The Wonder Bar 12/26/09

It was a dark, stormy, windy night in Asbury Park...but the Wonder Bar was alive and jumping on this night after Christmas. The show featured the full album performance of "Born to Run," which is something we've been talking about doing for a while and finally got around to. It went over quite well and was really a lot of fun. Those songs just flow so nicely into one another. We saw a lot of new faces in the crowd which is always nice, had some lovely ladies join us onstage and got to talk with some very nice folks between sets and after the show. Richard Blackwell, conga player on "The Wild, The Innocent and The E Street Shuffle" even stopped in at the end of the night to say hello. All in all it was an excellent show with a great turnout, especially considering the fact that the weather was just awful. Thanks so much to all who braved the elements to come out and see us play.

DKE Fraternity, University of Pennsylvania 12/5/09

It was the 39th Street Freeze-Out on a cold, snowy Saturday night at the DKE House at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. One of the craziest crowds you’ll ever find was on hand for the 33-song set, rocking out with bandannas and sleeveless flannel shirts until the wee hours of the morning. Rarely do you find an audience at a fever pitch from the beginning of a show till the end, but that’s exactly what we had at the DKE house. Even the more obscure songs like “The Ties That Bind” and “The E Street Shuffle” had the crowd going as did the slow songs “I’m on Fire” and “Racing in the Street.” Speaking of "Racing in the Street," a humorous episode occurred during that song as drummer Rich Hodder went outside to relieve himself during the beginning of the song, figuring he'd have plenty of time to get back in by the time he had to kick in with the drums. Unfortunately the door wound up locking behind him and he was stuck outside in the cold. Amidst all of the noise, nobody could hear him pounding on it to get back in. He had to run around the house to the front, eventually made it in and hightailed it back to his drum kit.
By the end of the evening enthusiasm had turned to borderline chaos as guys and girls ran to the stage area singing along on our microphones, playing tambourines and snapping photos. At the end of the night when the show was finally done and the crowd was filtering out saxophonist Bill “Butterfingers” Shanker put an exclamation point on the evening by dropping one of the PA speaker cabinets into the fire alarm, setting it off and sending the cabinet crashing to the floor. Thankfully the cops were cool, no major damage was sustained by the equipment and we all had a good laugh. Thanks to Mike and Gage at DKE for their unbridled enthusiasm, hospitality and delicious Keystone beer.

Edgar's Pub 11/28/09

This was our first time playing at Edgar's in Manasquan and by all measures it was a great night. The show featured our longest set list to date, a whopping 40 songs in all that included several debuts such as "Hearts of Stone," "The Ties That Bind" and "Downbound Train." We also kicked off the holiday season with the yuletide favorites "Merry Christmas Baby" and "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town." One of the more unique aspects of the night came late into the second set when a lovely female patron generously bought the entire band a round of shots and then politely requested that we perform "Thunder Road" a second time since she had arrived after we already played it. We obliged. Two songs later she was back with another round of shots, this time requesting a repeat performance of "Born to Run." We were really torn as to what to do, not wanting to bore the rest of the audience who had already heard the song a half hour earlier, but in the end we wound up playing it again and if people were unhappy, they didn't show it. Who knows, maybe next time out people will start countering by buying us shots to try to persuade us NOT to play a song a second time.
We had an excellent crowd on hand and the whole staff at Edgar's was really great. Thanks to all who came out to see us. Hope you had a great time.

Boathouse Bar and Grill 11/7/09

Another great night at the Jersey Shore as the band made its debut at the Boathouse in Belmar. The bar was packed and the drinks were flowing freely as we tore through two sets of high-octane rock n' roll. The party really got going at the outset of the second set with the one-two punch of "Born to Run" and "Rosalita" and we were off and running. We also got to meet and talk to some great people after the show and apparently made some new fans.

The Mad Hatter 11/6/09

There's no place like home. That's what the Mad Hatter feels like for us at this point. The crowd at this Sea Bright bar never disappoints, and in addition to the normal party time vibe, we were treated to an audience filled with some real die-hard Springsteen fans requesting songs like "Sandy", "Adam Raised a Cain," "Something in the Night" and "Drive All Night." The highlight of the evening was bar owner Scott Kelly perched atop the bar waving an American flag during Born in the USA. Gotta love a place where the guy who owns it is leading the party.

507 Main 10/30/09

Mischief Night it was indeed Friday at 507 Main as the band made its debut at this Belmar bar and grill. A terrific group of people were on hand intently listening, singing along, dancing exotically and making requests. 507 Main also has an extremely friendly staff who made our night there an absolutely pleasure. The musical highlight of the evening was an impromptu performance of "Sandy" which was done after one audience member suggested that we play something that we, the band felt like playing rather than a request from somebody else. A fun night was had by all and we hope to return soon.

The Wonder Bar 10/24/09

There's nothing quite like performing Bruce's music in Asbury Park. It just feels right. Plus, rather than getting the standard requests for songs like "Born in the USA" and "Glory Days", we get requests for "Thundercrack," "Kitty's Back", "Detroit Medley," "Ramrod" and "Prove it All Night." All in all it was a great night with an enthusiastic crowd who braved the wind and the rain to come out to the historic Wonder Bar to watch the show. Debbie and the entire staff who works there couldn't be nicer and made us feel right at home. We look forward to many more nights celebrating the music of Asbury Park's favorite son in the city by the sea.

The Mad Hatter 10/17/09

This show was somewhat unusual in that a thrilling extra-inning ALCS game between the Yankees and Angels was taking place simultaneously. Trying to compete with the 26-time world champions is never an easy task. Thankfully for us the Yankees pulled out a victory so everyone at the bar was in a good mood and "Sherry Darling" which we happened to be playing at the time, became an all-out victory party song complete with the ad libbed line, "Let there be sunshine, let there be rain, let the Yankees win again.."

The Forum Theatre 10/10/09

What a night! The beautiful Forum Theatre in Metuchen provided the setting for an exhilarating show that was captured on film for a future release. The classic old theater possesses fantastic acoustics and a big stage with seats practically right up to it. The audience was exactly what you'd want for this type of a show: quiet and intently listening during the slow songs and on their feet singing and dancing during the party numbers. Highlights of the set included a powerful "Jungleland," a rousing "Born to Run," an intense rendition of "I'm on Fire," a show-stopping "Rosalita" and a loose, exuberant show-closer in "Quarter to Three." Thanks to all friends, family and fans who came out to this show.

Holy Cross College 10/2/09

This was our second trip up to Holy Cross College, and like the first trip, the crowd of crazy college kids made the night. People were on their feet singing and dancing from the second song in and several songs later the shirts started to come off (Thankfully the band members shirts stayed on). It's tough to explain why this phenomena has become a Holy Cross tradition at E Street Shuffle concerts, so we won't try to. People started joining us on stage about midway through the show, and by the end of the night it was total pandemonium as our previously roomy stage became as crowded as the dance floor. Needless to say a blast was had by both the band and those in attendance and we thank the good people at Holy Cross for their gracious hospitality. You guys rock!

Asbury Park Oyster Festival 9/27/09

Although the rain poured down in the morning and the skies looked threatening all day, the second annual Asbury Park Oyster Festival went on as planned and a great time was had by all. With a large, enthusiastic crowd taking it all in, the band performed a power-packed, streamlined 50-minute set. Relatives, parents, children, friends, Asbury Park natives, New Jerseyians, dancing clowns and oyster-lovers were all in attendence as we played on a huge stage that was set up literally right beyond where The Palace once stood. "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" was performed in honor of the Asbury's glory days as well as the new revitalization of the city. Thanks to all who attended.

Shady Katie's 9/19/09

Despite some early technical difficulties with the house PA, it was another fun night at Shady Katie's where audience members called out requests and danced until the wee hours of the night. Special thanks to the folks sporting our stickers during the performance.

Monmouth Beach 9/12/09

Thanks to Cyndi and Billy for a great party on Saturday and for extending your gracious hospitality to the band. Hope everyone had a great time!

Labor Day Weekend 2009-

A glorious summer came to a close with a sweaty Jersey Shore bar gig on Saturday night and a posh, elegant country club gig in Delaware on Sunday. Although the venues couldn’t have been more different, the net result was the same: a rockin’ good time was had by all.

Saturday night’s show brought us back to our favorite local bar, The Mad Hatter in Sea Bright and as expected a crowd of rowdy, enthusiastic, fun-loving, fantastic guys and girls were on hand to sing and dance the night away. It’s a great feeling to walk into a venue knowing that the crowd is going to be awesome and the good people at the Mad Hatter have never let us down. The night was highlighted by the now-customary dancing on the bar and sing-along during “Thunder Road.”

Sunday’s show took place at the gorgeous Peninsula Country Club in Millsboro, Delaware. The skies initially looked threatening, but thankfully the rain held off and we wound up with a beautiful evening complete with a pleasant breeze coming off of Indian River Bay. This show’s crowd was pumped up from the get-go and featured an abundance of families and kids all dancing along. While the first set was a hit, the second set was outstanding as country clubbers rocked out to songs like “Ramrod,” “Rosalita,” “Dancing in the Dark” and “Quarter to Three.” We couldn’t have asked for a better way to close out the summer of ’09.