The Working on a Dream Tour was officially launched last night in San Jose, CA. And unlike what we reported yesterday as a silly April Fools joke, the entire E Street Band was present in name and person. Moreover, the band has been expanded with singers Curtis King and Cindy Mizelle from the Seeger Sessions band, allegedly to great effect. The first night offered a generous 26-song setlist structured much like the second rehearsal show, but with "Growin' Up" played as a request and "Good Rockin' Tonight" working as a bridge between a rather somber section of the show and a more loose section.

The new album was of course also richly featured, although with six songs it did seem to be on the low end for the start of a new tour. Apart from that, Bruce relies on older material to shape the night. Only three songs were played from the three studio albums that preceded Working on a Dream. I personally find that a little sad. In return, it's nice to see Bruce dust off old gems like "Seeds", "The Ghost of Tom Joad" and "Johnny 99" and play them in very different versions from what we're used to. "The Ghost of Tom Joad" for instance is the hard-rocking version that was created for a guest spot by Tom Morello on the Magic Tour and then laid to rest. Now it's back in all its glory with Nils on shining lead guitar.

Another interesting detail of the new tour is that for the first time since The River Tour, "Born to Run" has left the encores and now works as the main set closer (it did the same thing for one show on the Born in the USA Tour, but on this tour it looks like it might be more permanent). Also, "Badlands" is back as the the show opener, which is not an unusual role for it historically, but which still seems like a nice change.

Altogether, most reports are praising the new show. Not just for the setlist, but for the energy and looseness, which seems to have picked right up from where the Magic Tour left off. The usual first-night quirks and jitters were almost completely absent.

As always when a new tour starts, it's time to remind you to check out our Stage section regularly and to share your own experiences with other fans whenever you've been to a show. The form you need to fill out can be found under the show in question.