Tom Hamilton is a busy man. Somehow, in between performances with Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, Electron, Billy and The Kids, and releasing a new album with his band, American Babies, Hamilton was able to put together a tribute to Bruce Springsteen – a beloved rock and roll legend who doesn’t generally get much attention from the jam band world. Acting as the band leader, Hamilton conducted the American Babies along with guest appearances from a slew of musicians – Jackie Greene, Ross James, Katie Jacoby, and the Superslick Horns – through a spot on musical impersonation of Springsteen throughout the night.

Many of Springsteen’s songs sound like simple and straightforward rock songs, but there are a lot of moving parts involved. It was really fun watching Hamilton conduct the entire ensemble while also doing a Springsteen impression on the mic. At times, he put down the guitar to walk around stage and sing like The Boss, although there was no power slides or crowd surfing. You could tell these songs had been rehearsed – most songs sounded pretty close to the album versions, and the older Springsteen loving crowd seemed to approve of renditions by dancing and singing a long.

It’s tough to find places to really provide true jams within Springsteen’s catalog. The solos are iconic at this point, there’s not much space to truly go off and improv. But, when given the chance, these musicians all know how to do it, providing some of the night’s highlights. The Ghost of Tom Joad, which works well as a jam vehicle, was probably the best of the night, including some incredible interplay between Hamilton and violinist Katie Jacoby, who really stole the show and came across as a star.

The Boss and the E Street Band aren’t the easiest band to replicate on stage, but through Hamilton’s tight conducting and dedication to the material, this show worked extremely well. With more shows to come, hopefully the band takes some of these songs into new directions and really owsn them. Hopefully this project will continue to evolve and take a life of its own in the future.

Check out videos below, and a full audio stream can be streamed via taper Eric McRoberts.

 

The Ghost Of Tom Joad

Badlands