Festival Review: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band - British Summer Time Hyde Park, London // July 2023
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band rock Hyde Park with a triumphant set of timeless hits, poignant nostalgia and beautiful intimacy.
The rain was descending in London as I entered Hyde Park on Saturday, but I didn’t care, I was attending the church of The Boss. It was my second time at a BST concert, after being fortunate enough to watch Bob Dylan and Neil Young back in 2019 (in a pre-pandemic world). Yet this time felt even more special, knowing I was about to witness a 3 hour rock show of the highest calibre from the New Jersey heroes.
The day's music began with US country singer-songwriter Brittney Spencer on The Great Oak stage. Performing with a stripped back 3 piece band, Brittney delivered a captivating set of original tracks, as well as a tasteful cover of ‘Yesterday’ and a lively rendition of Sinatra’s ‘These Boots Are Made for Walkin'. Brittney’s own material felt perfectly crafted and her vocal performance was unreal, delivering stunning pitch perfect runs throughout. Spencer has already built a core audience within the alt-country/Americana world and it is no wonder she’s shared the stage with the likes of Jason Isbell and Reba McEntire. With her powerful voice and smart songwriting, Brittney is one to watch.
Next up on the main stage was Hertfordshire hat wearer James Bay. Opening the set with 3 chord rocker ‘Best Fake Smile’, James and his band brought a nice uptempo energy to the park with some excellent guitar solo work. My personal favourite of the set was 2015 hit ‘If You Ever Want to Be in Love’, which saw James donning the 12 string acoustic in true Tom Petty fashion. Bay came across as very humble, reminiscing 10 years ago opening for the Rolling Stones at BST, although in a tiny tent in the corner of the field. He said however that Springsteen was an even bigger honour than that - Springsteen and The Stones is some roster to beat. Gliding through the 10 song set with ease, Bay treated the crowd to bonafide hits such as ‘Let It Go’ and 'Hold Back The River’, but also shared two new unreleased tracks. Bay’s songs at times felt a little formulaic, but with the power of the tight 5 piece band and his soulful vocal, James delivered a compelling set.
Up next, The Chicks (formerly The Dixie Chicks). Opening the set with the sprightly ‘Sin Wagon’, the talent of Natalie Maines, Martie Maguire, and Emily Strayer as well as the large band was on full display, as they danced through the complex bluegrass tune with ease. Whenever Martie plays the violin/fiddle, or Emily plays a banjo fill you are completely captivated, and Natlie’s vocal was flawless throughout. They followed up with Gaslighter taken from the 2020 album of the same name. The band took full advantage of the AV screens with stunning visuals during this track, whilst Natalie delivered the empowering and scathing anthem. Fan favourite cover of Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Landslide’ was next, with beautiful soaring three part harmony and glorious pedal steel guitar. More hits followed with ‘The Long Way Around’, ‘Wide Open Spaces’ and ‘Cowboy Take Me Away’. The Chicks delivered these classic country hits with class and the Hyde Park crowd loved every moment. “Are you guys ready for a hootenanny?” Maines asked the crowd, before launching into ‘White Trash Wedding’. “And if you don’t know what a hootenanny is, I’ll educate you.” The Chicks started as a bluegrass group, paving their way playing the festival circuits, and this legacy is still apparent with their incredible musicianship in this tune. The track ‘March March’ taken from their last album was incredibly moving, using the giant screens to display archival footage of political protests from throughout history. The Chicks ended their triumphant set with the country murder ballad ‘Goodbye Earl’. The hit was enthusiastically received at Hyde Park and closed a phenomenal set of banjo picking, harmony singing and just great vibes. I’ll be at their next UK tour.
Now it was Bruce time. Arriving on stage one by one like superhuman athletes, the almost 20-strong E Street Band assembled to a rapturous applause. With an iconic ‘2,3,4’ count from Bruce, they launched into opener ‘My Love Will Not Let You Down’, a deep cut yet live staple. Bruce’s vocals were as powerful as ever, with an age defying stamina. Roy Bittan’s bright piano stabs pierced delicately over the cacophony of jangling rock guitars, whilst Max Weinberg slammed the skins. It’s instantly clear why the E Street Band are revered as the greatest live band. Bruce and co followed with the 2012 single ‘Death To My Hometown’ taken from ‘Wrecking Ball’. Saxophonist Jake Clemmons suited up the marching drum for this rampant folk punk banger. This track perfectly illustrates the depth of songwriting Springsteen possesses, from anthemic to politically conscious in a matter of minutes. Bruce then dove back to 1984 with the upbeat rocker ‘No Surrender’ from the iconic ‘Born In The USA’ album. The melodic skill of guitarist Nils Lofgren was on full display as his hands danced across the fretboard. “We learned more from a three-minute record, than we ever learned in school” sang Bruce, as well as the entirety of Hyde Park. It’s Springsteen;s lyricism that has maintained his status as one of the greats, with the ability to craft stadium-filling anthems with truly poetic and thoughtful storytelling. ‘Ghosts’ taken from his last studio album ‘Letter To You’ followed next, highlighting how even in the 2020s, Bruce can still write a perfect song.
The setlist took a moment to honour Bruce’s greatest album (in my opinion) ‘Darkness On The Edge Of Town’ with a thrilling triple billing of ‘Prove It All Night’, ‘Darkness On The Edge Of Town’ and ‘The Promised Land’. These tracks got some of the greatest response from the BST crowd, with every word passionately sung back at The Boss. It was a real thrill to hear the title track ‘Darkness On The Edge Of Town’ live, with its brooding vocal delivery, and euphoric chorus. Speaking of euphoric, Jake Clemons faithful recreation of his uncle Clarence’s sax solo in ‘The Promised Land’ was simply stunning, as he and Bruce (on the harmonica) traded licks. “Mister I ain't a boy, no I'm a man, and I believe in a promised land”, and that promised land was right here in central london on Saturday. We then returned to the 80s with hits ‘Out In The Street’, ‘Darlington County’ and ‘Working On The Highway’. The latter featured the first glimpse of a solo Springsteen moment, as he strummed the opening verse on his trusty acoustic before The E Street Band slammed in and Little Steven played a soaring solo.
‘Kitty’s Back’ was next from Springsteen’s second record ‘The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle’. The 1973’s sprawling rocker featured shredding Springsteen solos (a severely underrated guitar slinger), bombastic percussion from Anthony Almonte and even some mock conducting from The Boss, as the E Street Horns triumphantly blared the hook. On the contrary, the most emotional part of the night followed with ‘Last Man Standing’, a beautiful solo acoustic number taken from 2020’s ‘Letter To You’. With The E Street Band off stage Bruce spoke about the start of his career, joining his first band The Castilles, which lasted three years, a lifetime for teenagers. The song was written for band member George Theiss after he passed away, leaving Springsteen to be the last man standing. It was incredible to hear Hyde Park so deadly quiet as Bruce delivered the mournful lines “I'm the last man standing now.” Transitioning from this delicate moment, the spine tingling piano intro of ‘Backstreets’ echoed through the sound system. The power of the E Street Band was back as they roared through classics including ‘Because The Night’, ‘Badlands’ and recent hits ‘The Rising’ and ‘Wrecking Ball’. “I was raised outta steel here in the swamps of Jersey some misty years ago” sings Springsteen to rapturous applause from the London crowd.
The encore is something else. Bruce takes a deep before embarking on a 6 song back to back journey through Born To Run, Bobby Jean, Glory Days, Dancing in the Dark, 10th Avenue Freeze-Out before landing on a joyous cover of The Top Notes ‘Twist and Shout’, in honour of the infamous Hyde Park collaboration with Paul McCartney, which famously was cut off due to the curfew. It’s quite unbelievable to hear some of the finest, most beloved songs of the past 50 years presented back to back. A particularly special moment is the on screen memorial to E Street Legends Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici during 10th Avenue Freeze-Out which Springsteen exclaims “This is the important part!”. These former members played such a vital role in the band, but the legacy lives on through the new younger members, and the E Street Band sounds better than ever. A brilliantly funny moment happens during ‘Glory Days’ where Springsteen looks across to his faithful sidekick Little Steven and says, "Steve, I think it's time to go home." Drawing upon his acting experience in The Sopranos, Stevie Van Zandt, simply replies, "Say what?". Springsteen shouts through gritted teeth "they're going to pull that plug again! They're going to pull that plug again!".
Following this mind bending journey of an encore, Bruce embraces each member of the band as they leave the stage, and The Boss returns to the microphone one last time. Armed with just a harmonica and acoustic guitar, Springsteen sings the mournful ‘I’ll See You In My Dreams’ as a final farewell to both his bandmate George Theiss and to the adoring Hyde Park crowd. The audience is silent once more, and Bruce ends one of the biggest shows of the year with a moment of pure intimacy, before walking off into the darkness (on the edge of the stage).
Words by Euan Blackman
Photo credit: Dave Hogan
