Dave Wright and the Midnight Electric @ Whole Lotta Love, 7 Nov 2015

Like a phalanx of backing musicians or a catering rider that shuns Jack Daniels for cases of prune juice, the playing of a complete album at a live show usually signals a band on the decline. Some sacrifice the spontaneity of a fertile setlist for the familiarity of a 'classic album' for nostalgia; others do it to justify a tsunami of retro merchandising. Since promoting newly released recordings is the normal impetus for a tour, saluting back catalogue material is often interpreted as a band whose fuel gauge is on 'E'.

So ... what happens when a band with a full tank of petrol commemorates the one-year anniversary of their first album by playing it from start to finish?

If you're Dave Wright and the Midnight Electric, you eradicate all cynicism and leave a Saturday night crowd at Whole Lotta Love in Brunswick East thirsting for a follow-up to The Lucky Country so we can be indulged with another end-to-end album show in a year's time. From keyboardist Daryl Johnson and drummer Neil Salmon's moody kickoff of 'Take Me Out' to Rob Barber's epic guitar finale of 'Into the Big Blue' the band not only replicated every note, but played each one with a confidence and force gained over many nights on small stages before fierce followers.

DWME is a rumbling, finely tuned beast. I hope whatever studio they record their second album in has triple-planed glass. It may get dangerous.

[The band's final show of 2015 will be opening for Aussie icon Mick Thomas at the Spotted Mallard in Brunswick on 18 Dec.]

Dave Wright and the Midnight Electric.

Dave and Big Tim Cavanagh.

The Midnight Electric horns (John Bryant & Anthony Foon) harmonise with Rob Barber. 

Sun Records, circa 1956.

Incident on Exhibition St III, Coopers Inn, 23 Oct 2015

[NOTE: All photos by Aradhna Sharma]

Like the crack in a 19th-century water pipe that bursts through asphalt and launches a geyser high into an urban landscape, Michael Egan and Russ Barclay's third 'Incident on Exhibition Street' gave fans of Bruce Springsteen from around Australia a chance to release highly pressurised Boss ya-yas freely, without judgment or recrimination, in the comforts of an historic Melbourne pub.

Approximately 100 men and women crammed the upstairs bar of Coopers Inn in the CBD Friday night to celebrate with 'Brucebuds' (maybe it's a Jersey thing but I loathe that term) met in roll calls and GAs throughout the 2013 and 2014 tours of Australia and New Zealand. Roars of laughter, rampant embracing and rekindled friendships abounded on a night that raised money for Light of Day Australia and saw Dave Wright and Rob Barber (and occasionally Tim Cavanagh) of Dave Wright and the Midnight Electric play an explosive set of originals and Springsteen covers.

Forces outside my control and unrelated to the occasion had me out of sorts (i.e. whacked out of my head) but, as DWME superfan Lovely Rita said to me, the night was testament to the power of Bruce Springsteen's artistry to burrow through our cynicism and create community from shared passion. Neither of us knew everyone in the room but everyone felt like a friend.

The ties that bi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-yi-nd, indeed.

Attendees were urged to bring signs they'd held up at Springsteen shows. Sukhothai proprietor Victor Wong brought this one, which Dave and Rob honoured with a brilliant acoustic version that demonstrated Mr Barber's vocal chops.

As he does onstage as bass player of Dave Wright and the Midnight Electric, Big Tim Cavanagh provided exuberant backing vocals and spirited clapping.

DWME superfans Piera (left) and Rita (right) sandwich Rita's daughter Rebecca. Michael would later congratulate Piera and Rita via social media for their stellar pogo-ing during 'Atlantic City'.

Dave performed a pair of songs by himself: 1) The best cover I've ever heard of personal favourite 'State Trooper' and 2) a courageous version of piano-driven 'The Promise' that henceforth is prime fodder for full-band treatment at future DWME shows.

Rob got into the spirit of the evening with a t-shirt he had specially made for the occasion. Its significance? It notes the date and locale of the first show to feature Max Weinberg and Roy Bittan and therefore the 'classic' E Street Band lineup: 19 September 1974 at the Main Point outside Philadelphia.

Men of the people.

It's tempting to think playing Springsteen covers to a roomful of Springsteen fans is like shooting Telecaster-shredding fish in a barrel but actually it's the opposite -- these people hear Springsteen's music in their dreams and hold his songs as gospel. Not-to-be-messed-with gospel. I thought Dave and Rob did justice to the spirit of the Springsteen songs they played and made Michael and Russ's third 'Incident on Exhibition Street' much more than a gathering of Bruce fans singing along to their favourite songs. Dave and Rob's interpretations of iconic Springsteen songs mixed with a few of their own gems made the night a memorable musical event.

Bring on Incident IV.

Dave Wright & Rob Barber w/Tim Cavanaugh Setlist
1. Thunder Road (Springsteen cover)
2. Radio Nowhere (Springsteen cover)
3. Streets of This Town
4. Blacktown
5. The River (Springsteen cover)
6. The Lucky Country

Dave Wright solo acoustic
7. State Trooper (Springsteen cover)
8. The Promise (Springsteen cover)

Dave Wright & Rob Barber w/Tim Cavanaugh Setlist
9. Girls In Their Summer Clothes (Springsteen cover)
10. Hang Me High
11. Atlantic City (Springsteen cover)
12. Happiness
13. I'm On Fire (Springsteen cover)

Sunday at the Stone Pony 3 @ the Local Taphouse, St Kilda

When you're throwing a party that recreates -- literally -- a massive piece of your younger years, it's natural to have a moment that forces you to reckon with changes wrought. I had that moment about halfway through our most recent 'Sunday at the Stone Pony' when Southside Johnny's version of Sam Cooke's classic 'Havin' a Party' came on. I looked out at a crowd of people met mostly at the 2013 and 2014 Springsteen shows in Australia and New Zealand, many of them now good friends, and was reminded of the obvious: I remain a freak in this land.

To which that crowd of people, if they could hear my thoughts, would have reacted en masse with a hearty Aussie 'Ya reckon?'

Maybe the obsessive awareness, anticipation and enjoyment of what's playing overhead stems from growin' up in a place where personalised music was a norm long before Walkmans and iPods. Every decent tavern had a jukebox that could transform a room full of strangers into a cocoon where only you and songs that mattered to you existed, a musical nirvana reached through the slipping of front-pocket quarters into a slot.

Local Taphouse, downstairs, Sunday afternoon.

Hell, the nastiest dump could be sanctified by a decent jukebox (e.g., the Sex Pistols on the jukebox of a tear-down called Downtown Beirut on Second Avenue back when boots crunched needles along the sidewalks of the Lower East Side). Even roadside diners offered mini jukeboxes at each table that delivered AM radio-quality sound to distract you from caloric H-bombs like French toast or Spanish omelette or, more provincially, Taylor ham on a hard roll.

Australia isn't a jukebox country. Maybe the States isn't anymore, either. But I was always a jukebox junkie and remain a guy whose night can be made by a single goddamned song. (Cue Bowie, 'ain't no one damn song that can make me ...'). It's no secret assembling the setlist of each SP3 is a labour of love and I can even truthfully write that I'm writing this version of this post (there have been many) with Sunday's much-revised setlist playing in my freezing-fucking-cold living room (Southside into Steven into Gary US Bonds into Jake into Tom Morello into Bruce circa '88 into Bruce circa '84 into Bruce circa '75 into Marah into Patti Smith .... aren't I a self-referential douche?)

And so there I stood beside the downstairs bar of the Local Taphouse on Sunday, the simple chorus of 'Havin' a Party' churning a tide of NJ memories: 'We're havin' a party / Everybody's swingin' / Dancin' to the music / On the radio'. A chorus to be shouted at the ceiling with arms draped on friends old and new. I looked at the crowd of good people who'd stepped out on the wettest July day in 25 years to attend our soiree. Watched for a reaction I knew wouldn't come. Realised for the hundredth time since moving here in 2006 that the songs we carry in our hearts, the ones that detonate throughout our circulatory system, are as connected to the place(s) we grew up as the food we like and the way we talk. Doesn't make anyone's preferences better or worse. Just makes 'em different.

Piera and Mary.

I'm not ashamed to admit I enjoyed a little party in a party listening to 'Havin' a Party'. Maybe by 'Sunday at the Stone Pony 38' I'll have others singing it along with me, at obnoxious volume and with beers raised high.

Considering Melbourne meteorologists were apoplectic for days about a looming Antarctic vortex I was heartened by the number of souls who'd gone to the trouble of opening an umbrella and slipping on an overcoat (Melburnians whinging about winter is worse than a runway model agonising over a zit) and splashing into the warm and Stone Pony-festooned Local. I'm still collecting the money we raised for Aspergers Victoria but can proudly boast we broke the $1000 mark for the first time. All props, as always, to my co-organisers Mary Chiodo Jennings and Piera Alessio, aka 'Teachers for Tom Morello'. Nothing happens without them. Nothing.

Unsurprisingly, the six-hour affair was highlighted by a performance from Dave Wright and Rob Barber of Dave Wright and the Midnight Electric. Their live set was a 'Sunday at the Stone Pony' first, and hopefully not the last. I've written several reviews of DWME shows -- here, here, here, here and here -- but Dave and Rob alone demonstrated the strengths of ble talent  for hour-long set was a first for A review of their set (with additional) photos will follow.

Long-distance travelers Carly, Richard & Eden.

I'm still getting my head around the fact that three attendees flew into Melbourne solely for our event -- Carly from Sydney and Eden (along with new beau Richard) from Auckland -- plus a hardcore Springsteen fan named Greg who drove over 1000kms roundtrip to hear the songs listed at the bottom of this post, sip the best assortment of craft beers in Melbourne by a warm fireplace, and raise money for a great cause.

We will build a 'Sunday at the Stone Pony' Hall of Fame someday. And the four of them will be first-ballot inductees.

The following photos were taken by Piera, Aradhna and I, so some of these people are completely unknown to me. I apologise for this -- please identify these wonderful people in the comments section below.

Once again, thanks to all who came.

Julie and her husband Francois. Julie rehabilitates orphaned kangaroo joeys and other animals in her Heidelberg home. Last October's 'Sunday at the Stone Pony 2' raised a few dollars for her organisation Joey and Bat Sancturary (JABS) but not nearly enough. Please contribute to JABS if you can. Her and her family's dedication to wildlife is unmatched. 

Michael and his wife Robyn flanked by Rosie and Paul Dore (thanks for schooling me, Michael). 

Sophie and Iain. 

Kathleen and Vickie. 

Long-haul driver Greg, Cathy and her husband Stephen.

Lovely folks -- and a BABY! -- but their identities are a mystery to me.  

Siobhan and some chick.

On the left are Rob's partner Michelle and Daryl Johnson, keyboardist of Dave Wright & the Midnight Electric. That's Geoff in the middle, walking from our silent auction tables.

Bar crowd. 

Stewart, Eden and Rita.

Victor, Rebecca, Rita and Aggie. 

Hil and Alex.

Dave and Rob.

Rita and her daughter Rebecca share a moment between Greg and Rita's sister Aggie.

Sara's daughter Maja (that's them top left) was by far the most popular attendee. 

I'm a lucky mug. 

SETLIST
1. Coming Back / Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes / Better Days
2. Until The Good Is Gone / Little Steven & The Disciples Of Soul / Men Without Women
3. Daddy's Come Home / Gary U.S. Bonds / Dedication
4. All I Need / Jake Clemons / It's On EP
5. Save The Hammer For The Man / The Nightwatchman w/Ben Harper / World Wide Rebel Songs
6. Born to Run (acoustic) (live) / BS & the ESB / LA_April 23 88
7. Used Cars (live) / BS & the ESB / E Rutherford_Aug 5 84
8. Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out (live) / BS & the ESB / Tower Theater_Dec 31 75
9. Point Breeze / Marah / Kids In Philly
10. Dancing Barefoot / Patti Smith Group / Wave
11. Two Faces (live) / BS & the ESB / LA_April 23 88
12. Fever (live) / BS & the ESB / Winterland_Dec 15 78
13. Soul Deep / Gary U.S. Bonds / On The Line
14. Take It Inside / Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes / Hearts Of Stone
15. The River (live) / BS & the ESB / Nassau Coliseum_Dec 31 80
16. Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street? (live) / BS & the ESB / Tower Theater_Dec 31 75
17. Justice / Little Steven / Voice Of America
18. Hold On (To What You Got) / Gary U.S. Bonds / On The Line
19. Just Like Fire Would (live) / BS & the ESB / Melbourne Feb 15 14
20. The Ghost Of Tom Joad (live) / BS & the ESB / Sydney_Feb 19 14
21. Disorder in the House / Warren Zevon / The Wind
22. You Mean So Much To Me / Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes w/Ronnie Spector / I Don't Want To Go Home
23. Darkness on the Edge of Town (live) / BS & the ESB / Capitol_Passaic_Sept 18 78
24. Sherry Darling (live) / BS & the ESB / E Rutherford_Aug 5 84
25. Paradise By the C (live) / Clarence Clemons / Live In Asbury Park
26. You Must Be Crazy / Jake Clemons / Embracing Light EP
27. Brilliant Disguise (live) / BS & the ESB / LA_April 23 88
28. Prove It All Night (live) 11:49 Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Agora_Cleveland_Aug 9 78
29. Jolé Blon / Gary U.S. Bonds / Dedication
30. Inside Of Me / Little Steven & The Disciples Of Soul / Men Without Women
31. Kitty's Back (live) / BS & the ESB / Capitol_Passaic_Sept 18 78
32. The '59 Sound / The Gaslight Anthem / The '59 Sound
33. I Played The Fool / Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes / Hearts Of Stone
34. Jersey Girl (live) / BS & the ESB / E Rutherford_Aug 5 84
35. Detroit Medley (live) / BS & the ESB / Winterland_Dec 15 78
36. Song for Hope / Jake Clemons / Embracing Light EP
37. You're a Friend of Mine (live) / Clarence Clemons / Live In Asbury Park Vol 2
38. The Rising (live) / BS & the ESB / Auckland_March 1 14
39. Backstreets (live) / BS & the ESB / Tower Theater_Dec 31 75
40. Havin' a Party / Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes / The Best of ...
41. On the Dark Side / John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band / Eddie & the Cruisers soundtrack
42. Who'll Stop The Rain? (live) / BS & the ESB / Nassau Coliseum_Dec 31 80
43. Adam Raised a Cain (live) / BS & the ESB / LA_April 23 88
44. This Little Girl / Gary U.S. Bonds / Dedication
45. I Don't Want To Go Home / Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes / I Don't Want To Go Home
46. The E Street Shuffle (live) / BS & the ESB / Brisbane_Feb 26 14
47. Thunder Road (live) / BS & the ESB / E Rutherford_Aug 5 84
48. Glory Days (live) / BS & the ESB / LA_April 23 88

Dave Wright & Rob Barber
1. Lucky Country
2. Radio Nowhere (Springsteen cover)
3. Sweet Caroline
4. Blacktown
5. The River  (Springsteen cover)
6. Life in a Northern Town
7. Man of the House
8. Streets of This Town
9. Atlantic City (Springsteen cover)
10. Hang Me High
11. Drinking Days
12. Happiness
13. I'm on Fire (Springsteen cover) / Take Me Out

49. Born in the U.S.A. (live) / BS & the ESB / LA_April 23 88
50. Two Hearts (live) / BS & the ESB / Nassau Coliseum_Dec 31 80
51. Jungleland (live) / BS & the ESB / E Rutherford_Aug 5 84
52. Dancing in the Dark (live) / BS & the ESB / E Rutherford_Aug 5 84
53. Born to Run (live) / BS & the ESB / E Rutherford_Aug 5 84
54. Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (live) / BS & the ESB / Auckland_March 1 14
55. Quarter To Three (live) / BS & the ESB / Tower Theater_Dec 31 75
56. Adam Raised a Cain (live) / BS & the ESB / LA_April 23 88 (played again for Maja)
57. Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out (live) / BS & the ESB / Tower Theater_Dec 31 75 (played again at suggestion of Stewart)