Barrett Strong’s original 1959 recording of “Money (That’s What I Want)” ushered in the age of Motown as a cultural force. Peaking at #2 on the Billboard R&B chart and #23 on the Hot 100, “Money” was Motown’s first of many hit singles.
If the original recording below sounds a bit loose, that’s because it was: “Money” was the result of an improvisational recording session–so improvisational in fact, that the guitarist and bassist remained unknown for years, because they were high school amateurs who happened to be passing by the studio at the right time.
Just a few years later, of course, The Beatles would cover Strong’s hit single, bringing the song to an even wider audience.
The Beatles’ version is probably the one that first captured Bruce’s attention; his high school band The Castiles began covering it in 1965, barely a year after the song appeared on With the Beatles.
We know The Castiles covered it thanks to surviving set list documents, but unfortunately there are no surviving recordings. (It’s amazing that anything survives from the Castiles era at all. Who could have predicted Bruce’s rise to fame back then?)
In fact, even though Bruce has covered “Money (That’s What I Want)” at least a half-dozen times over the years, it’s maddeningly difficult to track down audio evidence of it, since none of those times were during an “official” concert, E Street or otherwise.
But we do have two vintage recordings of Bruce covering this R&B classic, both dating back to surprise Jersey shore club appearances in the 1980s.
The first was with Beaver Brown at the short-lived Big Man’s West in February 1982. The recording is muddy, but it’s clear enough to tell just how hot a performance it was on what must have been a very cold night:
The next time Bruce covered “Money” was more than five years later–this time at The Stone Pony in Asbury Park in the summer of 1987, during a rare full E Street Band appearance (almost, anyway–Nils wasn’t there that night) at the legendary club. This one’s a bit clearer:
Updated 1/7/2021: Bruce has played “Money (That’s What I Want)” a couple of times since, but you’d have had to be fortunate, connected or wealthy enough to attend the private benefit shows where he performed them, like this 2016 benefit for the U.S. Equestrian Team.
The rest of us will have to be content with these rare club recordings from the eighties.
Money (That’s What I Want)
First performed: February 20, 1982 (Red Bank, NJ)
Last performed: January 22, 2016 (Wellington, FL)
