Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Set Off Land of Hopes and Dreams Tour with Tom Morello in Minneapolis
Bruce Springsteen, photo by Danny Clinch
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band returned last night to set off their American extension of the Land of Hope and Dreams tour. Onstage at Minneapolis’ Target Center, Springsteen and his tireless backing band tore through a three-hour show charged with urgent political messages and featuring frequent sit-ins from special guest Tom Morello.
Last year, Springsteen’s Land of Hope and Dreams tour crossed Europe with unforgettable performances and powerful messages of resistance, which were captured on a live EP of the same name and spurred a series of spiteful social media rants from President Trump. Before embarking on this spring’s Stateside follow-up, Springsteen promised that the spirit of the tour would match the spirit of the time, directly confronting political and social crises rather than just distracting from them. “We will be rocking your town in celebration and in defense of America – American democracy, American freedom, our American Constitution and our sacred American dream, all of which are under attack by our wannabe king and his rogue government in Washington, D.C.,” he said.
Sprigsteen’s eagerly anticipated kick-off last night made good on this promise from its first moments as he took the stage with a solemn “prayer for our men and women in service overseas.” The Boss, his band and Morello then launched a cover of Edwin Starr’s 1970 protest anthem “War,” which Springsteen had last performed in 2003. The Rage Against the Machine guitarist remained in the mix for the ensuing treatments of “Born in the U.S.A.” and “Death to My Hometown,” then departed as the band lit up a rousing “No Surrender.”
Springsteen and the E Street Band delivered a total of 27 songs through the performance, tailored closely to the most impactful and socially engaged cuts from the frontman’s catalog, including the first full-band treatment of his recent “Streets of Minneapolis,” which he performed at the city’s No Kings protest on Saturday, and a solo rendition of “House of a Thousand Guitars.” Morello returned at the mid-set to bolster “American Skin (41 Shots)” and “Long Walk Home,” then later lent his talents to a set-closing movement through “The Ghost of Tom Joad,” “American Skin” and “Land of Hopes and Dreams.” To cap off the show, the full company offered an encore that began with “Born to Run,” moved to Springsteen’s first cover of Prince’s “Purple Rain” since the Minnesota legend’s death in 2018, and culminated in a finale of Bob Dylan’s “Chimes of Freedom.”
In speeches throughout the performance, Springsteen addressed the immediate political crisis that had inspired him to reunite the band this year. “We are living through some very dark times,” he began in the first of four extended reflections, per Variety. “Our American values that have sustained us for 250 years are being challenged as never before. We’ve got our young men and women’s lives at risk In an unconstitutional and illegal war. This is happening now.”
“There are immigrants being held in detention centers around the country and being deported without due process of law to alien countries and foreign gulags. This is happening now.
Our Justice Department has completely abdicated its independence, and our attorney general, Pam Bondi, takes her marching orders straight from a corrupt White House. She prosecutes our president’s perceived enemies, covers up for his misdeeds and protects his powerful friends. This is happening now.
The richest men in America have abandoned the world’s poorest children through death and disease, through their dismantling of USAID. This is happening now.
We are abandoning NATO and the world order that’s kept us safe and at global peace for 80 years. This is happening now.
We threaten our neighbors and our allies whose sons and daughters have fought alongside us in American wars with the predatory annexation of their land. This is happening now.
Our museums are being told to whitewash American history of any unpleasant or inconvenient facts, like the full history of the brutality of slavery. You want to talk about snowflakes? We have a president who can’t handle the truth. This is happening now.
While working Americans struggle, our president and his family enrich themselves by billions of dollars trading on the people’s office in corruption unmatched in American history. This is happening now.
This White House is destroying the American idea and our reputation around the world. To many, we are no longer looked upon as an often imperfect but strong defender of democracy standing for the global good. We are no longer the land of the free and the home of the brave. We are now, to many, America the reckless, unpredictable, predatory rogue nation. That is this administration’s and this president’s legacy. This is happening now.
Honesty, honor, humility, compassion, thoughtfulness, morality, true strength, and decency — don’t let anybody tell you that these things don’t matter anymore. They do. They are at the heart of the kind of men and women we are, the kind of citizens we are, the kind of country we’ll be leaving to our children. So many of our elected leaders have failed us that this American tragedy can only be stopped by the American people. So join us and let’s fight for the America that we love.
Are you with us?”
The Land of Hope and Dreams tour will continue on Friday as Springsteen and the band take the stage at Portland, Ore.’s Moda Center, then proceed with 16 further stops before a last stand at Washington, D.C.’s Nationals Park on May 25. Find tickets and more information on the run at brucespringsteen.net.
