Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band wrapped their 20-date Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour on Saturday night in Philadelphia at the Xfinity Center with a tour de force performance encapsulating one of Springsteen’s most fiery tours to date.
What set out to be a run of twenty shows from Minneapolis to Washington, D.C. was altered slightly when the Philadelphia 76ers’ playoff schedule forced a reschedule for the Philly date (originally set for May 8th) – making the City of Brotherly Love the last date of the run, rather than Washington. In almost perfectly poetic irony, the tour that’s ostensibly about the foundation and principles of the country wrapped in the city the nation was founded in.
Philadelphia marked the eleventh consecutive show of performing the same setlist, a notable rarity for an act who’s synonymous with dynamic live performances night after night, though an understandable choice given how pointed the message for these shows is.
In the opening monologue of the night — nearly verbatim for most nights on the tour — Springsteen ad-libbed some additional context, acknowledging the prescience of the evening.
“Good evening! It is great to be in Philadelphia,” Springsteen said, before acknowledging that the city is the “home of our Declaration of Independence and the birthplace of American democracy.”
Then Springsteen beckoned the audience to choose “hope over fear,” “the rule of law over lawlessness,” and “peace over…” before breaking into “War,” the Edwin Starr song from 1971, a rousing rendition of the track with a blaring red spotlight on Springsteen’s face to highlight the urgency of the moment.
The nearly-three-hour show, which began just after 7:30 p.m., was arguably the tightest performance of the run. While the tour is boldly and blatantly political in nature, the underlying theme seems to be about urgency – urgency of the political moment and Springsteen’s recognition of his own mortality — the theme of 2023 and 2024’s Letter to You tour — seem to fuse together in perfect harmony to create an accentuating emphasis on the present.
The seven-pack of opening songs is direct, forceful, and tells a story as tight as the band itself. From “War,” the band moved into 1984’s “Born in the USA,” lest there be any doubt about the songs’ true meaning. “Death to my Hometown,” written as a recession anthem in the early 2010s, packs a unique punch in the current moment.
“No Surrender” came next and showcased one of the key lines of the evening: “I want to sleep beneath peaceful skies in my lover’s bed,” and, as drummer Max Weinberg begins to build into the final chorus, “With a wide open country in my eyes and these romantic dreams in my head.”
“Darkness on the Edge of Town” followed, and the title track of Springsteen’s classic 1978 album emphasized that he’s been telling these stories for nearly five decades:
Following “Darkness” was “Streets of Minneapolis,” complete with video monitors showing headshots of Alex Pretti and Rene Good, both killed by ICE officers earlier this year.
The final song of the opening seven was “The Promised Land,” and at the end of the song, each night, Springsteen has given a fan in the audience his harmonica. In Philly, he reached back and, for the first time this tour, gave out a second one as well. Signs that numbered in the dozens throughout the general admission pit said “thank you for our lifetime,” and at the end of “Hungry Heart,” Springsteen mouthed “I see you” over and over to sign holders. Nostalgia and a mood of reflection were in the air.
Guest guitarist Tom Morello punctuates the sound on stage in a style uniquely his own, his pedal board a force to be reckoned with and his famously political approach to music a distinctly on-brand fit for the tour. The finale of the tour was also Morello’s 62nd birthday, which Springsteen jubilantly pointed out during band introductions just before “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out.”
Washington D.C.’s show three days prior marked the only outdoor stadium show of this run, and the differences between the final two shows were subtle but noticeable. The stadium format allows for more visual grandeur – the American flag that punctuates Springsteen’s “Long Walk Home” was a stunning backdrop in the nation’s capital – and political guests including President Barack Obama made for a poetic and powerful evening.
“You know that flag flying over the courthouse?” Springsteen sang as part of “Long Walk Home” that night, a huge American flag waving behind him. “It means certain things are set in stone. Who we are, what we’ll do, and what we won’t.”
Philadelphia, which has long drawn Springsteen diehards since his first-ever show there in 1973, was a tight finale to a scripted and intentional performance. The sound was roaring, both in the crowd and on stage.
During “American Skin (41 Shots),” saxophonist Jake Clemons stands at the rear of the stage with both hands above his head in a “don’t shoot” pose. It’s a bold and stark reminder of what’s changed in the world, and what hasn’t. The song was written in the year 2000 after New York City police officers fatally shot Amadou Diallo, and its refrain seems to capture the theme of the evening. “Is it a gun? Is it a knife? Is it a wallet? This is your life,” Springsteen sings. It ain’t no secret. You get killed just for living in….your American Skin.”
Clemons, nephew of E Street Band co-founder Clarence Clemons, embodies his uncle in a way that provides continuity, giving an impressive take on Clarence’s iconic sax sounds and even wearing his uncle’s size-16 boots on stage.
Before the last song of the night in Philadelphia, which as with every other night this tour, was a ramped up cover of Bob Dylan’s “Chimes of Freedom,” Springsteen turned nostalgic.
“Philly, you killed it, this is the last night of our Land of Hope and Dreams tour,”he said before thanking longtime tour director George Travis, as well as the band “for their commitment and for their courage in standing with me on this tour.”
He shouted out Morello and thanked longtime manager Jon Landau for “fifty years of partnership and friendship,” as well as his wife and E Street band member, Patti Scialfa, who hasn’t been on this tour.
“I first came here in 1973 at the Main Point in Bryn Mawr. I was 23 years old,” Springsteen said before the organ-driven riff on ‘Chimes” started. “That was a little while ago,” he said, laughing his signature laugh. “So what I want to say is, thanks for a lifetime.”
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