New for 2024: Video and expanded entry for 1985 and 2014
1972: The Bruce Springsteen Band plays The Captain’s Garter in Neptune, New Jersey.
1973: Bruce and the band finish their five-night stint at The Quiet Knight in Chicago opening for the Persuasions.
1981: The original River Tour moves on to the Checkerdome in St. Louis.
1985: “Dancing in the Dark” wins the Best Single award at the American Music Awards ceremony in Los Angeles. He was also nominated (but did not win) for Favorite Pop/Rock Male Artist and Favorite Pop/Rock Male Video Artists. Later that night, Bruce records his vocals for “We are the World” at A&M Studios in Hollywood. He finishes at about 4am the next day. Guest blogger Clyde Kaplan was on the scene at the recording session; read his first-hand account here.
Meanwhile in Freehold, New Jersey, controversy reigns at a town council meeting after a local college student requests that South Street be renamed as Bruce Springsteen Boulevard. The story will garner national attention over the coming weeks.
1988: Bruce and the E Street Band rehearse for the upcoming Tunnel of Love Express Tour at the Expo Theater in Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. Eavesdrop on the complete rehearsal session, which includes Bruce’s only known live performance of “Protection” as well as “Valentine’s Day,” which despite being rehearsed would not debut in concert for another 17 years.
1996: Bruce ends the first leg of his solo acoustic tour at the Fox Theater in Atlanta.
2014: Night Two in Cape Town features fourteen tour premieres, including “Just Like Fire Would.” Bruce performs “We Shall Overcome” and “This Little Light of Mine” in memory of Pete Seeger, who died the day before. With a Seeger Tour arrangement of “Open All Night” thrown in, the show almost feels like a throwback to 2006. For more highlights, see my Where the Band Was report.
2018: Bruce’s audio book for Born to Run is nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album.
