My, they don’t make longest-show-ever records like they used to. By the time the 2016 River Tour reached its last month, Bruce was continually raising the bar, breaking and setting new records for longest American show (his 2012 record-length show in Helsinki is still unmatched) with regularity.
Even two years down the road, this show is tough one for me to characterize. On one hand, the Night 1/Night 2 rule was definitely in effect, with Bruce tracing what had now become his standard chronological arc through his catalog. Also, there wasn’t a single true sign request (the two signs he grabbed were for songs already on the setlist), a very rare instance of a Bruce show that closely resembles the original pre-show plan (there were audibles, however).
Still–and I continue to marvel every time I realize this–this “standard set” included “New York City Serenade,” “Lost in the Flood,” “Kitty’s Back,” “Incident on 57th Street.” “Jungleland,” “Thundercrack,” and “The Fever.” Most hardcore fans wish for just one of these songs to show up in their show. Some fans never get to seem at all. It’s absolutely freaking nuts that they all came out in one night’s set.
And if it was no longer surprising to hear all of these gems in one show, the trade-off (and it was a good one) was that each and every performance was stronger for the repetition.
I think we forget about that sometimes: how a tour’s setlist staples grow in power and beauty over the course of the tour, as the band becomes more familiar with them and adds nuance from night to night. We never really get to experience that with the “holy grail” songs, because they don’t come out often enough. We’re thankful just to hear them at all.
But one of the absolute joys of this final leg of the 2016 tour was hearing “New York City Serenade” and “Kitty’s Back” night after night and noting how each performance became stronger and more sublime with each performance.
It was clear to me this show was going to set a record when I realized we were at the two-hour mark, and Bruce was only twelve songs in. (“Kitty’s Back” by itself was more than 15 minutes.) Heck, we hadn’t even made it past 1974 yet, because two of the wild cards were Philadelphia specials: “The Fever” and “Thundercrack,” both tour premieres.
The second half of the show covered more traditional “greatest hits” territory, as if Bruce was rewarding more casual fans for indulging the old-time obsessives in the first half. But there were still gems to be unearthed, even if only semi-precious: “My Love Will Not Let You Down” infused the park with a jolt of adrenaline; “Jack of All Trades” with the string section commanded attention, and a late-set “Downbound Train” was a welcome addition to the Born in the U.S.A. portion of the evening.
And there was still one more “surprise” waiting in the encores, although by now Philly expects it: a rare outing for “Streets of Philadelphia.”
It wasn’t until long after the show ended that I realized a bit of irony: this dream setlist of a show actually broke my streak that had been running for dozens of shows–it was comprised entirely of songs I’d heard live at least once before. And I didn’t mind one bit.
By the end of that night, I was hurting. I’d already driven to Virginia Beach and back on Monday, and I had just danced my way through this record-setting show from the pit on Wednesday. And I had tickets for Night 2 on Friday. And for Pittsburgh on Sunday.
I didn’t know how I was going to physically make it through all four shows in one week, which of course makes one wonder: how the heck does Bruce do it?
And since this “autobiography tour” format had been introduced at the last night at MetLife, and this next show would be the first Night Two since then… what could possibly be left for him to play?
I’d find out in two days.
I was there that night, one for the ages!