Born to Run

Culinary and hospitality entrepreneur Judi Gallagher has long held one item on her life to-do list in high regard: To follow Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band on tour.

Which means these are Gallagher's glory days.

She will attend 13 Springsteen concerts, from Tampa to Chicago to Boston, in a journey that goes from March to September. She also plans to attend shows in New Jersey — the promised land for Springsteen concert devotees.

Gallagher is mixing in her concerts with some family vacations and some work. Her day job is running a restaurant and hospitality marketing and public relations firm, Sarasota-based Judi Gallagher & Associates. Clients include Fleming's, Carmel Cafe and Beach Bistro on Anna Maria Island.
“I've always had a dream to take a summer off and follow (Springsteen) around,” says Gallagher, who is also the culinary director for ABC 7 Sarasota, where she hosts a daily cooking segment. “This is the most responsible adult thing I can do.”

Adds Gallagher: “You can see 1,000 concerts, but there's nothing like a Bruce Springsteen concert. The energy and the way he relates to the audience is mind-blowing.”

Gallagher has been to nearly 40 Springsteen shows over the last 30 years. Some of her favorites include a Tampa concert in 2009, and a show at FedEx Field in Washington, D.C., in 2003. The Tampa show was memorable for Gallagher because Springsteen ended a long encore with her favorite song, “Thunder Road.” The D.C. show was Sept. 13, 2003, the day after Johnny Cash died. Springsteen played an acoustic version of Cash's “I Walk the Line” to open the concert.

Gallagher recently sat down with the Business Review to discuss all things Springsteen. Here are edited excerpts of the conversation:

Growin' Up
Gallagher was born in Boston. Her older brother introduced her to Springsteen's music in 1976, when she was in high school. Gallagher listened to other music of the '70s, mostly on eight-track tapes, from James Taylor and Earth Wind & Fire to Eric Clapton and Loggins and Messina. But Springsteen and the E Street Band stuck. Says Gallagher: “There was something about Springsteen and the way he played rock 'n' roll with such a clear message.”

Reason to Believe
Gallagher says her relationship with her father was rocky at times when she was a teenager. That's also a hallmark of several Springsteen songs. Springsteen often, and famously, talked about his relationship with his father at concerts in the late 1970s. “My way of getting through it was to put on Springsteen,” says Gallagher. “It helped me block things out.”

Spirit in the Night
Gallagher attended her first Springsteen concert in 1978. The concerts of that tour, mostly in small theaters and halls, were some of the first where Springsteen built a cult following. “There was nothing like a Springsteen show back then,” Gallagher says. “He got in your soul and stayed there.”

The Promise
Springsteen's poignant lyrics, says Gallagher, is what draws her to concerts, and to listen to him around the house and in the car. One of her favorite songs is “Thunder Road,” a 1975 tune about escaping life and chasing love. Other favorites include “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight),” “Waitin' On a Sunny Day” and “This Depression.” Gallagher says Springsteen is at his best when he motivates through music. “He reminds you that you can do a little bit more,” says Gallagher. “You can do better.”

Lucky Town
Gallagher lived in Cambridge, Mass., during the 1998-1999 reunion tour, when Springsteen reconnected with the E Street Band for the first time in 15 years. On a whim, Gallagher and her husband, Paul, also a Springsteen fan, drove five hours one night to the Meadowlands in New Jersey.
They bought tickets from a scalper, in the upper rafters of the stadium. The show was about to start when the Man in Black — a Springsteen staffer who famously gives concertgoers in the cheap seats front row passes — spotted the Gallaghers. He gave the couple front row seats. Says Gallagher: “We just stood there and rocked for three hours.”

Living Proof
Like many Springsteen fans, Gallagher promoted her passion with her children when they were young. One son attended his first Springsteen concert in 1995, when he was 9 years old. Another son bellowed out the first two lines to “Hungry Heart,” an early 1980s Springsteen hit, at a kindergarten sing-a-song day.

The education paid off: At a joint birthday party for Gallagher and her husband two years ago, all the guests were given the words to “Thunder Road” for a sing-along. “Needless to say our sons didn't need the lyric sheet,” says Gallagher. “We were so proud.”

Out in the Street
Gallagher combines her other passion, cooking, with Springsteen concerts. She will tailgate before shows, and she tries to tie in a gastronomic theme. In New Jersey, for example, that means either diner food or Jersey Shore-style, like sausage and peppers, and of course, cannolis. “Food has become a big thing for us at shows,” Gallagher says. “We always bring enough for 20 people.”