19/06/2011 by Russell.

“….is it a bird” audience responds “NO”

“….is it a plane” more noise from the audience “No”

“..It’s Big Man - Clarence Clemons” cue cheering, Bruce continues with “….Big Man joined the band, From the coastline to the city…” (Tenth Avenue Freeze Out, Springsteen 1974)

Or…see the youtube intro from London

And the rock and roll party continues with the E Street Band, entertaining thousands of Bruce Fans the world over, but you didn’t need me to tell you that, you knew already.Bruce’s stage sidekick, Clarence Clemons died after a stroke a week ago and left him paralysed and the surgeons operated 4 times on his brain, I guess his body could only take so much.

But what of my connection to him?

I first saw the E Steeters in a 4 hour marthon show around March 1982 at the NEC in Birmingham, what a show. My first Bruce concert, I went along with Barry and Ian Sargeant, who afterwards were not that enthralled, the music and show was just something else to me, energy, music and a real connection with his audience, and throughout the E street band pumped provided the sound. Memorably the first half of the show closed with Bruce stood on one set of speakers and Clarence on another pile of PA’s blasting the Thunder Raod solo, with the audience in raptures.

Ever since I have always managed to catch Bruce for 2 or 3 nights on a tour of the UK, have obly missed his one nighter at the Albert Hall, sometimes I confess am I too old to chasing Bruce up and down the country, can I be bothered? I ask myself and everytime the show is like a homecoming, Just great.

Clarence has always been there, and his presence is huge, I always look out for tracks with the saxaphone, because I love how it is intermingled with the sound of the songs.  The turn of the nineties was a disappointment when ‘Human Touch and Lucky Town were released, albums without the e streeters, previously, Tunnel of Love was more of a solo effort but Bruce toured with the E streeters, and I had begun to wonder if the saxaphone was going down the list of sounds bruce was moving towards.

Thankfully not, as recent interviews suggest he always looked at ways of getting the sound of the E street band into his records, and that included the saxophone of Clarence .

I often saw Clarence Clemons with Pete, my good friend from Congleton, one year at the MEN, Manchester he had 2nd row seats for us. WOW!  The evening was the re-union tour, and I took my little Kirsten with us - 10 at the time - she was at her first concert.

Being so close to the front we attracted Clarence Clemons to her presence (stupidly waving arms and pointing to her) but he did notice and came to the front of the stage and smiled at her (not me and Pete) and acknowledged her presence.  LAter in the show, he got Bruce to come over and acknowlege her, with a smile and eye contact and a pointed finger.  Double Wow! it just proved to us, Bruce and Clarence do make a connection every night with the audience.

Would I miss a show? never, he is the Boss, now he has lost a friend and a great musician, already Danny Federici has been lost to cancer, 2 down, Max Weinburg, Steve Van Zandt, Garry Talent and Professor Roy Bittan remain from the old line up of the 1970’s - will they continue? my guess is yes, but how and when I don’t know.  Bruce was down to tour Australia this year for the first time since Born in the USA album.

Clarence Clemons - Big man, big sound, big voice, big loss.

This is what Bruce said 18/June : “Clarence lived a wonderful life. He carried within him a love of people that made them love him. He created a wondrous and extended family. He loved the saxophone, loved our fans and gave everything he had every night he stepped on stage. His loss is immeasurable and we are honored and thankful to have known him and had the opportunity to stand beside him for nearly forty years. He was my great friend, my partner, and with Clarence at my side, my band and I were able to tell a story far deeper than those simply contained in our music. His life, his memory, and his love will live on in that story and in our band” (source:brucespringsteen.net)

Long live the ‘heart stopping, true rocking, greatest house band, the world famous E…Street…Band…. ‘

(Source of picture: www.morethings.com/music/springsteen/bruce_springsteen_photos/born-to=run.jpg)

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08/04/2010 by Russell.

One day left in blighty, am about to set sail (fly really) to the ends of the earth (globe which has no end) on a voyage of  discovery.  I am about to embark on football coaching for 14 weeks in South Africa, based in Port Elizabeth.  I am the only over aged numpty on this programme, everyone else are 20-25 or so.  I am the grandad.  Although there are 26 on the range of activities (cricket, rugby, netball coaching, orphanage volunteering) only 5 of us are completing the 12 weeks footy.

My jobs list before departure has been a mixed bag - I haven’t completed the decorating,  I have got my India visa, but not China.  I am outside 6 months of arrival, so thats something i will have to arrange on the road, somewhere.  I have sold my car : ( but to compound things only yesterday, my bank card has split along the chip - problem there, how do i get money out?

What to look forward to? certainly the world cup, England, Germany, Portugal, Ivory Coast come to town, but tickets are hellishly expensive, the cheapest ticket I can apply for is $160 to the Portugal vs Ivory Coast game.  How do locals afford that? A festival of football, is an expensive affair, plus you are only entitled to 7 tickets for the tournament, and have to pick up your tickets in person only.  I am sure some tickets will be available to chancers like me.

I hope to whale watch in Cape Town as well as climb Table Top Mountain and visit Robben Island.  Above all I am worried about travelling on my own from PE to CapeTown, security and all that…

From here I am off to Delhi belly in India, got my Immodium, by the bucket load, got re-hydration tablets and ‘deet’ spray and roll on! will abandon ‘Sure deodorant’ for the month. My arse is ging to suffer, but guess it comes with the sanitation and water.  Still had my Typhoid booster to combat this along with Hep A and Hep B jabs.  also got my anti bacterial wipes to clean my cutlery and plate lol! - Taj Mahal, Jaipur, Jodhpur await.

Bangkok offers mysery and golden buddha’s, people tell me it stinks and is smelly, well, I’ll head for the beach then.

Cambodia offers malaria, I have 10 days to get thru this with my tablet supply to get to Vietnam.  if you saw BBC’s ‘Top Gear’ you will have seen some of the spectacular coastline, absolutely unspoilt in Vietnam.  I thought how beautiful, when I watched the programme, I would love to see that, and here i am 2 years later on the brink of seeing all this.

From here I am going to catch a train from Hanoi - yes you can - into China, where my destination will be the Terracotta army in Xian.  That is something which I am very excited about.  You read these things asa kid, you see the pic of Prince Charles face to face with them, and it makes you think about the incredulity of it all.  Then Hong Kong, before going to Australia.  I cannot believe my luck, good or bad, as its an Ashes Cricket series. Wow!  This is where i hope to rendezvous with at least one family member.

Well I guess this compensates United not making the Champions League Final in Ronny’s backyard.

So am off to pack and stuff…you can find a dedicated travel blog at http://www.getjealous.com/rustycarno

So keep watching and reading my progress…

Love to Barry ( he started ‘rustycarno’) love to all my U15 footballers (Chesham Strides) love to Brenda (Dads old girlfriend) love to Kevin (and family) for the miles we have travelled to United, love to Simon Standish (top bloke) love to some great work colleagues, love to BB for undiminshed support without whom this wouldn’t happen, and above all love to Captain, Phillip, Emily and Gregory without whom life would be untolerable.

sa

Posted in Barry, BB, South Africa, ben Standish, Emily, kids, Greg, Kirsten, Phillip | Print | 1 Comment »

29/06/2009 by Russell.

28th June, on stage at Hard Rock Calling, Bruce Springsteen put in another energetic show for his audience.  Falling up the stairs twice in getting back to his mike, he made the above pronouncement.

Age has no boundaries for this man, even coaxing a song out of a boy at the front of the audience ‘Waiting on a Sunny Day’ the boy sang into Bruce’s microphone.  Very much reminding me of taking Kirsten to see bruce in Manchester in 1999ish when she was 10, we weere on the second row and she made a connection with Bruce that evening. Brilliant.  He makes everyone welcome.

He opened the show with the Clash’s ’London Calling’ anthem, great start, and he rocked us all night from there.  There were the customary hand made signs of requests. The highlights among these were ‘Greetings from Hyde Park’, ‘I love you Steve’ banner and the requests were so many but he responded to Bobby Jean and Jungleland in the set.

He had a duet with Gaslight Anthem vocalist Brian Fallon on No Surrender.  What will happen when he announces a retirement tour, God only knows, hopefully it will be a one great catalogue of requests.  How many artists can do that these days? such sponteneity is one of the great things about Bruce, you never know where the journey may take you. He is undoubtedly the master performer at a live show.  I just hope Clarence Clemons’ legs/hips keep going, he is a big man tottering around on stage, but the ‘hearstoppping,  record breaking E Street Band’ wouldn’t be the same without him.

‘Glory Days’ indeed……over to you Bruuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuce

 Glasgow anybody?

Pic from BBC.

June 28, 2009
London, England
Hard Rock CallingLondon Calling
Badlands
Night
She’s The One
Outlaw Pete
Out In The Street
Working On A Dream
Seeds
Johnny 99
Youngstown
Good Lovin’
Bobby Jean
Trapped
No Surrender (duet)
Waiting On A Sunny Day
Promised Land
Racing In The Street
Radio Nowhere
Lonesome Day
The Rising
Born To Run

Rosalita
Hard Times
Jungleland
American Land
Glory Days
Dancing In The Dark

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14/05/2009 by Russell.

15th May - Kirsten is 20 today………

Ain’t she beautiful?

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29/01/2009 by Russell.

What a day, my father had a great send off. over 100 people turned out to say farewell to my father, and I am grateful for those who came along. Imet and chatted to people from my village -Wingerworth - whom I hadn’t seen in years and years. Don of Lydgate farm (now a housing estate), Peter Normans father, John Radford (father of Andrew) and many others who I can’t even remember.  But also, was a bit of a family re-union, seeing some cousins I hadn’t seen since the 1970’s -wow! what a lovely time, then there was Peter, Ian, Karen And Suzanne, the children of Jean and the late Brian Young, wonderful to see them.

Of course it was great to see such friends as Kevin and Anne make the journey from Buckinghamshire to attend the funeral - friends indeed.

A sad but joyous day for seeing so many acquintances, and of course great thanks to Barry and Peter for coming along from Congleton. What a lucky person to have such comrades in arms. Over the past year I have felt alone and it is only now I have found that i do have friends, I have felt this way because of what trauma I have created for the family unit.

Love to Phillip, Kirsten, Emily, and Gregory  and Christine, the day would have been soulless without you there to share his day.  Also Brenda suffered enough with my father, just hope she can get out on the Moors soon.

On the day, i thought I would never make the speech and Barry was there to talk it through, (see post below) courage, or fortitude, i don’t know - but it all flowed as i wanted to remember my father, it was his last stand in the public eye, so I wanted it to count.  God what do you do now your parents have both died? it certainly is a strange experience, they have been there, always there, but now its not a family of three,  it’s a family of just 1………..

So long Dad, enjoy your reunion with Mum

On a positive note, 26th January  also a date when Bruce released his latest CD, what better accompanyment to drive home with eh?

Posted in Buckinghamshire, Wingerworth, Kirsten, Emily, Leslie Preston, Grandad, dad, Phillip, Greg, Uncategorised | Print | No Comments »