Bruce Springsteen
performs sans the
E Street Band for his
first-ever Solo Acoustic
Theater Tour.

as that really Bruce
Springsteen, architect of
a myriad of rowdy,
marathon rock concerts,
asking his fans to sit down and be
quiet at the Rosemont Theatre in
Chicago?
Indeed it was. But, then again,
1995 was a year of surprises-- and
achievement — for the man fans
still call Br0000000ce.
He began it by charming the
music industry with an armful of
trophies at the Grammys for
"Streets of Philadelphia," then de-
lighted his faithful by reassem-

W

Detroit's Fox Theatre — is his first
solo acoustic outing, framing Tom
Joad's songs with reworked ver-
sions of such favorites as "Born in
the U.SA," 'Darkness on the Edge
of Town," "Adam Raised a Cain"
and "Spare Parts."
"It's differentfrom anything I've
ever done before," Springsteen
says. "I don't know what kind of
show we have. It's not quite a folk
show. It's something else. It has
a lot to do with cinema."
It has everything to do with the
new album, too. Springsteen says
he was working on another band-

bling his E Street Band for four
new songs on his Greatest Hits al-
bum and for a performance at the
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame open-
ing concert last September in
Cleveland.
But, just as the E Street reunion
rumor mill hit a boil, Springsteen
shifted gears and put out The
Ghost of Tom Joad, a stark,
acoustic-oriented album whose
bleak story songs describe a series
of characters, all ravaged in their
quest for the American Dream.
Springsteen's new tour — which
plays Wednesday and Thursday at

oriented rock 'n' roll
record at the time;
there was even a rock
arrangement of Tom
Joad's title track.
But it didn't feel
quite right until he
tried it in an acoustic
arrangement and, af-
ter that, he says,
everything clicked.
"I began to get into
that groove, kind of
film noir ," Spring-
steen says. "I said,
`That's the kind of
record I think I want
to make. I want to
make a record where
I don't have to play by
the rules. I won't
have any singles or
any of that kind of
stuff. I can make
whatever kind of mu-
sic I want to make.'
"I hadn't done that
in a real long time;
I guess I wanted to
see if I could do it
again. You don't real-
ly choose the voice
you follow; you sort of follow the
voice that's in your head; you're
lucky if you find it. And, once
you've found it, you're supposed
to listen to it."

— Gary Graff

ft Bruce Springsteen goes solo
for two shows at 8 p.m.
Wednesday and Thursday,
Jan. 10-11, at the Fox Theatre
in Detroit. Tickets are $30 and
are available by calling Tick-
etmagter at {810) 433-1515.

This Week's Best Bets

cr)

AAl

"Z' Fiber Show. Textile and fiber
= art, including wearables, pars-
es, jewelry, unique silk scarves,
"'
pillows and table fashions by na-
tional and area artists. Through
Jan. 6. 11-6 p.m. Tuesday - Sat-
urclay, •11 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday. An-
`,=,)
derson Gallery, located in the
rn Oakland Arts Building, 7 N. Sag
inaw, Pon.tiac, (810) 335-4611.

LU

Made in America: Ten Cen-

years of America's visual histo-
ry, through Jan. 7. Toledo Mu-
seum of Art. (800) 766-6048.

Painting With Fire: Pewabic
Vessels in the. Margaret Wat-
son Parker Collection. Pot-
tery, paintings and lithographs,
through Jan. 7. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Thesday - Saturday, 10 a.m.-9
p.m. Thursday, and noon-5 p.m,
Sunday. Admission is free. Uni-
versity of Michigan Museum of
Art, 525 S State St. (313) 764-
°395.

art by usan Ruth, illustrator of
children's books. Through Jan.
13. 10 a.na.-6 p.m. Tuesday -8at-
urday, 6-8:30 p.m. first Thurs-
day of each month. Elizabeth
Sthne Gallery, 536 North Wood-
ward Avenue, Birmingham.
(810) 647-7040.

Chimera: Lynda Benglis.
Benglis' ceramic forms seem to
pulsate, slither and writhe, ac-
tions indicative of the energetic,
creative process which made the
artist famous. Through Jan. 14,
1996. 1-5 p.m. Wednesdays --
Sundays, 10 a.m. 9 p.m. Thurs-

-

days. 'rickets: $4/adults, $21full-
time students. children, and se-
niors. Center and South
Galleries, Cranbrook Art Muse-
um 19,21 North Woodward Ave.,
Bloomfield Hills. (810) 645-3312.

Art To Wear: A Group Jew-
elry Exhibition. Seventeen
artists display their work, re-
defining the idea of jewelry as or-
nament. Through Jan. 20, 11
a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday - Saturday,
11 a.m.-9 p.m. Fridays. Ha-
batat/Shaw Gallery, 7 North
Saginaw, Pontiac. (810) 333-
1070.

,sler Designers: Other
C
Art Forms Angier perspective
of the Chrysleitorporation, in-
cluding painting, sculpting, jew-
elry, ceramics and drawings.
Runs from Jan. 12 - Jan. 27. 9:30
a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday - Satur-
day. Birmingham Bloomfield Art
Association, 1516 S. Cranbrook
Rd. . Birmingham, just north of
14 '1111. e. (810) 644-0866.

Art Works by Charles Ai-
mone. Willi panels on exhibit,
which are used as backdrops for
his puppet film, Flying High.
Through .Jan, 31. IP
m.
iit4 1: 461