MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis and St. Paul have been on Bruce Springsteen’s mind a lot these days.
That’s why he wrote “Streets of Minneapolis” in January, why he performed his instant protest song at First Avenue days later and why he is opening his Land of Hope & Dreams American Tour at Target Center in Minneapolis.
“The tour is going to be political and very topical about what’s going on in the country,” Springsteen told the Minnesota Star Tribune on Monday. “Minneapolis and St. Paul, that was the place I wanted to begin it, and I wanted to end it in Washington.”
The tour kicks off March 31 and ends 19 shows later on May 27 in Washington, D.C.
Before the tour starts, Springsteen will appear in St. Paul on Saturday at the No Kings rally along with singers Joan Baez and Maggie Rogers as well as actor and activist Jane Fonda and others. He will offer his third live performance of “Streets of Minneapolis”; he played it a second time on Monday at the news organization Democracy Now’s 30th anniversary celebration in New York City.
Springsteen said the live premiere of the topical tune at First Avenue on Jan. 30 at the height of the Trump administration’s Operation Metro Surge was among the most meaningful performances he’s ever given in a career spanning more than 3,600 gigs over nearly 60 years.
“There are certain moments where you’re in the right place at the right time and something deeply meaningful occurs that is bigger than the band. It all has to do with the events of the day, the moment you’re in,” the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer said.
As indelibly poignant gigs, he mentioned New Orleans in 2006 after Hurricane Katrina and Zimbabwe in 1988 near the end of apartheid.
“And so being in Minneapolis [in January] goes way up to the top of the list as far as meaningful shows I’ve played,” he declared.
In a phone call from New York, Springsteen, 76, was in his usual expansive interview mode, expounding on the writing of “Streets of Minneapolis,” having firebrand Tom Morello join the E Street Band for this tour and singing at the No Kings rally in St. Paul.
Q: Tell me about the writing of “Streets of Minneapolis.”
A: That just came about through witnessing [on television] what was going on in Minneapolis. You don’t always write something about it that’s particularly topical, but that night the lyrics came. Patti [Scialfa, his wife] went to bed and I went in the bathroom and wrote the music so I wouldn’t wake her up. We recorded it a day later and released it a day after that. It was just one of those things that I was so outraged at what was occurring, it just came spilling out.
Q: When was the last time a song came spilling out that quickly?
A: It happens. It goes one way or the other. One way there’s torture, and it takes you two years and the other way it takes you two days. You never know quite which way it’s going to go.
Q: Why did you reach out to your pal Tom Morello as topical song expert for feedback about the song?
A: It was a little more directly topical. I tend to write more nuanced even with my political or topical songs. … In this case, it was just flat out there. I never want to sound like I’m on a soapbox. But as Tom said, “Nuance is wonderful and sometimes you have to kick them in the teeth.” And this was one of those times.
Q: How often do you start writing a song and then toss it away?
A: Very often. I’ve written a lot of topical songs that are still sitting in the vault from time to time. I’ll have to give them a second listen. There is something to be said about rushing out in the blood and bones of the moment. Too much subtlety at the wrong time can be counterproductive. Sometimes you have to be absolutely 100% direct and say exactly what you mean and let the chips fall where they may.
Q: What was it like to premiere that song live in Minneapolis?
A: That was exciting. First of all, just being in Minneapolis at that moment was very meaningful. Tom invited me. Being in that club meant a lot. I knew the history of the club itself and knowing how much a place like that means to a certain city.
Q: Morello is joining the tour, as he did in 2013-14. How will that affect things?
A: Tom is a smart, inspirational figure, directly descended from Woody Guthrie and all sorts of great topical musicians and songwriters. He always brings a little edge to the E Street Band. He is one of the few guitarists that completely has his own voice on guitar.
Q: You always have purposeful set lists.
A: The E Street Band is built for hard times. It always was. These are the moments when I think we can be of real value and real worth to the community. These are moments that fill the band with purpose, so I try to fill the set list around those ideas.
Q: Does what you’re doing feel more important than ever?
A: I don’t know of another time when the country has been as critically challenged and our basic ideas and values as critically challenged as they are right now. I’d have to go back to 1968 when I was 18 years old to another moment when it felt like the country was so on edge and like it felt there was simply so much at stake as far as who we are and the country we want to be and the people we want to be. It’s a critical, critical moment.
Q: Why did you decide to come to the Twin Cities early for the No Kings rally?
A: You want to try to meet the moment. The No Kings movement is of great import right now. When you have the opportunity to sing something where the timing is essential and if you have something powerful to sing, it elevates the moment, it elevates your job to another level. And I’m always in search of that.
Q: There is always blowback for artists who take a political stand. How do you deal with it?
A: I don’t worry about it. My job is very simple: I do what I want to do, I say what I want to say and then people get to say what they want to say about it. Those are the rules of my game. That’s fine with me. I don’t worry about if you’re going to lose this part of your audience. I’ve always had a feeling about the position we play culturally, and I’m still deeply committed to that idea of the band. The blowback is just part of it. I’m ready for all that.
Q: How and when did you develop your thick skin about all that?
A: Quite a long time ago. When you’re young, you’re a lot more fragile and you’re not quite sure what you’re doing and who you are and who you want to be. As time passes — I’ve been doing this 60 years — so you do develop a pretty thick skin, and it has served me well. I know who we are, I know the kind of band we are.
Q: Does performing marathon concerts feel any different in your 70s?
A: For me and the guys in E Street Band, it’s the same as it was when we were 16 or 23, that same commitment. You’re out there to work as hard as you can and do the best for that audience on that given night. Some of the stuff (drummer) Max Weinberg is doing for three hours a night is just incredible. The band still has its full force and full power. It’s something I’m grateful for.
I don’t feel radically different. But I’m probably not going to jump off the piano at the Target Center, but everything else, I’ll be doing.
Q: You just don’t play on consecutive nights anymore.
A: Not usually. That’s the biggest difference.
Q: When we talked about 20 years ago, you told me you become Bruce Springsteen when you walk up the steps to the stage. Is that still true?
A: I’d like to be Bruce Springsteen 24 hours a day myself. I’m only that for three hours. I’m chauffeur. I’m taking the kids out to breakfast still, even though they’re in their 30s. You’re committed to your home life. I’ve been blessed with a wonderful marriage. Those three hours I always knew who I was. It was the other 21 I had to figure out that were really hard.
Q: In your Broadway show, you pretty much said Bruce Springsteen is a myth. What is he really like?
A: Boring, for the most part. It’s all good. My life has been blessed.