A night out with The Boss and Raphe

Last year I decided not to go and see Neil Young in concert and I've regretted it ever since. Sometimes you have to take the chance when it comes along, so when my cousin Raphael sent me a text to see if I wanted to go to the Bruce Springsteen concert I hestitated for a moment, mostly for financial reasons, but ultimately decided yes. It's not often that you will get to see a legend of rock in concert and I did'nt want to feel that I had missed a great opportunity. Raphe lives in Shawlands so we met about a mile from Hampden stadium shortly before the concert started. In our haste to get tickets we bought the first we came across and then discovered that we were sitting in different parts of the stadium. Our plan was to meet up inside but after 20 minutes of running up and down corridors and going through doors marked 'Restricted' or 'Staff Only' I realised that my search would be fruitless and decided to find a seat and hope the stewards would not ask any questions. I ended up on the upper tier of the east stand with a seat that offered a really good view of the stage and screens. The concert had started by this time and Bruce was already in full flow. The first thing that I was struck by was the energy and great voice he had for a man almost sixty years old. His enthusiasm was infectious and he had great charisma and stage presence. He belted out song after song. Some songs I did not know, some I recognised but I could not name. It didn't really matter. Even somebody not aqcuainted with Springsteen's songs would have really enjoyed the concert, it was that kind of night. I liked some of his new songs, particularly 'Outlaw Pete' and 'Working On A Dream'. Other classics such as 'Pink Cadillac' and 'Thunder Road' went down a treat. The atmosphere inside Hampden was terrific, the crowd of 55,000 applauding every song. The famous E Street Band lived up to their reputation and it was obvious that they were all top class musicians. The sound crew also deserve credit. The sound was really clear and well balanced. Bruce saved the best for last. The encore started with an old time ballad about hard times, followed by 'Dancing In The Dark', another song I did not know and 'Born To Run'. Towards the end I noticed a lady standing up just behind me, her eyes closed, mouthing every word of the song being played. She was totally in the zone and I suppose it would have been something almost like a religious experience for her. He played for just under three hours, eclipsing his two and a half hour set at Glastonbury and the whole band walked off to a deserved standing ovation. I've been to a few gigs this year: Ray LaMontagne, Tom Paxton, Half Man Half Biscuit and Richard Thompson. They were all excellent but this evening had been something a bit special. I met up with Raphe afterwards and we both raved about the concert. I don't know if it was Raphe's terrible sense of direction or the fact that we were so engrossed in our conversation (probably a bit of both) but we ended up miles away from Shawlands and not with the faintest idea where we were. For a while we wandered around a prosperous looking area with big mansions and gardens before stopping a couple to ask for directions, which they kindly did. They had also been to the concert and we parted agreeing that it had been a wonderful night. We eventually found Raphe's place just before midnight, a handsome tenement flat in a nice area. We stayed up a couple of hours, had a glass of Glenlivet whiskey (lovely), chatted for a while and then watched an episode of The Wire (very good but I could'nt understand what they were saying half the time). Despite his terrible sense of direction Raphe is a great guy and I really enjoy his company. I slept in the spare room, woken only by Raphe at about 7.30am to get some clothes and say cheerio. I dozed for a couple of hours but decided not to stay too long because Raphe's fiancee was on holiday and due back at the flat at some point. I did'nt want her to return to the flat and find a stranger making coffee in his underwear. I had visions of me being lead away by the police shouting out 'I really am Raphe's cousin, honest!' so I made a quick getaway. As for Raphe he was never heard of again. He is still probably wandering around the south side of Glasgow as I speak looking for his flat, poor guy!