Wow! Last night I saw Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band’s show in Milwaukee. Of course I was anticipating songs from Springsteen’s back catalog the most (“She’s The One” was a real treat), but my favorite song of the night turned out to be “The Fuse” from his current album. I was wondering how some of the more somber material from The Rising would turn out in concert, but Bruce and the band pulled it off like the seasoned professionals they are. Surprisingly, while the old classics were great, I enjoyed hearing a lot the new songs more than the older ones.

During the second encore, The Boss reminded us to be vigilant about our civil rights in this country just before the band kicked into a rousing version of “Born in The USA.” I felt like the house was about to come down as Bruce belted out the song with the last shred of voice he had left. The mood of a crowd can make or break a concert and last night in Milwaukee the crowd seemed to give Springsteen and his band mates as much energy as they were feeding us. You could tell The Boss enjoyed our appreciation as he gave us a surprise third encore. “One more, just for Milwaukee” he shouted as the band walked back out looking a little confused. Bruce then said to them “It’s in C, I’ll cue you in,” and started playing a classic Chuck Berry riff. It didn’t take long until everyone on stage (and in the house) was singing “Go, go, go Little Queenie.”

When the house lights came up and everyone started leaving I looked at my watch. The band played for two hours and 45 minutes! Thanks for a great show guys.