Bruce Springsteen shares new 1981 live album to benefit coronavirus relief
Bruce Springsteen has shared a surprise new live album to benefit coronavirus relief efforts.
The new album was recorded on the final night of six at the Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey on July 9, 1981, as part of The Boss’ tour for ‘The River’.
All the money from the album, available to buy here on Springsteen’s live archive website for $9.95, or in lossless quality for $12.95, will go to the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund.
The 28-song setlist includes hits ‘Thunder Road’, ‘The Promised Land’, ‘Badlands’, ‘Born To Run’ and more, and only a few songs from the set have ever been released before.
Preview the album with a performance of ‘Johnny Bye Bye’ below.
Summer Tour ’81 marked Springsteen’s triumphant return from Europe. It began with the christening of the new Brendan Byrne Arena in NJ. All net proceeds from the sale of this show will be donated to the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund. https://t.co/WCzQFAFcSP pic.twitter.com/i6lIDAO75a
— Bruce Springsteen (@springsteen) May 1, 2020
Springsteen has been active throughout the coronavirus pandemic. Last month, he and his wife Patti Scialfa participated in a Jersey 4 Jersey benefit livestream, which saw a host of artists from the state coming together to raise money for relief funds.
He also performed a number of songs on SiriusXM radio this week, taking the time to emphasise the gap coronavirus has shown between the “American dream and American reality”.
“The current pandemic has laid bare the inequalities in wealth and in health that plague our nation,” he said. “In Michigan, hard-hit by the coronavirus, African-Americans make up 14 percent of the population but 40 percent of the deaths from this disease. So many disenfranchised Americans lack the essential liberty to protect their own lives, and the lives of their families.
“This pandemic has shown the great divide between our American dream and American reality, between current America versus the ideals enshrined in our founding documents.”
Last month, it was reported that New Jersey residents are being asked to keep “one Springsteen” apart as social distancing continues.
