Clarence Clemons

Sad news over the weekend; Clarence Clemons passed away at the age of 69. My friend "BP" is a huge fan of Springsteen, and this is the way he describes the importance of Clarence to the E-Street Band...

"Without Clarence, there would have been no E Street Band, at least as we knew it. His contributions to “Jungleland,” “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out,” “Thunder Road” and “Born to Run” are enough for an entire career. And that is just on a single album. I was listening to “Rosalita” yesterday while I was watering my garden and kept thinking back to all the times I’ve seen Bruce and the E Street Band (starting in Chicago on “The River” tour and most recently in Boston on the “Working on a Dream” tour) and all the joy that came from Clarence’s playing. Nobody enjoyed performing more than Clarence and his enthusiasm was contagious. Every time he had a sax solo, the crowd would erupt with a force like a touchdown being scored at Soldier Field. Speaking of Soldier Field, Bruce and the E Street Band played Soldier Field in August of ’85 on the “Born in the USA” Tour. I was there with 70,000 of my closest friends and it was A PARTY! In recent years, health problems limited Clarence and he had to sit for portions of shows due to hip and knee problems. But, you knew when it was time for the solo in “Badlands” (a song Bruce still plays almost every night on tour) Clarence would be there to let his horn howl. As Bruce posted on his website this weekend, his loss is “immeasurable.” R.I.P Big Man."