Bruce Springsteen

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will kick off their 2023 international tour with 31 performances across the United States. The tour begins Wednesday, Feb. 1, at Amalie Arena, 401 Channelside Drive, Tampa, touching down in Houston, TX on February 14th

The shows will mark Springsteen and the E Street Band’s first tour dates since February 2017, and their first in North America since September 2016.

Springsteen’s 2020 studio album, “Letter to You” on Columbia Records, marked the first time he and the E Street Band recorded live together in decades and debuted at No. 1 in 11 countries. Their most recent tour, the River Tour in 2016-2017, was named 2016’s top global tour by both Billboard and Pollstar.

In November, Springsteen released “Only the Strong Survive,” a solo cover album of R&B and soul songs.

The E Street Band’s members include Roy Bittan on piano, Nils Lofgren on guitar, Patti Scialfa on guitar and vocals, Garry Tallent on bass guitar, Stevie Van Zandt on guitar and vocals, Max Weinberg on drums, Soozie Tyrell on violin, guitar, and vocals, Jake Clemons on saxophone, and Charlie Giordano on keyboards.

An outsider and recluse in school, Springsteen frequently got in trouble at his Catholic elementary school. “In the third grade, a nun stuffed me in a garbage can under her desk because she said that’s where I belonged,” he said. “I also had the distinction of being the only altar boy knocked down by a priest during mass.” Several years later, he skipped his own high school graduation because he felt too uncomfortable to attend.

In 1967, an 18-year-old Springsteen was drafted for military service in the Vietnam War. But, as he later told Rolling Stone magazine, the only thought in his head as he traveled to his induction was “I ain’t goin’.”

Springsteen failed his physical, largely due to his deliberately “crazy” behavior and a concussion previously suffered in a motorcycle accident. Springsteen’s 4-F