This story, part of a special entertainment section on Bruce Springsteen, originally appeared in the Asbury Park Press\u00a0on July 11, 2003.<\/p>\n
With great fanfare, “The Rising,” Bruce Springsteen’s musical response to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, was released by Columbia Records on July 30, 2002.<\/p>\n
Asbury Park that day was transformed into a TV set, as NBC’s “Today” show broadcast its entire episode from the boardwalk on that steamy July morning, complete with a live concert by Springsteen and the E Street Band in Convention Hall.<\/p>\n
No surprise, then, with all that TV publicity and countless magazine covers, that “The Rising” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart and became certified double platinum.<\/p>\n
“The Rising” tour began Aug. 7, 2002, at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford. In contrast to Springsteen’s 1999 reunion tour with the E Street Band \u2014 which found Springsteen holding court for 15 nights at the arena and 10 at Madison Square Garden \u2014 “The Rising” tour skipped from city to city in a day or two. Springsteen’s publicists termed it a “barnstorming” tour, one that would get the music to many different areas in the least amount of time.<\/p>\n
The concert trade journal Pollstar ranked Springsteen’s “Rising” tour as the sixth top-selling tour of 2002, generating $42.6 million with 39 shows. Gary Bongiovanni, editor in chief of Pollstar, predicted Springsteen will top the list for 2003.<\/p>\n
Bruce Springsteen played Giants Stadium 10 times in 2003.<\/p>\n
“Not only that,” Bongiovanni said, “but it’s going to be the biggest concert gross in North American history. He could generate $40 million with the Giants Stadium shows alone.”<\/p>\n
And that brings us to this week, when Springsteen embarks on a record-breaking 10 nights at Giants Stadium. Opening night is Tuesday. The engagement continues through Labor Day weekend, with shows July 17, 18, 21, 24, 26, 27 and Aug. 28, 30 and 31.<\/p>\n
In between, Springsteen also plays Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia Aug. 8, 9 and 11.<\/p>\n
“The thing is,” Bongiovanni said, “Bruce could’ve set up camp all summer at Giants Stadium and he probably would’ve sold out most shows. Bruce could go back and do 10 shows next summer, too, without a new album.”<\/p>\n
Scattered tickets remain for certain shows. Check with Ticketmaster for updates.<\/p>\n
Interest in Springsteen appears to be insatiable in New Jersey.<\/p>\n
“The cultural significance of those Giants Stadium shows is that it underscores his importance to the region and how emblematic he is of New Jersey,” said Howard Kramer, curatorial director for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland. “The reason he can play so many nights in New Jersey is that people want to see him in New Jersey \u2014 everyone knows it’s more special there. He has pockets of that kind of support elsewhere, like in Boston, those Fenway shows \u2014 two nights sold out in less than an hour? That’s incredible. But with New Jersey, it’s stronger still.”<\/p>\n
Springsteen grew up in Freehold, honed his musical skills in Asbury Park and is raising his family in Colts Neck. He is clearly committed to New Jersey.<\/p>\n
His relationship with the Meadowlands goes back to the very beginning of the complex. He was the first musician to perform at the arena, with six sold-out shows in July 1981. He is the top-selling artist at the complex, performing 44 times at the arena and six times, before this current engagement, at the stadium. His “Born in the U.S.A.” tour set a record for the stadium with six shows in August and September 1985.<\/p>\n
“The thing about Bruce is that every time he decides to go out on tour it’s because he has a specific artistic purpose in mind,” Kramer said. “He speaks in a voice that touches people. The music industry doesn’t develop artists anymore \u2014 if he was coming up today, he wouldn’t stand a chance. But this is exactly what the industry should be doing, allowing an artist to develop a voice and cultivate long-term fans.”<\/p>\n