Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Hot Goss Clarence Clemons to Retire From E Street Band?
Posted by Adam Gold on Wed, Oct 21, 2009 at 3:28 PM
Among the other things discussed in this candid interview: that he plans on retiring from the band for a while at the conclusion of this current tour to spend more time with his kids--who range in age from 11 to 42. This is all according to a summary of the interview I was sent. I still haven't heard the audio or read the transcript, but the speculation is fun nonetheless.
Given Clemons' age of 67, and the fact that the other E Street mascot Steve Van Zandt told me in a recent teleconference that the band is "gonna take, I don't know how long--a year, year and a half, two years [off]," this lends credence to speculation that this tour may likely be the last to feature Clemons.
If that indeed is the case, then it means the Nov. 18 stop at Sommet Center will be one of Clemons' final three performances with the band, and that--since the band will play Born to Run start to finish--we will likely be the second-to-last audience to hear him play his trademark solo in "Jungleland." Just thinking about how awesome that's going to be is making my heart race and my...uh, never mind.
Clemons' possible retirement would bring about the end of a 37-year tenure playing in bands with Springsteen, a dynasty he recalls in his new autobiography Big Man: Real Time & Tall Tales--the title referring to the book's format of white pages that are definitely true, and gray pages that may or may not be true. Buy me a copy of this, and I'll write a Critics' Pick for your band (just kidding).
Of course, in rock 'n' roll the only way to truly retire from a legendary band is to shuffle off this mortal coil, or have either the first name Robert or last name Plant--it's called the Entwistle rule. Despite his supposed allusions to retirement on the Stern show, Clemons did tell The Morning Call last week that he sees no end for the E Street Band and has no definitive plans to call it quits. So I guess time will tell.
All I know is that I still feel like a dipshit for not catching Nirvana on the In Utero tour, so don't foolishly miss your last opportunity to see an (almost) intact E Street Band. If you haven't gotten your Boss tix yet, than get your shit together and get them here now. Click here to see Clemons and the boss in hilarious action.
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