By Joan Anderman, Boston Globe Staff
May 29, 2006
Bruce Springsteen and the Seeger Sessions Band
At: Tweeter Center, Saturday night
MANSFIELD-- Bruce Springsteen and 17 of his most musical friends transformed the Tweeter Center stage into a giant porch last night, simultaneously christening the venue's season, kicking off the artist's US tour, and welcoming the summer season with a 2 1/2-hour performance that was more backyard party than rock concert.
Springsteen is touring in support of ``We Shall Overcome," a collection of songs popularized by Pete Seeger, and last night's homespun symphony of accordions and fiddles, pedal steel guitars, and joyful voices was filled with the irrepressible spirit that's the very essence of folk music.
Springsteen hollered and stomped and led his strumming, plucking, honking, sawing ensemble through jubilant takes on ``John Henry," ``Jacob's Ladder," and nearly every other track on the new album. He also reworked a handful of songs from his back catalog -- down-home versions of ``Johnny 99," ``Cadillac Ranch," ``Open All Night," ``Ramrod," and ``You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)."
Any fans expecting a signature Springsteen show were surely startled to find themselves scrolling through musical history. Spirituals and sea chanteys, outlaw ballads and minstrel tunes, civil rights ballads and dustbowl anthems were the order of the night -- with a heavy nod to New Orleans and an unexpected dose of soul.
A blowsy horn section turned everything in its path positively Bourbon Street, while Boston-based banjo player Greg Liszt affectionately evoked the project's namesake with his four humble strings on rousing singalongs of ``Old Dan Tucker," ``Jesse James," and the grade-school staple ``Erie Canal."
Seeger's role as outspoken activist echoed as well, in the great Irish anti war song ``Mrs. McGrath" and the classic ``We Shall Overcome," which Springsteen introduced as ``the most important political protest song ever written." He also performed Seeger's ``Bring 'Em Home," which was a new addition to the set along with the Depression-era ``How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live" (with three new Bruce-penned verses dedicated to the residents of New Orleans).
Local rocker Peter Wolf joined the band for a show-closing (and show-stopping) medley of ``Dirty Water" and ``Buffalo Gals."
© Copyright 2006 Globe Newspaper Company.
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