Search the Community

Bruce Springsteen Australian tour rumours are born to run and run Clearly, tramps like us, baby we were born to run on speculation. As we near the simultaneous release of a Bruce Springsteen autobiography, called Born To Run, and an accompanying album, called Chapter and Verse, which includes unheard songs from his pre-fame bands, the underlying talk here has been about an Australian tour. Bruce Springsteen reaches out at Allphones Arena in Sydney on the 2014 tour. Will he return there in 2017? Photo: Getty Images Not that one has been announced. But rumours, as they say, are rife. It was sparked by "idle" – but was it really? – talk from promoter Michael Gudinski, who brought Springsteen and his E Street Band out for his past two tours in 2013 and 2014. Those tours' financial and fan-satisfying success more than making up for another promoter's disastrous tour in 2003. Gudinski told a Melbourne radio station that early next year would see not just a "massive February and March of rock" but "the biggest run of concerts you've seen in Melbourne ever". Along with talk of Guns n' Roses, Paul McCartney and Adele coming at that time, the Springsteen rumour was given impetus by Gudinski, who was responding to memories of the now semi-legendary E Street Band show at Hanging Rock in 2013 – which the American loved said Gudinski – revealing that he'd been at some of the European shows on the current E Street Band tour but didn't want to "break the story". Advertisement "Let me tell you, let me tell you, he finished the tour at Hanging Rock, and um, pretty hard to come to Hanging Rock in early February without doing the rest of Australia so we'll see what happens in the next few days." Well, didn't that set the hares running? Except of course that this was said on August 3 and a "few days" has turned into more than a month without more. Was it all talk? Was subsequent information about it being all outdoor shows similarly just hot air? Will we have to settle for the book which, according to a Vanity Fair profile is detailed and frank, including about his bouts with depression which left him "crushed", surgery which threatened to curtail his singing and his foray into politics? Here's a summary of the best speculation/information on the tour I've got. A January/February tour is on, maybe to be announced on or soon after the album and book release on September 23 and September 27 respectively. Only ill health or some serious falling out between Gudinski and Springsteen management would derail this. There will be outdoor shows – definitely Hanging Rock, maybe the Hunter Valley, where he played in 2014 and probably AAMI Park in Melbourne – but also arena shows. That most likely means venues such as the newly/awfully named Qudos Bank Arena (formerly Allphones, one time Superdome), in Sydney. Perth and Adelaide, who had their first shows on the 2014 tour, will miss out. A show at Hanging Rock will have a big name or two on the undercard. Last time it was Jimmy Barnes; this time there's talk of Cold Chisel (possible) and the reforming Midnight Oil (unlikely). The support act on the rest of the shows looks like it will be the reformed Jet. (Will they "Springsteen up" their songs? Are You Gonna Be My Girl, Mary?) As with the European shows, the Australian tour will be regular, mixed setlist shows rather than being built around the album, The River, which was the basis of the American concerts earlier this year. One thing that isn't a rumour but a guarantee: if he comes we should not expect short shows. Many shows in Europe recently approached four hours (his longest show recorded was in Helsinki in 2012 at four hours and five minutes) and his longest ever American show happened in August 2016, a minute over four hours. Of course this could all be wrong. Let's see.

I know there's one or two down under http://brucespringsteen.net/news/2012/wrecking-ball-tour-coming-to-australia