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Springsteen resides in the nearby suburb of Rumson. Not only did the fans get their cd's, but they also got
a visit from Bruce himself, as he entered the store, unannounced and alone, a few minutes past midnight. He spent the next 90 minutes, talking,
laughing, joking with and meeting his fans, not departing until every autograph was signed and every picture was taken. He thanked those in
attendance for supporting him and the band throughout the years. The below information, and photos, were supplied by a generous fan whose
account of the night was orginally posted in the Springsteen newsgroup...RMAS. Thanks Jo!4-3-2001
5:03am
Well I am no Bruce guru like my honey is, and I have spent many years in the music business, but what I saw happen tonight in a small record shop in Red Bank, NJ...was worth the 2 hours driving from Philly.
About 200 or so loyal fans line up on a Monday night (late) to get Bruce's new CD (most of them hoping Bruce would show). My honey grabbed a few cd's and waited in the front of the store while I was in the back looking at sheet music.....The employees from Jack's were frantically trying to open another register and here comes Bruce stepping thru the back door, it was about 12:15 (give or take)....As I make my way down the steps I realize , holy cow there is Bruce right in front of me and all I could so was say "Hey Bruce, I'm Jo nice to meet you." He was looking all unshaven, sporting the White Sox ball cap and with a smile on his face, he shakes my hand and says, "Hey, how you doing." It has taken my (BRUCE GURU) boyfriend 20 years to meet Bruce and as he turns around to look in the store for me he sees me shaking Bruce's hand and comes down the isle to meet him and get an autograph. Then everyone else sees Bruce and comes charging to the back of the store.
The hairy guy and the red headed guy quickly guided Bruce to the counter and he hops up and grabs a pen to immediately start signing autographs and taking pictures. My honey was one of the first ones to get his artwork signed....(his hands were shaking taking the cover artwork out of the jewel case) ...boy people say the goofiest things when they meet famous people...I stepped out of the way to let the real fans get in there.
With a great smile on his face, Bruce becomes bombarded by a sea of tee shirts, pant legs, jewel cases, cell phones and disposable camera's. In my years of being in the music business I have never ever seen such a cool thing like that happen....Bruce just gave an hour and a 1/2 back to his loyal fans and kept smiling. Talked to aunts on cell phones and posed for many photos and did it effortlessly. I saw grown men with tears in their eyes and women who could not catch their breaths, as well as reporterss wanting to take their own picture with Bruce. He even had a little rolling rock spilled on him and all he could do was laugh.
Now I don't know a lot about Bruce or his music but I am learning... so all I can say is that what I saw tonight was a musician who was grateful. I heard him say, "Thank you for supporting me and my band." I also heard fans say, "Thank you Bruce for all the years of music."
His music is meaningful to a lot of people and after tonight I really believe he knows that. Hey Bruce...if you read these dorky posts I just wanted to say...Thanks for a really cool night!.
Jo from Philly
