More about: Bruce Springsteen

Might be too hot. Central London sun beams down, bald heads and shoulders are pierced, turning pink as overpriced White Claws and Grolsch’s are bought in bulk and clumsily carried to a stage being hugged by an Oak Tree. Jackets are tied around waists, sun cream is applied and shortly after washed from cheeks with tears as The Boss takes to the stage. It’s not just a cheer, it’s a cheer with a mix of people saying, “Bruuuuuuuuce,” and others breathing in quickly, unable to breathe out again at the sight of one of the biggest voices in live music right there in the flesh. ‘No Surrender,’ begins to play, and with that, a choir of over 60,000 join in.

“Well we busted out of class, had to get away from those fools, we learned more from a three-minute record, baby, than we ever learned in school.”

“I first heard this song in school,” says Claire, laughing at the irony. She wears an E Street Band t-shirt and aviators, drinking from an American Express water bottle, “it was 1984, the year ‘Born In The U.S.A’ came out. My friend liked him and forced me to listen, after that I was hooked.” She was in secondary school when the track came out, her future shaping itself in front of her, three heartbreaks, two career changes, two kids, and one constant: Springsteen.

“This is my twelfth time seeing him and it never gets boring, I love him, I’d leave him in a second,” she says, nodding towards her husband who laughs. “He wasn’t a fan at first, but I forced him, we even had a Bruce song as the first dance at our wedding.” They look at one another, he smiles, she does the same, and with that I leave them alone, I hear her singing behind before I’ve taken five steps, joy in every syllable.

Support came from Stone + Picture Parlour

“My heart’s dark but it’s rising, I’m pulling all the faith I can see, from that black hole on the horizon, I hear your voice calling me.”

Bruce plays ;Mary’s Place' about a quarter of the way into the set, he repeats, “let it rain, let it rain, let it ran, let in rain,” whilst the sun still beams down and warms cold drinks quicker than anyone would like. The band are on top form, with saxophonist Jake Clemons playing elongated solos, the crowd cheering as lips touch reed and Bruce watches in awe as if it’s the first time he’s seen him play.

“I used to know a girl called Mary,” John is a pissed-up scouser with a lot of love to give. He puts his arms around strangers near him, borderline screaming, “meet me at Mary’s Place, we’re gunna have a party!” Those he dances with laugh at his beer pitched vocals and dance with him but not as frantically, they welcome him as one of their own, he’s mid-30’s but every age are happy he’s there.

"I’ll fucking cry when he plays Thunder Road!”

“We used to always sing this to her after nights out, she never invited us to hers like but we thought it was funny,” he has his arm around me and tells me during a Springsteen solo, spitting when he talks, his sweaty hand grabbing my shoulder. “Fuck me I can’t wait for him to play 'Thunder Road', that’s my favourite fucking tune of all time. I’ll fucking cry when he plays Thunder Road!”

One of the older men John previously had his arm round turns to face him and nods, “that’s my favourite as well,” he says, a southern accent ringing through.

“Lad, fucking tune, init?”

“Take me now baby here as I am, pull me close, try and understand, desire is hunger is the fire I breathe, love is a banquet on which we feed.”

“He wrote this with Patti Smith,” Alex tells me, she wears shorts and a denim jacket that’s too big for her. We’re in the queue to buy drinks and she bounces steadily on her heels in the queue, mentally trying to move those in front of her. I can see her mouthing along to the words, “they can’t hurt you now, can’t hurt you now,” tears swell but she moves them along before they have time to fall.

The chorus comes in and the whole drinks queue bursts into song, I see one man behind the bar have to lean closer to the person he’s serving in order to hear him better. Couples dance together, a group of lads throw their arms around one another, and the girl in front of me smiles. I don’t ask her what the song means to her, but it’s clearly a lot. She orders two cans of white wine and hurries off.

"The E Street band are The Avengers of music, everyone on that stage having the potential to be stars in their own right."

I’m back in my spot as the song is finishing, the band have stretched it out, similar to how they have done with every track on this setlist. The E Street band are The Avengers of music, everyone on that stage having the potential to be stars in their own right. Familiar faces like Steven Van Zandt and Max Weinberg take to the guitar and drums, flexing their musical ability with each passing second, but younger members on percussion and vocals impress just as much.

They play songs in the same way baby turtles run to the sea once they hatch, it’s just instinct to them, they haven’t had to learn these tracks, they have always been implanted in their brains, muscle memory firmly lodged in fingers and feet, they can play these songs, add solos, breaks and improvisation in the same way they can alter their breathing and control the words that come out of their mouth, and what is the most beautiful is that no one in that crowd enjoys watching them play more than Bruce does. Throughout songs he stands with the crowd, allows them to touch him, put their arms around him, and he embraces it whilst watching who are presumably his favourite musicians in the world, a smile on his face, occasional laughter spilling out.

“The screen door slams, Mary’s dress sways, like a vision she dances across the porch as the radio plays.”

As soon as the introduction to Thunder Road starts playing, everyone within shouting distance turns to find John. His arms are already in the air, tears are in his eyes, people smile and laugh at how happy he is, and all he manages is a poetic, “ah I’m gunna fucking cry lad.” That moment embodies this gig better than anything else ever could. Some of those who look at John must be almost twice his age, others are 20 years younger, all from different corners of the world, different connections to the music we’re listening to, but all linked by the man on stage, who has dedicated his life to making and playing music, making and creating memories and magical moments equally in the process.

Bruce and the E Street Band sounded better than any live band I’ve ever seen before. Whilst I like the elaborate set designs that a lot of artists are putting into their performances recently, he didn’t rely on any of that, he had his stage, and the screens around him simply showed larger images of those playing. There has never been a gig where I have felt so in awe of one person, equally, there has never been a gig where I have felt so unworthy of experiencing it. Seeing those around me, each with their own unique and personal connections to an artist, an artist who has grown up with them, or seen them out of nightclubs, helped them through hard times, heartbreak and grief and depression, then here I am, a fan, sure, but predominantly here to listen and then piss out some words.

There is no point in talking more about how good of a live act Bruce Springsteen is, it has been said, written, tweeted and thought of countless times, and one more voice in that crowded mash up will add nothing but more noise. Instead, I focus more on Claire, John and Alex, as well as those others around me whose names I don’t get chance to learn, each with their connection, their favourite songs and their reasons for them being favourites, each with drinks and dance moves and tears, these are the people who make the gig what it is, proper emotion, proper human connection, something that only music can ever really bring out of people.

As he wraps up 'Thunder Road' and the band walk towards to the front of the stage and bow, I look around again, curious as to whether Bruce has any actual idea how many people he has touched throughout his career. He will know he has moved people, sure, but just looking at the crowd that night, it’s hard to comprehend the scale of 60,000 people, each with their own thoughts and emotions and reasons for being there, so to comprehend lord knows how many times that, and then comprehend that you personally have had an impact on all of their lives… I don’t think any amount of live shows are ever going to help you actually understand. Ironically, to really get a feel for it, you need to be in the crowd.

"This is more than music."

“Ah, I fucking love him,” screams John, his arms round another stranger, “I fucking love him.”

“You can’t start a fire without a spark, this guns for hire, even if we’re just dancing in the dark.”

This is more than music. This is three hours of sharing personal moments with those around you and having the best backing track of all time to do it with. The encore consists of some of his biggest hits like ‘Born in the U.S.A.” “Born to Run” and “Dancing In The Dark,” but I’m gone by this point. I’m drunk, drunk and dancing so much with those around me that there is a disconnect from the stage, replaced with this connection with strangers, one that I aren’t ready to let go of despite knowing I’m going to have to in a few songs time.

A three-hour set has never felt shorter, I wasn’t ready for it to end and on the tube home was looking for future of gigs I could go to. That night, I’ve never experienced anything like it, more than music, more than vibrations and instruments and effects, more than words could ever properly say.

Everyone in that crowd had a story, a link with Bruce and his music that they revelled in and celebrated, which made them laugh, sing, cry and throw their arms around people they didn’t know and will likely never see again. Walking through Hyde Park once the curtain had closed and The Boss had said his thank you’s, I envied them and their connections, but on the tube back, rewatching some of the videos I had taken, I realised that night was mine, my connection with Bruce and his music, it’s late coming, sure, but it exists all the same, and ironically, whilst Bruce Springsteen is the root cause of that connection, I probably owe more to Claire, John, Alex and all of those around me.

A three-hour set of some of the best musicians in the world. More than music.

See the shots of the day, captured by Briony Graham-Rudd:

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More about: Bruce Springsteen