Bruce Springsteen and most of his E Street Band are a bit heavier in the jowl -- aren't we all? -- but you'd never know it from the band's two-hour-plus show -- which started an hour after the start time on the tickets -- at the Bradley Center Monday night.

It was St. Patrick's Day and Downtown was alive with crowds dressed in green. And inside the BC, Springsteen and company were red hot, opening with the anthemic "No Surrender," from "Born in the USA," and barely pausing to speak. Rather, as the final note from one tune chimed, Springsteen typically shouted out the count-in to the next number.

Tunes like "Radio Nowhere," the title track, "Last to Die" and "Livin' in the Future," among others, represented last year's "Magic" and were testaments to the way the latest disc fits comfortably into the classic E Street Band oeuvre -- much more so than, say "The Rising" -- but Springsteen knows his devoted crowd -- which did not fill the Bradley Center last night -- wants to hear its favorites alongside some deep cuts and he obliged.

The result was a jukebox history from "It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City" to tracks from "Magic." In between, there were some expected tunes, like "Badlands" and "Prove It All Night" from 1978's "Darkness on the Edge of Town," and some less obvious choices, like the slow, simmering, explosive "Streets of Fire," from the same disc, and "She's the One," from its predecessor, "Born to Run."

Clad in trademark jeans and black shirt with rolled-up sleeves, the Boss played "The Rising" and "Lonesome Day" from "The Rising," and did a long, bluesy version of "Reason to Believe." The crowd especially cheered "My Hometown," "The Promised Land" and "Cadillac Ranch."

Springsteen did pause to note that his wife Patti Scialfa was home with the kids and sent her regards and that ailing keyboardist Danny Federici appreciated the kind words of fans and hoped to join this tour at some point. But otherwise, he had little to say that he couldn't get across with his blonde Telecaster.

While the spryness of Springsteen and guitarist Little Steven Van Zandt -- who are approaching 60 -- is perhaps amazing, it's sad not seeing Federici onstage with his comrades and also to see a faded Clarence Clemons who, aside from a couple blistering sax solos, spent much of the night sitting down ever so gently shaking tambourines.

For his encore, Springsteen saved the beloved "Born to Run," "Jungleland," the hard-hitting "Ramrod" and his nod to the calendar, "American Land," an Irish jig.

An arena show never fails to remind me why I love rock and roll in clubs and theaters. When a music fan can't see the band's facial expressions or the chords they're playing without the aid of huge screens, there's a disconnect and it can feel more like watching a really big screen TV than being at a rock and roll gig.

If anyone can short-circuit that disconnect, it's Springsteen, but for all his hard work, passion and talent, I don't think an arena does him justice. But since he's long outgrown more intimate venues, it's a moot point.

Here's last night's set list:

No Surrender
Radio Nowhere
Lonesome Day
Streets Of Fire
Gypsy Biker
Magic
Reason To Believe
It's Hard To Be A Saint In The City
Prove It All Night
She's The One
Livin' In The Future
The Promised Land
Cadillac Ranch
My Hometown
Devil's Arcade
The Rising
Last To Die
Long Walk Home
Badlands

Encore:
Loose Ends
Meeting Across The River
Jungleland
Born To Run
Ramrod
American Land