If Clemons will be remembered by a single musical moment, it will likely by his solo on Born To Run’s closing number, “Jungleland,” a masterstroke so epic, emotional, and lengthy that it has its own Facebook page. Painstakingly worked out and pieced together by Clemons and Springsteen, the solo is the purely musical expression of Springsteen’s lyrical themes on the album—the need to leave home, the struggle to break the bonds both real and imagined that keep you there, the sense that there’s something bigger and better on the horizon, and the fear that you’ll never get there. While Springsteen talks a lot about escaping his circumstances on Born To Run, he needed Clemons' soaring musicianship in order to finally break through into another plane.
Clemons said that fans often told him that this solo had saved their lives; as corny or flat-out crazy as that might sound, Clemons played that solo every night like it was true. And it will keep on being true even now that he’s gone, so long as people keep turning to “Jungleland” like it’s their only friend in the world.
Starts at 4:40. RIP Clarence.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N9LMiqy3hfI
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