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photo by Mark Krajnak for Letters To You January 21, 2026 With all the current distractions of life in New Jersey, USA circa 2026 - from inclement weather, to omnipresent electronic-device-addiction, to the dramatic and at times horrifying events transpiring around the country – it seemed like it was going to be pretty hard to focus in on what was going on onstage at the various venues of Light of Day WinterFest 2026, "the Main Event" of which, "Bob [Benjamin]'s Birthday Bash," took place this past Saturday night at Red Bank, NJ's Count Basie Center for the Arts. But if it was diversion and respite you needed, the annual fundraiser to fight Parkinson’s, ALS, and PSP could not have been more well-timed. For those who still believe that rock and roll can save your life, this was particularly true. photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You And fortunately, Light of Day Board Member – and MC with 100 jackets – Remember Jones was once again in the house. Unfortunately, he did not appear with the typical full-band extravaganza for which he is known, but was instead backed by the stellar roots rock keyboard of Bobby Lynch (Asbury Jukes, etc.), whose prodigious talent and showmanship was the perfect accompaniment to the effervescent Jones. The show, originally slated for 6;30, began somewhat unexpectedly at 6:10, with the lights suddenly going out and Jones announcing his presence via a rousing cover of Elton John’s “The Bitch is Back.” (Incidentally, it's worth noting that Jones also graciously acknowledged his fellow WinterFest 2026 MCs for other key events throughout the extended weekend: the three New Jersey-based radio greats Tom Cunningham , Jeff Raspe , and Rich Russo .) photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You The usual LOD show structure – full band performances interspersed with brief acoustic sets – began in earnest with the full-band version of Asbury Park's Williams Honor , and many other event stalwarts rounding out the evening’s lineup. This year’s standouts included a lovely, vulnerable and endearing acoustic duet by Matt and Eryn O’Ree on “He Loves Me Anyway,” and yet another high energy set by the great Willie Nile . photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You Nile is just off a record release in mid-2025, and performed a pair of new songs, including the rousing “We Are We Are,” just the sort of get-off-your-butts-and-into-the-street anthem that audiences have come to expect from the veteran New York roots rocker, ably powered by the punk energy of bassist Johnny Pisano . Nile seemed in a bit of a rush to bring out “some friends” – who turned out to be James Maddock and Some Guy Named Bruce – for “One Guitar,” and turned in the expected rabble-rousing performance, but with a catalog like Nile’s, it’s a shame that some room could not have been found in the schedule for a couple more songs. His material in particular seems particularly well-suited to the anxious national mood. (Nile's onstage guests also included Jill Hennessy on backing vocals. At another point in the evening, Hennessy delivered a pointed solo-acoustic version of Springsteen's "No Surrender.") photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You Keyboards were in full effect in this year’s iteration of LOD, what with Bobby Lynch’s hip-shaking Little Richard mini-set with Remember Jones, Jeff Kazee (Asbury Jukes, etc.) backing both Nile as well as Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers later on, and the mad piano intensity that is Low Cut Connie ’s Adam Weiner. Weiner, who was introduced by Jones as a person of high integrity, “the first person to cancel at the Kennedy Center” last year, bounded onto the stage hollering, “Do we have any tough cookies in the house tonight?”, an allusion to his COVID-era Tough Cookies  home broadcasts. “You are from Jersey,” he continued, “you have to be tough.” He then launched into “Death & Destruction” from the 2018 release Dirty Pictures (Part 2) . The song opens with the immortal lines “Everybody’s acting like an asshole/The lunatics are messin’ with the vibe.” Hard to argue with that statement. “But cookies are sweet as well,”  Weiner continued before blasting into the manic “Revolution Rock and Roll.”  It was a bravura performance, but he never really found his groove with the audience, due to the brevity of the set. (Most of the evening’s sets seemed more abbreviated than usual and most of the evening felt rushed, which was too bad, given the caliber of many performers.) photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You Also memorable was John Rzeznik , who turned in another heartfelt acoustic set, immediately following Light of Day Executive Director/Co-Founder Tony Pallagrosi's passionate statement of the organization's long-standing commitment to its cause. Rzeznik's set featured material dealing with his struggles to get sober, including “Sympathy” and “Bitter Pill.” Rzeznik drew a respectable number of fans to the event, too, and sprinkled some self-deprecating humor throughout his set. Anticipating what was to come later in the evening, he offered, “I’m not rich enough to alienate half my audience, so I’m not going to get political.” photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You As per usual, the night was closed out by Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers, this time with special guest Gary "U.S." Bonds . But by then, everyone knew that there was another “special guest,” and folks leapt to their feet as the unmistakable backbeat of “New Orleans” rang from the rafters and Bruce Springsteen took the stage with Bonds. photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You “Bonds is motherfuckin’ 86!,” Bruce shouted with a grin, embracing his old friend. Older fans have been waiting years for a repeat performance of the legendary Bonds/Bruce jams of the early/mid’80s, and this one did not disappoint; the mini-set featured a spirited vocal duet on “Jole Blon” and “This Little Girl,” the infectious single from the first of a pair of album collaborations between the innovative 1960s roots rocker and the E Street posse. photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You With the departure of Bonds, the set fell into some fairly typical song selections from past LOD shows, with the topic of this year’s de rigueur preacher rant by Springsteen repeating his assertion from last year that he is "definitely not a billionaire!” “I heard they were doing this list of billionaires, and they listed Beyonce,” he began, pacing the stage. “They kept going, and came to me. Now, I want to make it clear, I have partners .” Prowling back and forth at the lip of the stage, he continued, “but what really matters is what’s in your love account.” This, of course, was his patented LOD intro to another 1980s-era R&B chestnut, “Savin’ Up,” written by Springsteen for Clarence Clemons and his Red Bank Rockers, and still a relative rarity. Other highlights included 1992’s “Lucky Town,” somewhat inexplicably introduced by Bruce as a “deep cut” but always a welcome addition to the setlist. But the real surprise of the night was what happened next. It was apparent something was afoot, as he walked over and said something to Grushecky, who nodded. Springsteen then walked back to the center mic. Clearly reading from a teleprompter, he launched into a pointed speech about the current political situation in America that echoed similar remarks made last year during his European tour. photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You “This next song is probably one of my greatest songs... I wrote this song as an ode to American possibility. It was both to the beautiful but flawed country that we are, and to the country that we could be. Right now we are living through incredibly critical times. The United States - the ideals and the values for which it stood for the past 250 years - is being tested as it has never been in modern times.” Pausing for a moment, to let that sink in, he received some modest applause before continuing. “Those values and those ideals have never been as endangered as they are right now. So as we gather tonight in this beautiful display of love and care and thoughtfulness and community, if you believe in democracy, in liberty... if you believe that truth still matters, and that it's worth speaking out, and that it's worth fighting for... if you believe in the power of the law and that no one stands above it... if you stand against heavily armed, masked federal troops invading an American city and using Gestapo tactics against our fellow citizens... if you believe you don't deserve to be murdered for exercising your American right to protest... then send a message to this President, and as the mayor of that city has said, 'ICE should get the fuck out of Minneapolis.'” As more applause echoed throughout the theater, Bruce concluded, “Well, this song is for you, and in the memory of mother of three and American citizen Renee Good. Thank you...” The response, while positive, was not raucous. Instead, scattered audience members made comments like “thank you” and “yes!” as he began the opening harmonica riff to “The Promised Land.” These comments were not altogether unexpected, given that this was his first public appearance before a large audience in the U.S. since the 2024 election, but they were clearly made with care and forethought, in willingness to use a powerful platform to speak out in a way precious few other artists have done since the onset of the current domestic terror in several American cities. They were made knowing that there would be those in the audience and in his fan base who would neither accept nor agree with what was said. They were made knowing there would be significant blowback from the White House, and that the story would make headlines around the world. But they were, for the most part, welcome. photo by Mark Krajnak  for Letters To You The evening concluded in its traditional way, with many if not all of the WinterFest artists assembling onstage with Light of Day founder Bob Benjamin, whose own struggle with Parkinson's disease led to the creation of the Light of Day event and organization, for a group performance of its adopted anthem, Springsteen's song "Light of Day," followed by a “Happy Birthday” singalong and the usual encore, an acoustic “Thunder Road.” After the final song, Bruce reached down, grasped Bob’s hand gently, and turned to walk offstage. Click here to donate whatever you can to The Light of Day Foundation, Inc.

photo by Mark Krajnak  - used with permission January 18, 2026 Last night Bruce Springsteen was yet again an unannounced "surprise" addition to Light of Day 's annual WinterFest "Bob's Birthday Bash" Main Event. We're still prepping our full report from Lisa Iannucci, along with plenty more great photos from Mark Krajnak , but of course the most timely and relevant news from the evening is Bruce's introduction to "The Promised Land," which he performed with Joe Grushecky and The Houserockers, along with special guest John Rzeznik of Goo Goo Dolls. Here it is, in both full transcription and audience-shot-video forms: "This next song is probably one of my greatest songs, and I don't want to be out of order tonight, but I wrote this song as an ode to American possibility. It was both to the beautiful but flawed country that we are, and to the country that we could be. Right now we are living through incredibly critical times. The United States - the ideals and the values for which it stood for the past 250 years - is being tested as it has never been in modern times. Those values and those ideals have never been as endangered as they are right now. So as we gather tonight in this beautiful display of love and care and thoughtfulness and community, if you believe in democracy, in liberty... if you believe that truth still matters, and that it's worth speaking out, and that it's worth fighting for... if you believe in the power of the law and that no one stands above it... if you stand against heavily armed, masked federal troops invading an American city and using Gestapo tactics against our fellow citizens... if you believe you don't deserve to be murdered for exercising your American right to protest... then send a message to this President, and as the mayor of that city has said, 'ICE should get the fuck out of Minneapolis.' Well, this song is for you, and in the memory of mother of three and American citizen Renee Good. Thank you..." Again, Letters To You has MUCH more to report and share about last night. Stay tuned...

January 16, 2026 Well, Light of Day WinterFest 2026 is now upon us, and the Transparent Clinch Gallery has come up with a great way for everyone to help support Light of Day this weekend, even if you can't make it to the Jersey Shore in person for all of the fun and fundraising. In the process, you'll score a super-cool Springsteen collectible in the form of a beautiful Danny Clinch-signed archival print of his photo featuring Joe Grushecky and Bruce Springsteen in action during last year's 25th Anniversary WinterFest, and also be placed in the running for a possible automatic upgrade to your print, golden-ticket style, in the form of possibly having a good bit more than a Danny Clinch signature on the specific print you receive. "Bruce Springsteen was very generous," states Transparent Clinch Gallery in its official announcement, "and he signed some of our Light of Day Foundation fundraiser prints! If you place an order through the Transparent Clinch Gallery and support the fundraiser, we will be dropping a print signed by Bruce Springsteen and Joe Grushecky at random." If you're at the Jersey Shore this weekend for WinterFest, you can order and pick up your print(s) locally at Transparent Clinch Gallery , 210 Fifth Ave, Asbury Park, NJ 07712 - phone number 908-574-3171. And even if you won't be attending WinterFest in New Jersey this weekend, you still can pre-order your print(s) online for delivery. All orders, whether placed for in-person local pickup this weekend or for delivery later on, have an equal shot at nabbing a rare, upgraded Clinch/Grushecky/Springsteen-signed print. This special fundraising sale is happening now through Monday, January 19. Click here for all of the important details. Also happening tonight at Transparent Clinch Gallery for WinterFest 2026: The Wild & The Innocent with Jim Rotolo 's live broadcast on E Street Radio , featuring special guests from The Light of Day Foundation, Inc. : And finally, one of our most trusted Jersey Shore sources just informed us in passing that Messrs. Clinch and Springsteen were a bit busy earlier this week with a little photo-shoot in Ocean Grove, NJ. Hmm...

January 16, 2026 As of this week, the organization formerly known as The Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music has shortened its name officially to The Bruce Springsteen Center for American Music . From the announcement issued on Wednesday, January 13: "...While the name has been streamlined, the Center’s core commitments remain unchanged: preserving and sharing the legacy of Bruce Springsteen, supporting scholarly research, and engaging diverse audiences through dynamic programming rooted in American music history across genres and centuries. “'The new name better captures who we are today and where we are headed,' said Robert Santelli, founding executive director. 'It emphasizes our role as a Center—one that connects the study of Bruce Springsteen’s work to the broader story of American music, culture, and activism.' "Since its founding, the Center has become an internationally recognized institution, hosting exhibitions, lectures, concerts, conferences, and educational initiatives that explore the intersections of music, history—and social justice. The Bruce Springsteen Archives—preserving materials related to Springsteen’s life and career—will continue to be a foundational component of the Center’s work. "The name change aligns with the Center’s expanding public presence and reinforces its mission to serve students, scholars, musicians, and the general public, both locally and globally, in advance of the opening of the Center’s new, 30,000-square-foot home on the Monmouth University campus in late spring of 2026—just in time for America’s 250th birthday. "Additional updates, including refreshed branding and signage, will be rolled out in the coming months."

January 11, 2026 This year marks what would have been the 84th birthday of our beloved Clarence "Big Man" Clemons , born on this date back in 1942. (Happy Clarence Clemons Day 2026, New Jersey!) And just over two-and-a-half months from now, 2026 also will mark the 25th anniversary of the first officially released recordings of two of Bruce Springsteen's greatest songs: "American Skin (41 Shots)" and "Land of Hope and Dreams," both included on the album Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band: Live in New York City , officially released on March 27, 2001. (The HBO television-special version of Live in New York City premiered on April 7, 2001 and received its expanded-DVD release in November of that year.) Clarence delivered crucial performances - two of his all-time greatest performances, actually - on both of those songs, which stood out and have stood the test of time among the handful of new songs performed by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band on their 1999-2000 "Reunion" tour. His is the first voice heard singing "41 shots..." at the beginning of "American Skin," and his mournful sax solo closes the song, fully articulating all of the pain and loss without any additional words needed. On the other hand, in "Land of Hope and Dreams," his sax solo soars and lifts the song to new heights of glory, conveying just as much joy and hope as those "bells of freedom ringing" that Bruce was singing about just before Big Man began blowing his horn. How importantly linked was Clarence Clemons to "Land of Hope and Dreams?" On the studio version of the song, recorded for Wrecking Ball after Clemons' passing, it's still the Big Man playing that sax solo (via a beautifully brilliant move by producer Ron Aniello, using archival audio of Clarence on sax from another live recording of the song.) And even at Clemons' deathbed, Springsteen lovingly sang a solo-acoustic version of the song to his bandmate and friend just before Clemons passed. These two songs also serve as flip-sides of an essential message that Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band have consistently displayed, embodied especially well within the onstage relationship between "Scooter" and "the Big Man." As Bruce himself put it in the part of his eulogy for Clarence included in Wrecking Ball 's liner notes, "It was a story where Scooter and the Big Man not only busted the city in half, but we kicked ass and remade the city, shaping it into the kind of place where our friendship would not be such an anomaly." Taken together, "Land of Hope and Dreams" gives us an immensely inspiring vision of what our lives, our communities, our nation, and our world could become, while "American Skin (41 Shots)" reminds us all too well of just how far away from achieving that vision we still are. A quarter-century after their first officially released recordings, "Land of Hope and Dreams" and "American Skin (41 Shots)" remain as relevant as ever, if not more so, given our current state of affairs. Just last year, "Land of Hope and Dreams" even provided the name for Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band's most recent tour, in which they regularly took some of their greatest and most important political stands ever. Clearly, Bruce also was correct when he stated in Clarence's eulogy, "...I'll miss my friend, his sax, and the force of nature that was his sound. But his love and his story - the story that he gave to me, that he whispered in my ear, and that he gave to you - is going to carry on."

image courtesy of Save Tillie January 5, 2026 In this, his final month in office, outgoing New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy - a self-proclaimed Springsteen fan - has a relatively easy-peasy, no-brainer chance to save what's left of Asbury Park's demolished-in-2004 Palace Amusements building ("the Palace" in the "Beyond the Palace..." lyric of "Born to Run,") including its iconic Tillie mural, pictured below. By all means, this should be one of Murphy's new-year resolutions. image courtesy of Save Tillie image courtesy of Save Tillie Last September, Preservation New Jersey 's Executive Director, Kelly C. Ruffel, wrote an open letter to Gov. Murphy to "respectfully urge your administration — through the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) — to take immediate steps to enforce the historic preservation conditions attached to the 2004 CAFRA [Coastal Area Facility Review Act] permit issued for the demolition of the Palace Amusements Building in Asbury Park. "As detailed in a recent letter submitted by Save Tillie to [DEP] Commissioner LaTourette ," Ruffel continued, "the DEP made preservation of significant artifacts — including the iconic Tillie mural, metal channel lettering, and several original Palace Amusements features — a specific and binding condition of demolition approval. More than twenty years later, those cultural assets remain hidden away in storage, deteriorating and inaccessible to the public. "These artifacts are not simply remnants of a building — they are emblems of Asbury Park’s rich entertainment history and New Jersey’s broader cultural legacy. Palace Amusements holds a unique place in the hearts of New Jerseyans and has been featured in numerous films, TV shows, and music. It has become an enduring symbol of the Jersey Shore — most famously associated with Bruce Springsteen, who used the Tillie image throughout his career and helped bring national attention to its cultural significance... "Despite the clear preservation mandate in the 2004 permit, no development has taken place on the site, and no progress has been made toward integrating or displaying the artifacts as required. This prolonged inaction — now spanning over two decades — has resulted in avoidable degradation, including paint loss, rust, and other structural damage, as confirmed by conservation experts. "We respectfully request your support in directing the DEP to take immediate and appropriate steps to enforce the CAFRA permit conditions. These should include: A professional inspection of the artifacts by a qualified conservator; A public update on the condition and location of the artifacts; and A specific and time-bound plan for their preservation and public display. These artifacts deserve better than indefinite storage and slow decay. Enforcing the preservation requirements will not only uphold the law — it will demonstrate the state’s commitment to protecting its cultural identity and honoring its past." In a separate open letter, Asbury Park’s representatives in the state legislature - Senator Vin Gopal, Assemblywoman Margie Donlon, and Assemblywoman Luanne Peterpaul - warned Murphy that without his direct involvement, there is a threat that the artifacts “will be lost forever.” They urged Murphy to take “whatever action is necessary” to avoid that result, and "to ensure the Palace Amusements Artifacts are preserved and the city's history is protected." To date, however, neither Murphy nor anyone else in his administration has done anything significant in response to these urgent requests for action. So far, the only thing that Murphy has done is refer all inquiries to New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP.) The DEP's spokesperson, Vincent Grassi, actually had the audacity to claim recently to The Star-Ledger that the last time the DEP even checked on Tillie and the other Palace artifacts was seven years ago, back in 2018, and, despite the 2016 independent inspection that revealed degradation, paint loss, rust, structural damage, etc., “observed the mural and artifacts in satisfactory condition.” Grassi added that DEP officials are "working with the developers to ensure compliance." He claimed that they contacted the developers last July and requested an update last month “on the status of the artifacts and efforts to fulfill the permit requirements.” Reading-between-the-lines translation: After more than twenty years of damaging neglect, the developers continue to essentially ignore the preservation requirements, doing and saying nothing significant in that regard, and neither Governor Murphy nor anyone in his administration seem upset - or even concerned - about that. We at Letters To You feel that this response - or, more accurately, non -response - by the outgoing Murphy administration is not "satisfactory" at all. If you agree and you feel inclined to reach out to our fellow self-described Springsteen fan about it, especially if you are a New Jersey resident, please click this link to email and/or text Governor Murphy. ---------- And here are links to further essential reading on this important, pressing matter: "Gov. Murphy urged to save Asbury Park’s iconic Tillie" by Sophie Nieto-Munoz for New Jersey Monitor "Iconic Jersey Shore mural has been hidden for 21 years. Fans are begging N.J. gov to save it." by Rob Jennings for The Star-Ledger "Saving Tillie: The Fight to Preserve an Asbury Park Icon" by Carlee Migliorisi for Preservation New Jersey (Note: Migliorisi is the Monmouth University student whose scholarly work played a major role in Bruce Springsteen publicly confirming the significant influence that Peter Pan played in the compostion of "Born to Run" at last September's Springsteen Archives/Monmouth University " Born to Run @50" symposium. Click here and here for details.)

December 31, 2025 Happy New Year to one and all, Dear Readers! In 2025, we Springsteen fans certainly ended up with quite a lot to experience, enjoy (at least most of the time,) and discuss. Once again, continuing what quickly has become a year-end tradition, Letters To You has joined forces with our friend Jesse Jackson at the Set Lusting Bruce podcast to discuss the "Springsteen 2025 Year in Review." Clocking in at almost three hours - and that's AFTER the editing! - Jesse hosted a conversation with Letters To You contributors Caroline Madden , Joyce Millman , and editor/publisher Shawn Poole that was recorded on December 22nd. We dove deep into the ups and downs of what ended up being another very significant year in Springsteen's career. You can click below to hear our edited conversation via YouTube: You also can click here to access other streaming/listening options. Having marked its tenth anniversary this year and still going strong, Set Lusting Bruce is the internet's oldest continually-running Springsteen-themed podcast. You can click here to learn more about it and you can click here to become one of Set Lusting Bruce 's Patreon supporters . We at Letters To You are honored to continue our partnership with Jesse Jackson and his Set Lusting Bruce podcast in our annual year-in-review discussion. Again, Happy New Year to all. If you listen to the just-released-last-week 50th-anniversary edition of Tower Theater, Philadelphia 1975 , recorded fifty years ago tonight down the road a bit from "Letters To You Central," during "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)" you'll hear Bruce's first-ever onstage, jokey reference to those now-famous dual- Time -and- Newsweek -covers: "Wait a minute, Rosie!," exults Springsteen, "Tell him [your Papa] I ain't no freak, 'cause I got my picture on the cover of Time and Newsweek !" Of course, a lot has happened since that major-breakthrough year of 1975, and not all of it good, either. Nevertheless, Bruce and many of his key collaborators are still here making music, and we're still here listening to it, continuing to derive from it all that is good. Our dearly departed loved ones are still here with us in spirit, too. We look forward to moving towards whatever 2026 might have in store for us... together, like spirits in the night. See ya next year!

December 25, 2025 "...even stoplights blink a bright red and green..." - the legendary Tower Theater - or what's left of it, since its iconic tower had to be removed for safety reasons years ago - on Christmas Eve 2025 - photo by Shawn Poole It's Christmas morning here on the East Coast of the U.S., which is probably the most appropriate time for us to wish all of our readers celebrating around the globe a Merry Christmas, Happy Christmas, Feliz Navidad, Joyeux Noël, etc. Season's Greetings from the Letters To You home-office, located just a snowball's throw away from the town where the special Nugs/Live Archives series Christmastime 2025 50th-anniversary remaster/re-release of Tower Theater, Philadelphia 1975 was recorded five decades ago this month, on The Born to Run Tour's New Year's Eve 1975 show. That town, however, isn't officially Philadelphia, PA but Upper Darby, PA, a smaller suburban town located just outside the city. So let's start our dive into our virtual Christmas stocking with these two photos taken early last night outside and around the currently shuttered Tower Theater, on the same Christmas Eve that brought us the new Tower Theater, Philadelphia 1975  50th-anniversary remaster/re-release. Shoppers rush home with their treasures, past a mural located near the currently shuttered Tower Theater in Upper Darby, PA on Christmas Eve 2025 - photo by Shawn Poole The new remaster/re-release sounds great, of course. Below you can listen to one major highlight of this legendary show, the only-at-the-Tower-in-'75 arrangement of "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out:" And you can click here for more info on the new Tower Theater, Philadelphia 1975  50th-anniversary remaster/re-release, including Columbia/Nugs archivist Erik Flannigan's essay on this recording - finally embedded right on the page without having to click anything else to access it - along with all necessary links for ordering/streaming. Speaking of the fiftieth anniversary of all things Born to Run this year, here's a fun Yuletide take on the album's iconic cover, featuring the return of our old pal "Boss-ty The Snowman," accompanied this time around by his plushy, sax-playing pal Rudy: Letters To You editor/publisher Shawn Poole first reported on and produced a video featuring "Boss-ty" for Backstreets.com back in December 2016. Check out the archived video below: In addition to Born to Run , another one of Springsteen's greatest classic albums - Nebraska - also got more than a bit of extra attention this year. Nebraska fans, check out the images of this rare document that we recently stumbled across during our visit to The Kris Kringle Archives and Center for Christmas Music at North Pole University: And speakin' of ol' Mr. Kringle, it's the perfect time of year to click here and re-read our contributor Greg Drew's fun, moving, and excellent archived essay "The EXPANDED Adventures of 'Santa Dave' and His 'Head Elf' (featuring 'that nice boy' from NJ.)" Since we first published it in 2023 and then expanded upon it last year, Greg's essay has become a bit of a holiday tradition in certain circles. We hope to continue and extend that growing tradition this year, and in the years to come. Please also click here to donate whatever you can to The Kristen Ann Carr Fund. Another annual holiday tradition that we're pleased to see return and continue is our beloved Christmas Queen Darlene Love's yearly late-night television performance of the classic "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home.)" If you haven't yet seen this year's version, or even if you have, you can click below to watch or re-watch it right now. Once again this year, Darlene was accompanied by Paul Shaffer, as well as Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul: Finally, Nils Lofgren's 2025 holiday release is a beautiful new song reminding us of another important cause to support: the life-saving work of animal-rescue organizations. Click below to watch Nils' loving, life-affirming, and - we can assure you - NOT depressing/disturbing music-video for "World Through Your Eyes." Also be sure to check out the listed links of various animal-rescue groups in the video's info/comments section: Merry Christmas to all who celebrate, no matter how much fur or how many legs you have, and best wishes to all for a peaceful, hopeful, and happy 2026.

November 9, 2025 "...GHOSTLY VOICES..." - On " Nebraska Outtakes," "Electric Nebraska ," and the enduring greatness of the original album by Caroline Madden As any Bruce Springsteen diehard already knows, and as more casual fans have learned more recently from the film adaptation Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere , his 1982 album Nebraska was recorded entirely in his bedroom on a rather rudimentary TEAC 144 four-track cassette recorder, then mixed on an old Gibson Echoplex and mastered on a water-damaged Panasonic boombox. What were meant at first to be just solo demos, intended for re-recording with the E Street Band in the studio, became the album in its finished form. Springsteen came to prefer his lonely, hushed vocal performances on those demo recordings, wrapped in an echo that created an otherworldly sound, one that perfectly captured the cries of the lost souls he sings about on the album, trapped in a purgatory of violence, hopelessness, and poverty. More than a few folks, including - at least these days, apparently - Bruce Springsteen himself, consider Nebraska to be his crowning achievement. Springsteen archivist Erik Flannigan writes in the new Nebraska '82: Expanded Edition box-set's essay, "Springsteen isn't alone in considering the album his finest work." While I wouldn't go that far myself, I certainly can agree that after more than forty years, Nebraska clearly remains one of Bruce Springsteen's finest efforts. It also is an album that can easily pull you under and drown you in its bleakness. For myself, I have to already be in a very dark mood to engage with these songs. The Nebraska '82... box-set further documents and, yes, celebrates how Bruce Springsteen found his way to that dark space and followed his instincts to release ten of his cassette-recorded song demos, just as they were. The long-awaited box-set offers a candid look at Springsteen's creative process—a journey that was neither strictly linear nor conventional, and one that includes, of course, the fabled "Electric Nebraska " recordings. The first two discs present the roads not taken for Nebraska , some of which are iterations of songs that would later crystallize into the heartland rock grandeur of Born in the U.S.A. In fact, the first track we hear on Disc One (" Nebraska Outtakes") is the original cassette-demo-tape version of Born in the U.S.A. 's title track (the same version that first got released back in 1998 on TRACKS .) Here on the demo you won't hear any thunderous snare (or, for that matter, any drumming at all) from Max Weinberg, or any of the full-band fireworks of the released-in-1984 hit/album version that would later contribute to widespread confusion about its supposed fist-pumping affirmation of conservatism. On the demo, Springsteen inserts high-pitched wails that make the narrator's ten years burning down the road seem like torture, moaning like a ghost of his former self. The song will continue to take shape on Disc Two's "Electric Nebraska ," evoking more of a grungy hard rocker. While these versions capture the narrator’s genuine frustration more sonically, the genius of the official 1984 release of “Born in the U.S.A.” lies in its synth-heavy uplift, which ironically undercuts its flag-waving exuberance. But for now, back to Disc One (" Nebraska Outtakes,") which is a mix of outtakes from the TEAC-cassette demo sessions that took place in early 1982 at Springsteen's New Jersey home, and a solo-acoustic session professionally recorded at The Power Station in New York City later that year... “Pink Cadillac” is one of the most captivating departures from the full-band '84 B-side (later included on TRACKS ) and live versions over the years, transforming the familiar sexy romp into a David Lynch-esque fever dream, with Springsteen-as-obsessive stalker repeating “pink Cadillac” slowly and monotonously, as if in a trance. It shares a similar nervous energy with "On the Prowl," which features skittish, sneaky stops and starts that subvert conventional song structure. It builds to a high-pitched, unnerving repetition of the word “searching,” as if he were some sort of coyote. “On the Prowl” is quite unlike most of what we typically hear from Bruce. “The Losin’ Kind” is one of the outtakes that would most naturally fit on Nebraska , though clearly it came too close for comfort to the superior “Highway Patrolman.” The song tells another Bonnie-and-Clyde-style story of outlaw lovers, with lyrics that reinforce the album’s recurring themes of winners and losers. There’s a fragile melancholy in his vocal performance as the narrator balks at his own foolishness. The gently-strummed (and downright creepy) "Child Bride" feels like another lost opportunity for Nebraska and carries a similar mournful quality, even though some of the same lyrics ended up on the sprightly “Workin’ on the Highway.” The narrator's quiet, defeatist admission, “I swore I’d come and get her / But I know I ain’t ever going back,” is just as heartbreaking of a line as Bruce Springsteen's most tragic song releases. The soft glockenspiel captures the innocence of the eponymous child bride, who doesn’t yet understand the "meanness in this world"—a phrase that resonates far more powerfully on “Nebraska.” But it is “Gun in Every Home” that demands the most attention, speaking to political divisiveness and post-COVID mistrust that have deepened isolation within our communities. We are all guarded and on edge, afraid of our neighbors despite the idyllic façade of suburbia. The tenderly sung lyrics about a father wanting to shield his young child from “a world gone crazy now... a world that’s gone all wrong” fit alongside Nebraska ’s general misanthropy. Without the polished production by Toby Scott at the Power Station, the track would have rounded out the album nicely. On to Disc Two, the long-fabled "Electric Nebraska " material, for which many fans have been clamoring over decades. Does it live up to the hype? Your mileage may vary, depending on how compelling you find hearing Bruce experimenting and trying to sculpt his sound. The album presents full-band interpretations of the six songs from his bare-bones demo tape, alongside two tracks that would take the opposite route, swelling into their more anthemic, stadium-filling form when they finally appeared on Born in the U.S.A. . What frustrates me most about Electric Nebraska  is that the instrumentals are too generic, which sounds incongruent against the exceptionally macabre words. "Nebraska" sounds like something you'd slow dance to at a wedding, if you ignore the lyrics of cold-blooded murder and electric chairs. Most of the album’s instrumentals are plodding and flat. “Mansion on the Hill,” however, caresses the listener’s ear nicely with Danny Federici’s organ and Roy Bittan’s piano, infusing touches of the wistfulness later found in the country-style Live from New York City  performance. "Open All Night," “Reason to Believe,” and “Johnny 99” have a playful, bar-band infectiousness that belies their morbid lyrics; they’re a lot of "fun" to listen to, but that’s the last impression Bruce wanted audiences to take away from any of the songs on Nebraska . Had these versions been officially released, it would have been easy for listeners to miss how closely Bruce was peering into that psychological abyss. These versions on   "Electric Nebraska " make it understandable why the songs demand to be performed in the sparse, intimate style of his bedroom recordings. One of the strangest outliers is “Downbound Train,” with its frenetic pace and breathless vocal delivery that sounds as if the train itself is going off the rails. Bruce inserts a hypnotic hum in the middle of the song, a sound of the narrator spiraling downward on the runaway train, as if teetering on the edge of collapse. Will you listen to this version more than the glossier, more brooding   one on Born in the U.S.A. ? Probably not, but like most of "Electric Nebraska ," it’s still at least interesting to hear Bruce experimenting. One of "Electric Nebraska "'s biggest problems, however, is that you don’t hear Bruce singing as his characters on these recordings. The words are just words, not raw confessions of his tormented protagonists. There’s a subtle unease in his voice; you can tell Bruce senses that these songs aren’t quite working.   Finally, on the remaining discs of this five-disc box-set, we get to hear the ten-song Nebraska album presented in the solo-acoustic form in which it was first presented back in '82: as the 2025 remaster of the original '82 album, and as audio/video of an April 2025 near -solo-acoustic full-album performance of Nebraska , where Bruce was backed by only two other musicians. (See Shawn Poole's separate report below for further details on the April 2025 performance film/audio.) Both the 2025 remastering and the 2014 Album Collection, Vol. 1 remastering of Nebraska utilized Plangent Processes and are virtually indistinguishable in terms of quality, restoration, etc. The good news, of course, is that thanks especially to the Plangent technology, Nebraska in the 21st century continues to sound as great - technically speaking - as possible. (One weird aspect of the new box-set is that in the vinyl-LP edition, on both the 2025 full-album performance LP and the 2025 remaster LP, Side 1 now ends with "Highway Patrolman" instead of "State Trooper," which now starts off Side 2, followed by "Used Cars" and the rest of what constituted Side 2 on the original 1982 LP. Presumably this was done to ensure more consistent sound quality across the two LP sides, and the actual album sequence hasn't been altered, just where the break to flip the LP occurs. Nevertheless, it's probably at least a bit jarring to some older fans who still remember Side 1 ending with "State Trooper.") The now-consistent good sound makes it all the easier for listeners old and new to appreciate even further all that the Nebraska album has to offer. The album was not only created at a turning point in Bruce's personal life, but also showcases storytelling of exceptional detail, nearly unparalleled. His lyrics, so precise and visual, operate like a movie camera—projecting images that flicker through the mind’s eye. I can see the narrator’s mom bashfully twisting her ring in “Used Cars,” or the sticky fried chicken smudges as the driver searches the map for directions in “Open All Night.” Nebraska affirms Bruce Springsteen as one of the most cinematic songwriters of our time. Very rarely do other musicians achieve this specificity of language, and this sense of narrative and character texture. Even if you are not interested in Nebraska ’s grim content, you can appreciate how vividly Bruce paints his scenes. Nebraska also exemplifies just how well Bruce Springsteen captures sociopolitical anxieties through an album's general vibe and the struggles that the characters are going through. In 1982, it was painfully clear that the Nebraska characters were bludgeoned by the oppressive economic policies of the Reagan era, and as the strangulation of the poor, working-, and "middle-" classes has intensified, Nebraska  continues to feel painfully relevant in 2025. SNAP benefits are being slashed, leaving our most vulnerable populace hungry; artificial intelligence threatens to usurp the dignity and stability of job security; and the promise of the American Dream—owning a home and raising a family—has become impossible for most young people, crushed by student loan debt and wages that fail to keep pace with inflation. The meanness in this world, which feels more acute than ever, is enough to make you want to snap like Bruce’s characters. That’s why revisiting the Nebraska  box-set now feels particularly timely. For completists who want to hear every single thing Bruce has recorded, the Nebraska  box set is certainly another dream come true, and for the rest, it may give you a deeper appreciation of how this still-essential album came to be. ----- MAJESTIC NEBRASKA  - Forget "Electric you-know-what." Springsteen, with support from Campbell, Giordano, Zimny, et al., delivers a full-album Nebraska  performance for the ages. by Shawn Poole "Electric" shmelectric. For me, a longtime fan of the Nebraska album, Thom Zimny's film Nebraska: Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ is the true highlight of Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska '82: Expanded Edition  box-set. Apparently Springsteen himself was just as enthusiastic about creating the full-album performance film as I am about the film after having seen it. "When the idea for the box-set came up," he stated in the official promo-video "trailer" for the box-set , "I said that's the one thing that I need to do: [re-]record the album from start to finish and then shoot it, let Thom Zimny shoot it as a film." Unfortunately, the only way to see the film currently is by purchasing a physical (CD/LP) version of the box-set, in which a Blu-ray disc of Nebraska: Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ is included. To date, no plans to offer streaming options for the film have been announced. While the audio of the performance, delivered to an empty-house Basie Theatre last April, is easily available to stream, the best way to experience Nebraska: Count Basie Theatre, Red Bank, NJ   in all its glory is as a full audio- visual work of art... as the great filmed performance that it is. Here's hoping that eventually there will be streaming opportunities to allow more people to do so. [DECEMBER 2025 UPDATE: As of this writing, some streaming options for the film now exist. Click here to explore those streaming options. ] Springsteen and Zimny first utilized the empty-house full-album - and full-band - performance approach in 2009, with the filming of a full-album performance of Darkness on the Edge of Town at Asbury Park's Paramount Theatre for the 2010 box-set The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story . A washed-out-color look, inspired by the film JCVD , was chosen for that filmed Darkness... performance. This time around, for filming the Nebraska performance, straight-up black-and-white was chosen, of course, with the only other color appearing onscreen being the blood-red in the lettering of the title and credits, mirroring the original album design. Bruce performs the album's ten songs in sequence, with David Michael Kennedy's bleak windshield-landscape 1982-album-cover photo (actually shot in 1976) projected onto the brick wall at the back of the stage. The songs' live 2025 musical arrangements are very faithful to those on the 1982 album, with Springsteen - on acoustic guitar (electric guitar on "Open All Night") and harmonica - receiving minimalist yet beautiful accompaniment by only two other musicians: Larry Campbell on acoustic/12-string acoustic guitar, electric guitar, mandolin, and tambourine, and Charlie Giordano on celeste and synthesizer. Bruce's slight modern-day lyrical/phrasing changes crop up on occasion (e.g. "Mansion On The Hill"'s modern-day "down here in the valley" replacing the 1982 recording's "down here in Linden Town,") but nonetheless this remains an essentially faithful live and complete performance of the original album. One key difference, of course, is the obvious aging of Springsteen and his voice, but in the case of this 2025 Nebraska performance, the aging actually becomes another essential attribute for most - if not all - of the performance. Performing this material complete and in-sequence for the first time in the forty-three years since Nebraska was released, Bruce at 76 now looks and sounds more than ever like "that cranky old preacher Ecclesiastes," to whom Dave Marsh aptly compared Springsteen's songwriting perspective in Marsh's essential Nebraska -focused "Reason To Believe" chapter of Glory Days: Bruce Springsteen in the 1980s . Each of the songs is performed straightforwardly, with no additional introductions or background explanations (a brief giggle at the end of "Open All Night" notwithstanding.) From the get-go, Thom Zimny proves yet again why he's the perfect point-person for such a project, directing and (co-)editing each sequence of the film beautifully and brilliantly, opening immediately after the blood-red "Thrill Hill presents... NEBRASKA... a film by Thom Zimny" title-cards (accompanied by the eerily ambient sound of an apparently nearby highway) with a great shot of Bruce's cowboy-boots-encased feet strolling onto the theater's stage, and part of the guitar he's carrying low also visible in the shot. Next we get some close-up and overhead shots of septuagenarian Springsteen taking his seat and positioning his guitar. He's clearly laser-focused, in command, and ready to deliver another masterful performance. From there on out, Zimny remains just as much in command, in order to best capture and convey this performance, behind the camera and in the editing room. (Incidentally, there's yet another advantage that watching the film has over just listening to the audio: you get to hear a wordless version of "Nebraska," with Springsteen humming and whistling the song's melody, over the film's closing credits.) Ironically, the film's music-only, no-talk-talk-talk-talk approach still ends up helping to offer to all who care to listen a much more complete, complex history of Nebraska than the two "histories" of Nebraska that have been getting the most attention these days. One of the worst aspects of the Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere film and the Warren Zanes book on which it was based is their near-complete omission of the political context in which Nebraska was created and heard. If all you know is Scott Cooper's and/or Warren Zanes' take on the album (especially Cooper's,) you'd think that it essentially was "about" only Bruce Springsteen's childhood and mental-health issues. It's well worth remembering, however, that when Ronald Reagan - the first Republican president to use the phrase "make America great again" while attacking and dismantling much of what truly was great about the country - tried using Springsteen's Born - in - the - U.S.A. -era popularity to help get himself re-elected in 1984, Springsteen responded onstage shortly afterwards with a song from Nebraska , "Johnny 99," introducing it as follows: “The President was mentioning my name the other day, and I kinda got to wondering what his favorite album musta been. I don’t think it was the Nebraska album. I don’t think he’s been listening to this one.” (Incidentally, that intro and song were preceded by another of Nebraska 's most political and least personal, childhood-derived songs, "Atlantic City.") Even a more overtly personal song like "Mansion On The Hill" weaves in the political right alongside the personal, given the implicit class-consciousness embedded throughout the song. The same is true of, say, "Used Cars." And hell, while I've written extensively about the personal significance of "My Father's House" and its "sequel" song, "Long Time Comin'," to both their creator and so many in his audience, myself included , I also know that the following is equally true about "My Father's House," thanks very much yet again to the insights of Dave Marsh, this time writing in his equally essential 1982 Record Magazine review of Nebraska , reprinted in 1985's Fortunate Son: The Best of Dave Marsh : "its dream of reconciliation between father and son is ultimately hollow," yet "this dream (which incorporates psychological, political and religious symbols) continues to beckon..." All of this comes into play while hearing and seeing Bruce Springsteen deliver his 2025 performance of Nebraska , letting the album continue to speak for itself in all of its complexity, and making it feel as timely and relevant as ever... unfortunately. While the 21st-century's version of "make America great again" continues to reach new lows, and so many people continue struggling every day to find some reason to believe while facing the sheer insanity of it, I'm reminded of what the great music writer Mikal Gilmore (brother of convicted murderer Gary Gilmore, who famously, and like the fictional Johnny 99, welcomed his execution) wrote of Nebraska back in '82: “A dark-toned, brooding and unsparing record... a sizable statement about American life... When Springsteen tells Charles Starkweather and Johnny 99’s tales, he neither seeks their redemption nor asks for our judgment. He tells the stories about as simply and as well as they deserve to be told—or about as unsparingly as we deserve to hear them—and he lets us feel for them what we can, or find in them what we can of ourselves.” As bleak as these ten songs are, clearly they still need to be sung - and heard - at least as much now as they ever have. Kudos to Bruce Springsteen for delivering this special performance of them, with the able assistance of Larry Campbell and Charlie Giordano. And many thanks to Thom Zimny and his team for beautifully capturing it on film for the ages. ----- "bonus track" - Of course the Nebraska '82: Expanded Edition  box-set includes "The Big Payback," the Nebraska outtake that first got released officially as a B-side decades ago, along with the original demo version of "Born in the U.S.A." that first was released officially in 1998 on TRACKS . But it doesn't include the other Nebraska "outtake" of sorts that also got released officially - several times, even, albeit unintentionally, apparently - years ago, before somebody finally corrected the error for all future releases. Several Japanese-CD editions and other rare/promo versions of Nebraska were created from a master tape containing a version of "My Father's House" identical to all other officially released versions, with the exception of a synthesizer coda lasting about thirty seconds. At some point, Springsteen must have wanted to include the coda on "My Father's House" but then later changed his mind about it. Yet inexplicably, at least one Nebraska master with the synth-coda version of "My Father's House" managed to still be floating around, which is how some editions of Nebraska ended up containing "My Father's House" with the synth-coda. Apparently Springsteen and/or his camp eventually learned of this, and there have been no further official releases of Nebraska  containing the synth-coda version of "My Father's House." Below, however, you can listen to the tail-end of that version right now:

December 20, 2025 From Bruce Springsteen's official website/social-media statement on the passing of the great "Lord of the Highway," Joe Ely , who died earlier this week on Monday from complications of Lewy Body Dementia, Parkinson’s disease, and pneumonia: "Over here, we’re deeply saddened by the loss of Joe Ely, a singular American singer, great musician and great artist. I was lucky enough to count Joe as a true friend and I will miss that voice and his companionship. Our hearts go out to his wonderful wife Sharon and the family. We’ve lost an American classic." In the wake of Ely's passing, his official YouTube channel has posted a special version of the 1995 Ely-Springsteen duet on Ely's song "All Just To Get To You." Their recording is accompanied by the beautiful, moving video that was played behind Springsteen onstage last April at The Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music's 2025 American Music Honors, as he performed "All Just To Get To You" during his induction of Ely as one of this year's Honorees: That night, Springsteen also had this to say about Ely as he inducted him: “If the world was a fairer place, Joe Ely would have been huge! I mean huge... He’s a great songwriter... He’s a fabulous stage performer, always with a great band. He’s got that voice, the one I wished I had. It’s got that slight southern country twang, it’s got a hint of rockabilly. It’s got the depth and emotion of Johnny Cash and it’s as deeply authentic as his Texas roots. Now, from his early classic band The Flatlanders, with Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Butch Hancock, he made a music unique to Texas that touched folks all around the world. He had records like Musta Notta Gotta Lotta , Love and Danger , Letter to Laredo [on which the 1995 Ely-Springsteen version of "All Just To Get To You" first appeared,] Love and Freedom , and a dozen top-shelf others that a lot more people should have heard and gotten to love. Joe left his mark, though, on the Texas and the world music scene. He opened for The Clash in 1978. That’s incredible! As they sang on Sandinista! , ‘There ain’t no better blend than Joe Ely and his Texas men.’ Now Joe Strummer, he knew greatness when he heard it. “Joe is a member of the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame. He spent 2016 as the reigning Texas State Musician. He’s a writer, a poet, he’s an accomplished visual artist. He’s been my friend for thirty-plus years and I take great pride to be able to call him so. He’s a sweet, sweet man. We’ve had some wonderful times together, including one post-show Irish night in the pubs and clubs of Dublin that I won’t soon forget. Nor will I say anything more about it! [Note: Another great Ely-Springsteen Dublin moment, as seen in the photo below, was their getting to perform together with one of their greatest musical heroes, The Killer himself, Jerry Lee Lewis, on the first night that Ely ever appeared as a guest-performer at a Springsteen concert.] "But I’ve been blessed to sing on his records and be onstage with Joe on occasion and the only thing I can say is: Thank God he wasn’t born in New Jersey! I would have had a lot more of my work cut out for me." In late June of 1993, Joe Ely was among Bruce Springsteen's onstage guests at two major benefit concerts: in New Jersey on June 24 for the "A Concert to Fight Hunger" event (officially released/available in the Nugs/Live Archive series ,) and at New York's Madison Square Garden on June 26 for the "A Concert for The Kristen Ann Carr Fund " benefit event that launched Bruce's longtime, strong, and sustained support for the Fund and its ongoing endeavors. That evening opened with a one-time-only performance of Woody Guthrie's version of "Lonesome Valley." Ely joined Springsteen and his 1992-93 touring band, as well as one of Kristen's all-time favorite musicians, the artist formerly known as Terence Trent D'Arby , in delivering a powerful, moving, and fully appropriate opening to a very special and important concert: In 2005, Ely also contributed his musical talents to fighting another deadly disease, with his recording of Bob Dylan's "Winterlude" for the to: KATE - a benefit for kate's sake Christmas album, a project spearheaded by Garry Tallent: (Coincidentally, to: KATE... also featured a track from another recently passed-too-soon musical great: Raul Malo 's one-man-band version of Willie Nelson's song "Pretty Paper," first recorded and released by Roy Orbison back in 1963.) Just last year, the world was treated to another officially released Ely/Springsteen collaboration on the recording of Ely's song "Odds of the Blues" for his album Driven to Drive : Finally, this week's Texas Monthly article by journalist and musician Michael Hall , a fan of both Ely and Springsteen, provides an excellent perspective and overview of everything that made Joe Ely such a great musician and a great person. (Its opening sentence reads, "For many Texans, Joe Ely was our Bruce Springsteen.") As Hall's article details, Ely lived a beautiful, significant, and meaningful life, and when he had to face the reality of illness and decline that ultimately would cut it short, he didn't have to walk that lonesome valley all by himself. He was surrounded and protected by a core group of people who loved him deeply, including his longtime friend Bruce Springsteen. Ely's wife Sharon relates to Hall how supportive Bruce was during Joe's health struggles. (There's also an indication of one more officially released Ely-Springsteen recording collaboration coming in the near future.) And after discussing the difficult - but definitely correct - decision that she and her husband made earlier this month to allow him to die at home, Sharon tells Hall about receiving a phone call from Springsteen shortly afterwards. "Bruce called as soon as he heard, and I said, ‘I think he’s still here. If you want to, I’ll let you say what you feel right now to him or to the universe or whatever.’ And I put the phone up to Joe’s ear, and Bruce said what he felt about Joe to him.” Click here to read Michael Hall's superb and moving Texas Monthly article, "Joe Ely's Final Act."

December 7, 2025 All tickets and ticket-packages are now available for the 2026 edition of the Jersey-Shore-based, multi-day Light of Day WinterFest , which will take place next month in mid-January. The "Main Event - 'Bob's Birthday Bash'" (and this year's currently announced Birthday Bash lineup pictured above,) will take place on Saturday, January 17, and all other events will place on the days surrounding it. Click here and here for detailed information on all events, as well as how to purchase your ticket-packages and/or tickets for individual events. Once again, money raised from all events' ticket-sales will benefit The Light of Day Foundation, Inc. , the charitable organization long supported by Bruce Springsteen and many other Jersey-Shore-based/connected artists. Of course, Letters To You will again be on the scene to cover Light of Day WinterFest 2026. We look forward to reporting to our readers about the 2026 Winterfest shows and encouraging everyone to support The Light of Day Foundation, Inc. in its continuing efforts "to defeat Parkinson's disease and its related illnesses, ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) and PSP (Progressive Supranuclear Palsy) within our lifetime."

December 6, 2025 Yesterday's "First Friday" release from the monthly Nugs/Live Archive series is another great show from The Wrecking Ball Tour: HK Areena, Turku, FIN - May 8, 2013 . It's one of the best examples of how varied and full of surprises the shows on that tour could be, with Bruce Springsteen & the (newly expanded) E Street Band taking on nightly sign-requests and major setlist changes. Most important, they did all of that while maintaining their well-known musical excellence, consistently delivering excellent, moving, and powerful shows that continued to connect and resonate with their international, multi-generational audiences. Among Turku 2013 Night 2's highlights: the only live performance to date of "Wages of Sin," the rarely performed "I'll Work For Your Love" in a solo-acoustic version to open the night, followed by "Long Walk Home" as the evening's first full-band performance (a rare placement of that song so early in the set,) a Greetings... two-fer with "Blinded by the Light" and "Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?" back-to-back, the debut addition of a bit of Huey "Piano" Smith & The Clowns' great "Don't You Just Know It" to "Open All Night," Everett Bradley's outro percussion work adding some unique flavor to a beautiful ten-minutes-plus version of "Racing in the Street," and as if all of that weren't "good enough," one of only five public performances to date of "Ain't Good Enough for You," the fun Darkness... outtake that also would later provide the musical bedrock for the Springsteen-written Gary "U.S." Bonds hit "This Little Girl:" Click here to order/stream HK Areena, Turku, FIN - May 8, 2013 .  While there, also be sure to click the "SHOW MORE" button where it reads, "Show Notes," to read Columbia/Nugs archivist Erik Flannigan's essay on this recording, entitled " I’ve Tried So Hard, So Hard In Every Way." It's insightful and informative, despite a misleading implication that The Wrecking Ball Tour was the first Springsteen/E Street Band tour without the late, great "Phantom" Dan Federici present onstage. (That actually was The Working On A Dream Tour.) And here's hoping that the long-standing tradition of TWO new Nugs/Live Archive releases in December will continue this year. We'll just have to wait and see what the Fates will allow, as we draw closer to Christmas...