Story 2014-01-26 Bellville Velodrome, Cape Town, South Africa
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Intro to “Free Nelson Mandela”
“Evening! (crowd cheers)(singers start singing the phrase “Free Nelson Mandela”) good evening, South Africa! (crowd cheers) hello, Cape Town! (crowd cheers) we’re so glad to be in your beautiful city tonight (crowd cheers) join us, come on, band…”

Intro to “Spirit in the Night”
“Good evening, good evening (crowd cheers) good evening, Cape Town (crowd cheers) good evening, South Africa (crowd cheers) we’ve come thousands of miles (crowd cheers) just to be here tonight (crowd cheers) the mighty E Street Band (crowd cheers) has come thousands of miles…8,000, I think, to be exact…to play someplace that’s just like Asbury Park’s Convention Hall (crowd cheers) this is the same place, I’m telling you…you don’t have to go to New Jersey (crowd cheers) Convention Hall is just like this building (crowd cheers) we’ve come all this fucking way to play Convention Hall (crowd cheers) that’s alright…because we’re really here tonight to ask just one question…who knows what that is?… who’s been on YouTube, goddamn it? (some fan yells “Are you alive tonight?” into Bruce’s mic) that’s not it (chuckles) but that’s close, that’s a good question (chuckles)…I know you know it…what about you, my man?…we’ve come thousands of miles to ask just one question…(some fan yells “Italy!” into Bruce’s mic) no, “Italy” is not the question (chuckles) it’s good, not the question though…you have one more chance…(some fan sings “Can you feel the spirit?”) (crowd cheers) that’s right…woo!…I’m glad somebody got that one …the question is can you feel the spirit? (crowd cheers) can you feel the spirit now? (crowd cheers) can you feel the spirit? (crowd cheers) can you feel the spirit now? (crowd cheers) well, if you can feel the spirit, I want you to answer me with a mighty “Yeah, yeah” – can you feel the spirit? (crowd and band: “Yeah, yeah!”) can you feel the spirit now? (crowd and band: “Yeah, yeah!”) can you feel the spirit? (crowd and band: “Yeah, yeah!”) can you feel the spirit now? (crowd and band: “Yeah, yeah!”)…”

After “Spirit in the Night”
“Woo! (crowd cheers) it’s always scary the first time, that’s right…”

Intro to “Pay Me My Money Down”
“Alright now…(?)…alright…we come 8,000 miles to play a place that’s exactly like fucking Convention Hall in Asbury Park (crowd cheers) Jesus Christ!…so…give me some lights out there, I gotta see what everybody’s doing (crowd cheers) I see (fake-laughs) I see people sitting down, oh my God…that’s not allowed at an E Street Band show! (chuckles) you need a note from your doctor to sit on your ass tonight (chuckles) that’s alright, don’t get up, don’t get up, don’t get up, don’t get up, don’t get up because, uh… exactly…ten seconds from when – 30 seconds from when I say… your ass is gonna send a message to your mind saying “Get me up! I wanna move!” (crowd cheers) South African will wanna get up (crowd cheers) out of its seat (crowd cheers) not yet, no, no, not yet, I don’t want you to do it ‘cause I said so…you’re gonna feel it, you got to feel the signals from the ass (laughs from the crowd) just sit there until you feel the signals from the ass, then you get up (chuckles)(starts strumming the guitar) 30 seconds from now you’re gonna be feeling it…”

Intro to “We Are Alive”
“We are humbled to be here tonight in the land of Mandela! (crowd cheers) we are here because of and in his grace…a lifetime ago, it seems…we were close – came to Zimbabwe in ’88 (crowd cheers) and many South Africans came to see us (crowd cheers) so this is a lovely circle for us to be able to come back and to be here in South Africa and in Cape Town (crowd cheers) you’ve waited 25 plus years (crowd cheers) children have been born…left home, come back again in that time (chuckles)…this is a song of the dead…and the living…of how the body dies but how the spirit…and the ghosts and how the dead are always whispering into the ears of the living …if you’re listening, you can hear them…that’s right…so…we dedicate this to Nelson Mandela whose grace we are in tonight (crowd cheers)…”

Intro to “Shout”
“Are you tired? (crowd: “No”) are you tired? (crowd: “No”) are you tired? (crowd: “No”) B-flat…that’s good because right about this time of night…I wanna hear you scream! (crowd cheers) scream! (crowd cheers) scream! (crowd cheers) scream! (crowd cheers) scream! (crowd cheers) scream! (crowd cheers) scream! (crowd cheers) scream! (crowd cheers)…”

Middle of “Shout”
“We wanna thank you all for being here with us in Cape Town tonight (crowd cheers) it was a long time coming (crowd cheers) but it felt real good (crowd cheers) we got Sister Soozie Tyrell (crowd cheers) Eddie “Thin Man” Manion (crowd cheers) Curt Ramm (crowd cheers) Charlie on the organ there (crowd cheers) the great Nils Lofgren (crowd cheers) Jake Clemons (crowd cheers) the Mighty Max (crowd cheers) Curtis King (crowd cheers) Cindy Mizelle (crowd cheers) Michelle Moore (crowd cheers) Barry Danielian (crowd cheers) the Reverend Everett Bradley – he can marry you if you want (crowd cheers) Clark, Clark, Clark on the trombone down there (crowd cheers) Professor Roy Bittan (crowd cheers) Garry W. Tallent (crowd cheers) Tom Morello (crowd cheers) and did I say…did I say…Little Steven Van Zandt (crowd cheers) come on, Steve…come on, kid…here we go…you make me wanna (crowd: “Shout!”) I said (crowd: “Shout!”) come on (crowd: “Shout!”) let’s go (crowd: “Shout!”) let me hear it (crowd: “Shout!”) little louder (crowd: “Shout!”) little louder (crowd: “Shout!”) drum roll, Max, drum roll (Max plays) don’t worry about it, I got it all figured out, it goes just like this…yeah, yeah…”
(…) That is correct, Mighty One (chuckles)…I’m just a prisoner…of rock and roll!…
(…) We love you, Cape Town (crowd cheers)…”

Intro to “Thunder Road”
“One more for Cape Town (crowd cheers) thank you…you know, you come down, you don’t know what kind of reception you’re gonna get, it’s been a long time and…I wanna thank you for making us feel so at home tonight (crowd cheers) couldn’t have had a better night (crowd cheers) you guys are really lovely to us, thank you so much, thank you so much…we’re gonna, we’ll make you a permanent stop from here on end (crowd cheers)…”

After “Thunder Road”
“Thanks for a great night (crowd cheers)…”

Compiled by : Johanna Pirttijärvi.
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