The 10 Unforgivable Sins Of Bruce Springsteen's Performance At The Super Bowl

http://new.music.yahoo.com ^ | Posted Sun Feb 1, 2009 7:13pm | Rob O'Connor in List Of The Day

[Lucky9teen]

You may find this hard to believe, but I am a Bruce Springsteen fan. I may not come across as someone who would enjoy his music, but from "For You," "Backstreets," "Darkness On The Edge of Town," "The Promise" to "The River," "Nebraska," "Tougher Than The Rest," "I Wish I Were Blind" and "Radio Nowhere," I can find plenty to recommend of the man's music. His new album Working On A Dream, the stillborn title track and "Outlaw Pete" aside, is the best thing he's cut in years.

But that half-time show at the Super Bowl--12 excruciating minutes--puts me in an indefensible position to the people who I've been trying to convert for all these years. Now they'll never listen to me.

Since this is LIST OF THE DAY, I will present to you in list form my reasons for why this was an abomination.

10) Bruce addresses the TV camera and tells everyone to drop the guacamole dip and chicken fingers to join him.
9) He opens with "Tenth Avenue Freezeout."

8) There were too many people on the stage.
7) Bruce had to sneak in the title track to his new album.
6) Bruce sneaks in a gospel choir for two minutes.
5) Bruce changes the reference from baseball to football in "Glory Days."
4) Bruce has a referee come out and declare it "Boss Time."
3) Bruce has apparently joined "Up With People."
2) He sticks poor Clarence on COWBELL.
1) Bruce makes me wish there had been a wardrobe malfunction.

[MomwithHope]

He’s joined the ranks of Mick Jagger, Wayne Newton and Aretha Franklin, singers who just can’t sing anymore - give it up.

[ladyjane]

Some people will do anything to get on camera

That's for sure. I had a friend who was a television producer. Anything and more.

[Cinnamontea]

I switched to the half time at the Puppy Bowl.

Good choice. I love watching that.

[bassmaner]

At least he didn't pay homage to Zero or take a shot at GWB, as we all expected.

That said, his voice has seen better days. Clarence can still play a mean sax, but how dumb was it to make him bang on a cowbell? ...

[Choose Ye This Day]

The only thing I watched was the halftime show.

What, was there a game of some sort?

[ClearBlueSky]

I don’t get football. I would rather watch bowling than football( and I don’t like bowling) BUT, I’d watch the Superbowl halftime if TED NUGENT played!
You want a ‘tear-em up show’, he’s your man!
Wrong politics, I know...

Springsteen-ugh. Can’t sing-growling and straining ain’t singing in my book, looks almost as beat up as Willie Nelson.
How is the Superbowl ‘entertainment’ chosen anyway?

[Right Cal Gal]

In our house, we were all screaming “SILVIO!!!”

[imintrouble]

Springsteen has no voice left (if he ever did) but he is so unknowing about musical talent he doesn’t realize he is nowhere near the notes which make up the numbers.

I wonder if he has a multiple polyp problem? /sarc

[mothball]

Why didn’t he team up with the Jonas Brothers?

[savedbygrace]

Which crowd? The paid one on the field, or the one in the stands?

I was watching another channel for most of the halftime show, but I tuned in toward the end, when the crowd we could hear was “in a frenzy”.

I looked closely, and I didn’t see much movement from the crowd in the stands, not compared with the movement by the crowd on the field.

[imintrouble]

HA!

[Choose Ye This Day]

I expected to see Conan O’Brien onstage with the E-Streeters; practically his whole band was there.

[KarlInOhio]

Some people I was watching the game with insisted that the volume of his singing didn't change even though the distance from his mouth to his microphone was chaging during the first song. A good person working the board can compensate, but there is still a lag while he notices that he needs to crank up the volume. No change in volume at all is a sign that the singing wasn't coming from his mouth. I wasn't paying enough attention one way or another.

[SparkyBass]

#1: showing up.

[HungarianGypsy]

Except for him singing with his eyes closed and looking slightly surprised to see an audience when he opened them, I didn’t think he was too awful last night.

[N. Theknow]

2) He sticks poor Clarence on COWBELL.

Cowbell was appropriate considering the BS halftime.

Can't spell Bruce Springsteen without BS.

Who is the idiot responsible for booking halftime and National Anthem acts?

Thank you God for inventing the "mute" button.

[McGruff]

I rather enjoyed it because

1: He just shut up and sang. No praise Osama comments like someone else did.

[Zman516]

I muted the tv during half time....I just can't stand Bruce Springsteen and can't believe he still has a voice to sing with, the way he sings. His music sucks, imo, and we all know where he stands politically.

My sentiments exactly.

I turned the sound off at halftime and read a book.

[HungarianGypsy]

I’ve seen Ted Nugent recently. He’s showing his age, too.

[Lucky9teen]

Maybe they had a fever....and maybe the only prescription was more cowbell!!!!