Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band at MSG: ‘The Promised Land’
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band perform ‘The Promised Land’ at Madison Square Garden on the first night of Metro NYC shows.
Asbury Park Press
Even Bruce Springsteen isn’t too big for a cameo.
The Boss joined musicians Zach Bryan and Caleb Followill of the Kings of Leon for a rendition of his 1982 classic “Atlantic City” at Bryan’s July 20 MetLife Stadium show in New Jersey.
The Kings of Leon and Jersey-based Rock band Front Bottoms were the openers for the concert, while Springsteen, 75, was a surprise guest, joining later for a quick-lick guitar solo on Bryan’s track “Revival” during the encore.
“Proud to call him my hero, one of the greatest songwriters to ever live,” Bryan said before introducing the legendary rocker. “If you guys will have him, this is Bruce Springsteen!”
The pair then moved on to play “Atlantic City,” a harmonica-heavy ballad off Springsteen’s 1982 album “Nebraska.” Followill, Bryan and Springsteen stood at side-by-side mics, passing the lyrics back and forth, before embracing at the end of the track as the crowd coo-ed “Bruuuucee!”
Bryan, 29, has followed in Springsteen’s singer-songwriter footsteps, often folding angst into his scratchy, smoker’s vocals and genre-bending music, which features a cocktail of folk, country and soul.
Springsteen joined Bryan on stage last year in Brooklyn and Philadelphia, lending old-school rocker legitimacy to an emerging act. The two also collaborated on the track “Sandpaper” off Bryan’s 2024 album, “The Great American Bar Scene.”
The July 20 show was the third for Bryan this weekend at MetLife, the first time a country artist played three nights in a single stand at the venue.
Springsteen is fresh off the release of a previously unheard cache of tracks from years passed. On “Tracks II: The Lost Albums,” the Boss treats fans to the musical roads not taken, with mystic, ranchera, and rock music blending on a masterful mix of some 83 songs.
Contributing: Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY
