
11.08.81 Detroit, MH, intro to ‘Independence Day’:
”I remember I used to....have to come around the backdoor every night....to
get in my house when I was growing up.....because my old man used to lock up
the frontdoor so me and my sister used to have to pass by him (?).....and....it
was always late at night, that was always the only time to see him, we never
sat down and talked....about anything....and I used to always get so....frustrated
and angry at him because....it seemed like he never wanted to hear what I had
to say....and he never wanted to hear what I wanted to do....and...as I got
older I used to, I thought back and realised that he used to sit in the kitchen
every night....for....all the years that I....that I, that we lived in the same
house....and sit there by himself in the dark.....and I....I never once....in
all the years that we lived together, I never once asked him what he was thinking....or
what he was dreaming about.....it seems like I didn’t respect him and
he didn’t respect me.... and....and we had it all wrong....”
11.08.81 Detroit, MH, intro to ‘For You’:
”This is a song for all the old timers out there....”
11.08.81 Detroit, MH, intro to ‘Johnny Bye Bye’:
”Thanks....this is uh....this is a song (?) I started to write....I guess
in 19...78....ah..... I think everybody marks their lives by....certain things
that happen around ‘em...... I always remember.....the first time that....I
heard ‘Like a Rolling Stone’.....and the first time I saw Elvis....on
Ed Sullivan Show (cheers)....and....I always remember where..... where I was
when a friend of mine called me and told me that he’d died.....and it’s
always been....you know, I read all the books and I tried to....to understand
how..... how somebody who.....who had won so much.....and had been so much.....and
so alive inside could in the end.....lose so bad....lose the things that were
so important to him.... it must´ve been....pretty lonely.....this is a
song....it’s called ‘Bye Bye Johnny’, it’s a song for
Elvis.....”
11.08.81 Detroit, MH, middle of ‘Rosalita’:
”Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls....now into my favorite part of
the show....I’m talking about ....the band....introductions.....I know,
I know....first, I’d like to start off with a young man behind that thing
we like to call a piano.....the only member of the band with a high school diploma....most
educated member of the band, let’s hear it for higher education and Professor
Roy Bittan on the piano (cheers)....he’s smart....he’s smart over
there....we got a guy.....we got a guy.....poet of the soul, master of rock
and roll.....man who brought you such great hits as ‘I Don’t Wanna
Go Home’....’Sweeter Than Honey’....’This Time It’s
For Real’....’Some Things Just Don’t Change’.....’Daddy’s
Come Home’.....’Trapped Again’, I’m talking about the
great Miami Steve Van Zandt on the guitar (cheers)....now, we got a man.....flew
all the way tonight from Neptune, New Jersey and boy....his (?) looks tired
(chuckles).....so we got a guy I’d like to introduce to you, (?) handsome
,debonair, ladies and gentlemen, Mr.Garry W. Tallent on the bass (cheers)....next
we got a guy....king of the big beat all the way from South Orange, New Jersey....I’m
talking about the Mighty .....Max Weinberg (cheers).....and next....we’ve
got a young man from Flemington, New Jersey, how many folks from Flemington
here tonight ? (cheers).....alright....this guy’s for you....he plays
the organ (?) , the glockenspiel.....I’m talking about the multi (?),
multi-talented, great humanitarian, great vegetarian, great veterinarian and
a close....personal friend of mine, Mr.Phantom Dan Federici on the organ (cheers).....now...last
but not least (cheers) ....I don’t blame you....for being excited....because
now I’m gonna introduce to you a man, it’s the hardest part of the
show because I can’t think of the words to introduce him, I’ve run
out of superlatives, I’ve run out of adjectives and so....I’d like
to say that during intermission tonight....when you can’t think of what
to say, all the great, great people in time, they used to write poetry.....like
the guy who saw a tree wanted to describe it, (?) a poem as lovely as a tree.....and
the guy who saw the rose and the rose by any other name would smell as sweet....and
here’s to the girl in a little black dress dancing so sweet next to this
thing that has no feet.....in that great tradition, I’d like to intro...to
introduce to you.... my....cool it down,boys (laughs)....poem for Clarence (cheers)....C
is for cool....which only a foolish man would dispute.....L is for lean and
mean and (?)......A is for the ace of the saxophone (cheers)....R is ‘cause
he’s a regular guy even though he’s world re-known (cheers)....E
is for his everlasting love which I hold so dear (cheers)....N is for nasty...mess
with him and your face he will smear...C is for that C-note he’s owed
me since last year...and E is for everything else, you put that together and
what’s that spell ?....”
11.08.81 Detroit, MH, intro to ‘Jungleland’:
”I wanna thank....I wanna thank everybody for coming down to the show
tonight, thank you very much (cheers)....we appreciate it....and this is for
all you guys way up on the mountain there.....”
Compiled by : Johanna Pirttijärvi