"Magic" Kickoff To Bruce Springsteen Tour

E Street Band Opens 1st Tour Since 2002 Tuesday In Hartford

(AP)  Bruce Springsteen and his E Street Band opened their first tour since 2002 at the Hartford Civic Center.

The 58-year-old rocker and the band promoted their new album, "Magic." It's the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer's first album with his longtime bandmates since the Sept. 11-inspired "The Rising" in 2002.

Turns out the Boss can still pack 'em in. And then some.

Among the thousands of fans attending Tuesday night's concert were a contingent of Huskies -- University of Connecticut's women's basketball coach Geno Auriemma, his wife, Kathy, former players Rebecca Lobo and Meghan Pattyson-Culmo and others. The UConn group was briefly delayed getting to their seats. Their packed elevator got stuck somewhere between the ground floor and a skybox. Civic Center officials say the elevator was fixed within a few minutes.

Springsteen's highly anticipated appearance in the state prompted Gov. M Jodi Rell to proclaim Tuesday "Bruce Springsteen Day in Connecticut."

[kaiya317]

SIGNOF4!!! OH NO!!!! Not the ''Shut Up and Sing'' crowd again. Talk about UNAMERICAN...Their argument drones on and on...''Bruce or Bono or Sean Penn or FILL IN THE BLANK, uses their celebrity status to tell us their Anti-War and UnAmerican views...'' Blah Blah Blah. What a ridiculous unpatriotic argument. Shame on you. Who are these news models on TV (CBS included) that bombard us with pro-war and pro-corporate propaganda day in and day out? Who are and where are the cheerleaders that pounded the drum to get us in Iraq in the first place? This was a war of option and choice. Real people paid the ultimate cost FOR A LIE! Based upon that, had we listened to Bruce and Sean Penn instead of Bush, we would have trillions of dollars in the treasury, we wouldn''t be in this f**king quagmire, we wouldn''t need to spend money we don''t have funding tens of thousands of wounded vets and nearly a million people would still be living. And%u2026the same thing is happening all over again with Iraq! So...Signof4, stick it right up your A**! Based on recent history, ARTISTS would be far better at directing our foreign policy than the WAR CRIMINALS and their CORPORATE WAR PROFITEERING COMPLICIT MEDIA ******!!! The mantra should be, "SHUT UP AND KEEP READING MY PET GOAT!!!!"

[nolalou]

SignOf4, I guess your just one more freedom hater who can''t stand the idea that someone who happens to be famous also has the right to express his opinion! You don''t have to agree with it, but he has that right! How dare you demand he shut up? I hope he keeps saying what he wants, often as he wants and as F_ING LOUD AS HE WANTS, until you JERKS understand what FREEDOM means!

[signof4]

Another Dixie Chicks loser. Just shut the f**k up and sing your songs. We''re not interested in your extensive geo-political acumen. You and Sean Penn must have graduated from the same mail order college.