1999-03-15 Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, New York City, NY

Scheduled: ??:?? Local Start Time ??:?? / End Time ??:??

Info & Setlist | Venue

Bruce is finally inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame. The E Street Band support. "In The Midnight Hour" is a duet with Wilson Pickett, including Billy Joel on keyboard. Later Bruce joined in an all star jam session with, amongst others, Bono, Joel, Paul McCartney, Robbie Robertson, Dion, Roy Bittan, Nils Lofgren, Eric Clapton, Lauryn Hill, Bonnie Raitt, Melissa Etheridge, Pickett, Chris Isaak, The Staple Singers, Max Weinberg, D'Angelo, Peter Wolf, and Paul Shaffer and the horn section from his CBS Orchestra - Tom "Bones" Malone, Bruce Kapler, and Al Chez - who also join Bruce and the band on "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" and "In The Midnight Hour", conducted by Shaffer. "Long Tall Sally" has also been reported as played during the closing jam, but this is unconfirmed. Contrary to prior reports, Bruce did not participate in the performance of "What'd I Say".

Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction Ceremony

Springsteen Set

All-Star Jam

"Bruce´s acceptance speech"
Remember: You always want an Irishman to give your induction speech…. I knew I always liked you, Bono. You were scaring me a little bit there, I wasn't that good, but I like the part about my good looks.
Anyway, let me warn you. The records took two years, the show's three hours, so the speech may take a little while.

I stood on this stage and I inducted Roy Orbison, and Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Bob Dylan — artists whose music was a critical part of my own like — and tonight I hope that my music served my audience half as well. And if I've succeeded in doing that, it's been with the help of many, many kindred spirits along the way.

I'd like to thank my mother, Adele, for that slushy Christmas Eve…. for that Christmas Eve, a night like the one outside, when we stood outside the music store and I pointed to that Sunburst guitar and she had that 60 bucks and I said, "I need that one, Ma." She got me, she got me what I needed, and she protected me and provided for me on a thousand other days and nights. So … s importantly, she gave me a sense of work as something that was joyous and that filled you with pride and self-regard, and that committed you to your world. Thanks Mom. This is yours tonight. Take is home as a small return on the investment you made in your son. Momma … The Italian side of the family … Momma …

Now my dad, he passed away this year, but I've gotta thank him because — what would I conceivably have written about without him? I mean, you can imagine that if everything had gone great between us, we would have had disaster. I would have written just happy songs and I tried it in the early '90s and it didn't work; the public didn't like it. He never said much about my music, except that his favorite songs were the ones about him. And that was enough, you know ? Anyway, I put on his work clothes and I went to work. It was the way that I honored him. My parents' experience forged my own. They shaped my politics, and they alerted me to what is at stake when you're born in the U.S.A. I miss you Dad.

A lot of other people: Marion and Tex Vinyard. They took me under their wing when I was 15. They opened up their home to a bunch of rock and roll misfits and let us make a lot of noise and practice all night long. Thanks Marion. Carl "Tinker" West, another one of my early managers, whose support I couldn't have done without. He introduced me to Mike Appel, and Mike kicked the doors down when they needed kicking. And I consider him my friend; I want to say Mike, thanks for everything — mostly everything —- and thanks for being my guest here tonight. I'm glad you're here with me. Mike introduced me to the world of Columbia Records, which has been my home for the past 25 years — from the early days of John Hammond and Clive Davis to the high-rollin' years of Walter Yetnikoff and Al Teller, to the present with my friends Tommy Mottola and Donny Ienner. They created a conduit for a lifetime of thoughts and ideas, a place where I was … I felt safe and supported and encouraged to do my best and my truest work. And I've heard enough record company horror stories right from this stage to realize, to appreciate the fact that I don't have one. And for that I've gotta thank all the men and women at Columbia Records around the world, past and present. Thank you very much for your efforts.

I've gotta thank my co-producer, Chuck Plotkin, and engineer Toby Scott for their sustained contributors to my recorded work. They remained in the saddle as often years went by, wondering if we'd ever get the music or if they'd ever get a royalty check. They kept their cool and their creativity … of course they're basket cases now … but we remain friends and great working partners. And no mention of my records would be complete without Bob Clearmountain, a great mixer who helped me bring my music to a wider audience. I want to thank my tour director, George Travis, and the great crews he's assembled on the road over the years. Thank you George. I want to thank my agents, Barry Bell and Frank Barsalona, for a great job. All right … Thank you …

Now the lawyers, gotta thank them. Peter Parcher and Steve Hayes. They protected me and my music for 22 years. I appreciate it. This next one's a little tough. Allen Grubman and Artie Indursky, names familiar to many in this room. They're the money men. How can I put this? These are great and complicated and misunderstood Americans … They're men that are entrusted with a very, very important task. For the folks that don't know, the money man goes to the record company, and he's in charge of bringing back the pink Cadillac. Well, when Allen and Artie go, they bring back the pink Cadillac … and the blue Cadillac … and the yellow Cadillac … and the red Cadillac … and the pink Cadillac with the whitewalls … but then they take the blue Cadillac … and they take the hubcaps off the yellow Cadillac … but that still leaves you with a few Cadillacs. And they make sure that neither you nor themselves, of course, are gonna be broke when you're riding in the black Cadillac. So … they do that well.

I've gotta thank Barbara Carr for her love and loyalty and dedication. Couldn't get along without you Barb. My friend Dave Marsh: Thank you so much. And oh, the next guy. Yeah. This is … Jon Landau, or as I sometimes call him, Jon "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" Landau. I've seen the future of rock 'n' roll management, and its name is Jon Landau … I had to return the favor there. But that was — that quote was managing, it was a mite burdensome for me. But as he often said, "That's your job." But Jon's given me something beyond friendship and beyond guidance: his intelligence, his sense of the truth, his recognition of my intelligence. His creative ability as a producer and editor — speechwriter earlier this evening — his ability to see through to the heart of matters, both professional and personal, and the love that he's given me has altered my life forever. What I hope to give to my fans with my music — a greater sense of themselves and and greater freedom — he with his talents and his abilities has done that for me. There's no thank you tonight that's gonna do the job, and it's a debt that I can't repay — and one I treasure always. Thank you Jon. I love you. I also want to thank Barbara Landau, and Kate and Charlie, for sharing Jon with me over the years. I know it hasn't been easy.

Now, last but not least, the men and women — the mighty men and women — of the E Street Band. Oh Lord … Oh Lord … who I have reeducated and rededicated, reanimated, resuscitated and reinvigorated with the power, the magic, the mystery, the ministry of rock 'n' roll. Vini Lopez, Boom Carter — early drummers of the band. Davey Sancious. Nils Lofgren, the most overqualified second guitarist in show business. He plays 10 times better than me and he still wanders over to hear my solos when I play. I guess he's checking to see if I'm getting any better. Danny Federici, the most instinctive and natural musician I ever met and the only member of the band who can reduce me to a shouting mess. I love you Danny. Your organ and accordion playing brought the boardwalks of Central and South Jersey alive in my music. Thank you. Garry Tallent. Southern man, my lovely friend, bass player, rock 'n' roll aficionado, whose quiet and dignity graced my band and my life. Thank you Garry. Roy Bittan. Roy's playing formed the signature sound of some of my greatest records. He can play anything. He's always there for me. His emotional generosity and his deep personal support mean a great, great deal to me. Thank you Roy. Max Weinberg — Mighty Max. Star of the Conan O'Brien show. Conan ain't too bad either … Max found a place where Bernard Purdie, Buddy Rich and Keith Moon intersected and he made it his own. I ask and he delivers for me night after night. Thank you Max. Stevie Van Zandt. For those of you who have seen "The Sopranos" and are worried that that's what Steve is like … that's what he's like. He's a lifetime rock 'n' roll friendship. We did it all, you know. Great songwriter, producer, great guitarist. We haven't played together in 15 years, and if it's up to me, that won't ever happen again. I love you Steve. Patti Scialfa. She busted the boys' club, big time. Oh … It went like this: "Okay fellas. There's gonna be a woman in the band. We need someone to sing all the high parts. How complicated can it get?" Well, a nice paparazzi photo of me in my Jockey shorts on a balcony in Rome … 10 of the best years of my life … Evan, Jessie and Sam, three children genealogically linked to the E Street Band … tell the rest of the story. Everybody … everybody wants to know how I feel about the band. Hell, I married one of 'em. Thank you baby. You hit all the high notes. You're tougher than the rest. Oh now … last but not least, Clarence Clemons. That's right. You want to be like him but you can't, you know. The night I met Clarence, he got up on stage and a sound came out of his horn that seemed to rattle the glasses behind the bar, and threatened to blow out the back wall. The door literally blew off the club in a storm that night, and I knew I'd found my sax player. But there was something else, something — something happened when we stood side by side. Some … some … some energy, some unspoken story. For 15 years Clarence has been a source of myth and light and enormous strength for me on stage. He has filled my heart so many night — so many nights — and I love it when he wraps me in those arms at the end of the night. That night we first stood together, I looked over at C and it looked like his head reached into the clouds. And I felt like a mere mortal scurrying upon the earth, you know. But he always lifted me up. Way, way, way up. Together we told a story of the possibilities of friendship, a story older than the ones that I was writing and a story I could never have told without him at my side. I want to thank you, Big Man, and I love you so much.

So, as Stevie Van Zandt says: "Rock 'n' roll, it's a band thing." And that includes you, the audience. Thank you for giving me access and entrance into your lives, and I hope that I've been a good companion. But right now, my wife, my great friends, my great collaborators, my great band: Your presence tonight honors me, and I wouldn't be standing up here tonight without you, and I can't stand up here tonight with you. Please join me. Oh Jonny … you too.

^{Compiled by : Johanna Pirttijärvi.}

^{© All credits to the original photographer. We do not monetize a photo in any way, but if you want your photo to be removed, let us know, and we will remove it.}

Springsteen, Joel and Others Enter Ranks of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

After years as a participant at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies — praising his idols, jamming with the band — Bruce Springsteen joined the club himself last night. At the 14th annual induction, held at the Waldorf-Astoria, Mr. Springsteen said, ''I stood on this stage and inducted Roy Orbison, Bob Dylan and Creedence Clearwater Revival,'' he said. ''I hope my music served my audience half as well.''

Mr. Springsteen thanked his mother, who got him his first guitar, and then his father. ''Without him what would I have written about?'' he said. ''If we had gotten along it would have been a disaster, I would have just written happy songs.''

Later, with his longtime comrades in the E Street Band, Mr. Springsteen played ''Promised Land,'' ''Backstreets'' and ''Tenth Avenue Freezeout,'' then traded soul growls and big smiles with Wilson Pickett as they belted out ''In the Midnight Hour.''

Along with Mr. Springsteen, the hall inducted Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, Dusty Springfield, Curtis Mayfield, Del Shannon and the Staple Singers. Mr. McCartney and Mr. Mayfield are repeat members; they had already been recognized by the hall as members of the Beatles and the Impressions. Current stars — including Lauryn Hill, the winner of this year's Grammy Award for best album, as well as Sean (Puffy) Combs, Neil Young, Bono of U2, Bonnie Raitt, Eric Clapton and Art Alexakis of Everclear — were on hand to induct the rockers whose music they grew up on.

Musicians not are eligible for the Hall of Fame until 25 years after their first recording, and this year's members include musicians with long blockbuster careers, like Mr. Springsteen and Mr. Joel, as well as those who spent only a few years at the top of the charts.

Although the Hall of Fame is in Cleveland, all but one of the annual ceremonies have been held in music-business capitals like New York and Los Angeles. Like rock-and-roll itself, the annual event been transformed from a loosely organized party into a media event: This year's induction ceremony is to be broadcast on Wednesday at 9 P.M., on the VH-1 cable channel.

Gently mocking the notion of becoming a rock-and-roll elder statesman, before a room full of music-industry figures in black-tie who had paid $1,500 to $2,500 per seat, Mr. Joel opened the ceremony with ''Only the Good Die Young.''

Accepting his award from Ray Charles, Mr. Joel said, ''I grew up in Levittown, not exactly the epicenter of soul in America. We found out later that they did not sell Levitt homes to African-American families. So where were we going to get soul? We got it from the radio, we got it from rock-and-roll.''

Mr. Joel praised rock's black pioneers, and teased his critics. ''I know I've been referred to as derivative,'' he said. ''I'm derivative as hell. If anybody that's derivative was excluded from this institution, it would mean there wouldn't be any white people here.''

Ms. Hill praised the Staple Singers, the soul-gospel group best remembered for ''I'll Take You There.'' She said the group had ''unmistakably proven that speaking of faith and spirituality and God is in accordance with being 'fly' and commercially acceptable.''

The hall also recognized two of rock's early influences. Bonnie Raitt paid tribute to Charles Brown, a suave and heartbroken urban blues singer who died in January. She praised ''a voice like brandy and molasses dripping down that laid-back sultry, laid-back groove.'' She told the industry executives at the Waldorf, ''If they sell the records, give them the money. If they can sing and play, put them on your shows.''

Bob Wills, whose Texas Playboys were the best-known band in Western swing, was also named as an early influence on rock; Western swing presaged rock-and-roll in its fusion of blues, country and jazz. ''If I was more talented, I would have ripped him off more,'' said the songwriter Chris Isaak as he inducted Mr. Wills.

The producer George Martin, best known for working with the Beatles, was honored, though he was not a performer. He said that the Beatles ''helped me to hear things my ears wouldn't think of.''

Mr. McCartney noted that he and John Lennon had both been inducted separately from the Beatles. ''What about George and Ringo?'' he asked.

Elton John paid homage to Dusty Springfield, who died on March 2. ''When I first heard that voice, I fell in love with that voice,'' he said. ''I think she's the greatest white singer that there ever has been.'' He added that when Ms. Springfield first came to America, hearing Mavis Staples of the Staple Singers had ''changed her life.''

Ms. Springfield's manager, Vicki Wickham, said, ''She was never really quite sure that people appreciated her or knew about her. This meant a lot.''

Mr. Alexakis said that hearing Shannon's ''Runaway'' while stuck in a Los Angeles traffic jam had made him decide to write his own songs.

Mr. Mayfield, who was paralyzed in an accident in 1990, was too ill to attend. But he sent thanks to the hip-hop musicians who had sampled his songs over the last decade. ''I've probably sampled a few,'' Mr. Combs said.

The final jam session turned into a generation-crossing jubilee. Mr. McCartney sang Carl Perkins's ''Blue Suede Shoes.'' Mr. Joel revved up Mr. Charles's ''What'd I say.'' With Bono singing hallelujah, Mr. Mayfield's song ''People Get Ready'' became an all-star sing-along, a celebration and elegy for rockers past and present. Continuing the hymn-like mood, Mr. Joel tried to out-McCartney Mr. McCartney in ''Let It Be.'' Mr. McCartney took over, his falsetto soaring with tenderness and exaltation.

^{By Jon Pareles via The New York Times.}

The Boss, McCartney and Billy Joel Crowned Rock Gods

A Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony, like rock & roll itself, is at its best when it’s not on its best behavior.

The moments that resonate the loudest are not the thank yous, the tributes and the all-star jam sessions. Rather, they’re the moments that sucker-punch, like the Kinks’ Ray Davies looking out at a black tie crowd in 1990 and slyly commenting, “Rock & roll has become respectable — what a bummer.”

At the Fourteenth Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Dinner held Monday (March 15) at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in Manhattan, the defining rock & roll moment came when inductee Sir Paul McCartney invited his daughter Stella to the stage, and she stood beside him wearing a white tank top with the words “About Fucking Time” stenciled across her chest. It was a defiant soy bomb thrown in the face of not only VH-1, which was filming the ceremony for broadcast, but of a critical establishment that has often overlooked or even ridiculed her father, failing to induct him when he first became eligible three years ago. The delay, of course, robbed her late mother, Linda McCartney, the chance to share the joy. The shirt got one of the biggest cheers of the evening, and father and daughter clutched each other like true soul survivors — broken, sad and triumphant.

“This is brilliant for me, but it’s brilliant [and] sad, because I would like my baby to share this with me,” McCartney said, acknowledging his wife, who died of breast cancer last April. “She wanted this. But it’s beautiful, she’s beautiful, we’re all beautiful, and we’re cool.”

Joining McCartney in the ranks of the immortals this year were Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, Curtis Mayfield, Del Shannon, Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys, the Staple Singers, uber-producer (and fellow Beatle knight) George Martin, and the recently departed Dusty Springfield and Charles Brown.

“It’s probably all going to hit me in a couple of weeks, because I’m still in a state of disbelief,” commented Joel backstage after his speech, seeming less in shock at the induction honor itself then the fact that his own idol Ray Charles did the inducting honors.

Elton John and Bonnie Raitt had the bittersweet honor of inducting Dusty Springfield and Charles Brown, respectively. “I love you Dusty,” said John, who claimed to have joined her official fanclub as a teen. “You’re enough to turn a gay boy straight.” After inducting Brown, an “uptown” style blues pianist and singer from Texas who came to prominence in the Forties, Raitt stressed her disappointment that his induction came too late for him to see it. “That’s something [for the Hall of Fame] to think about — people that are getting to be of that age, they don’t have a lot of time to wait around.”

Other presenters included Neil Young (for McCartney), Lauryn Hill (for the Staple Singers), Chris Isaak (for Bob Wills and His Texas Playboys), Everclear’s Art Alexakis (for Del Shannon), Jimmy Iovine (for Sir George Martin), and Puff Daddy (for Curtis Mayfield, who as of last week had planned on attending but couldn’t because of his health). Any award for best speech, however, went hands down to the perennially spotlight-hungry Bono, who honored Springsteen with an epic dedication that lifted the Boss on a pedestal high above the peers who had gathered to honor him. “Credibility? You couldn’t have more unless you were dead,” the U2 singer said to somewhat stunned laughter. “But Bruce Springsteen you always knew was not going to die stupid. He didn’t buy the mythology that screwed so many people. Instead, he created an alternative mythology, one where ordinary lives became extraordinary and heroic.”

It was a tough act for the Boss himself to follow, but he succeeded by knocking himself down where Bono had built him up. “My dad, he passed away this year, but I have to thank him, because what could I have conceivably written about without him?” said Springsteen. “I mean, if everything had gone on great between us, it would have been a disaster. I would have written just happy songs, and I tried that in the early Nineties, and it didn’t work, the public didn’t like it.”

Springsteen was followed by McCartney, who, in addition to paying tribute to his wife, urged the Hall of Fame to hurry up and induct George Harrison and Ringo Starr for their respective solo careers. Then, at long last, it was time for the musical portion of the evening. Earlier, Melissa Etheridge had sung a Dusty song, and Eric Clapton and D’Angelo had paid tribute to Curtis Mayfield. But the act everyone had been waiting for was Springsteen’s performance with his full E-Street Band. If one can judge from the evening’s four performances — “Promised Land,” “Backstreets,” “10th Avenue Freeze Out” and “In the Midnight Hour,” with Wilson Pickett — the band’s rehearsals in Jersey for their upcoming reunion tour have been coming along very nicely, indeed. Springsteen’s rousing set was followed by the all-star jam session, highlighted by a Billy Joel-led run through Del Shannon’s classic “Runaway” and McCartney’s endearingly pub-worthy “Let It Be.”

“It’s time to go home,” pleaded a weary McCartney at the end, shooing the audience with his hands. Then he smiled. “This is a great night, ya?”

^{By Richard Skanse via Rolling Stone.}

Links: