Bruce Springsteen has had a busy year so far.  With his new album, "Workin' on a Dream," and a Super Bowl appearance already under his belt, the Boss has embarked on a
huge world tour that began on April 1 in San Jose, Calif.

 Though
some may have snickered and chuckled over his playing at the LA Sports Arena
(by far and away the worst venue I've ever been to); the Boss played two of his
strongest gigs yet on Wednesday and Thursday.

The
Boss has had some of his most memorable shows outside of New Jersey at the
Sports Arena.  From the Vietnam
Veterans Awareness Concert in 1981 to his famed Halloween shows during the late
1980s, the Sports Arena has long been one of Springsteen's favorite venues.

From
kicking off Wednesday night's show with "Badlands," to concluding Thursday with
the sing-along "Badlands," the Boss proved, yet again, why he and the E Street
Band are still one of the top touring acts in the world. 

 It's
pretty tough for any band to play for two hours and 45 minutes, but the
feat is even more impressive when you consider that Springsteen and company are
pushing 60 years old.   The
Boss transformed the dumpy LA Sports Arena into his own Asbury Park bar.  Over the two nights, the Boss referred
to the venue as the "house that rock built" and "the joint that don't
disappoint." 

 He
certainly didn't disappoint to say the least. yes">  Most of the set lists were composed of songs from his new
record, "Workin on a Dream" and one his seminal albums, "Darkness on the Edge
of Town."

 Of
course, no Springsteen concert is complete without him taking request signs
from the crowd.  This led to some
of the best moments of the night. 
On Wednesday, the requests that he played was "Spirit in the Night," and
Thursday included a cover of "Proud Mary," and the seminal Springsteen classic
"Growin Up."  During "Growin Up"
the crowd was singing along to one of his first songs, and there wasn't a
single person in his or her seat during this touching moment.  The best part of the song was when the
Boss had a young boy sing the chorus to the song with him.  This is something that that kid will
never forget for the rest of his life.

 There
were a few surprise guests that the audience was treated to.  Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom
Morello joined the band on "The Ghost of Tom Joad," which Rage covered during
its heyday, and "Hard Times," a Stephen Foster song that was written in 1855.

 On
the second night, Mike Ness of the pioneering punk band Social Distortion,
joined the E Street Band for an intense cover of Social D's "Bad Luck," which
was absolutely killer and Springsteen's own, "The Rising."  According to his website
(brucespringsteen.net) these shows the best of the tour to this point.

 These
shows were my third and fourth time respectively seeing the Boss.  And like a fine wine, the Boss only
gets better with age.