2004-10-13 Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, NJ

Scheduled: Local Start Time ??:?? / End Time ??:??

Info & Setlist | Venue

Special invitation Vote For Change event with Jackson Browne, John Fogerty and Patti Scialfa performing. Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder joins Bruce for "No Surrender" and "Darkness On The Edge Of Town", before tackling Vedder's "Better Man". "Racing In The Street" is performed with Jackson Browne. "Mary's Place" includes "The Monkey Time".

Bruce Springsteen

Jackson Browne (Guest)
John Fogerty (Guest)
Eddie Vedder (Guest)

Patti Scialfa

Bruce Springsteen (Guest)

^{Complete lineup of performers is not known. If you have any information or further details regarding the musicians onstage for this date please get in touch.}

Jackson Browne

Bruce Springsteen (Guest)

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´No Surrender´´
´´Thank you….I wanna bring up a friend of mine who was so gracious to come out tonight for our last stand, Eddie Vedder, come on up !….´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´Better Man´´
´´(Eddie Vedder: ´´Hello, New Jersey, everybody….Bruce asked, uh, me to do this song and since he´s the Boss and I´m the employee so here it is… ´´)

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´Johnny 99´´
´´Í hear them swing voters swinging on that last one….´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´Centerfield´´
´´Thank you, I wanna bring up a friend of mine, I´ve, uh….somebody whose music I´ve learned from and….and uh, I´ve admired for so long, I´ve heard him described as the Hank Williams of my generation and I think that just about fits right, I wanna bring up John Fogerty….´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´The Promised Land´´
´´Yes, alright now…told him if he wants to borrow my band, he´s gotta sing one of my songs so here we go….´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´Racing in the Street´´
´´Jackson, come on up sing one with me, man (Jackson Browne comes onstage)….´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, middle of ´´Mary´s Place´´
´´Well, good evening, everybody….I´m so glad to be here in my homestate tonight….I´m so glad to be home…..are you having fun out there ? (cheers) I´m glad but of course you know we´re here tonight with a purpose….we´re here tonight on a mission….all the wonderful musicians and the mighty E Street Band have risen up to take you down to the river of change and to help you to cross over to the other side…..that´s right, I wanna be washed in the waters of democracy….that´s right….I´ve been hearing an awful lot about these swing voters….swinging….it´s October 11th, what the hell are you doing ?….you misled the nation into war, a man loses his job….it ain´t rocket science…..in the words of that other great pathological New Yorker, ´You´re fired´ when that happens….there….there I was….one nice, sunny morning….I´d come down after a wonderful night of sleeping and I´m sitting at the breakfast table about to enjoy my eggs and my orange juice….I put on my reading glasses…. and I glance over the frontpage of the morning paper….and it says ´Election race tightens up in New Jersey´…it says ´New Jersey - close´….´New Jersey turning into a swing state´….so the first thought that came to my mind of course was….GREAT GOD ALMIGHTY!….the second thought was WHAT THE BEJESUS ! (chuckles) the third thought was GET ME TO THE MEADOWLANDS NOW !….I can´t have it, I can´t have it…..so all I wanna say out there is if you´re swinging, if you´re swanging, if you´re sweeping, if you´re swooping, if you´re switching, if you just can´t decide….if you wanna be even temporarily released from the burdens of the Republicanism….you can be saved right now !….do I have a volunteer ? ….ladies and gentlemen, I need your help, I need a minute to close our eyes and say Haliburton three times real fast….let the healing begin….go home and tell your neighbors, tell your neighbors that a change is coming…..and all I wanna know is are you ready ?…..´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´Born to Run´´
´´´(chuckles) Thank you….we wanna thank everybody for coming out tonight….we wanna thank you for your support….we wanna thank you for raising your voice…..we wanna remind you that ACT, America Coming Together, is in the building tonight, they need volunteers, they need help, please check out what they´re doing to get the vote out on November 2nd….. oh yeah….make sure you vote, grab your friends, take your friend with you….please, please ….because, uh….we remain, we remain a land of great promise but we need to move America towards the fulfilment of the promises that she´s made to her citizens….that´s economic justice, civil rights, protection of the environment, the living wage….there are so many people out there who are working so hard and they can´t make ends meet, they´ve got to have a living wage….respect for others and humility in exercising our power at home and around the world….these are not impossible ideals, they are achieveable goals with strong leadership and the will of a vigilant and informed American people and it´s these core issues of American identity that I think´s what´s at stake on November 2nd….and I believe that Senator Kerry and Senator Edwards honor these important issues….and I believe that they´re prepared to help our country move forward…..to make a difference in millions of lives, America´s not always right, that´s a fairytale for children and as John Edwards said, struggle and heartbreak will always be with us….America´s not always right but she should always be true and it´s in seeking her truths, both the good and the bad, that we find a deeper patriotism than the dime-store variety, and we find a more authentic experience as citizens and we find the power that is embedded only in truth to change the world for the better….and that´s how our soul as a nation and as people is revealed, it´s what we are fighting for on November 2nd, so please we got some work to do so get out there and roll up your sleeves if you share our concerns, find the best way to express yourself and get out there and do it !….and remember, the country we carry in our hearts is waiting…..´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´Proud Mary´´
´´I wanna bring my friend John Fogerty out again, come on out, John….we´re gonna make you play a few more tonight, man…..´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´Bad Moon Rising´´
´´You gotta play a few more of those, they´re short, they´re short…..(John Fogerty: ´´You know, I just wanna tell you something, we´ve been out here for a couple weeks doing this, I´m sorry that it has to end but I wanna thank the guys of the E Street Band for being so magnificent for me, thanks for your love and kindness, I mean it (?) and especially I wanna thank the great, the man, Bruce Springsteen, you are the greatest, man´´)….´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´(What´s So Funny About) Peace, Love and Understanding´´
´´Come on up, Jackson, come on up, Eddie….oh man…..we had, we´ve had a lot of fun (chuckles) a lot of fun on this run….I wanna thank Jackson for coming out and being with us tonight….I wanna thank Eddie Vedder for coming down especially to New Jersey (?)….of course John Fogerty and Miss Patti Scialfa who opened the show tonight….oh baby !….are we ready ?….´´

13.10.04 East Rutherford, NJ, intro to ´´People Have the Power´´
´´A shout out to Patti Smith for this beautiful song….a Jersey girl…..´´

Compiled by : Johanna Pirttijärvi

For Fans at Springsteen Concert, the Music Seems to Matter More Than the Message

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., Oct. 13 - Bruce Springsteen returned to his home state on Wednesday night for a concert that aimed to raise money for social causes and press the ouster of President Bush.

For an artist who had steered clear of outright partisanship despite songs that focus on the downtrodden, the show represented a homecoming that held the threat of a hostile backlash from conservative fans.

And yet, despite New Jersey's flirtation with being a swing state, fans in the parking lot of Continental Airlines Arena before the show — part of the national Vote for Change Tour sponsored by Moveon.org, which opposes Mr. Bush — hardly seemed to mind their hero's sudden conversion into a Democratic Party activist.

Most started appearing in the lot soon after it opened at 1 p.m. Driving from as far away as Boston, bringing beer and hot dogs, they came — as they have since the 1970's — to see and hear "Badlands," "Born to Run" and other songs they had grown to love.

Many said the music mattered more than the message. "We support Bush, and we support Bruce," said Dan George, a law enforcement officer from Netcong, N.J., wearing a T-shirt that said, "Bruce fan. Bush fan." "We're going to have a great time tonight," he said.

Other Republicans in the crowd reacted with a similar level of what psychologists would call compartmentalization.

Mark Szymczak, 28, a physical therapist from Garfield, N.J., came to the show with Bush-Cheney bumper stickers plastered all over his shirt, hat and pants. He said that when he first heard that Mr. Springsteen was stumping for Senator John Kerry, "I wanted to punch him in the face."

But he got over it. "My father is Democrat, and I still love him," he said. "You have to keep the personal separate from the political."

Brett Gash, 46, of East Windsor, N.J., who set up a D.J. system and brought 1,000 Bruce CD's to play in the parking lot, said that Mr. Springsteen has helped matters by making sure that the shows stay largely nonpartisan. At a recent Vote for Change show in Philadelphia, which Mr. Gash attended, Mr. Kerry was mentioned only once.

"It's not being shoved down my throat," Mr. Gash said. "They've made their points before the show. And at the concert, it's about the music."

Plus, he added, "if you don't like what you hear, you can always go the bathroom or get a beer."

And yet, would most undecided voters stay, and perhaps vote for Mr. Kerry because of Mr. Springsteen's effort? Even avid fans and Democrats were not so sure. Mike Grenier, 55, for example, a Kerry supporter who drove from Salem, Mass., to the show — his 135th Springsteen concert — said the "no nukes" shows that Mr. Springsteen played in the late 1970's seemed to have more of an impact. "There was more passion then," he said.

Trying to make the connection between music and a candidate can be especially difficult, he added. "When Bruce plays 'Badlands,' they're not going to decide to vote for Kerry rather than Bush," he said. "They just want to hear 'Badlands."'

A pair of undecided voters from Hoboken — Cathy Clark, 24, and Sarah Bryant, 24 — agreed. They said the only way Mr. Springsteen could win their votes would be if he ran for office himself.

"He could definitely carry New Jersey," said their friend, Mike Kravitz, 27, standing nearby with a beer.

Not that such skepticism kept partisans from working the crowd. Fans donning Bush apparel were matched by cars with signs declaring, "regime change begins at home," and a number of fans wore Kerry-Edwards pins. Volunteers passed out fliers for various liberal Web sites like www.regimechangeguide.com.

In one area, there was even a "bus for change" — an old school bus, painted in the colors of the American flag, with Christmas lights and signs supporting "affordable health care" and other causes. Driven by about 15 Kerry supporters from Monmouth County, it was an attempt "to stir up conversation," said Dustin Tingley, 25, a teacher from Colts Neck, N.J., who was one of the bus passengers.

And for some, the mix of politics and music seemed to be working. "I'm into it," said Brian Dunne, 15, from Monroe, N.Y. "Anytime Bruce plays, I'm into it. But I believe in the cause, too."

^{By Damien Cave via The New York Times.}

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For Fans at Springsteen Concert, the Music Seems to Matter More Than the Message