Concert Review and Photos: Bruce Springsteen’s spirited return to Gillette Stadium

The Boss is back! After a brief illness sidelined legendary recording artist Bruce Springsteen forcing the cancellation of his Philadelphia shows last week, the iconic singer was back in top form at Gillette Stadium on Thursday, August 24.

It’s always a concert for the ages when Springsteen plays; there’s never a bad night, and Thursday’s first show of a two-night stand for the band was an overwhelming success. The 73-year-old icon remains hugely popular with fans, with supporters as dedicated as Taylor Swifts’ (and even including a decent percentage from Swift’s generation). They know every word to every song, every sax solo, every band callout, and every grunt, groan, and howl uttered by their hero and his 15-piece band.

As has been recent practice, the show included numerous hits from the band’s classic early albums, Born to Run, Darkness on the Edge of Town, and Born in the U.S.A. Songs like “Badlands,” “Prove it All Night,” “Promised Land,” and “Thunder Road,” still bring the full-on energy they did 40-50 years ago.   

Many of Springsteen’s best songs and stories deal with issues of mortality. Springsteen’s brand of nostalgia is always tempered by melancholy  –  it’s not just about happy days and good times and hanging out at Mary’s Place. These good old days reflect lost loves, false promises, and lifetimes of disappointment. It’s part of the reason his music still resonates. The idea is perhaps best exemplified in “Badlands,” from 1978’s Darkness on the Edge of Town.

The pointlessness of the dream … “Talk about a dream, try to make it real/You wake up in the night with a fear so real/You spend your life waiting for a moment that just don’t come.”

And redemption … you never give up hope, never surrender… “I believe in the love that you gave me/I believe in the faith that could save me/I believe in the hope and I pray that some day/It may raise me above these Badlands.

Springsteen also pays homage to the legends like Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson when covering the Commodores classic “Nightshift” or the newer “Ghosts,” from his 2020 album Letter to You. With the house lights on, the popular encore singalongs “Born to Run,” “Rosalita,” “Glory Days,” and “Dancin’ in the Dark” continue to be crowd-pleasing hits. Want to lose your voice for a day or two? Go see Bruce!

No doubt, he’s a little older and wiser, but other than a slightly less vigorous voice, the Boss still has ten times the energy of many peers half his age. Good seats are still available for the second Foxboro show Saturday night. Whether you are a long-time fan or first-timer, we highly recommend it! Click here for tickets and further details.

Check out some photos of the evening below from WUN Lifestyle Editor Ken Abrams.