It might’ve seemed strange to the uninitiated to hear what sounded like booing from the crowd at Thursday night’s Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band concert at PPG Paints Arena. Of course, the audience wasn’t voicing their displeasure — they were just chanting “Bruce!”
After a long wait — and nearly a year after these shows were originally scheduled — The Boss clocked in for a nearly three-hour shift on stage at the first of two Pittsburgh shows this week.
Springsteen has had an epic rock career. With 21 studio albums, 20 Grammy Awards (out of 50 nominations) and even a stint on Broadway, the 74-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Famer is unquestionably one of the greatest musicians of our time. His backing band, The E Street Band, is so legendary that they have a spot in the Hall of Fame all their own — and for good reason.
Thursday night’s show was an impressive tour through the band’s extensive discography, with a few covers thrown in for a good measure. They played 28 songs in total, coming in at just below the three-hour mark. No opener is necessary for a Springsteen show, what with this group of top-notch musicians having an amazing time onstage.
They kicked things off with “Seeds,” a great example of the kind of story-driven, working-class rock for which Springsteen is so well-known. The stage stayed dark as The Boss growled out the first lines, but as the second verse hit, the rest of the band came roaring in, the stage lights came up in brilliant color, and the crowd went wild.
“Pittsburgh! We finally got here!” Springsteen said before kicking into “Lonesome Day.”
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