Bruce Springsteen and Levon Helm might have come from two completely different worlds, but they had a love and respect for each other that they voiced many times. Helm and The Band started covering The Boss’s Atlantic City in the ’90s and the resulting version is arguably the best Springsteen cover of all-time. When Levon passed away earlier this year, Bruce tackled The Weight and talked about his reverence for The Band drummer at an E Street Band show in Newark on May 2nd. However, there was only one time the two music legends actually performed together.
Levon Helm and his All Stars visited Springsteen’s “hometown” bar, The Stone Pony in Asbury Park, on August 22nd, 1987. The Boss was pretty much on hiatus from the road that year, so he often sat in when his musical friends would rock The Pony. As it was that night when Bruce emerged towards the end of the show. The crowd went nuts as Springsteen shared lead vocals on Up On Cripple Creek with Levon. Then, Bruce, Helm and the All Stars lit into a rollicking take on Little Richard’s Lucille. You could tell the two were getting off on the experience by the knowing glances they exchanged in a fan-shot video that thankfully emerged of the sit-in. Take a look at this meeting of the minds…
Bruce Springsteen w/ Levon Helm and the All-Stars – Up On Cripple Creek / Lucille
