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Working Class Dog, no, wait, that's Rick Springfield... Working Class hero warms up middle managers, yuppies at BJC . "This one goes out to the men and women who make this country what it is today, those tough, blue-collar workers," said rock icon and working man's hero Bruce Springsteen, who rocked the Bryce Jordan Center in University Park on Friday. "Specifically those four guys waaaaay up there in section ZZZ," he said pointing to the rafters. "I am one of you! You should have seen my seats at the Stones concert in 71, man!" Most of the audience laughed while checking their Blackberries. Springsteen performed on Friday for 14,996 upper-income fans and mid-level executives who could afford the tickets and the four guys who won tickets in a radio station contest. J. Finnemeyer Cooper, an executive vice president for Penn State, was one of those on-hand rocking to the hard-scrabble jams and odes to the common man that Springsteen made famous. Cooper said Springsteen's song speak to the grim determinism and realism that he's sure some people in the country must have experienced. "I remember cranking out 'Nebraska' when I was just a vice-president and the title executive vice-president seemed an eternity away," said Cooper. "My next Lexus will be hybrid. Solidarity third world!" While Springsteen cranked out his old standbys, like "Badlands" and "Born to Run," which had people singing alternative lyrics, "Born to run a Fortune 1000 Company," Springsteen also connected with the crowd. During one poignant moment, Springsteen ran a revival of sorts, absolving most middle managers of their sins. "I just want to let you know that I'm the Boss and I know you all have some tough decisions to make out there," Springsteen told the cheering crowd of CEOs, "I once laid off Clarence Clemmons and the rest of the E-Street band, outsourcing their jobs with a portable four-track recorder. The profit margin on 'Nebraska' was ridiculous, right?" "You are forgiven," Springsteen added, as the crowd went hysterical. Some female exectuives even flashed the Boss their 401K statements.
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