In most Jewish synagogues, the rabbi is the spiritual leader of the congregation. He sets the tone, the message, and is responsible for being a teacher to the congregation. The cantor, or hazzan (cooler word) leads the congregation in prayers, typically by singing and through music.
For the better part of the last 19 years, Bruce Springsteen has been my rabbi and Clarence Clemons has been my cantor. Stay with me...I will explain.
The E Street Band is definitely a band where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts. They play together, even though guys can stand out during certain songs or certain solos, and are truly in sync with each other and with Bruce. They are a well oiled machine able to pull out songs that they haven't played in years (or ever) without rehearsal or even notice. As much of a unit as the band was (or still is), Clarence Clemons always stood out.
When Clarence stepped forward to play a solo or even a quick riff, the entire arena would cheer. He made it look effortless. The notes would just ooze out of his sax and wash over crowd. While his body was failing him and he may have hit a few bad notes over the last few years (or more than a few), he always looked like he was having as much fun as anyone in the arena, except for maybe Bruce. Even as his role as the main on stage foil faded because he couldn't move, the fans still went wild for the solos.
I have a pretty great life, but everyone has good days and bad days. When having a bad day, there's nothing like the redemptive spirit of rock n roll and when having a good day, it can take you higher and higher. There's really nothing like a live rock concert to lift your spirits and for me, my redemption comes charging through the strongest when the E Street Band takes the stage.
Bruce is my rabbi with or without The Band, but everyone knows that the E Street Band has a power like none other to take it to another level and take the crowd with them. As I said earlier, musically, Clarence stood out. He always has, for MANY reasons. But the ones I am talking about relate to the power of his sax and his presence. The power of those solos as they washed over me these last 19 years, lifted me up when I needed it and took me higher when I didn't. As we have read and heard over the last two weeks, Clarence was a lot of things to a lot of people. I knew when I posted my earlier blog post that I hadn't captured the essence of what I was trying to say. It's really very simple.
Clarence led my congregation in music and he is irreplaceable in that role. He helped my rabbi deliver his message, set his tone, and tell his story. Someone (or several someones more likely) will take his place when Bruce reconvenes the E Street Band again. Someone will play those solos, probably even Jungleland. But it won't be the same. I just hope it's close. There's really nothing like it.
Rest in Peace Big Man.
JN
No comments:
Post a Comment