'Big Man' was big sound in E Street

The death of saxophone player Clarence Clemons took away a figure who served Bruce Springsteen for decades and never failed to add joy to the E Street Band's epic performances.

Clemons died Saturday at age 69, about a week after he suffered a stroke at his home in Singer Island, Fla.

Clemons' loss cuts deeply into the band. His importance was acknowledged whenever Springsteen performed "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out," when he sang, "We made that change uptown and the Big Man joined the band," inevitably followed by a wail of Clemons' sax and a roar from the crowd.

Last fall's release of "The Promise," which included a DVD of a 1978 Springsteen concert performance, underscored the central role of Clemons in the act. The two men were a marked physical contrast: a bedraggled, slightly scrawny, white guitar player and a 6-foot-5-inch, 270-plus-pound black man with a sax - known as the Big Man - who would be intimidating if he didn't so often carry a smile.

They would play their instruments as they stood back to back, leaning on the other for support. They'd even kiss, their relationship sending a message of brotherhood, family and - given racial undertones - tolerance and respect for all.

Clemons was musically vital, too, given the structurally ambitious songs Springsteen was writing in the 1970s, a potent mixture of rock, soul, jazz and folk.

Clemons' sax kicked "Born to Run" into overdrive, and his solo was key in the majestic "Jungleland."

Clemons underwent spinal surgery last year after many years of back pain and spent time in a wheelchair after double knee replacement surgery. Springsteen made accommodations for the ailments, installing an elevator on the stage set for when Clemons couldn't negotiate the stairs, according to Caryn Rose and Glenn Radecki of the Springsteen website Backstreets. A thronelike golden chair was placed onstage for when Clemons needed his rest.

Clemons' death is unlikely to bring an end to the E Street Band, which Springsteen alluded to in a statement posted on his website announcing the death.

"We are honored and thankful to have known him and had the opportunity to stand beside him for nearly 40 years," he said. "He was my great friend, my partner and with Clarence at my side, my band and I were able to tell a story far deeper than those simply contained in our music. His life, his memory, and his love will live on in that story and in our band."