{"id":22399,"date":"2021-07-15T09:41:09","date_gmt":"2021-07-15T13:41:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=22399"},"modified":"2021-07-15T09:41:09","modified_gmt":"2021-07-15T13:41:09","slug":"the-boss-bruce-springsteen-returns-to-broadway-this-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=22399","title":{"rendered":"The Boss – Bruce Springsteen Returns To Broadway This Summer"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Photo by Rob Demartin<\/figcaption><\/figure>One of the greatest performers that has ever hit the stage and who never seems the disappoint is the one and only Bruce Springsteen. I said it before that he loves play in Ireland especially in one of Ireland\u2019s Slane Castle, County Meath and the GAA\u2019s super stadium Croke Park, Dublin as well as the exciting prospect of new material from the band and\u00a0Springsteen, there is a\u00a0tour\u00a0in the works and I am sure that Ireland will be part of it given that \u2018The Boss\u2019 has made no secret of his love for\u00a0Ireland. Since his first concert there at Slane Castle in June 1985,\u00a0Bruce Springsteen\u00a0has included\u00a0Ireland\u00a0in every one of his European tours. <\/p>\n

Now the news I have for you is that Bruce Springsteen will return to Broadway this summer for a limited run of\u00a0Springsteen on Broadway\u00a0performances at Jujamcyn\u2019s St. James Theatre<\/strong>.\u00a0Shows begin on Saturday June 26, with additional performances taking place through September 4. Tickets for\u00a0Springsteen on Broadway\u00a0will go on sale Thursday, June 10 at 12pm ET through the show\u2019s official ticketing provider Seat Geek. See a full list of performances and information on purchasing tickets\u00a0from Ticketmaster. <\/p>\n

\u201cI loved doing\u00a0Springsteen on Broadway\u00a0and I\u2019m thrilled to have been asked to reprise the show as part of the reopening of Broadway,\u201d said Bruce. Proceeds from Opening Night of\u00a0Springsteen on Broadway\u00a0at the St. James Theatre will be donated to a group of local New York and New Jersey charities including the Boys and Girls Club of Monmouth County, Broadway Cares\/Equity Fights Aids, Community FoodBank of New Jersey, Food Bank for New York City, Fulfill (Monmouth & Ocean Counties Foodbank), Long Island Cares, NJ Pandemic Relief Fund and The Actor\u2019s Fund. The creative team for\u00a0Springsteen on Broadway\u00a0includes Heather Wolensky (scenic design), Natasha Katz (lighting design) and Brian Ronan (sound design). Based on his worldwide best-selling autobiography\u00a0\u201cBorn to Run\u201d,\u00a0Springsteen on Broadway\u00a0is a unique evening with Bruce, his guitar, a piano, and his very personal stories. The show\u2019s original run included 236 sold-out performances at Jujamcyn\u2019s Walter Kerr Theatre, beginning in October 2017 and concluding in December 2018. Springsteen earned a Special Tony Award for the performances, which were later adapted into a film and a soundtrack album. Audience members will be required to provide proof of full COVID-19 vaccination in order to enter the theater. For more information, visit\u00a0jujamcyn.com\/springsteenFAQ<\/a>. <\/p>\n

I will definitely want to go to one of his shows on Broadway before he finishes in September.
\nNow for a full biography on \u201cThe Boss\u201d himself here we go. Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen\u00a0is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He has released twenty studio albums, many of which feature his backing band, the\u00a0E Street Band. Originally from the\u00a0Jersey Shore, he is one of the originators of the\u00a0heartland rock\u00a0style of music, combining mainstream rock musical style with narrative songs about working class American life. During a career that has spanned five decades, Springsteen has become known for his poetic, socially conscious lyrics and energetic stage performances, sometimes lasting up to four hours in length. He has been nicknamed \u201cThe Boss\u201d.<\/p>\n

While he received critical acclaim for first two albums,\u00a0\u201cGreetings from Asbury Park, N.J.\u201d\u00a0and\u00a0\u201cThe Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle\u201d\u00a0(both 1973), Springsteen failed to find a mainstream audience with his\u00a0Dylanesque\u00a0folk rock\u00a0style. Threatened to be dropped by his label unless sales improved, he changed up his style and reached worldwide popularity with his third album,\u00a0\u201cBorn to Run\u201d, released 1975. Legal battles with his management following the success of\u00a0\u201cBorn To Run\u201d\u00a0kept Springsteen out of the studio for three years; the 1978 follow up album\u00a0\u201cDarkness on the Edge of Town\u201d\u00a0features much darker lyrical themes, and has been assessed as one of the most critically lauded of his albums. The three year gap had given Springsteen enough time to write dozens of new songs, several of which were held over for his 1980 double album\u00a0\u201cThe River\u201d, which would be his first album to reach the top spot on the\u00a0Billboard\u00a0200\u00a0album chart. <\/p>\n

Changing gears in 1982, he released a solo album of demo recordings,\u00a0\u201cNebraska\u201d, without the E Street Band. Recorded over several sessions beginning in 1982 with the E Street Band,\u00a0\u201cBorn in the U.S.A.\u201d\u00a0(1984) is Springsteen\u2019s most commercially successful album, making him one of the most successful rock figures of the 1980s. It was certified\u00a015\u00a0\u00d7 platinum\u00a0in the US and has sold 30\u00a0million copies worldwide, making it one of the\u00a0best-selling albums of all time. Seven of its singles reached the top 10 of the\u00a0Billboard\u00a0Hot 100\u00a0including the\u00a0title track, which was a bitter commentary on the treatment of\u00a0Vietnam veterans\u00a0\u2014 some of whom were Springsteen\u2019s friends. Advocating for the rights of the common working-class man, the song made a huge political impact. <\/p>\n

Already well known for his live shows, a\u00a0box set\u00a0of live recordings,\u00a0\u201cLive 1975\u201385\u201d, was released in 1986. By the late 1980s, Springsteen had put the E Street Band on hiatus, and though individual members of the band were brought in to record some parts, he released his next three albums,\u00a0\u201cTunnel of Love\u201d\u00a0(1987),\u00a0\u201cHuman Touch\u201d\u00a0(1992), and\u00a0\u201cLucky Town\u201d\u00a0(1992) using mostly session musicians. He re-assembled the E Street Band to record four new tracks for his 1995\u00a0Greatest Hits\u00a0compilation, and then released the folk album\u00a0\u201cThe Ghost of Tom Joad\u201d, for which he won a\u00a0Grammy\u00a0for Best Contemporary Folk Album. <\/p>\n

\"\"The rest of the 1990s were mostly quiet, as Springsteen only released a five-song EP of new material,\u00a0\u201cBlood Brothers\u201d\u00a0(1996), which contained unreleased recordings from the brief 1995 reunion with the E Street Band. An outtakes collection was released as a boxed set in 1998,\u00a0\u201cTracks\u201d, and in 1999 in abridged form as the single album\u00a0\u201cTracks\u201d. Another reunion with the E Street Band occurred following the\u00a0September 11 attacks, with the album\u00a0\u201cThe Rising\u201d\u00a0serving as a tribute to the people who died in the attacks. It would be the first full-length album of new material by the group in 18 years. <\/p>\n

Springsteen released two more folk albums,\u00a0\u201cDevils & Dust\u201d\u00a0in 2005, and\u00a0\u201cWe Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions\u201d\u00a0in 2006, which won him another Grammy, this one for Best Traditional Folk Album. Two more albums with the full E Street Band followed:\u00a0\u201cMagic\u201d\u00a0(2007) and\u00a0\u201cWorking on a Dream\u201d\u00a0(2009). In 2010 he released\u00a0\u201cThe Promise\u201d, a collection of unused tracks from the\u00a0\u201cDarkness on the Edge of Town\u201d\u00a0sessions. His solo album\u00a0\u201cWrecking Ball\u201d\u00a0(2012) would be his biggest album in a decade, reaching the number on spot on the\u00a0Billboard\u00a0200 and the same level of success in numerous countries around the world,\u00a0Rolling Stone\u00a0named it their album of the year for 2012, and it produced three Grammy nominations. The follow-up album,\u00a0\u201cHigh Hopes\u201d\u00a0(2014) recorded with the E Street Band and guest musician\u00a0Tom Morello, also reached number 1 on the album charts. <\/p>\n

Delving into\u00a0country music\u00a0for the first time, he released the solo album\u00a0\u201cWestern Stars\u201d\u00a0in 2019, and amid the\u00a0COVID-19\u00a0pandemic released his most recent album in 2020,\u00a0\u201cLetter to You\u201d, recorded with the E Street Band.
\nSpringsteen has released a number of well-known songs that have been mainstays on mainstream rock and\u00a0classic rock\u00a0stations. Among these are \u201cBorn to Run\u201d (1975), \u201cThunder Road\u201d (1975), \u201cBadlands\u201d (1978), \u201cHungry Heart\u201d (1980), \u201cThe River\u201d (1980), \u201cAtlantic City\u201d (1982), \u201cDancing in the Dark\u201d (1984), \u201cI\u2019m on Fire\u201d (1984), \u201cGlory Days\u201d (1984), \u201cBrilliant Disguise\u201d (1987), \u201cHuman Touch\u201d (1992), \u201cStreets of Philadelphia\u201d (1994), \u201cThe Rising\u201d (2002), and \u201cWe Take Care of Our Own\u201d (2012).<\/p>\n

Among the\u00a0album era\u2019s prominent acts, Springsteen has sold more than 150 million records worldwide and more than 64\u00a0million albums in the United States, making him one of the\u00a0world\u2019s best-selling music artists. He has earned numerous awards for his work, including 20\u00a0Grammy Awards, two\u00a0Golden Globes, an\u00a0Academy Award, and a\u00a0Tony Award\u00a0(for\u00a0Springsteen on Broadway). Springsteen was inducted into both the\u00a0Songwriters Hall of Fame\u00a0and the\u00a0Rock and Roll Hall of Fame\u00a0in 1999, received the\u00a0Kennedy Center Honors\u00a0in 2009, was named\u00a0MusiCares\u00a0person of the year in 2013, and was awarded the\u00a0Presidential Medal of Freedom\u00a0by President\u00a0Barack Obama\u00a0in 2016. He is ranked 23rd on\u00a0Rolling Stone\u2019s\u00a0list of the\u00a0Greatest Artists of All Time. <\/p>\n

Springsteen was born at\u00a0Monmouth Medical Center, in\u00a0Long Branch, New Jersey, on September 23, 1949. He is of Dutch, Irish, and Italian descent. He spent his childhood in\u00a0Freehold, New Jersey, where he lived on\u00a0South Street. His father, Douglas Frederick \u2018Dutch\u2019 Springsteen (1924\u20131998), worked as a bus driver and held other jobs. Douglas Springsteen suffered from mental health problems throughout his life which worsened in his later years. Springsteen\u2019s mother, Adele Ann (n\u00e9e\u00a0Zerilli), was originally from the\u00a0Bay Ridge\u00a0neighborhood in\u00a0Brooklyn, worked as a legal secretary, and was the main breadwinner in Springsteen\u2019s family. Springsteen has two younger sisters named Virginia and\u00a0Pamela. The latter had a brief acting career, but left to pursue photography full time; she later took photos for his albums\u00a0\u201cHuman Touch\u201d,\u00a0\u201cLucky Town\u201d, and\u00a0\u201cThe Ghost of Tom Joad\u201d. <\/p>\n

Springsteen\u2019s Italian maternal grandfather was born in\u00a0Vico Equense. He emigrated through\u00a0Ellis Island, and could not read or write when he arrived. He eventually became a lawyer, and impressed the young Springsteen as being larger than life. The name Springsteen is\u00a0topographic\u00a0and of Dutch origin, literally translated as \u201cjumping stone\u201d but more generally a\u00a0stepping stone\u00a0used on unpaved streets or between two houses. The Springsteen\u2019s, originally from the province of\u00a0Groningen, were among the early Dutch families who settled in the colony of\u00a0New Netherland\u00a0in the 1600s.
\nRaised a\u00a0Catholic, Springsteen attended the St. Rose of Lima Catholic school in Freehold, where he was at odds with the nuns and rebelled against the strictures imposed upon him, even though some of his later music reflects a Catholic ethos and includes a few rock-influenced, traditional\u00a0Irish-Catholic\u00a0hymns. In a 2012 interview, he explained that it was his Catholic upbringing rather than political ideology that most influenced his music. He remarked that his faith had given him a \u201cvery active spiritual life\u201d but joked that this \u201cmade it very difficult sexually.\u201d He added, \u201cOnce a Catholic, always a Catholic.\u201d <\/p>\n

He grew up hearing fellow New Jersey singer\u00a0Frank Sinatra\u00a0on the radio and became interested in being a musician himself when, in 1956 and 1957, at the age of seven, he saw\u00a0Elvis Presley\u00a0on\u00a0\u201cThe Ed Sullivan Show\u201d. Soon after, his mother rented him a guitar from Mike Diehl\u2019s Music in Freehold for $6 a week, but it failed to provide him with the instant gratification he desired. <\/p>\n

In ninth grade, Springsteen began attending the public\u00a0Freehold High School, but did not fit in there either. Former teachers have said he was a \u201cloner who wanted nothing more than to play his guitar.\u201d He graduated in 1967, but felt so alienated that he skipped the ceremony. He briefly attended\u00a0Ocean County College, but dropped out.
\nCalled for\u00a0the draft\u00a0when he was 19, Springsteen failed the physical examination and avoided service in the\u00a0Vietnam War. He had suffered a concussion in a motorcycle accident when he was 17, and this, together with his \u201ccrazy\u201d behavior at induction, made him unacceptable for service. <\/p>\n

The Springsteen family moved to San Mateo, California, in 1969, but Bruce, 20, and his sister, Virginia, married and pregnant, stayed behind. <\/p>\n

\"\"In 1964, Springsteen saw the\u00a0Beatles\u2019 appearances on\u00a0The Ed Sullivan Show. Inspired, he bought his first guitar for $18.95 at the\u00a0Western Auto\u00a0Appliance Store. Thereafter, he started playing for audiences with a band called the Rogues at local venues such as the\u00a0Elks Lodge\u00a0in Freehold. In late 1964, Springsteen\u2019s mother took out a loan to buy him a $60 Kent guitar. Springsteen later memorialized this act in his song \u201cThe Wish\u201d. <\/p>\n

The following year, he went to the house of Tex and Marion Vinyard, who sponsored young bands in town. They helped him become the lead guitarist and subsequently one of the lead singers of the Castiles. The Castiles recorded two original songs at a public recording studio in\u00a0Brick Township\u00a0and played a variety of venues, including\u00a0Cafe Wha?\u00a0in\u00a0Greenwich Village. <\/p>\n

Marion Vinyard said that she believed the young Springsteen when he promised he would make it big. Ordinary life in New Jersey beach towns such as\u00a0Asbury Park\u00a0is the background to Springsteen\u2019s early lyrics.
\nIn the late 1960s, Springsteen performed briefly in a\u00a0power trio\u00a0known as Earth, playing in clubs in New Jersey, with one major show at the Hotel Diplomat in\u00a0New York City. From 1969 through early 1971, Springsteen performed with\u00a0Steel Mill\u00a0(originally called Child), which included\u00a0Danny Federici,\u00a0Vini Lopez,\u00a0Vinnie Roslin, and later\u00a0Steve Van Zandt\u00a0and\u00a0Robbin Thompson. During this time, he performed regularly at venues on the\u00a0Jersey Shore, in\u00a0Richmond, Virginia,\u00a0Nashville, Tennessee, and a set of gigs in\u00a0California, quickly gathering a cult following.\u00a0<\/p>\n

San Francisco Examiner, reviewing their show at\u00a0The Matrix, music critic Philip Elwood gave Springsteen credibility in his glowing assessment of Steel Mill: \u201cI have never been so overwhelmed by a totally unknown talent, … the first big thing that\u2019s happened to Asbury Park since the good ship\u00a0Morro Castle\u00a0burned to the waterline of that Jersey beach in \u201934.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Elwood went on to praise their \u201ccohesive musicality\u201d and, in particular, singled out Springsteen as \u201ca most impressive composer.\u201d In San Mateo, Steel Mill recorded three original Springsteen songs at\u00a0Pacific Recording. C<\/p>\n

Read part two of the story of \u201cThe Boss\u201d in next week\u2019s Irish Examiner USA<\/em><\/p>\n

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