“Hello, Pittsburgh. We're back where we started!" Springsteen hollered, greeting the sold-out crowd Sunday night at Consol Energy Center.
He opened The River Tour 2016 here in January and now after eight long months on the road, The E Street Band is still kicking and sounding as mighty as ever. With these last 10 bonus dates, they’ve put “The River” to bed for a dream setlist that played like a career memoir to accompany the written one he's about to release.
This one began with Roy Bittan's elegant piano intro to "New York Serenade," revealing an E Street Band expanded with a local string section for a beautiful 15-minute sidewalk symphony.
Springsteen, of course, was among the first songwriters to address the 9/11 tragedy, releasing the anthemic album "The Rising" in July 2002. It was also the first studio album with the E Street Band in 18 years.
On the 15th anniversary of the attack, he wasted no delving into it, delivering a "Rising" suite that included "Into the Fire," a grim portrait of first responders rushing into the towers; songs that mourn victims in different ways in the somber "You're Missing" and hopeful "Lonesome Day"; and "Mary's Place," a jovial rocker that celebrates life moving on for the survivors.
He didn’t say a thing, because he didn't need to. All the messages were right in the songs, and they brought everyone in the house to their feet. They exited that by pounding right into "Darkness on the Edge of Town," hammering home the ideals of commitment and fortitude.
That was sort of the end of act one. In the next one, Boss fans (like me) who complain that we never get enough of the early stuff finally got our fill with run of eight straight songs from "Greetings from Asbury Park" and "The Wild, The Innocent & the E Street Shuffle."
Revisiting those first songs he wrote, he joyfully took us back to "Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?" and "It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City," recalling a bus trip into New York City to audition that song for John Hammond Sr. at Columbia Records. This time, it was spiked with a screaming guitar finale with sidekick Steven Van Zandt, one of several to come.
His surreal coming-of-age classic "Growin' Up" came with a story of how he got that first guitar. "Stranded in my little town in 1964, shortly after the disappearance of the dinosaurs," he began in a heavy whisper. “Very unfriendly town and I was a little bit of a freeeeak.”
He needed something to do other than what boys that age generally do in their rooms, and that would require a guitar. He described some odd jobs doing yard work, painting the neighbor's house and tarring their roof -- wonder if any of them are still alive to say "Bruce Springsteen tarred my roof” -- and “That,” he said, "was the last honest work I ever did.” Because then he practiced and practiced. "Did that guy say it takes 10,000 hours? It takes more than that," he whispered.
Out on the ramp in the crowd, he did a playful "Spirit in the Night," reveling in the phrase "love in the dirt," and noting, "I think that's the title of my next album."
It kept coming, the kind of set list that was only ever played here in 1975 at the Syria Mosque, with a stunning "Lost in the Flood," "Kitty's Back," "Incident on 57th Street" and "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)." It reverted to a time when his songwriting palette was busy and poetic, filled with colorful characters, and E Street was like a band of swinging gypsies.
Joe Grushecky and son Johnny, regular guests, made just a brief appearance, joining The Boss for a charged-up “Light of Day.”
Then he forged back into the darkness with a howling "Streets of Fire," leading into an inspired pairing of "American Skin (41 Shots)," his controversial 2001 song about a horrific police shooting in New York City, and "The Promised Land." Even the guy who drank the most beers there would be hard-pressed to miss the point Bruce was making with that.
Because he always knows when it's time to mix in the fun, he hit the crowd with a couple of burners he played here back in January: “River” songs “Cadillac Ranch and "I'm A Rocker."
A few songs later, he circled back to 9/11, taking the cellphone-waving crowd to church with "My City of Ruins” and “The Rising."
He did the first encore solo, taking a request from a fan, he said, who passed up a copy of the U.S. Constitution with “[Expletive] Trump” written on it. It was “Long Walk Home,” a ballad from 2007’s "Magic," written about how American life changed during the Bush years.
And that was about it for surprises. He did the sublime “Backstreets” (man, Bruce can still roar at 66) and kicked up the lights for “Born to Run.” He brought up three dancers for “Dancing in the Dark,” plus a 9-year-old boy who had a sign saying it was his birthday and all he wanted to do with sing and dance with The Boss. He had a toy guitar which Bruce exchanged for a real one for him to jam along with the band. With the lights still up, they jammed out with “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out,” a crazy “Shout” and “Bobby Jean.”
It clocked in at three hours and 45 minutes, 21 minutes shy of his personal record-breaking show the other night in Philly. But who's counting? It was yet another epic Springsteen show, with a sheer slice of boardwalk heaven for diehard fans.
This might be the last we see of the E Street Band for a while. He seems to be ready to turn the page. Bet it's going to be another great one.
Scott Mervis: smervis@post-gazette.com; 412-263-2576. Twitter: @scottmervis_pg.
Set List
New York City Serenade
Into the Fire
Lonesome Day
You're Missing
Mary's Place
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?
It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City
Growin' Up
Spirit in the Night
Lost in the Flood
Kitty's Back
Incident on 57th Street
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Light of Day (with Joe and Johnny Grushecky)
Streets of Fire
American Skin (41 Shots)
The Promised Land
Cadillac Ranch
I'm a Rocker
Downbound Train
Because the Night
My City of Ruins
The Rising
Badlands
Encore:
Long Walk Home
Backstreets
Born to Run
Dancing in the Dark
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Shout
Bobby Jean
First Published: September 12, 2016, 12:52 a.m.
