"The Ties That Bind": A Get Well Playlist for Clarence Clemons

Growing up in the Garden State in the Age of Bruce, Clarence Clemons struck me as the coolest of the cool -- the guy who the Boss himself called The Big Man. Through watching Clarence, I learned about a lot about the saxophone, along with some formative lessons about charisma, musical chemistry and soul. I never met Clarence until years later when I was covering the first Ringo Starr and the All-Starrs tour for Rolling Stone, and right away it became clear to me that the Big Man had a very big heart. As I write these words, I'm sitting in Ibiza, Spain looking at a rather non-Jersey shore, but when I heard about Clarence having a stroke, I wanted to write a get-well playlist. Here's hoping that the Big Man gets better soon and that we all get to hear this musical force of nature make that big, beautiful, heartfelt sound for many years to come. He is, and always will be, the Big Man to me and to millions of others - in Jersey, in Ibiza and beyond.

As always please add your own songs for the Big Man.

THE TIES THAT BIND - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
BLINDED BY THE LIGHT - Bruce Springsteen
SPIRITS IN THE NIGHT - Bruce Springsteen
THE E STREET SHUFFLE - Bruce Springsteen
KITTY'S BACK - Bruce Springsteen
ROSALITA - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
BORN TO RUN - Bruce Springsteen
TENTH AVENUE FREEZE-OUT - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
FREEWAY OF LOVE - Aretha Franklin
EDGE OF GLORY - Lady Gaga
THUNDER ROAD - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
JUNGLELAND - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
BOBBY JEAN -- Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
DANCING IN THE DARK - Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band
YOU'RE A FRIEND OF MINE - Clarence Clemons with Jackson Browne