Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

[Spade_Cooley 9,627]

Fade away...

 

Thread opened because DDPs have been won with E Street Band members before, there's enough of them and lord forbid we miss The Boss stepping down.

 

Anyway, let's kick things off with the death of Obie Dziedzic, the woman who was known as "the first Springsteen fan", usually seen front row at most US E Street gigs and at one point Bruce's housekeeper. 

[Toast 16,232]

Bruce's mother Adele has Alzheimers.  She was still fit enough to go to gigs and dance on stage last year though.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3514487/Bruce-Springsteen-mothers-got-moves.html

[msc 18,536]

50 minutes ago, Toast said:

Bruce's mother Adele has Alzheimers.  She was still fit enough to go to gigs and dance on stage last year though.

 

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3514487/Bruce-Springsteen-mothers-got-moves.html

 

Aye, looks like she'll be rolling in the deep a bit longer.

[Toast 16,232]

8 minutes ago, msc said:

 

Aye, looks like she'll be rolling in the deep a bit longer.

She's 90, I think.  Her two sisters died in their 90s, so that's some long life genes Bruce has got on the Italian side.

His father died in his 70s, but he was an alcoholic and depressive, so didn't take great care of himself.

[ObakeFilter 964]

I don't really see any of the current members dying soon, they all seem to be in good shape, handling almost constant touring and none of them is that old. His mom could be the only one we see in years to come.

[Joey Russ 7,263]

Anyone else used to like Springsteen, but then gotten very irritated by his voice, or is that just me?

[Toast 16,232]

I like Bruce, but I don't like every single thing he does. 

 

As for his voice, it varies a lot.  He often sings in character to suit the song, and he sometimes affects a horrible good ol' boy drawl which I detest.

On the other hand he can sometimes sound like Roy Orbison (not saying he can still pull that off live these days).

Bruce has never been all about his voice though.  Who better to sum it up than the man himself:

 

Quote

 

About my voice. First of all, I don't have much of one. I have a bar-man's power, range and durability, but I don't have a lot of tonal beauty or finesse. Five sets a night, no problem. Three and a half full-on hours, can do. Need for warm-up, light to none. My voice gets the job done. But it's a journeyman's instrument and on its own, it's never going to take you to higher ground. I need all my skills to get by and to communicate deeply. For me to sell you what you're buying, I've got to write, arrange, play, perform and, yes, sing to the best of my ability. I am a sum of all my parts. I learned early this is not something to fret about. Every performer has his or her weak link. Part of getting there is knowing what to do with what you have and knowing what to do with what you don't have. As Clint Eastwood said, “A man's got to know his limitations.” Then forget about them and walk on ….......

 

…......... So I figured if I didn't have a voice, I was going to really need to learn to write, perform and use what voice I had to its fullest ability. I was going to have to learn all the tricks, singing from your chest, singing from your abdomen, singing from your throat, great phrasing, timing and dynamics. I noted a lot of singers had a very limited instrument but could sound convincing. I studied everyone I loved who sounded real to me, whose voices excited me and touched my heart. Soul, blues, Motown, rock, folk; I listened and I learned. I learned the most important thing was how believable you could sound. How deeply you could inhabit your song. If it came from your heart, then there was some ineffable element X that made the way you technically sounded secondary. There are many good, even great voices out there tied to people who will never sound convincing or exciting. They are all over TV talent shows and in lounges in Holiday Inns all across America. They can carry a tune, sound tonally impeccable, they can hit all the high notes, but they cannot capture the full emotional content of a song. They cannot sing deeply.

 

If you were lucky enough to be born with an instrument and the instinctive knowledge to know what to do with it, you are blessed indeed. Even after all my success I sit here in envy of Rod Stewart, Bob Seger, Sam Moore and many other greats who can sing magnificently and know what to do with it. My vocal imperfections made me work harder on my writing, my band leading, my performing and my singing. I learned to excel at those elements of my craft in a way I might otherwise never have if I had a more perfect instrument. My ability to power through three-hour-plus shows for forty years (itself a display of my manic insecurity that I'd never be enough) with a thoroughbred's endurance came from realising I had to bring it all to take you where I wanted us to go. Your blessings and your curses often come in the same package. Think of all the eccentric voices in rock who've made historic records, and keep singing. Then build up your supportive skills because you never know what's going to come out of your heart and find its way out of your mouth.

 

 

I've seen Bruce & the E Street Band quite a few times and it's always a fantastic show, never the same twice.  Bruce will change the setlist on a whim so you never know what you're going to get.  If you get the chance to go and see them, go!  But don't go in the seats - go for floor standing and get into the front pit section if you can.  Worth turning up early for.

[The Mad Hatter 1,093]

19 hours ago, Toast said:

She's 90, I think.  Her two sisters died in their 90s, so that's some long life genes Bruce has got on the Italian side.

His father died in his 70s, but he was an alcoholic and depressive, so didn't take great care of himself.

That average out to 80. Bruce Springsteen is one of those peopke you can't imagine going old and gray.

[Joey Russ 7,263]

10 minutes ago, The Mad Hatter said:

That average out to 80. Bruce Springsteen is one of those peopke you can't imagine going old and gray.

Personally I think it's the opposite. 

[Toast 16,232]

Oh, I think he's definitely been at the Grecian 2000 already.

[DevonDeathTrip 2,366]

Drummer Max Weinberg has had prostate cancer and heart problems in the past.  Mind, he's still capable of thumping the tubs for hours at a time behind The Boss, so unlikely to be keeling over for a while.

 

Garry Tallent (bass) looks ridiculously healthy for a man approaching 70.

 

@Toast, do you know if the band have indulged in drugs over the years?

[Toast 16,232]

Never heard any rumours of such. 

Bruce is notoriously clean-living, enjoys a few beers but not to excess.  He is also a control freak, and I don't think drugs in the band would go down at all well with him. 

That said, there was a long hiatus of ten years or so in the late 80s/90s when he pensioned the E Street Band off, and worked with other musicians. 

Max Weinberg puts on incredible performances of concentration and power, you have to wonder if his heart will give out on stage one day.

Everyone looks pretty fit except for Steve Van Zandt who, shall we say, no longer has the sylph-like figure of his younger days. 

And Nils Lofgren has problems with arthritis, I think, and he's had both hips replaced.

 

[gcreptile 11,066]

Obie Dziedzic, Springsteen's no.1 fan, dead at 65:

 

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/nation-now/2017/05/03/obie-dziedzic-bruce-springsteens-no-1-fan/309429001/

[Spade_Cooley 9,627]

[gcreptile 11,066]

Ha! Sorry, I looked at the post above mine, and the one above that.... 

[Joey Russ 7,263]

The Boss himself is 70 today. 

[Toast 16,232]

He's recently released a cracking solo album - I say solo, but it's fully orchestral and string-laden, not with the usual band.  Huge cinematic soundscapes, some fabulous songs on there.  Give it a listen, it's called 'Western Stars'.

[The Old Crem 3,628]

Is his mother mentioned above still alive?

[Toast 16,232]

1 minute ago, The Old Crem said:

Is his mother mentioned above still alive?

 

Yes.

[Spade_Cooley 9,627]

Worth noting that in 2018 there was a photo of Bruce and Adele (his mother) celebrating her birthday, but I haven't seen anything out there for 2019. 

[gcreptile 11,066]

Bruce was caught driving drunk:

https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/14009285/bruce-springsteen-arrested-dwi-new-jersey/

[Toast 16,232]

If this account in the NY Post is accurate, it sounds like a minor incident and he's only been done on a technicality.

However drinking out of a bottle or flask offered by a stranger seems implausibly stupid in the current situation.

 

Quote

Bruce Springsteen busted for DWI after one shot of tequila

 

Bruce Springsteen was allegedly busted in Sandy Hook, New Jersey when he pulled over to take pictures with fans — and then took a shot of tequila offered by one of them in full view of the cops, a music industry insider said.

The “Born to Run” icon, 71, had been riding his motorcycle on the peninsula on Nov. 14 when he “was spotted by fans who asked him to pull over and take some pictures,” according to a source close to Springsteen. 

“Bruce stopped, took the pictures, then a fan offered him a shot of liquor, which he took, while sitting on his bike, which was stationary,” the source said.

“Park Police saw what happened and they immediately pulled Springsteen over as he drove away.”

The Post has not been able to immediately verify this account with law enforcement.

 

Springsteen was charged with DWI, reckless driving and consuming alcohol in a closed area, a spokesperson for the National Park Service said.

The Asbury Park Press reported Springsteen’s blood-alcohol content was 0.02 — just a quarter of New Jersey’s legal limit — when he was arrested. 

The legal threshold in New Jersey is .08, which the outlet said calls into question why Springsteen was charged with driving while intoxicated.

News of the bust broke just days after Springsteen appeared in and narrated a Super Bowl spot for Jeep, in which he implored Americans to move toward the political “middle” in the spirit of unity amid recent bitter division.

The ad has since been yanked from Jeep’s YouTube page.

 

 

https://nypost.com/2021/02/11/bruce-springsteen-busted-after-one-shot-of-tequila/

[time 8,677]

On 11/02/2021 at 12:46, Toast said:

If this account in the NY Post is accurate, it sounds like a minor incident and he's only been done on a technicality.

However drinking out of a bottle or flask offered by a stranger seems implausibly stupid in the current situation.

 

 

https://nypost.com/2021/02/11/bruce-springsteen-busted-after-one-shot-of-tequila/

 

Springsteen's drink-driving charge has been dropped, though he's still charged with consuming alcohol in a national park. Fined $500 & $40 costs.

Quote

Springsteen’s blood-alcohol level was measured at a quarter of the legal limit in New Jersey, but was still charged with driving while intoxicated and reckless driving.

 

[Toast 16,232]

at the judge asking him if he needed time to pay.

[Paul Bearer 6,130]

1 hour ago, Toast said:

at the judge asking him if he needed time to pay.

Time going to pay his fine? I didn't think he knew him.