For the second year in a row.....

I've gotten one of the best birthday presents I could wish for, a Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band concert. Last year, I had to go to Anaheim for it, and when I got back to the hotel, the clock struck midnight, and I was 50 years old. This year, Bruce actually came to Phoenix, or Glendale, to be precise, and my birthday won't be until Wednesday. No matter, an early birthday present like this is just fine.

If I am going to be 51, that means Bruce Springsteen is going to be 59 and frankly, I just don't see how he does it. He performed for two hours and forty-five minutes Friday night, without an intermission. He sang, he played guitar, he prowled the stage, he came out into the audience, he slid on the stage and in general, performed his ass off. The man is simply incredible, and so is his band.

The setlist was eclectic, with five songs from the new album, some old warhorses (Badlands, Promised Land, Born to Run, Out in the Street), three songs from The Rising, and a bunch of tunes I never thought I would hear again (Seeds, Johnny 99, Downbound Train). He took requests, and treated us to blistering versions of Because the Night and Rosalita. He once again transformed The Ghost of Tom Joad into a blistering, powerful piece of musical drama, with Nils Lofgren shining on a wonderful guitar solo. Outlaw Pete, from the new album, was turned into an audio/visual epic with projected video of Monument Valley scrawling across the screen behind the band. I didn't want it to end.

The band is as tight and powerful as ever. Lofgren and violinist Soozie Tyrell are featured predominantly in this setlist and they did not disappoint. The Mighty Max Weinberg on drums (taking a sabbatical from the Conan O'Brien show) and Gary Tallent on bass are still one of the best rhythm sections in all of rock. Professor Roy Bittan can still tinkle the ivories, and new keyboardist Charlie Giordano did a fine job filling in for the late Danny Federici. The Big Man may be older and frailer, but he can still crank out the sax solos, and is still beloved by the legions of Bruce fans. Bruce's foil on stage is once again Little Steven Van Zandt, and although I can never look at him any longer without thinking of The Sopranos, Steve was great throughout. All in all, the E Street Band remains one of the most talented rock bands still performing.

So once again, for the second year in a row, all I can say is thank you, Bruce, for a fantastic birthday present. And thanks for allowing me to merely drive across town, and allow my wife, brother, sister, and sister-in-law to join me, instead of forcing me to drive 400 miles to the Land of the Mouse to experience you and the band. Not that there was anything wrong with that.