Returning to Hyde Park for the second of his two headline shows, Bruce Springsteen yet again reminds everyone why he’s The Boss.
Would it really be Britain without it raining at a festival that’s called British Summer Time? The rain is on and off all day in London damping some spirts ahead of the gig which featured big names support for Bruce Springsteen.
Playing to what isn’t his usual audience James Bay rips through a 10 song set filled with non-stop pop rock. Mixing the setlist from his own shows, Bay plays his bigger, upbeat songs to the crowd showcasing impressive guitar playing – something he prides himself on. Having openly talked about his love for Springsteen in the past his smile is beaming on stage playing his Springsteen-esque ‘Get Out While You Can’ and closing with his biggest track ‘Hold Back The River’.
The Chicks were next and much like Bay had a mixed reaction from the crowd. Playing their outspoken country hits, the trio transform Hyde Park into what could’ve been their own headline show. The crowd perk up when they hear them cover ‘Landslide’ and ‘Travelin’ Soldier’ while people also recognise ‘Wide Open Spaces’, ‘Cowboy Take Me Away’ and ‘Goodbye Earl’. Their 13 song set ends at 6 o’clock leaving an hour before Springsteen takes to the stage.
Right on time, Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band take to the stage. Opening with the Tracks deep cut ‘My Love Will Not Let You Down’, the crowd seem confused and continue talking ignoring the fact the man they came to see was on stage. ‘No Surrender’ was the first of six Born in the USA songs followed by a rocking rendition of ‘Ghosts’.
At this point the crowd are still static, with little groups of 3/4 people spread out across the giant park actually singing and dancing. Bruce and the band are sounding as good as ever with a slightly slowed down version of ‘Darkness on the Edge of Town’ and what should’ve been mass singalongs with ‘The Promised Land’ and ‘Out in the Street’.
If the crowd wasn’t already lost, a long version of ‘Kitty’s Back’ before a cover of ‘Nightshift’ really loses them. Filling songs with longer instrumental sections ‘Mary’s Place’ goes on a minute or two longer than it needed to be, before an acoustic version of ‘Last Man Standing’.
‘Backstreets’ is a highlight with Bruce showing he still has it, hitting every note like it’s 1975. ‘Wrecking Ball’ is followed by ‘The Rising’ before a massive version of ‘Badlands’ to close out the main set. At this point they’ve played for just short of two and half hours and go off ahead of the encore.
Kicking off the encore is ‘Born to Run’ where for the first time the crowd shows a little bit of life. The performance from Bruce at 73 years old is enough to blow anyone away with his appetite for rock and roll not fading yet. Three huge songs off Born in the USA follow with ‘Bobby Jean’, ‘Glory Days’ and ‘Dancing in the Dark’ follow with Bruce and the band pouring every ounce of energy into the last few songs.
‘Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out’ acts as a tribute to the members of the E Street Band that have passed away with huge pictures of Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici appearing on the screens. Finishing at 10pm Bruce closes his set alone on stage with a poignant ‘I’ll See You In My Dreams’.
For a band who are all into their 70’s, they’re showing no signs of slowing down, however the same could not be said for the crowd. With the majority of people only knowing songs in the encore, it leaves you confused as to why they’d even bother spending £100+ in the first place. As The Boss himself sang “you can’t start a fire without a spark”, Bruce and the band gave the crowd that much needed spark – the crowd just didn’t give them the fire in return.
