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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29/07/2010 by Russell.

Goodbye Port Elizabeth, Hello Cape Town, and Cheerio to Hstd Road site

On my final days here in PE, and the World Cup is over. April seems such a long time ago when I arrived, full of expectation of what was to come, coaching, the footy and South Africa itself.

What we read in the papers in the UK or believe what townships are like, or the black people and society in general here, would be true if you are in the wrong place at the wrong time. This can be said of LA, Toxteth, a suburb of Paris, or any inner city estate around the world, except the difference being here is that there are literally thousands of such deprived estates here (townships), beyond the scope of your imagination. Each citizen is entitled to a one room house, and they are in all kinds of condition, in addition there are the wooden and tin shacks all around on waste ground.

The blacks and whites and coloureds all mix during the day and in the public spaces, such as malls, beaches, tourist spots etc, and there is nothing to fear. However, go to a township and walk the streets at night alone, then you are a fool. Common sense applies, but that all seems to be forgotten throughout the newspaper reports. Boris Johnson has been over here and recently wrote a good piece in the Telegraph. I have been in black neighbourhoods at night, I have walked with Buntu and his friends, but there is always safety in numbers and of course I am with black people. I have also gone from taxi to the door. All in all, the black people are most welcoming and want to meet you and shake you by the hand, they want conversation. I have even had one man say I was the first englishman he had ever spoken to or heard speak, a compliment indeed. If individuals like me and other white foreigners don’t go to the townships, how can the word spread of their plight or living conditions or their welcoming nature. Unemployment is grim here, 60-80%, and they stand on street corners looking for work, they act as car park attendants, they fill your car up with fuel, they run little market stalls, they sell ray ban sunglasses at traffic lights, anything to scratch a living. Yet they are mostly positive individuals, they know the political system isn’t the best here with money disappearing down more black holes to line the pockets of officials. However, as I knew I would, I love the black community, love their footy skills and their genuine kindness, and they have nothing to give back other than hospitality. There are many beautiful kind people here.

As for my soccer coaching, well it has all been a bit stop start and experiences have all been genuinely good, are there any decent players here? I have found 3, two 18 yr olds and a 13 yr old. Incredible, just like anywhere else, talent is easily spotted and as everywhere else is truly thin on the ground. There is a lot of milk and cream here, but the cream at the very top of the milk is very thin. Do they have a chance, none whatsoever, they need to come to England to get anywhere, and for that I don’t have the contacts anymore nor the funds to bring over. It is a shame, the young lad – Reeve – is exceptional, he could even use the wind to make his pass work, and he has fantastic temperment along with skill. Please let me take him home! The coaching has not been as expected, the schools were disruptive, the weather has cancelled sessions and the kids have not always been the same. To take this further for me I would have loved to coach a team. I have seen kids play in our tournaments during the world cup, and they would generally out pass and beat an equivalent age group of kids in England at 15-16 yrs old. The younger ones lack team play.

Is PE a great place? In truth it is an industrial town with car factories, tyre factories etc, a port and airport, it is a working town, and yet unemployment is still high. There is talk of moving the docks and using the existing site as a tourist hub with a marina, light years away I guess. The Boardwalk area is very safe and westernised, a small mall, casino, hotels etc and a beach. But because of PE’s size it is about 6-7 km away, and is not walkable, another taxi ride for anything from 60rand to 100rand (｣6 to ｣10). Because I have been here so long, I have my own driver now – Chris, very economic. The town centre is shabby and not a great architectural feast. But PE has opened my eyes to modern South Africa with Malls, cinemas, some excellent restaurants and bars are on the increase. If you ever come here eat at the ‘Butchers Bloc’ in Newton Park. Great food.

PE is like a little america, wide highways with robots (traffic lights), drive through MacDonalds, KFC’s and Nando’s. Even petrol stations have take away places, but they are not ‘fast food’ as we know it, you end up waiting, no good for the Westerners here, I guess many visitors for the world cup wondered why it takes so long – this is Africa, it is slow at times.

But PE is a gateway to many places, you can get along the garden route very easily and there are some spectacular places to visit, Plettenberg Bay, Storms River, Robberg peninsular, Knysna, etc and going towards Durban is the ‘wild coast’ Morgans Bay, Coffee Bay, Grahamstown, Mthata ( Mandela Museum) etc. If you arrived here the scenery is outstanding along with the Indian Ocean. Which was too cold for me to swim, but get up to Durban and it will be warm, remember it is winter here now.

What about me? For me it has been a time for reflection, yes of course I have thought about West Herts College and the impending move, but in truth it has only been a little thought..the trip so far has enabled me to de-stress (is that a word?) and I think in hindsight it was the right decision, to change my perspective and get out of the maelstrom of the College. I am also of the opinion that I will have to return here, I have also considered my next moves and would like to start a charity to utilise cast off sports equipment. There is none here, kids in bare feet, or at best socks, no shorts or jerseys. Think of all the boots and kit which is thrown away in the UK, it can have a use here.

I am seeing the world with a new pair of eyes and am grateful for that, my brain is uncluttered for the first time and it is a good feeling.

Trivia:

• MacDonalds is not highly visible, only 2 here I know of. KFC and Nando’s beat them hands down

• There are 3 multiplex cinemas in town

• Woolworths (yes) is like Marks and Spencer’s

• Round-a-bouts are ‘circles’

• Sun goes down about 5.30pm and rises about 7am (yes its like our winter for daylight)

• The wind can be here for days, and the sun can be out without a cloud for days

• When it rains, stay indoors

• There is no such thing as central heating

• Coloured is not a derogatory term here, just a description

• Water is safe to drink

• Litter is all over the townships, they don’t have refuse collection like we do

• Re-cycling is very limited

• Castle lager is not exceptional, palatable to many though

• Wimpy is everywhere

• I have seen, Old Mk1 Cortinas, Mini’s, MGBs, Mk1 Ford Escort, Morris Minor, etc, many cars we have given up on long ago are still running

• You need a car to get around, it is a big country.

• Petrol is about 80p a litre

But just as I listen to Monty Pythons ‘Bright Side of Life’ I think of the optimism amongst the black community despite the cards they have been dealt.

I hope the move to the new WHC campus goes OK, but I hear of redundancies, more off putting news of the world I left in April.

Monday takes me to Cape Town, an hours flight away….

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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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24/12/2007 by Russell.

The Boss was back in town, last Wednesday 19th at the new o2 arena, (aka Millenium Dome)

Tickets were as scarce as a gay in a brothel. managed to get a ticket on the day (once again) and pay face value through rip off merchants Ticketmaster.

Waited from around 1pm for the gig at 8.30pm.

Was it worth it? of course - started with a rip roaring ‘Radio Nowhere’ four tracks on the spin without really talking to the audinece, a Boss on a mission. (see Backstreets review on my web-site) . he blew tha audience away with old, new and crowd favourites. Because the Night went down a storm as did No retreat No surrender. Absolutelt great stuff. Did we want to go home? no? did we believe in Santa Claus? of course the audience did.

I have seen Bruce since 1981, the journey has been a love affair for all these years, and I always wanted to go to see him at Christmas, to see him play Santa Claus Comes to Town. it’s a song i have had on an old bootleg from around 81/82. He didn’t disappoint…all the E streeters were suitably donned in hats including ear muffs for Steve van Zandt ( some may know him from the Soprano’s)

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