I’ve Tried So Hard, So Hard In Every Way
By Erik Flannigan
The 2012-2013 Wrecking Ball tour marked the start of the current incarnation of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. It was the first without late, great founding members Danny Federici and Clarence Clemons, and the tour served in part as a eulogy to those fallen heroes.
The passing of Phantom Dan and the Big Man also triggered major changes on stage: Wrecking Ball featured an exponential expansion of the ESB, ushering in a horn section, backing singers, and a percussionist—a blueprint still in use when Springsteen returned to the road in 2023 and retained through the last concert in Milan this past July.
Given how many new musicians were involved, it's remarkable that the 2012-13 tour essayed 230 different songs over the course of 133 shows (per the still indispensable Brucebase), the most of any E Street tour ever. Seismic setlist changes were the norm, triggered by a continuation of the fan-sign-request movement that took hold on the Working on a Dream tour in 2009, and bolstered by Springsteen’s growing willingness to meet superfans where we/they are, embracing constant risk-taking and catalog deep dives.
There is no better example of this special Wrecking Ball tour dynamic than the second night in Turku.
Meet Nicholas Meerlaen.
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Meerlaen saw his first show in Belgium in 1993, and like many of us, one led to several and eventually he began following European tours. Beginning with the European leg of the Magic tour in 2008, Nicholas held up a sign request for “Wages Of Sin,” the haunting Born in the U.S.A. sessions outtake released on Tracks in 1998. The song was originally part of Springsteen’s home recordings from which Nebraska was born. The E Street Band recording of “Wages Of Sin” was cut at the Power Station in New York on May 10, 1982.
Two days shy of 31 years later, Nicholas held up his sign for the umpteenth time on night two at the HK Areena, and this time Springsteen responded. “I see Nicholas from Belgium over many, many years,” he said, “every place we go, because he is a very devoted fan.”
A similar scene to Turku had played out at Hyde Park in London a year prior, when a Spanish supporter got his long-standing sign request for “Take ‘Em as They Come” played, and Springsteen noted the dedication of fans traveling to see multiple shows. But unlike its occasionally performed River outtake counterpart, “Wages of Sin” had never appeared in concert until this night in Turku, when Springsteen acknowledged the request and performed a beautiful one-off rendition.
Knowing Nicholas was sure to be up front with his sign, Springsteen came prepared, having rehearsed the song at soundcheck earlier that day. The arrangement is strikingly refined, with superb work by Curt Ramm on trumpet and Max Weinberg playing with mallets instead of drumsticks.
Though he has yet to return to “Wages of Sin,” its sole live performance appeared on his official YouTube account after the tour wrapped up in 2014, with Springsteen nailing the description: “Here’s one of my best and least known songs, played only once and recorded at our show in Turku, Finland….Thanks Nicholas!” The act of giving one fan the song he longed to hear had triggered a reappreciation, as the artist realized just how inspired the suggestion had been.
The shoutout is reminiscent of Springsteen’s on-stage remarks in Buffalo after playing The River outtake “Restless Nights” for the only time at the request of Stevie Van Zandt in 2009: “Dammit, he might have been right all these years!”
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The adventurous spirit that brought “Wages of Sin” to Turku persists through much of this 27-song set. Springsteen opens with a solo take of “I’ll Work For Your Love,” an underplayed gem from Magic, while “Long Walk Home” kicks off the band portion, its position in the show more an invitation than a summation, as evidenced by what follows: a typically stirring “The Ties That Bind” followed by “Out in the Street.”
The Turku show offers an engaging mix of heavier fare (“Atlantic City,” “The River,” “Youngstown” and “Murder Incorporated”), joyful noise (“Blinded By the Light,” “Does This Bus Stop at 82nd St?”, “Open All Night”) and songs that skillfully blend the two (“Johnny 99,” “Death to My Hometown,” “Shackled and Drawn”).
Another super rarity pops up midshow in the horn-led “Ain’t Good Enough For You.” The track dates back to the earliest days of the sessions for Darkness on the Edge of Town and finally saw release on The Promise box set in 2010. Springsteen’s charming vocals carry the soulful rave-up, which has been performed just four times.
Later in the show, we’re granted a restrained but resonant take of “Racing in the Street”: Everett Bradley’s percussion as the outro begins adds a touch of “New York City Serenade” vibes, while Roy Bittan showcases moody tones in a version that stretches past ten minutes. “Born in the U.S.A.” leads a five-song encore, its synthesizer lines and ferocious drumming still gripping nearly 30 years down the road.
Night two in Turku will always be seen as the “Wages of Sin” show, and if not for the efforts of one dedicated fan, “one of my best and least known songs” would likely have remained unplayed forever. For your service representing all fans, Nicholas, we say dank je.
Incredibly, Nicolas might have topped his “Wages of Sin” moment in 2016 when he held up a sign asking to dance with Patti Scialfa. Not only did he wind up on stage, but he was handed a guitar to strum during “Dancing in the Dark.” It never hurts to ask.
THE E STREET BAND
Bruce Springsteen - Lead vocal, guitar, harmonica; Roy Bittan - Piano, keyboards, accordion; Nils Lofgren - Electric and acoustic guitars, backing vocal; Garry Tallent - Bass; Stevie Van Zandt - Electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin, backing vocal; Max Weinberg - Drums; Jake Clemons - Tenor saxophone, percussion, backing vocal; Charlie Giordano - Organ, keyboards, accordion; Soozie Tyrell - Violin, acoustic guitar, percussion, backing vocal; Everett Bradley - Percussion, backing vocal; Curtis King - Backing vocal, percussion; Cindy Mizelle - Backing vocal; Michelle Moore - Backing vocal; Barry Danielian - Trumpet; Clark Gayton - Trombone; Eddie Manion - Baritone and tenor saxophones; Curt Ramm - Trumpet
Production Credits
Recorded by John Cooper
Mixed and Mastered by Jon Altschiller; Additional engineering by Danielle Warman
Mix Advisor: Rob Lebret
Post Production by Brad Serling and Arya Jha
Art Design by Michelle Holme
Cover Photo by Jo Lopez
Tour Director: George Travis
Management: Jon Landau
File formats: HD files are 24 bit / 48 kHz; DSD files are DSD64
CDs will ship the week of December 22, 2025
