Bruce Springsteen Brings the "Dream" To California

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band kicked off their Working on a Dream tour last night at San Jose, California's HP Pavilion. The set clocked in at two hours and 40 minutes according to Bruce fansite Backstreets, who also provided the night's set list (see below), and noted its similarity to the set the band rocked at their second Asbury Park rehearsal gig (Rolling Stone was at Springsteen's first rehearsal). For the story inside the Bruce rehearsals, grab the new issue (on newsstands now!), and check out our interviews with Steven Van Zandt and Max Weinberg's drummer son Jay, Springsteen's "secret weapon" online. Get a look at the opening-night photos here and the songs below:

• Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Bring Their "Dream" To California

Set List:
"Badlands"
"Outlaw Pete"
"My Lucky Day"
"No Surrender"
"Out in the Street"
"Working on a Dream"
"Seeds"
"Johnny 99"
"The Ghost of Tom Joad"
"Good Eye"
"Good Rockin' Tonight"
"Darlington County"
"Growin' Up"
"Waitin' on a Sunny Day"
"The Promised Land"
"The Wrestler"
"Kingdom of Days"
"Radio Nowhere"
"Lonesome Day"
"Born to Run"

Encore:
"Hard Times"
"Thunder Road"
"Dancing in the Dark"
"Tenth Avenue Freeze-out"
"Land of Hope and Dreams"
"American Land"

Related Stories:

• Bruce Springsteen Artifacts Hit the Rock Hall: Video Tour of New Exhibit
• Ticketmaster Apologizes to Bruce Springsteen After Onsale Blunder
• Bruce Springsteen Announces Working on a Dream Tour

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

More Song Stories entries »

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