New for 2023: Audio for 1974; review for 1975 and 1992; video for 2010
1972: Mike Appel arranges an unusual publicity event for Bruce and his band–at the chapel of the Ossining Correctional Facility (otherwise known as Sing Sing Prison), where Bruce’s grandfather had once served a three-year sentence. Bruce plays a set of covers that at one point even involves an inmate joining the band. That night, Bruce and the band drive back to New York City to play another two shows–this time at Kenny’s Castaways. Former Crawdaddy editor Greg Mitchell is in attendance at both venues; watch his account of that day below.
1973: Bruce and the E Street Band play three sets at Childe Harold in Washington DC–their second of three nights.
1974: Bruce and the band headline at the Geneva Theater in Geneva, New York. Listen to the incredible “It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City” (it includes a rap similar to the outtake version and the infamous “police siren” effect during the final instrumental), the 24-minute(!) “New York City Serenade,” and the work-in-progress “Jungleland.”
1975: Bruce and the E Street Band play their third and final night at Georgetown University.
1978: The Darkness Tour descends on the University of Texas at Austin, where Bruce debuts “Preacher’s Daughter” as part of the introduction to “She’s the One” (and screws up the lyrics to “Thunder Road”).
1984: Bruce and the E Street Band bring the Born in the U.S.A. Tour to the Leon County Civic Center in Tallahassee.
1987: Bruce pays tribute to Harry Chapin at Carnegie Hall when Chapin is posthumously awarded the Special Congressional Gold Medal. Bruce performs “Remember When the Music” for the occasion.
1990: Bruce records “Over the Rise” with Roy Bittan at Soundworks West in Los Angeles. It will remain unreleased for almost eight years.
1992: Bruce’s World Tour 1992 arrives in Philadelphia for a two-night stand at the Spectrum.
1997: Bruce salutes Bob Dylan at the annual Kennedy Center Honors, performing “The Times They Are A-Changin’.”
1998: Bruce flies to Potsdam to be interviewed and perform on German radio, where for the first time Bruce drops a tantalizing hint that catches the attention of fans worldwide.
2001: Bruce, The Max Weinberg 7 and a host of friends play their fourth of five holiday shows at Asbury Park’s Convention Hall in support of local charities. All of the week’s usual suspects are present: Patti, Soozie, Nils, Southside, Lisa Lowell, The Miami Horns, Bobby Bandiera–and tonight, Bruce Hornsby joins as well.
2003: Bruce, the Max Weinberg 7, and a host of friends hold their second of a three-pack of holiday shows at Asbury Park’s Convention Hall to benefit local charities. The stage is once again filled with a host of stellar musicians including Jesse Malin, Sam Moore, Willie Nile, and much of the E Street Band, plus Jon Bon Jovi .
2010: Bruce and the E Street Band gather at the Carousel House in Asbury Park, where a small crowd of sixty lucky fans witness the last E Street Band performance with Clarence Clemons. Bruce and the band are filming a special performance to promote the release of The Promise, and seven songs from that album are played live for the first time. The band is complemented by The Miami Horns and David Lindley on violin. For more highlights from this show, see today’s guest-blog by Marietta Phillips, who was at the show that night.
2014: Five years after Sting saluted Bruce at the Kennedy Center Honors, Bruce reciprocates by performing his cover of Sting’s “I Hung My Head.”
2017: Springsteen on Broadway continues its theatrical run at the Walter Kerr Theater in New York City. In attendance tonight: Jackson Browne.
2018: Springsteen on Broadway is in its home stretch of its theatrical run at the Walter Kerr Theater in New York City.