Cover Spotlight - "Human Touch" by Joe Cocker

File this under "Covers I Had No Idea Existed".  This cut comes from Cocker's 1996 mostly-cover album Organic, which also features covers of Van Morrison, Bob Dylan, George Harrison, and Stevie Wonder.  While it gives Springsteen's original a more country flare, it still has a 90s-style sound (which also hampers the original, too).  The music sounds a little too clean and polished for my taste, as I'm more used to a grittier sound, like in Cocker's famous "With A Little Help From My Friends".

However, it is an interesting, unusual, and unexpected cover - if you told me Joe Cocker covered a Springsteen song, this would not have been on my shortlist of guesses.  And, personally, this was a new discovery for me, and, even if you've known about this cover for a while, I'm sure you can relate to the feeling of being a fan of something for so long, thinking you've seen it all, and then finding something new.  Hopefully, someone else reading this today will get that same feeling.

Legends of Springsteen's Super Bowl Picks!

Hoo-boy.  Here we go again.  Despite nobody asking, we here at Legends of Springsteen are predicting the Super Bowl, yet again.  Last year, we all gave you the Seahawks, and look how that turned out.  Combined, we are a total 4-8.  So....I guess we're due!  Here we go:

OB: Broncos 38, Panthers 34 (overall 1-3)

Rory: Panthers 35, Broncos 10 (overall 2-2)

Steve: Broncos 35, Panthers 31 (overall 1-3)

Now, to keep this Springsteen related, here's "The River".  Why?  Well, we're in the mist of the River tour, and the Panthers head coach is Ron "River"-a.  Do you have a better Springsteen song pun for either the Panthers or Broncos?  Let us know in the comments.

Concert Review: 1/31/2016, Prudential Center, Newark, NJ

"Good Evening New Jersey!"

It's one of the greatest sounds a Bruce fan can hear.  There's nothing quite like that moment when the house lights go out, the stage lights go on and Bruce takes the stage.  And you know for the next 3+ hours, you're about to see a legend in concert, and he won't disappoint.  He never has before, and he isn't going to tonight.  And man, was Bruce ON tonight.

I almost didn't make it to this concert, as tickets were incredibly difficult to get when they went on sale.  Fortunately, my good buddy Kyle called me a few minutes after they went on sale while I was still trying to get them and told me he had gotten tickets.  So off I went to the lovely Prudential Center in downtown Newark, NJ with Kyle, his girlfriend, and brother.  This was the first time in a long time I was going to see Bruce without my fellow Legends Of Springsteen contributors.  I was a little nervous that perhaps my fandom might be a little much for the others in my group, but they kept up right along with me belting out the lyrics to "Out In The Street", dancing on the floor of the Prudential Center to "Cadillac Ranch", and chugging beers like we were still in college to "Sherry Darling".  We also met a really nice father and son on the floor who had been to countless shows together and were huge fans.  I suggested that they visit this site later, so Matt and Joe if you see this, we had a blast rocking out with you!

The first thing I noticed about this show, was that the E Street Band was much smaller than it's been on the past few tours.  That's actually a good thing, as I specifically remember thinking the last time I saw Bruce that the band had gotten comically large.  Gone is the horns section, save Jake Clemons of course, and gone are the background singers, and back up percussionists.  This is the lineup from the original River tour, except for the members who have passed away and been replaced, and plus Patti and Soozi Tyrell.

Also, this is kind of a strange tour.  The River is a classic Bruce album, no doubt about it.  But it's not one of his most classic.  And 35 isn't exactly a milestone year.  Put it this way, I'll be turning 35 in a few short years, and I don't in any way see it as a milestone.  What did I care though?  If it meant going to see Bruce live, I didn't care how strange the touring circumstances were.

But of course, Bruce explained it perfectly.  This wasn't his  introduction to rock and roll like Greetings From Asbury Park or his masterpiece Born To Run.  And he was still a few years away from the height of his popularity with Born In The USA.  This was him proving he still had "it".  It was the album Bruce wrote in his 30s, way past the point where he can say he was the new guy, the up and comer.  He had been around for too long and had way too much success.  But he wasn't done, so he wasn't at the point where he could just rest on his laurels, and call it a career.  Hell, I don't even think he's at that point now, nor does he want to be.  Bruce proved tonight what he's proved to me every night that I've gone to see him: that he wants to be better than he was the last time he played.

And of course, after he played The River  in it's entirety he played a setlist that would rival any of his other previous ones.  Non-stop crowd pleasers, including having the house lights on for his entire encore.  By the end of the night, there wasn't a disappointed fan in all of the Prudential Center.  I would write more, but I'm exhausted and need to go to bed now.  Bottom line: if you're debating on whether or not to go see Bruce on this tour, don't.  It's 100% worth every penny, and for the first time in a long time, I left a Bruce concert without thinking "This might be the last tour I get to see him on."  He's looks and sounds better than any performer half his age and shows absolutely no desire to slow down any time soon.

Click here for the entire setlist.

The 1/19 Chicago show now available to download for free

With a major snow storm wrecking the east coast this weekend, Springsteen had to postpone his highly anticipated return to Madison Square Garden on Sunday night.  As a "thank you / I'm sorry" to the fans, he has released a live recording of the 1/19 Chicago show for free.  It is only available for 48 hours, so if you are interested, make sure to grab it quickly!  You can download the show here.

David Bowie Impersonates Springsteen!....And others!

Despite the new spat of Springsteen shows, I still can't shake the post-Bowie mourning I am going through.  It seems that every day there's something new about Bowie, whether it is a tribute by another artist, a retrospective article, or, in this case, a rare audio clip.  Here, Bowie is messing around, singing in the style of many different musicians.  His Springsteen is in the first 48 seconds of the clip, and it seems that even Bowie can't get his voice to go as low and gravely as Bruce's.  Bowie also goofs on Tom Waits, Lou Reed, and Iggy Pop, among others.  However, the thing I enjoyed most about these clips were the small moments in between the impressions, as you could hear Bowie just talking and laughing, with his persona completely "off".  I'll say it before, and I'll say it again (because I have no idea how to end the post), but thank you Bowie!

Bruce Springsteen covers the Eagles' "Take It Easy"

Continuing what has been an already sad year for music fans, Glenn Frey died this past Monday.  The next night, Bruce honored the Eagles singer-songwriter with a slowed-down, acoustic version of their free-wheeling hit "Take It Easy".  While it is fascinating as a Bruce fan to see his take on these classic songs (he did Bowie's "Rebel Rebel" during the first show), hopefully we'll be able to see Springsteen do a cover for a less somber occasion.

Bruce Vs. Bruce - Springsteen versus the Bruce in "Don't Bring Me Down"!

Has it really been over a year since our last "Bruce Vs. Bruce" battle?  Well, let's start 2016 off right with perhaps Bruce's toughest opponent yet!  Yes, I speak of the Bruce referred to in the refrain for Electric Light Orchestra's 1979 hit "Don't Bring Me Down".  Let's see how our champion fare against this mysterious challenger.

The Bruce From "Don't Bring Me Down"	Bruce Springsteen
Are They Actually Called Bruce?
Sadly, No	Yes
Advantage: Springsteen
But What Is It Commonly Misheard As?
"Bruce"	Booing
Advantage: ELO
First Release
1979	1973
Advantage: Springsteen
Last Release
1979	TBD
Advantage: Springsteen
Musical Pitch
Very High	Very Low
Advantage: ELO
Hit Songs
Just one	Dozens
Advantage: Springsteen
Relationship to "Down"
Not Bringing You	Goin'
Advantage: ELO
E-Related Band
Electric Light Orchestra	E Street Band
Advantage: Springsteen

Ding ding ding! The winner, in a 5-3 match, is Bruce Springsteen.  It just goes to show: being a real person named Bruce is much better than being a song lyric that sounds like "Bruce" but actually is just some weirdo German word.

Bruce Springsteen covers David Bowie's "Rebel Rebel"

The highly anticipated River Tour started last night in Pittsburgh, and, of course, Bruce gave his fans a special surprise.  At the start of the encore, Bruce came out with a short story about meeting David Bowie, and kicked off his rendition of "Rebel Rebel".  Bruce had a lot of fun with live covers during the High Hopes tour, so here's hoping this tour continues the trend.  You can check out the entire killer setlist here.