All right. I know I've been slacking over the weekend, but I'm back to report on concerts #5 and 6.

Concert #5 was Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at PNC Park. Great show. Bruce & Co. put on a marathon 3-hour show with all the energy and enthusiasm of 25-year-olds. Although I am not a diehard Springsteen fan, I thoroughly enjoyed this concert based on the extaordinary talents of the E Street Band and Springsteen's gift for heart wrenching performances. (During most songs, he sings so intensely it looks like he's about to rupture a bloodvessel in his face.) He interacts well with the crowd and has the kind of infectious enthusiasm that can easily whip a crowd of 50,000 into a frenzy. Crowd favorite Clarence Clemons seemed to enjoy himself too even though he wasn't up front and center as much as last time I saw them. Many of the instrumental solos were given to the new violinist and Clemons often had to set aside his sax for such exciting instruments as finger cymbals and the washboard. Steven Van Zandt was also there in full effect. As always looking just one eye-patch short of a pirate. Van Zandt is fun to watch because he aparently has loneliness issues and cannot sing by himself at a microphone. He will jump in with another band member and probably even share a microphone with a cymbal from the drum kit before singing by himself.

The Springsteen fans add a whole nother element of entertainment to these shows. No one takes a concert as seriously as a Bud Lite-swilling, fist-pumping Springsteen fanatic. Their calls of "Bruuuuuuce!" nearly drowned out the applause after each song.

All in all, a great concert. The gorgeous view of the city made up for the spotty sound at PNC Park. Highlight? "Hungry Heart." Second place? An accordion trio opening the concert with "Take Me Out to the Ball Game." Worst? The inebriated fanatics two rows in front of us who kept turning around and yelling at all the people who were sitting down. Hey dude, everyone must enjoy the concert in their own way. Were all those seated people behind you screaming at you to sit down? I don't think so.