MatR: Bruce Springsteen and Joe Ely: Settle for Love

Bruce Springsteen rolled into Dublin a few days before his 1993 concert to take in a show by, of all things, a Texas singer-songwriter he’d never met.

Although Bruce has long been a fan of southwestern rock, Joe Ely had more than that going for him. Ely’s rock roots run deep–if you listen to “Should I Stay or Should I Go” by The Clash, that’s Ely contributing the Spanish response to Joe Strummer’s chorus call.

In 1993, Ely was touring behind his new album Love and Danger, and Bruce was already a fan. Meeting Ely for the first time at the venue, the two singer-songwriters hit it off immediately and became instant friends. That night, Bruce made his first of many, many appearances over the years with Joe, and one of the songs they sang was Joe’s “Settle For Love.”

“Settle For Love” was the lead-off track from Joe’s 1988 album, Dig All Night, and it lifted Joe and his band to the height of their popularity.

Bruce liked the song so much that immediately after playing it with Joe’s band at Joe’s show that night, he invited Joe to join him on his own stage the very next night to play it again.

Bruce’s 1992-1993 World Tour was virtually over by that point–he had only a few shows left to play–but Bruce was enjoying performing with his new friend too much to wait for another tour. Instead, Bruce invited Joe to join him next month for a pair of benefit concerts back home, one at the Meadowlands, the other at Madison Square Garden.

That Meadowlands benefit show is now available as one of Bruce’s official archive releases (get it here). It’s largely remembered for the E Street Band’s almost-reunion (Clarence, Steve, Max, and Patti made guest appearances that night), but Joe Ely was there, too. And while Bruce and Joe’s performance of “Settle For Love” didn’t ignite the crowd the way the old-school classics would that immediately followed, Bruce did his best to encourage his fans to check out Joe’s music.

Three years later, Bruce was back in Dublin to play a solo acoustic show on his Ghost of Tom Joad Tour, and by a full-circle coincidence, Joe Ely was back in town, too. So once again, Bruce graced Joe’s stage, and once again, they played “Settle For Love.”

Bruce and Joe would go on to play together many more times over the years in both Texas and New Jersey (never again in Dublin), but that late winter night in 1996 was the last time they’d play “Settle For Love.”

Settle For Love
First performed: May 19, 1993 (Dublin, Ireland)
Last performed: March 17, 1996 (Dublin, Ireland)