There are now three certainties in life, Death, Taxes and if your going to see Bruce Springsteen in concert you will have a great time. As a life long Bruce Springsteen fan, I have to admit that the news that the E-Street Band was headed out on tour less then a year since Clarence Clemons passed away had me very concerned. I wondered how and who would handle some of the iconic moments and if it would ever be the same.How do you replace the Big Man, you add a 5 man horn section including his nephew Jake Clemons. I know this may sound sacrilegious but musically the band never sounded better.

   Sometimes things happen for a reason, I ended up seeing Bruce tonight in Philly because Bruce will be in NY while I will be rehabbing from my Hip Surgery. So my friend and Springsteen concert companion Neil hooked us up with his usual great seats, and we headed out from the city in the late afternoon and arrived in time to get a quick bite at local favorite Tony Lukes.

  Now time for the main event, Bruce introduced himself in a very self effacing manor and then opened with really strong We Take Care of our Own, followed up with Wrecking Ball, he drew some boos from the Philly crowd with the Giants reference in the song , as there must have been many Eagle fans in attendance. Then a tour debut of Night a song that does pop up every now and then, but was done with high energy and flawless precession by the band. Then onto a very soulful heartfelt My City in Ruins where Bruce took the time to introduce the Band, and asked the sold out Wells Fargo Center , if anyone was missing, as he looked up towards the heavens , he told everyone that as long the audience was there and the band was there Clarence and Danny were there too, as there spirit lives on in the band, Soozie Tyrell was crying at one point in what must be a very emotional moment for the band. Then Bruce brought it way back to the Main Point days and played a request from a girl hold up a sign , That simply said Play Thundercrack for my Dad in Iraq. The set moved along with Jack of All Trades, and then another one of those gems you get every now and then with another tour debut of the Jimmy Cliff Trapped. Another song from Wrecking Ball as Easy Money follows Trapped. And then some gems from Darkness with Prove it All Night and Darkness . Bruce takes to the pit for Waiting on a Sunny Day, and brings up one of the younger fans from the crowd to lend a hand with the chorus, and even though she was severely off key, Bruce gave her two refrains of the chorus before he had her throw to Jake for the sax solo. Now that Jake was warmed up Bruce launched into The Promised Land, breaking out the harmonica and letting Jake bring us back to the late 70’s when The Big Man was a lot younger and stronger, it was if the Wells Fargo crowd hopped into a Delorean equipped with a flux capacitor and dialed it make to 1978. The Boss then explained why so many men took to the isolation of there rooms with the guitars, it was all for the screams, he listed the artists one by one, Frank Sinatra, he asked what women did when they heard his name, he held out the mike and the Philly crowd screamed, the list continued, Elvis, The Beatles and the screams kept coming, then the revamped , retooled, larger then ever mighty E-Street Band launched into the Apollo medley in pitch perfect harmony sans instruments, during The Way You do the Things You Do, Bruce walked the pit and by the time 634 5789 came he was in the center of the front section of the pit until he took that leap of faith backwards to the awaiting hands of his fans who body surfed him all the way back to the stage.

  After the high energy medley Bruce pulled out another tour debut, Philadelphia another one of those rare treats as I don’t think I have ever seen him do this one live. Down the home stretch now with The Rising into We Are Alive, Rocky Ground a song he said was inspired by his mother, who was in attendance with lot’s of Bruce’s relatives .Onto Thunderroad and if that wasn't enough it was time to blow the roof off the joint with the entire Band showing off their stuff on Kitty’s Back, kudos to Roy Bittan and Nils who were simply amazing. Turn up the house lights time for 20,000 plus to sing Born to Run and then maybe the highlight of the Night as During Dancing in the Dark , Bruce pulls his 89 year old mom up on stage to dance with her,based on the way she moves at 89, I think Bruce will be on tour for another 20 years ! Show closes with kick ass 10th Avenue Freeze Out Featuring a 3 minute moment of silence E-Street Style as Bruce utters the line “ It all came together when the Big Man Joined the Band”  the Band looks up, Bruce holds a mic out and the crowd sends its love to the heaven’s where surely the Big Man felt the love.

  The night was part jazz, part rock and roll, part gospel, all fun, all joy, all energy, in other words

everything you could ever want from a Springsteen show.  Three things are certain in life Death, Taxes and that Bruce Springsteen and The E-Street Band never disappoint.