New for 2023: Review for 2006 and 2010; new entry for 2022
1972: Bruce and the as-year-unnamed E Street band open for Crazy Horse at York College of Pennsylvania.
1973: Bruce and his still unnamed band play an opening set for Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express at Trenton State College, after original headliner David Bromberg cancels after learning he’d be following Bruce.
1975: Bruce’s second-ever show in Florida is under-attended when the Born to Run Tour makes a stop in Miami. The show starts late due to (reportedly) a piano issue, but a local gossip column suggests a different reason.
1980: The original River Tour stops at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, where Bruce plays a rare acoustic arrangement of “The Price You Pay.”
1984: Denver fans get a rare performance of “Stolen Car” when Bruce and the E Street Band bring the Born in the U.S.A. Tour to the McNichols Sports Arena.
1992: MTV debuts a special Rockumentary devoted to Bruce’s life and work.
2003: Today sees the release of The Essential Bruce Springsteen, a two-disc update of sorts to Greatest Hits. It’s the third bonus disc that excites fans, however–it contains a trove of unreleased outtakes, live cuts, soundtrack singles, etc.
2005: Bruce plays a special Veteran’s Day setlist at his Devils & Dust solo acoustic show at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, opening the show with “Born in the U.S.A.” and tour premiering “The Wall” (in its first “regular” concert performance). To close the main set, Bruce broke with tour tradition, replacing “Matamoras Banks” with “Across the Border,” on which he is joined by Bruce Hornsby.
2006: Just four days after the Democrats recaptured Congress in the midterm U.S. elections, Bruce debuts a cautionary new song. It won’t be released until the following year, and it will be shortened and dramatically rearranged by then. That makes this one-off performance and world debut particularly special. Take a moment to watch this unique version of “Long Walk Home” from his Seeger Sessions show at Wembley Arena in London. This show is available for purchase as part of Bruce’s official archive series–get it here.
2007: The Magic Tour stops in Washington DC for the first of two nights at the Verizon Center, where Bruce tour premieres “Growin’ Up,” and Frank Bruno makes a guest appearance on the show-closing “American Land.”
2010: Bruce makes a guest appearance on “Mustang Sally” with Timepiece (Patti’s brother’s band) at Woody’s Roadside Tavern in Farmingdale, New Jersey.
2012: The Wrecking Ball Tour arrives in St. Paul for a two-night stand at the Xcel Energy Center. At this first show, Bruce and the E Street Band debut “Savin’ Up” and tour premiere a full-band arrangement of “Long Walk Home.”
2014: Bruce performs at a special Veteran’s Day concert at the National Mall in Washington, DC, playing three acoustic songs solo and joining Dave Grohl and the Zac Brown Band on “Fortunate Son.”
2017: Springsteen on Broadway continues its theatrical run at the Walter Kerr Theater in New York City.
2022: Bruce releases his twenty-first studio album, Only the Strong Survive, and appears on Virgin Radio Italy to promote it.
