By Dave Miller

At some point, I lost track how many times I've seen Bruce Springsteen in concert. I know it's more than 70, dating back to the first show I saw in 1985 at Soldier Field. I mention this not to try to impress or out myself as an addict, but to put the next sentence in perspective. I've never seen him with as much energy as he exhibited in last week's show at The Palace of Auburn Hills in suburban Detroit.

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Springsteen, now 62, was a dynamo during a show that pushed past three hours with no intermission. He jumped up on the piano, slid across the stage on his knees and even crowd surfed. He played with soaring passion from start to finish, fully investing himself in the songs -- most of which were red-hot rockers. He even introduced himself, borrowing from the tradition of James Brown and the wink of recent Bob Dylan tours.

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"Good evening, Deeetrooooooooooit!" Springsteen said from the stage in the dark. "Are you ready for star time? I'd like to introduce right now a young man, he was born in the U.S.A. He drove here tonight in his pink Cadillac. He brought you such great hits as 'Born to Run,' 'Dancing in the Dark,' 'Working on a Dream.' He brings to the stage 45 years of playing experience and 30 years of psychiatric evaluation. The only man in rock and roll who insists on introducing himself. Let's hear it for the Jersey Devil, Bruce Springsteen and his legendary E Street Band!"

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With the wildly effective, tongue-in-cheek fun, the band kicked into "We Take Care of Our Own" and "Wrecking Ball," a potent, one-two punch from his new album, his strongest in more than two decades. It was a show featuring two themes, the artistic one of the album documenting the destruction of the American Dream, and a personal one of loss with the recent death of saxophonist Clarence Clemons.

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One of The Boss' first orders of business, though, was to acknowledge his screw-up the last time he was in town when he infamously announced, "Hello, Ohio!" He repeatedly mentioned Detroit early in the show. "That's right, I know where the fuck I am," Springsteen said, good-naturedly. Then he lifted a sign from the audience with a map and an an arrow: "Bruce, you are here...Detroit, Michigan."

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This was a show fit for the Motor City from the intro music of Martha and the Vandellas' "Dancing in the Street" to new songs "Wrecking Ball," "Death to My Hometown," "Jack of All Trades" and "Rocky Ground" to covers "Trapped" and what is referred to by Springsteen on his setlist as the Apollo Medley, The Temptations' Smokey Robinson-penned "The Way You Do The Things You Do" and Wilson Pickett's "634-5789 (Soulsville, U.S.A.)." The new songs received a strong reception. The "If I had me a gun/I'd find the bastards and shoot 'em on sight" line in "Jack of All Trades" was cheered. Unlike when the "I want an eye for an eye" line in "Empty Sky" elicited a similar reaction during the post-9/11 Rising tour, I found the cheers this time to be well-placed.

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Springsteen has addressed the loss of Clemons in an amazingly effective way. First, he didn't try to replace the irreplaceable. Instead he's sort of re-invented the band. A five-man horn section along with percussionist Everett Bradley has been added. Even with Patti Scalfia absent at this show ("She's at home making sure the kids stick to their own drug stash," Springsteen cracked), there were 15 musicians onstage for most of the night. Clemons' nephew, Jake, emerged from the horn section throughout the show to capably take the Big Man's solos. Early in the show during "My City of Ruins," two spotlights shone on Clemons' old spot on stage and the keyboard platform where the late Danny Federici used to give the band its carnival sound. At the end of a roll call, Springsteen asked repeatedly, 'Is anyone missing?" A tentative crowd responded louder each time. "If you're here and we're here, then they're here," Springsteen said.

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"Incident on 57th Street," the Holy Grail for many Springsteen fans, was played, but, for my money, "E Street Shuffle" was the highlight among the old nuggets, and it was particularly poignant placed right after the metaphor of "My City of Ruins." An airing of "American Skin (41 Shots)" was an obvious response to the killing of Trayvon Martin. Through the anger in the show, there was plenty of positive affirmation offered in songs such as "The Promised Land," "We Are Alive" and "Land of Hope and Dreams," and unadulterated joy, too, in "Waitin' on a Sunny Day," "Out in the Street" and "Dancing in the Dark."

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It's been more than a week since the show and I'm still dumbfounded by Springsteen's performance. I've never seen anyone pour such physical and emotional effort into a concert for so long, let alone someone who is in his 60s. The show tipped past three hours with no real break for an encore. The E Streeters took a bow after "Land of Hope and Dreams" and then headed right back to their positions to play more. The entire band was noticeably engaged throughout, seemingly re-dedicating itself in the wake of Clemons' death. Nils Lofgren and his guitar were particulary outstanding as was Max Weinberg's thunderous drumming.

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As great as Springsteen was, and an argument can be made that he's never been better as a live performer, Clemons' absence loomed large. Something big was definitely missing on the left side of the stage. By the end of the night, Springsteen stood on a small platform among the fans on the floor. A video tribute to Clemons played on the two modest screens flanking the top of the stage during a finale of "10th Avenue Freeze-out." The music stopped before the line, "And the Big Man joined the band," and Springsteen held up his mic. Fans cheered for well over a minute and Springsteen locked his attention on the screen. As the crowd roared, Springsteen continued watching the images of his blood brother, his eyes welling with tears.