BRUUUUUUCE (part DEUUUUUUCE)

Who but Bruce Springsteen could roll into Madison Square Garden with almost no onstage fanfare, surround himself with a bunch of other old geezers and put on one of his best concerts ever?

No one, that's who.

Bruce's concerts at MSG this past weekend were landmark events for for a number of reasons. For one, they were the only shows of his mammoth Working On a Dream tour that stopped in the Big Apple. They were also showcases for a couple of albums that the Boss and Co. had never performed in their entirety. On Sunday's show, he ran through his epic, 1980 double-album The River in its entirety; a feat he proclaimed had never been done before and, in all likelihood, would never happen again (the previous night's show got a run-through of '73's The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle). After opening with his wacky but nicely maturing new single "Wrecking Ball" and a brief word about the River album's history, Springsteen seemed to take a deep breath, count to four, and tear through the record's 20 tracks without another word.

And oh, how he played. Springsteen is often noted for his onstage proficiency even at the ripe age of 60, but he and his heart-stoppin', pants-droppin', heart-shockin', etc. E Street Band have rarely ever sounded this good. Barnburners like "The Ties That Bind" and "Crush On You" had the audience rocking, weepies like "The Price You Pay" and "Drive All Night" had them bawling, and Hemi-flavored goof-offs like "Cadillac Ranch"(complete with its hootnanny line dance from the '80s) and "Ramrod" had them dancing.

As always, Springsteen remains the consumate performer; an occasionally ruthless bandleader, he puts the music above all else but never seems to take himself too seriously. No matter what anyone says about Bono, even U2 fans have to admit his offstage reputation sometimes casts a shadow over his onstage performance. But Springsteen is different; he rolls with the punches and the show is all the better for it. "I Wanna Marry You" had not one but two false starts, a cover of Arthur Conley's "Sweet Soul Music" was improvised literally on the spot, and a take on the King's "Can't Help Falling in Love" was minus a lyric or two ("anyone know this part?" Springsteen asked mid-song). They still sounded great.

And somehow, Springsteen still managed to play ten more songs or so after The River, including a rollicking "Atlantic City," a thunderous "Badlands" and an ecstatic "Born to Run." The old coot loved every minute of it, to. He cracked up during "Dancing in the Dark" when female fans mobbed the stage and security had to yank them down. And he embraced the crowd like his long-lost brothers during the closer, a cover of Jackie Wilson's "Higher and Higher." Maybe Jersey's favorite son felt the need to connect with his New York supporters, but it seemed like he was just having a lot of fun.


Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band performing "Cadillac Ranch" and "I'm a Rocker" at MSG, 11/8/09