Bruce Springsteen has always been able to put on a great live show. In his decades of live performances, Springsteen has stretched the limits of how long a concert can be. He puts on electric performances that thrill fans. While this has kept his career moving, it was once a bad thing for him. He put on a show so successful that the venue fired him.
In the early days of Springsteen’s career, he heard New Jersey musician Southside Johnny was playing a show with Steven Van Zandt at a local bar. Springsteen took his guitar to the bar to join them.
“The place was packed and we rocked the joint like old times, with the crowd cheering, everyone glued to the stage and the music,” Springsteen wrote in his book Born to Run. “It was a great night all around. At the end of the evening, Steve and I headed back to the manager’s office to pick up our money and obviously solidify some future bookings. We’d just turned this club inside out and we were expecting some kudos and work.”
The bar owner, Terry Magovern, surprised them with his reaction. Though it was a successful show for the musicians, it hadn’t been for the bar.
“Expressionless, he stood on the far side of his desk and did not offer kudos,” Springsteen wrote. “We asked what the prospect for future bookings would be and he calmly explained to us that there would be none. He said that yes, the crowd was large and enthusiastic, but no one was drinking. They were too busy listening to the music. He then added, as if we hadn’t noticed, ‘It’s a bar, you idiots.’ They made money by selling liquor. The bartenders made money from selling liquor. No liquor sales meant no money.”
Magovern would go on to work as a longtime assistant to Springsteen, but their relationship began when he fired the musician.
Bruce Springsteen said he couldn’t see himself playing shows in bars for the rest of his life
Clearly, Springsteen could put on a good show at a bar. When asked if he thought he could have lived a life where he never became famous and was just “just the greatest bar-band leader” in New Jersey, he said he wouldn’t have wanted that.
“You can be very, very good and miss,” he told Rolling Stone. “But do I personally envision a scenario where that could have happened? No [laughs]. Or maybe I just prefer not to.”
