Why the Boss is truly the boss!

[JasonEvans]

I know this video is a few years old, but I just saw it for the first time and I had to share.

So, at a concert in Germany in 2013 Bruce Springsteen asked the crowd to pick a song for him to play. Someone handed him a sign saying, "You Never Can Tell," the Chuck Berry song that is now most famous for it's role in Pulp Fiction during the twist contest. Bruce and his band had not practiced the song. He wasn't even sure everyone knew how to play it. The video below includes a good 3+ minutes of Bruce and Little Steven debating on stage about the tempo and key and all that other stuff. But, the band decides to play it anyway... and they are just amazing. It is must see both for the discussion about how to make music and for the music they eventually made. Wow... just wow!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-Ds-FXGGQg

-Jason "10 million views on YouTube, but I figure some of you may not have seen it before" Evans

[BD80]

I know this video is a few years old, but I just saw it for the first time and I had to share.

So, at a concert in Germany in 2013 Bruce Springsteen asked the crowd to pick a song for him to play. Someone handed him a sign saying, "You Never Can Tell," the Chuck Berry song that is now most famous for it's role in Pulp Fiction during the twist contest. Bruce and his band had not practiced the song. He wasn't even sure everyone knew how to play it. The video below includes a good 3+ minutes of Bruce and Little Steven debating on stage about the tempo and key and all that other stuff. But, the band decides to play it anyway... and they are just amazing. It is must see both for the discussion about how to make music and for the music they eventually made. Wow... just wow!


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-Ds-FXGGQg

-Jason "10 million views on YouTube, but I figure some of you may not have seen it before" Evans

Ummm, I call shenanigans.

The give away is the very end when Bruce commends the E-Street Horns: "making something outta nothin'"

I would suggest that the solos were far too scripted and the parts too well meshed to be improvisation. The result was classic Dixieland jazz, and very well done, but not spontaneous. My understanding is that it is a very popular form of music in Germany.

Musicians, please weigh in, I think this was tremendous showmanship, not improvisation.

[YmoBeThere]

Umm, did you read my FB feed?

[devildeac]

Ummm, I call shenanigans.

The give away is the very end when Bruce commends the E-Street Horns: "making something outta nothin'"

I would suggest that the solos were far too scripted and the parts too well meshed to be improvisation. The result was classic Dixieland jazz, and very well done, but not spontaneous. My understanding is that it is a very popular form of music in Germany.

Musicians, please weigh in, I think this was tremendous showmanship, not improvisation.

And he/they just "happened" to know all the lyrics? :rolleyes:

Still, very well done,

[OldPhiKap]

Aren't there only two chords in the song?

Most basic blues (and rock) songs are based on the root, fourth, and fifth note of a scale. I've never played the song, but by ear I can tell it is essentially just the key chord and the fifth chord -- featuring a seventh note when you hear the tension at the end of the run before it resolves back to the beginning.

These guys are super musicians, don't get me wrong. But this is a simple two-chord song.

This sounds really good because they are great musicians playing a pretty basic thing -- not because they are a great improv band. Very different things IMO.

(Perspective: 35 years of guitar by ear; Paul Jeffrey improv class at Duke back in the day; couple of Dead tours).

[Blue in the Face]

It's shenanigans. Not to take anything away from a terrific performance, but several years earlier they did the same thing, down to holding up a sign with the request and Bruce and Stevie going back and forth to get the key and such right. It's still great to hear, and obviously it's a song they do really rarely, but it's not pulled out of thin air.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1518W6iArxU

[rsvman]

Even if it were pulled out of thin air, it's not that impressive, imo. It what musicians do.

If you know a modicum of music theory, a song like that isn't difficult.

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Even if it were pulled out of thin air, it's not that impressive, imo. It what musicians do.

If you know a modicum of music theory, a song like that isn't difficult.

Jazz musicians doit all the time. Still pretty cool

[OldPhiKap]

Jazz musicians doit all the time. Still pretty cool

Exactly.

And to be fair, Clemmons and Max both have jazz background or experience IIRC. They are both really good musicians.

[accfanfrom1970]

Promoter for lyrics, you can see him looking down.
Bruce has used one for years, just in case.

[Dev11]

Agreed with the others that this shouldn't be that hard for these guys to do. The blues is fairly simple, so even if a couple of the guys didn't know it at first, they could hang back and then jump in when they had the changes.

Context: I'm confident enough in my mandolin picking to have played on the DBR podcast before and I occasionally attend local jam sessions.

[Jeffrey]

And to be fair, Clemmons and Max both have jazz background or experience IIRC. They are both really good musicians.

Unfortunately, The Big Man passed away in 2011 and the band was devastated by the loss. Of course, Bruce figured out a solid musical repair.

I'm friends with a band member and these players are very rehearsed. For example, Bruce rehearsed the band for a couple days just to play on the 2015 Xmas SNL gig. The neat part was Bruce dug the play so much that he decided to tour in 2016.

[snowdenscold]

This thread is timely:

Bruce Springsteen Invites Teenager on Stage Who Steals the Show (http://variety.com/2017/music/news/bruce-springsteen-teenager-on-stage-concert-1201992229/amp/)

Or direct embed:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xY3q45EBt8

[BD80]

This thread is timely:

Bruce Springsteen Invites Teenager on Stage Who Steals the Show (http://variety.com/2017/music/news/bruce-springsteen-teenager-on-stage-concert-1201992229/amp/)

Or direct embed:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xY3q45EBt8

He might remember that night fondly for a while ...

[YmoBeThere]

He might remember that night fondly for a while ...

He got his selfie, so its all good.

[Jeffrey]

The fans love it and many believe it, so it makes sense why Bruce does it.

Nice to read how many here quickly called BS. I much prefer when The Who did it for real and of necessity. That was very impressive!

[gus]

The fans love it and many believe it, so it makes sense why Bruce does it.

Nice to read how many here quickly called BS. I much prefer when The Who did it for real and of necessity. That was very impressive!

For anyone who doesn't know what Jeffrey is referencing (https://youtu.be/PnuxSKsNy3M?t=1h38m45s).