DANCING IN THE PARK
The Boss, E Street Band hit grand slam in first of 2 shows at Wrigley
On Aug. 9, 1988, Wrigley Field turned on the lights as the Cubs played their first official night game. Thirty-five years later to the date, the Friendly Confines hosted another of its brightest moments: the return of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, this time, for a threehour, 26-song grand slam of music.
Fresh off the European leg of a massive 2023 international tour (where Michelle Obama even guested on “Glory Days” in Spain), the Wrigley Field concert on Wednesday night (there’s a second show tonight) kicked off a string of new North American dates as the group continues its first proper U.S. tour since 2016.
“I haven’t seen you in a while,” Springsteen chided, eliciting massive cheers from the wall-to-wall crowd inside the ballpark. In spite of the controversy surrounding the tour early on due to Ticketmaster’s dynamic pricing tactics, both Chicago nights are sold out.
The stadium tour been hailed as the “Greatest Show on Earth” by Billboard, and it was hard to argue that fact watching the 17-strong lineup (rounded out by a full horn section and backup singers for this tour) give it their all on every song — from the expected high points like perennial hit “Born to Run,” which may now hold the record for largest singalong at Wrigley, to the lying-in-wait tracks like 1973’s “Kitty’s Back” that turned the ballpark into a juke joint with its bluesy cabaret breakdown.
The “seven-year itch” leads many unions to permanent breakup, but the time that Springsteen and the E Street Band have been away has only made their relationship grow stronger, and the show was a testament to the joy of friends who, after 50 years, still really like making music together. You could see it on their constant smiling faces, the way in which The Boss and members of the ensemble high-fived each other after nailing songs like “Darlington County,” and the playfulness that came during “Glory Days,” when Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt took an onstage camera into their own hands for some laughable hijinks.
In this ensemble, there is equal billing, knowing it truly takes a village to create American rock ’n’ roll standards like “Dancing in the Dark.” And the incredible instrument mastery of Van Zandt, drummer Max Weinberg, the “professor” piano man Roy Bittan and saxophonist Jake Clemons (nephew of the late, great Clarence Clemons) proves them every bit as mighty as Springsteen, who, at 73 years old, can still passionately deliver every lyric and churn out to-the-high-heavens guitar solos.
Unlike tours past where the set list has been a fluid art, this time around the band has been sticking to the same standard 26 songs with only minor deviation. For Night 1 at Wrigley Field, it included several numbers from the 2020 album “Letter to You” and one high note off the 2022 covers album “Only the Strong Survive,” with a remarkable rendition of the Commodores’ “Nightshift” that put emphasis on the great percussive line and the tour’s backup singers. Of course, there was a whole slew of favorites thrown in, culled from a consistent six-decade, 21-album career that has become part of the American tapestry, the originators of heartland rock relying on every bit of roots music to tell the stories of the underdogs and the working-class.
At several points in the show, Springsteen walked down a series of ramps and stairs to high-five fans in the GA pit in front of the stage, sign birthday posters and share the mic for impromptu duets. At one point, he even gave his harmonica to a young child whose face lit up like a Christmas tree.
“I need more 11-year-olds in this crowd,” Springsteen joked, poking at the largely older patrons who have clung to his music for decades.
Springsteen also recalled his own youth when introducing the solemn “Last Man Standing,” offering stories of his first Jersey band, the Castiles, and his childhood friend George Theiss, whose death in 2018 gave The Boss pause to write the song in honor of days gone by.
Note: Friday will be the second and final show for Springsteen & Co. at Wrigley Field; tickets: ticketmaster. com.