Another death on E Street

Over my years of loving/living rock and roll music, I've come across many fans whose devotion appears to most as totally off the charts. Those fans who seem to be at almost every show, know every word to ever song and even get acknowledgement from the artists themselves.

And then there was Bruce Springsteen fan # 1,  Obie Dziedzic. After discovering Springsteen with his band Child back in 1969, Obie would camp out, always being first in line. at venues up and down the eastern seaboard. When the band couldn't afford to eat, she fed them. Needed to get to a gig, to a family function, to court ... she drove them there. When stage clothes needed mending, Obie pulled out a needle and thread. When an overenthusiastic fan snuck backstage, Obie babysat them. If celebrities were showing up to see the band. Obie was in charge of traffic control. If someone was short rent money, Obie floated the loan.

For years, she did all the above for free. The only payment being free tickets; always front row center. Built into the band rider was a clause that had a pair of front row center tickets (slightly off-center actually so Obie was in-between Bruce and Steve) waiting for Obie at every show in the world. No matter where the show was, those tickets were there just in case Obie happened to be in whatever country the band was in. If Obie didn't show, production would grab the tickets from the box office 15 mins before show time and give them to someone who "appeared" worthy of such ducats. One promoter gave away the tickets once ... the ensuing bruhaha and talk of said bruhaha insured that it never happened again and never did.

When Springsteen switched to his current GA pit set up. All Obie had to do was show up and production carved out an area just for her and her + 1, front and center along with a word to the surrounded fans that "there is an imaginary line here. Cross it and crowd Obie and your day will take a negative turn quickly" I can't remember one time that anyone crowded Obie.

With the things she did, a case could be made that she was as important as anyone else in allowing Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band become the force of rock and roll nature that they become.

One would like to thing that Obie, Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici as somewhere tonight laughing and trading stories of the good old days.