indigoblur Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 [url="http://www.amsaddler.com/CPOTD20120404.html"]Stop the Clarence Heads by AM Saddler[/url] [quote]Let's write a little bit about respect... For awhile now, I've steered away of having Clarence Clemons featured in The Photo of the Day. It's not because of a lack of great photos of the Big Man, heavens no...I have plenty and many of you have seen a few of them here and other places scattered about the internet. The reason I have gone down that path is because of respect. Respect to Bruce Springsteen and respect to the rest of the E Street Band. This is a new form of the E Street Band and, while they can never escape from the might big shadow that C had, they do deserve a bit of space to be who they are today. There is no doubt from recent interviews that the loss of Clarence, and Danny before him, effects the band in many ways and both of their departed brothers still hang out on stage in various ways. Now, I don't have a problem with fans remembering Clarence and even honoring him is some fashion. It is what fans do. I even kinda understood when I first spied large disembodied Clarence Clemons heads mounted on sticks at the first Wrecking Ball tour stop in Atlanta. There was only going to be one official first tour date after his death and the Phillips Center was the announced location. It wasn't something that I would have done but we all deal with things in our own way. I wasn't so kind in my thoughts the next evening in Greensboro, NC. I thought it would be a one-time-only sort of thing. There they were again and they were in the air in a much more aggressive fashion...held aloft for long periods of time and blocking the sight lines of other audience members who, literally, had to move to be able to see the stage. I even had some difficulty photographing the stage when those heads-on-a-stick were waving back and forth. Still it was something that I figured would pass in time while I was on the photo podium photographing the first three songs of the night. There is a certain exuberance at the beginning of a concert that often has people doing things that they wouldn't do otherwise. But, when Bruce was crowd surfing back to the stage during what has become known as The Apollo Medley, and the fans who had those heads-on-a-stick started stretching their arms in order to put those heads in Bruce's face and then proceeded to wack his body a few times with them, my thoughts passed from acceptance to what the fuck are they thinking? Let me ask this question to the people who have these sticks. If you had a close friend who passed away would you like to have people running amok with their head on a stick waving them around you at work and when they got close to you, wacked your body with that head? Would you think that is a respectful way of paying homage to your fallen brother? Or would you finally get annoyed? While scanning the internet recently, I've read quite a few things about these heads and the bodies that are controlling them. I may be annoyed but you will not see me calling for those people's head on a stick, a pike or any other head platter/carrier. I will ask them to think for a moment on how it might feel it it was being done to them. I suspect that if they continue, they will hear much worse from others and hope they hear the message before that happens. As I said, it's all about respect. [/quote] This is what we're talking about: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWP2N-xVqGA&feature=youtu.be"]Vid from Greensboro[/url] On Twitter #StopTheClarenceHeads Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Growin' Up Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 People really do this? Jesus wept.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepy Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 It's freaking creepy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcastle roy Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 [quote name='Sheepy' timestamp='1333562551' post='2127125'] It's freaking creepy. [/quote] I agree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudgeBrown Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 [quote name='Sheepy' timestamp='1333562551' post='2127125'] It's freaking creepy. [/quote] ...said the sheep in high heels... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wild billy wales Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 strange Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Final Destiny Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 These fricking things were in Tampa too, I think they might be showing up at every single tour date. They're really creepy. I understand wanting to pay tribute to Clarence, but having a picture of his head mounted on a goddamn stick so you can wave it in Bruce's face when he's crowd-surfing is just disrespectful. I sort of want to know how they're traveling to every tour date. Are there just people that have thousands of dollars to blow on traveling with Bruce and getting into the pit every time or what? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RocknRollSue Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 Count me in. This is foaming-at-the-mouth fandom. No sense or reason, just absolutely barking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrilliantDisguise Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 I think it's creepy too. Where are these heads coming from anyway? Is there a concession stand selling them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MagicRatAFC Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 Words fail me ...................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skin2Skin Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 It's creepy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RascalJoe Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 People never cease to amaze and shock me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misadventure Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 I have to agree that it's creepy at best. Sticking them in Bruce's face or whacking him with them actually seems aggressive--as though they're trying to imply that Bruce isn't aware that Clarence is gone, or isn't already acknowledging Clarence, when in fact the whole show is built around the loss of Clarence and Danny. Even a song like We Are Alive, a set piece in the tour, while not explicitly about C and Danny, calls them vividly to mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreatDane Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 Sick and creepy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pregnant Sally Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 Beyond creepy and sorta fucking rude. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark-w.uk Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 A big f*cking smiley face as well. Bad, bad taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wg19 Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 We'll be having none of that strange s**t in Europe thank you very much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Hit Kitchen Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 Seriously??? If I was Bruce I'd be a little weirded out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason1978 Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 I thankfully didn't see any in DC. And the whole huge head on a stick thing I believe recently started in college basketball. Some guy started bringing random blown up headshots of people on a stick to wave at opposing fans as they made their foul shots. ESPN had a little segment on the guy. I guess this crap has now carried over to concerts as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misadventure Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 [quote name='Jason1978' timestamp='1333571709' post='2127200'] I thankfully didn't see any in DC. And the whole huge head on a stick thing I believe recently started in college basketball. Some guy started bringing random blown up headshots of people on a stick to wave at opposing fans as they made their foul shots. ESPN had a little segment on the guy. I guess this crap has now carried over to concerts as well. [/quote] That's even weirder, because Clarence isn't anyone's opposition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anders Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 It has to stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aussiek Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 saw them in Atlanta and Greensboro. very creepy and disrespectful IMHO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wg19 Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 [quote name='Anders' timestamp='1333575436' post='2127220'] It has to stop. [/quote] Don't worry, as I said, we'll be havin none of that weirdness in Europe ! May will soon be here!! :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Down In Jungleland Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 Really disgusting. I don't understand how people can do this and not realize that it's wrong? How do people think this shows any kind of respect? Security shouldn't let people in with those heads! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trampof Hearts Posted April 4, 2012 Share Posted April 4, 2012 One word comes to me - macabre. To all the unthinking who are participating in this ridiculous exercise, you might want to remember that so much of Bruce's material is about the dignity of the human soul and spirit. There is no dignity in this disrepectful "tribute" to Clarence. He would have hated this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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