The Big Man

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On Saturday we loaded up the car to head to the Susan G. Komen breast cancer walk. Since I was driving and gas costs $4 a gallon, I decided that I get to choose the music.

All together now...what did we listen to?

Yeah, Bruce.

My niece and my kids weren't thrilled. My buddy Pops was certainly happy.

The second song that we heard was Jungleland and when Clarence did the long sax solo I cranked up the volume and taunted the kids.

"Listen! Talent! There's no law saying that you can't make a song without talent."

I enjoyed the hell out of the solo as I'd done thousands of times. I marveled at the length of the solo, and I even mentioned that I never heard Clarence miss even a single note.

"Turn it down! He's older than dirt!" my niece said.

When I heard the news this morning I was instantly sad.

Clarence suffered a massive stroke.

The news sounded horrible. As I write this there are encouraging reports as the Big Man is responding, but it's not just a man in a band I like.

Honestly, I can't put my finger on why it hits so hard.

Perhaps its because I stood in the same room with the "King of the World", the "Master of the Universe", the "You Wanna' Be Like Him But You Can't," sax player over 25 times and was amazed at his effort.

Maybe it's because I was 11 when I bought my first Bruce record, and 17 when I first saw the band and that I now feel every bit of 46, and I am really wondering where all the time went.

It might be that I wanted to see the band all together, without Federici, of course (who died a few years ago) one more time. (Or 20 more times!).

I think of my college roommates, my brothers and sisters, my wife...and even all the people I've annoyed with Bruce blasting as loud as it can go...and I know that I'm really going to miss it.

I'm really going to miss seeing the Big Man, and waving to him from my seat.

I will still be able to listen to the music, of course, but I will tell you one thing for sure.

I'm sick of missing things.

Really freaking sick of it.

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