Today it was reported that Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band did not perform live at the halftime performance during the Super Bowl. The band played along to prerecorded tracks, while “The Boss” did in fact sing live. My question is: Why would anyone care?
Every year at the Super Bowl, the majority of artists (whether they’re singing the national anthem or performing at halftime) do not perform live. It’s not a matter of their ability to do so – if you’ve ever seen Springsteen live in concert, there is no question of his or his band’s ability to play music. It’s more along the lines of the fact that it’s a performance in a football stadium for one – not exactly the best place for sound. If the band actually played, the sound would bounce off of seats and not sound like a performance fit for one of the most-watched television events of the year.
The Super Bowl is not a Bruce Springsteen concert. Last time I checked, there are two of the best football teams in the world playing against each other for the ultimate prize.
Yes, there’s an extended halftime, but it’s supposed to bring the crowd and viewers entertainment while the teams take a break. Springsteen and the E Street Band provided an energetic, memorable and rocking halftime performance.
The highlight, however, was Springsteen sliding into the camera and giving millions of viewers a full shot of his crotch (take that FCC!). And that, ladies and gentlemen, was not prerecorded.
Why is there such a public outcry when it’s unveiled that a musical artist is lip- synching or playing to prerecorded tracks on live national television?
No one forgave Ashlee Simpson for her prerecorded vocal track failure, complete with that famous hoedown at the end that was even parodied in an episode of “Family Guy.” I don’t remember anyone complaining after Usher’s “SNL” performance, which was chock-full of lip- synching and times when he didn’t even sing at all. Oh, but he has to do all that dancing! Give me a break – it’s virtually the same thing. I’m not trying to bust Usher’s chops here, because he has the same right as any artist to use prerecorded vocals for television performances.
It’s not a live performance, but rather one that must be transferred to millions of television sets across the globe. Would we still watch if it sounded like a big echo, or full of distortion? No, we wouldn’t be entertained – the point of watching these performances in the first place.
What was really surprising is that Springsteen’s vocals were actually live, and he simply nailed them. If you’d told me that those were prerecorded too, I might believe you. But would I care? No.
Springsteen is “The Boss” for a reason. He’s a superb musician and whether his halftime act was completely genuine or not, it’s impossible to deny the talent of both he and his band. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band’s performance was one of the best Super Bowl halftime shows of the past decade.
