Steven Van Zandt has insisted that the secret to Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band’s longevity together is the star being ‘a benevolent monarch’.
They have been playing together for over 50 years, and guitarist Steven, 73, and iconic frontman Bruce, 75, have now spoken about how everyone understanding the ‘artistic adventure’ has kept that working.
‘Part of what makes it stay together is democracies don’t work in bands, okay? Let’s put it this way, it’s a benevolent monarchy,’ quipped Steven during a Q&A alongside Bruce on Friday night in London attended by Metro.
The pair were attending a special screening of the new Disney Plus documentary Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band.
Acknowledging that it had been ‘very challenging’ at some points, Dancing in the Dark hitmaker Bruce joked about how against the grain they had gone compared to other musical outfits.
‘The actual arc of rock and roll bands is to break up, it’s not to stay together,’ he told the audience. ‘I mean, think about how many bands really stay together against how many who broke up? It’s way – I don’t know, maybe it’s 90/10?’
‘And forget about bands staying together, we can’t get two people to stay together,’ he laughed. ‘Simon hates Garfunkel, Sam [Moore] hates Dave [Prater], Hall hates Oates, Phil hates Don Everly. Oh! Noel and Liam, how could I forget?’
However, Bruce pointed out that the documentary – which charts their ongoing world tour – showed the ‘rewards’ of such a long working relationship and acknowledged that it was ‘a separate art, staying together’.
He continued: ‘You gotta imagine you’re in high school, and those four people that you hung around with in high school, how about them being the same four people you’ve worked with every single day of your life until you’re 75?
‘That’s insane to expect any sane person to be able to stand, but the art is that’s what you have to make happen.’
When host Edith Bowman pressed him on how they had managed to do it, the Born To Run legend responded: ‘I pay a tremendous amount of money. That greases the wheels pretty good.’
And to whoops of laughter, he added: ‘And I’m a pretty nice boss.’
The E Street Band have been Bruce’s primary backing band since 1972, with bass player Garry Tallent the only remaining founding member besides Mr Springsteen – also known fondly as ‘the Boss’.
Pianist and multi-instrumentalist Roy Bittan joined in 1974, alongside drummer Max Weinberg, while Van Zandt – a longtime friend – officially joined in 1975.
Bruce’s wife, singer-songwriter and guitarist Patti Scialfa, who he married in 1991 and with whom he shares three children, also joined in 1984.
Award-winning chart-topper Bruce and the E Street Band are still going strong with gigs all over the world after more than five decades at the top of their game.
‘You’ve never seen a hearse with luggage on top so that will be it for me,’ he previously said when asked if he has any plans to retire.
On Friday’s episode of The Graham Norton Show, he added: ‘I am going to keep going until it’s over.’
And despite so many decades of performing, the Boss admitted he gets a feeling of ‘anxiety’ before he steps on stage, although he doesn’t think it’s the same as getting nervous.
‘I get anticipatory anxiety. It’s not quite the same thing as nervousness. It’s a natural feeling to have before you go out to challenge yourself,’ he explained.
He insisted the emotion he feels before a show are totally necessary, adding: ‘If it wasn’t there, I think there would be something wrong with you and you couldn’t do the job.’
As well as his own tours and new documentary, the Thunder Road singer has been ‘involved a little’ with upcoming biopic Deliver Me From Nowhere.
The film is based on his life in the early 1980s, with The Bear star Jeremy Allen White playing Bruce himself.
‘It’s a lovely cast,’ he said, while he admitted it’s a tough job playing a musician on screen, particularly when songs are involved.
Asked if Jeremy would be lip-syncing, Bruce responded: ‘This is not easy to do because you can’t do an imitation, you have to do a personal interpretation. It’s difficult but he is a great actor and sings pretty good.’
During a recent concert, the rock icon brushed off rumours of his impending retirement, insisting to his audience that he and his E Street Band do not intend to ‘quit’.
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He has had to postpone a number of dates over the last year after various health setbacks, but in August he told fans at the Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia: ‘We ain’t quitting!’
‘We ain’t doing no farewell,’ he continued to rapturous applause. ‘Jesus Christ! No farewell tour for the E Street Band… Farewell to what? A thousand people screaming your name? Get the hell out. I ain’t going anywhere!’
Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band releases on Disney Plus on October 25. The Graham Norton Show airs Fridays at 10.40pm on BBC One and iPlayer.
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