
Bruce Springsteen and Prince.
They ranked No. 1 and 2 last fall when I listed the top live performers witnessed in my 40 years at the Star Tribune. Last week, I saw both of them live again, near the beginning of tours presenting themselves in ways their fans had never experienced before.
It's exciting – and reassuring -- to see this newness, so to speak, from two greats deep into their careers.
Springsteen, a master at staging shows that are purposeful yet seemingly spontaneous, started his concert in Chicago's United Center with the entirety of "The River," his 1980 double album. That meant the concert began with 20 songs set in stone (he did graft on one outtake) that stretched for two hours, including all his between-song explications.
At his Paisley Park studio in Chanhassen, Prince played a solo piano show – his first ever solo performance. Actually, he offered two shows in one night -- performances that were different in concept, tone and (largely) content even though, surprisingly for him, he wore the same outfit for both. Go figure.
What both Rock and Roll Hall of Famers were doing in their performances was trying to explain what they were thinking at certain points of their lives. For Springsteen, 66, such introspection is familiar in concert. However, for Prince, 57, to open up is rare. As I said in my review, it was if he exposed his inner soul via this stripped-down musical autobiography.
"The River" was somewhat autobiographical for Springsteen. His fifth album, it came at a time when the singer, then 30, and the other guys in the E Street Band were thinking of settling down – which is not what rock stars necessarily do. The themes of the songs on the album – dreams, marriage, fidelity – were issues he was grappling with at the time.
Springsteen's show, like Prince's, plays better for fanatics than casual fans. While "The River" may contain a slew of exciting, up-tempo and even punkish songs (including such Chicago highlights as "Cadillac Ranch," "I'm a Rocker" and "Ramrod"), Side 2 features a bunch of slower, deep-thought pieces (including "Drive All Night" and "Wreck on the Highway") that don't necessarily play well in an arena with 20,000 beer-drinking fans who can't wait for "Born To Run." Moreover, "The River" was not sequenced for a live performance.