A Little Cafe: Ron Wells Reviews Springsteen’s San Diego Show March 2024

Bruce Springsteen tour 2024

A LITTLE CAFE by Ron Wells

There’s a little cafe. Down San Diego way. That cafe plays music all night, and all day. That cafe holds big ideas and small ideas, big dreams and small. That cafe holds human beings drinking and singing, and carrying their burdens into it with them.

Bruce Springsteen has been there. He remembers it vividly. 

And so he returns to San Diego. To relive those dreams and sing those songs. He returns, but this time it’s different. The world has changed for him. And for me. We are the same age. And so we meet after 49 years of a kinship of some sort, that is one of a fan and a rock star.  Though not family, we stand and salute each other. Just as we always have. Me in the stands with my friends, him on the stage with his band, to the applause of thousands.

But this time it’s different. People are angry. They’re angry at the world. They’re angry at Bruce Springsteen. They’ve been through a pandemic that killed friends and family. That killed hopes and dreams.

And now Bruce’s burdens are heavier, too. As are mine. We watched our parents die. He watched his mother suffer and try to dance her way out of Alzheimers. Before this, he had watched his father, who had been hard on him as a kid, leave this world. I too saw the life leave my mother and my father. If you have been fortunate enough to have had good parents, as I have, you will always remember their last days. Springsteen and I both understand the lasting power of parents.

Bruce knows he’s the only one remaining from his first band. It hits him like a gut punch. Just like the death of Danny, and especially Clarence. Just like I got word that my friend, Joanne, had fallen, hit her head, went into a coma  and has died. She was my understanding friend, the one who brought beauty to the world. She was my age. And she’s gone. Then, I watched my friend of 60 years, Steve, be ok one day, and then his son told me his dad had Alzheimers. When I saw Steve he knew me, but he didn’t know me. He was my age too. Then he too was gone. 

In this way, Bruce and I have had similar lives, though certainly not the same. But we carry these people with us. Even as years have passed; we carry these memories.

Everyday Bruce recognizes the depression he has to live with. It’s here to stay. And he just went through peptic ulcer disease, whatever the hell that is. He must be careful, for now he knows his body can betray him at any moment. Just as I know my memory is becoming hit and miss. It betrays me in a myriad of ways, every day.

Yet the real world surrounds us, as it always has. Fans are angry as hell. Tickets are way too expensive, and many will be unable to see any of these shows as money is scarce. Corporations have discovered “dynamic pricing” in order to fleece the unsuspecting. But the corporations have held out their hands and offered fans the opportunity to make some cash too. They used to call it scalping, and it was left to the “brokers.” Now it’s called “Verified Resale”, and everyone is invited to participate. Along with the corporations taking their cut.

People scream at the top of their lungs that the “set lists are too static! What the hell is wrong with Springsteen?! Doesn’t he even know how huge his catalogue is?!”

“Well, fuck him. Who gives a damn about him anymore?!”…………… 

Into that maelstrom walks Bruce Springsteen and the E street band. Their burdens are heavy. The turmoil around them is seething.

And all he can do is what he’s always done. At 7:30 PM, he walks on that stage. He will once again sing. And play that guitar.

One thing has not changed. Bruce and his band still have an energy that is palpable. It’s real. You can feel it from the first notes. They offer it to me, and you. And they ask that you share some of your energy with them. It’s a shared experience. The songs will be the same, but they will be different. Songs, like any art, change with time. These songs are the same old songs, but they carry with them new meanings. Listen closely. Listen to the words in a new context.

As he sings and plays I become emotional. It’s been a long, long journey with Bruce Springsteen. Youthful exuberance is a thing of the past. We are all mortal, and we know what that means. We’ve seen it play out in others. Especially our loved ones.

He opens with “Lonesome Day” and dares us to raise our fists and sing, “It’s alright, It’s alright, yeah!” Even in the face of all that which is wrong, he challenges us to be all right. It’s quite a challenge.

There’s a battle raging outside, and inside, but he asks us not to surrender. It is his challenge to himself as well. There is No Surrender…

And as for the robber barons, they’re still around. May they be sent to hell for destroying our hometowns.

Have you seen Ghosts? I’m pretty sure I have. They are spirits filled with light. I need them by my side. Bruce does too. And the audience, whether they can see them or not, sing “La la la la, La la, La la” because it makes us all feel better. Just to sing out loud. About ghosts, real or imagined. 

He blows the hell out of his harmonica during “Promised Land”: “Blow away the dreams that break your heart.” Life is too short my friends. Keep seeking the promised land. Believe in it. 

WATCH: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band – My City of Ruins (Live In Barcelona) 

“City of Ruins” is Bruce once again preaching: “We’re here to bring you the joyous power of rock and soul” he sings.“A story of hellos and goodbyes.” For everyone is welcomed to “rise up, rise on up.” Bruce sings “If you are here, if we are here, and then they will be here.” The living and the dead. “With these hands, with these hands” we will all rise up together. 

WATCH: Bruce Springsteen – Spirit In the Night (Live at the Ahmanson Theater, Los Angeles, 1973) 

Of course this is followed by “Spirits in the Night.”  The song is no longer what it once was. It too has become something new. As Jake and Bruce sit side by side on the front of the stage. And remember….

The soul songs are now a touchstone with the original soul songs. The back-up singers are on the front of the stage. Is this a New Orleans jazz parade? We are here to celebrate the living, and remember the dead. You still can dance in this parade, even on the “Night Shift.”

“Last Man Standing” is a remembrance of George Theiss. He sings it every night. He explains it every night. He measures his life by it every night. He tells the audience to be good to yourselves.  Seize the day, because all of our days are numbered. George is gone, but not forgotten. He’s here too.

During “Backstreets” he reminds us that all things must end, even some friendships. But he puts his hand over his heart and invites us to carry whomever we choose deeply inside us. It’s our choice. Even if we no longer hide on the backstreets together……

“She’s the One” is a celebration of Bo Diddley, another one gone, but not forgotten. The harmonica once again carries that Bo Diddley beat and the audience dances. It’s infectious, this beat that began with the beginning of rock and roll. It lives forever.

But don’t forget the “Wrecking Ball.” Why? Because youth and beauty will eventually be gone to dust. Take a look. It’s right there in front of you. Ready to disappear. Awareness is all.

“The Rising” is for the living and the dead. It takes place in a memory of shadows. But come on up for the rising and share “a dream of life” and “A sky of blessed light.”

I believe in the faith that can save me: “It ain’t no sin to be glad you’re alive!” It will propel you through the “Badlands.” Sing along. Sing loudly! Believe in the power of this band to set your soul on fire.

The horn section joins in at the front of the stage for “Thunder Road.” Maybe this is a procession from New Orleans, and we all know how those end in a joyous celebration: “Show a little faith.” Remember the screen door slamming. Remember Mary. The song brings her back to life.

Oh my! “Good golly, Miss Molly! Devil in the blue dress. CC rider, come see what you you’ve done! Jenny, Jenny, Jenny, won’t you come along with me.” Little Richard is in the building. As is Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels! Ain’t it grand! You can’t help but laugh and smile!

Scream and yell, my friends. All the energy he is giving you, give back to him. He and his band need you as much as you need them. They have been laser focused all night. Moving around the stage as if choreographed, and smiling all the while. Even Bruce now goes out into the audience shaking hands as he goes to the center platform. Most everyone in the arena has stood through the entire show, and how he joins them. 

Are we still “Born to Run”? Maybe; maybe not. But it is a powerful enduring memory.

And Rosey is here in San Diego. In that little cafe. Now you can go “Dancing in the Dark” with her. Bring your light into the darkness.

For here we have the 10th. When the band was formed, and the big man on the screen joined Danny and the rest of the band. They are long gone. But not forgotten. Not by a long shot…

Quiet now. It’s just Bruce. Remember along with him. All those who have passed. All those who are still here with you. “We’ll meet and live and laugh again/I’ll see you in my dreams.” “Death is not the end.” Just in case you were still wondering, there’s his message to you.

For 2 hours and 45 minutes Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band did their best to bring something positive—their energy—to this world.

Was it enough? It was more than enough. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are back! It wasn’t like my first show in 1976. But we are not the same people. Bruce isn’t. I’m not. It’s life and death and so much more that we have traveled through. And yet, here we are dancing, laughing, and singing every word.

Bob Dylan understands. Each of his shows now ends with “Every Grain of Sand.” Nina Simone who once sang “Mississippi, God Damn,” understands. So she could somehow, some way, still sing “I’m Feeling Good.”

There’s a little cafe, somewhere near you. Go there. Have a drink. And remember days gone by, and dream of days yet to come. Feel the anger if you have to, but make sure you have some room for your friends and the energy given to you through the music in that cafe. Through the power of art. The joy that was given to you tonight. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, it can cleanse your soul. Thanks to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, I can attest to that.

PS Learn more about the current Bruce Springsteen tour here. Thanks to Ron for his review above, and thanks to Marshall for the links to videos above and below which resonate with Ron’s review:

Bruce Springsteen – Prove it all Night (new video) 9-20-78 

Bruce Springsteen – Because The Night (Live in Largo, August 15, 1978) 

Last Man Standing into Backstreets Preview: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Live On Tour 2023 

Bruce Springsteen RS tour dates

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