Bruce Springsteen fans are furious over $3,500 tickets – and The Boss should know better
So, Bruce Springsteen is hitting the road again with the E Street Band, and you'd think after all these years, The Boss would know how to look after his people. But if you've been eyeing tickets for his reunion tour, brace yourselves—because the prices are enough to make you shed a tear into your schooner.
Word started filtering through this week that some tickets for the upcoming Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Reunion Tour are hitting astronomical numbers. We're talking $3,000 a pop—that's around five grand in our money. For a single night. Fair go, for that kind of cash, you'd expect Bruce to pop round to your place afterwards for a barbie and a jam session.
From 'Dancing in the Dark' to Crying in the Dark
Fans have taken to social media to vent their frustration, and let's just say, it's not pretty. The general sentiment seems to be that the man who once sang about being "Dancing in the Dark" has left his faithful followers fumbling for the light switch—and their wallets. Here's a taste of what's doing the rounds:
- "Five grand for Bruce Springsteen tickets? For that price, he should come over and mow my lawn for a year."
- "The Boss has become the Bank Manager. Deadset shameful."
- "I remember when you could see Bruce and the E Street Band for twenty bucks. Now that's a tall tale."
It's a far cry from the days documented in the brilliant When Bruce Springsteen Came to Britain, a film that showed the raw, hungry artist winning over crowds with nothing but heart and a Telecaster. Back then, it was about the music. Now, it feels like it's about the bottom line. And it's not just a memory for the Poms; Aussie fans who queued for hours in the sun outside the old Hordern Pavilion or made the trek to Calder Park know that feeling all too well.
Bowing to Inflation? Even the Cartoonists Are Having a Field Day
The backlash has even caught the eye of political cartoonists. Over in New Jersey, the great Drew Sheneman summed it up perfectly with a cartoon titled "Bruce bows to inflation," showing The Boss at a ticket booth with prices through the roof. It's brutal but fair: in an era where everything from your morning flat white to your weekly rent has gone up, Springsteen tickets have decided to launch themselves into outer space.
And wouldn't you know it, the whole fiasco has even dragged in the name of a certain former US president. With The Boss having been vocal about his political views over the years—famously clashing with Donald Trump over the use of his music—there's a certain irony in fans now feeling like they're being slugged a tax just to see him. Yeah, you couldn't make it up.
What About Aussie Fans?
For Springsteen's massive Australian following, the news is a bitter pill. We've always sort of claimed him as an honourary Aussie, haven't we? From his love of our literary greats to the way he captures the spirit of the underdog. But at these prices, the underdog is being left in the doghouse. There's been no official word on Australian dates yet, but if and when they come, it's hard to see how they'd escape the pricing model that's causing chaos in the US and UK. The memory of his From My Home To Yours lockdown broadcasts, where he brought comfort from his own living room, feels like a lifetime ago—and certainly a more affordable one.
Maybe the solution is to dig out the old vinyl, crank up Bruce Springsteen: Dancing in the Dark on the stereo, and remember when the biggest investment was the cost of the album. Or, as one wag put it: "For the price of one ticket, I could fly to Newark, stand outside his house, and heckle him for free." And hey, that sounds pretty Aussie, doesn't it?