington. Thanks Chris and Loren, for letting Dave and I have the fan club seats. 6th row for an awesome show of new and old PJ tunes. Ed played all the greats, what a blast of a weekend!

4. David Lee Roth, Sept 2nd, 2001 at Bumbershoot, Seattle Center; "You know this ain't no blue streak, in this dead end game, the poor folks play for keeps down here, they're the living dead..."

5. Billy Idol, July 2002 at Pier 21 on the Seattle Waterfront. Laugh if you want, but this show was a lot of fun.

Modest Mouse at the Showbox, Built to Spill at the Showbox, Infernal Contraption, Indigo Girls at the Paramount, Toad the Wet Sprocket at the Paramount, Steve Vai (?) at the Moore, Pearl Jam at GM Place, Tool at the King County Fairgrounds, all very honorable mentions.