Infusing anger with hope by Barry Rosenbaum

More than 45 years ago, my college girlfriend and I, along with a large group of friends, spent five days taking turns camping out for tickets to a Bruce Springsteen concert. Even then, we considered him a legend —a legend who mentioned our escapade from the stage during his concert. Bruce has never taken his fans for granted.

Earlier this month, that former college girlfriend (who became my wife forty-plus years ago) and I had the privilege and thrill of seeing Springsteen at the Los Angeles Forum as part of his Land of Hope and Dreams concert tour. In many ways, the timeline of our life together can be tracked through the concerts we shared—from the opening of Staples Center to the Broadway stage to the Peace Sunday concert at the Rose Bowl. But from the moment Bruce announced this tour, I knew that it would be different.

“We are living through dark, disturbing, and dangerous times, but do not despair — the cavalry is coming! Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band will be… rocking your town in celebration and in defense of America — American democracy, American freedom, our American Constitution and our sacred American dream — all of which are under attack by our wannabe king and his rogue government in Washington, D.C.”

Bruce Springsteen

Bruce’s mastery of rock and roll, combined with lyrics that speak to the essence of the human experience, is unrivaled. The intensity and duration of his concerts are legendary. Astonishingly, he and the E Street Band played the Forum that night with an urgency and intensity that was one for the ages.

As the evening began, Bruce spoke of his dreams and yearnings: “Tonight we ask all of you to join with us in choosing hope over fear, democracy over authoritarianism, the rule of law over lawlessness, ethics over unbridled corruption, resistance over complacency, unity over division, and peace over war.”

I’ve read multiple reviews of the concert, but one by Steve Baltin particularly struck a chord. He has attended 61 Springsteen shows dating back to 1984. This was the first that he watched from his wheelchair, having suffered a stroke in 2024.

Many of us attending the concert are similarly on the backside of this never-ending cycle of life, while the music itself remains ageless. Baltin wrote of the epiphany that he had during the show – the power of music is its ability “to fight time and make one feel young again.” I’ve listened to Bruce since the early 70s, being fully captivated ever since hearing his lyrical magic in Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. I know about music’s power to transport.  However, the Forum concert was far from a nostalgia trip. The concert spoke plainly and loudly to the here and now.

Because of this, Baltin’s second insight struck me as being even more poignant. “Springsteen understands that anger needs to be infused with hope. Anger without hope becomes destruction and chaos. Anger with hope can change the world.”

Less than three months ago, Bruce recorded a song that immediately resonated across the globe. Streets of Minneapolis outspokenly condemns the horrific murders of Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti. Before performing it at the Forum, the Boss said, “The power, the solidarity of the people of Minneapolis, of Minnesota, was an inspiration to the entire country. Your strength and your commitment told us this is still America. And this [the ICE murders] will not stand.”

We’ll take our stand for this land
And the stranger in our midst
We’ll remember the names of those who died
On the streets of Minneapolis

Millions of us are absolutely infuriated by what our country has become, simultaneously a pariah and a laughingstock. While this reaction is surely appropriate, anger alone will not change the trajectory of this country. Hope is required because it is through hope that we can envision the country that we want for ourselves, our descendants, and for the world. As I looked across the aisle that night and watched my life partner dancing with absolute joy, I knew this hope had real force. At that moment, the power of Bruce’s music reflected in my wife’s jubilant release gave me the strength to push on for my family, for my neighbors, and for our country.

Now is the time for all of us to contribute to the tsunami that is ready to roar in November, when, as a country, we will choose democracy, dignity, and economic opportunity for all over authoritarianism, unbridled corruption, and unrestrained greed.

Bruce wrote the words of the song that gives this concert tour its name in 1999. They have never spoken to the moment more fittingly than they do now.

This Train
Dreams will not be thwarted
This Train
Faith will be rewarded
This Train
Hear the steel wheels singin’
This Train
Bells of freedom ringin’