In honor of Bruce Springsteen’s 63rd birthday (and because I’m really don’t feel like posting much more at the moment), I hunted down one of the better live versions of my all time favorites.
“Thunder Road” is a transformative song, but whether the transformation is good or bad is left entirely unresolved. Part of Springsteen’s appeal for me is the fact that he pulls no punches. He doesn’t try to force a happy ending on his characters, knows damn well that a happy ending might be impossible for them. But there’s hope that these people really can win if they can just make it to the car together, “take that long walk, from your front porch to my front seat. The door’s open, but the ride ain’t free.” That’s all they have to do. But those are the hardest steps of all, and there is always a price for escape.
I love watching the E Street Band play together. These people are consummate musicians, perfectly in synch with one another. But something that really shines through in this clip from a concert at Madison Square Garden is how much they love what they do, how much they love the music. Bruce, Patti, Little Steven, the late great Big Man. The looks on their faces say they know how truly blessed they are. (FYI: Max Weinberg has the most perfect posture I have ever seen in a drummer.) They are true believers in the transformative power of music, a belief that can’t be bought or sold. It just is.
I guess that’s why I’ve always like Springsteen. He believes in the things he sings about, he believes happily ever after is possible. More importantly, he makes us believe in it, too. And that’s the biggest transformation of all: Believing in what is possible.
myelectronicjukebox 
You forgot the most important point… he’s pretty easy on the eyes, too. : ) I like how he stands up for what he believes in and he’s very unpretentious about it– he just does it.
He is awfully pretty, isn’t he.
Pretty much my feelings, too!
They say great minds think alike.