Footage of Springsteen and E Street Band rehearsing for Rising Tour surfaces on YouTube (WATCH HERE)

by JAY LUSTIG
springsteen rehearsal video

Bruce Springsteen rehearses at Convention Hall in Asbury Park on July 23, 2002.

(Aug. 27 UPDATE: A fourth video has shown up on YouTube, so I have added that here as well.)

ere is no guarantee that they will be there forever. But a few days ago, three videos — each one a little more than an hour long — were posted on YouTube, showing Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band in rehearsals for The Rising Tour, and being interviewed. You can watch them below.

The songs were played for just a few scattered people — and a Dalmatian who is hanging around — in Convention Hall in Asbury Park, where the band later presented rehearsal shows before the official start of the Rising Tour. Information on the Brucebase website pinpoints the date of the musical performances to July 23, 2002 — exactly 21 years ago today.

Besides the opportunity to see the band in action so intimately, there are lots of fascinating tidbits here for Springsteen fans. During “Mary’s Place,” for instance, Springsteen works out precisely how the band should re-enter after the soft interlude. Before “Glory Days,” he asks Danny Federici to use the organ sound he had used for “Waitin’ on a Sunny Day” instead of the sound that he would normally use. During the intro to “Into the Fire,” Clarence Clemons plays bagpipes. (Clemons played the instrument again at a rehearsal show, but then that idea was abandoned.)

While crew members set up for “My City of Ruins,” Springsteen takes a phone call from, presumably, his daughter. “Hello, doll! We missed you,” he is heard saying. “Man, where’s my girl? Are you home? Great. We’ll be home soon.”

No interview footage with Springsteen is shown, though he is seen standing on a Convention Hall balcony and chatting with fans who have gathered on the Asbury Park beach. Patti Scialfa is also not seen being interviewed. But besides that, all band members, including Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici (who died in 2011 and 2008, respectively), are represented by at least some interview footage.

Before the Garry Tallent interview segment, the interviewer says the footage is being shot for use on both the long-running ABC Television show “Nightline” and its short-lived spinoff “Nightline: Up Close” (which was on the air in 2002 and 2003 only). The interviewer also mentions that Springsteen had already talked to “Ted” — meaning, presumably, “Nightline” anchorman Ted Koppel.

Here is a rundown of what is on each video, and the videos themselves.

PART 1

“Worlds Apart” (last part of song)
“Two Hearts”
“Mary’s Place” (including portions of of “Turn on Your Love Light” and “Ain’t Nothin’ but a House Party”)
“Tenth Avenue Freeze-out”
“American Skin (41 Shots)” (incomplete)
“Into the Fire”
Danny Federici interview
Soozie Tyrell interview
Springsteen talks to fans
Clarence Clemons interview

PART 2

Max Weinberg interview
Garry Tallent interview
Roy Bittan interview
Nils Lofgren interview
Steven Van Zandt interview
“Waitin’ on a Sunny Day”
“The Promised Land”
“Worlds Apart” (beginning of song)

PART 3

“Into the Fire” (different camera angle from Part 1)
“Born to Run” (last verse to end)
“Glory Days”
“My City of Ruins”
“My Love Will Not Let You Down”
“Prove It All Night”
“Land of Hope and Dreams” with “People Get Ready” ending

Notes: Because “Worlds Apart” begins at the end of Part 2 and ends at the start of Part 1, I assume that the rehearsal begins with “Waitin’ on a Sunny Day” and ends with “Land of Hope and Dreams.” This is in line with the song order that Brucebase has.

PART 4

Note: This includes some songs that were featured in the previous three videos but adds some songs as well.

“The Promised Land” (excerpt)
“Worlds Apart”
“Two Hearts”
“Mary’s Place”
“Tenth Avenue Freeze-out”
“Paradise”
“Countin’ on a Miracle”
“Further On (Up the Road)”
“Backstreets”
“American Skin (41 Shots)”

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