This year again, Bruce Springsteen did all this and more to raise awareness and money for his annual Stand Up for Heroes in New York City-a celebration of the U.S. military vets and their families. The Bob Woodruff Foundation and the New York Comedy Festival marked the 17th year anniversary on Monday and brought notable personalities and performers to David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center.
Longtime Backstreets stalwart Springsteen, proceeding with his regular skewer and sincerity: guffawing gallows humor balanced with heartfelt dedication. Powerful storytelling being the thing he’s known for as the “Born to Run” rocker started off his set with a handful of off-color jokes, had the whole crowd laughing and leaning forward, not knowing what to expect next. Edgy, perhaps, but his jokes were good-natured and well received, as Springsteen showed he knows how to work a room with the same deft ease he knows how to work a stadium.
But laughter wasn’t all the rock icon had in store. Following a series of jokes that lightened the mood, Springsteen turned to a quieter, more introspective moment to offer a prayer for America and to dedicate the show to the troops and their families. It’s an honor to be among all of you today and pay homage to the ones who stand watch for this country, he said in a somber, warm voice. His prayer was plain yet resonant, appealing for unity, resilience, and strength when such division batters one’s soul. He reminded the audience of the price to be paid by service members and their families.
The concert also features an acoustic set of some of the artist’s most recognizable songs, where he performed stripped versions of “Dancing in the Dark” and “Born in the U.S.A.” in a hall packed with veterans, the latter carried a different weight to it, echoing the nuanced feelings most veterans carry with them about their service and the country they serve.
Since its inaugural staging in 2007, the Stand Up for Heroes event has raised over $65 million dollars for wounded veterans. Especially after entertainers like Springsteen and Jon Stewart attend, these funds just keep on coming in to support veteran programs in healthcare, mental health, and job training, etc. That was quite an evening for Bruce Springsteen, who perfectly balanced humor, reverence, and rock-solid patriotism in his appearance to give an outlet for the unbreakable bond between music, laughter, and healing to be evoked on the part of the audience by the end of the night.
