Bruce Springsteen is without any dispute one of the biggest and most popular rock stars on the planet. At a moments notice he could announce a stadium tour around the world and fill it to the brim with fans in hours. That’s what makes his current run on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theater so special. To see someone with that kind of star-power in such an intimate space feels like a once in a lifetime opportunity. Still, on Monday night, “The Boss” decided to downsize even further, joining Danny Clinch’s Tangiers Blues Band as a special guest for the opening of the 700-person capacity Asbury Lanes bowling alley.
Seemingly glad to be free from the scripted show he’s performed night in and night- ut over the last year, Bruce let loose with the band onstage spurning any of his own material and jamming out to a wide variety of different covers, beginning with Huey “Piano” Smith’s “Rockin’ Pneumonia aAnd The Boogie Woogie Flu,” before moving into Muddy Waters’s classic “I Just Want To Make Love To You,” and a sprawling, 10-minute rendition of “Down The Road A Piece,” that Springsteen’s been playing on and off since his bar band beginnings. He finally ended his time on stage after about half an hour with a loose and raucous take on the Beatles’ “Twist And Shout.”
You can watch footage of Bruce jamming out above and below.
