Since the real Bruce is laying low these days, there may be one or two readers out there craving for a little Bruce juice. If so, and if you live in New York City, you're in luck. On April 19 Don Hill's in Greenwich Village will open its doors to an all-out Springsteen event called Springtime for Springsteen. A host of New York City bands and artists will perform Bruce songs all night long. In fact, you can already see the setlist. Admission is $10 and the show starts at 8 PM. Read more

   

Before the holidays a rumor was spread that Bruce and the band had booked studio time in the beginning of the new year. Since then it has been rather quiet. No concrete information has been leaked. The only thing that's certain is that Bruce has spent some time in Florida with his family far away from recording studios. Still, that doesn't mean there haven't been any rumors at all. One such rumor we've heard is that Bruce has in fact been recording. Not with the band, but with violinist Soozie Tyrell only. Another rumor suggests that E Street Band recordings are still in the works for the next few months. We can only wait and see. Read more

   

According to Rolling Stone Bruce will make an appearance on Gary US Bond's upcoming album, Back in 20. The album is Gary's first with new music in 20 years. In the early Eighties Bruce produced a couple of Gary US Bond's albums and wrote several of the songs, just as he lent most of the E Street Band to the recordings. It's not yet known what exactly Bruce's contribution on the new album will be, but we will all find out on June 1 when it's released. Read more. Read more

   

In an interview on Billboard.com Little Steven says that he hopes 2004 will be a year off for Bruce and the E Street Band. The good news is that he adds that, "We will make another record and we will be back for sure." Until then Steven will be busy with his mission to spread his garage rock message. A Little Steven Underground Radio Show tour has already been announced, and soon details for a three-day garage rock festival will be reveiled. Read the complete article. Read more

   

Even in a year with no new music from Bruce, he managed to take home a Grammy at last night's awards show. He had to share it with the late Warren Zevon. Together the two of them won the award for "Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group With Vocal" for "Disorder in the House", which appeared on Zevon's last album, The Wind. Bruce himself wasn't present, let alone performed. Read more

   

Last night Bruce won an award for Major Tour of the Year at the annual Pollstar Concert Industry Awards which took place at Kodak Theater in Hollywood, CA. The Pollstar Concert Industry Awards is a music industry award honoring "those whose contributions most enhance and enrich the live music experience". The nominees are chosen by their concert business peers and winners are determined by ballots cast by Pollstar subscribers. No word on whether Bruce himself was present. Read more

   

No, we haven't gone barking bonkers on ya. It's true. Well, maybe not Bruce in person, but his music has now been heard on Mars. Engineers from NASA reports that the Mars rover Opportunity was woken up with Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run" for its first mission on the red planet a couple of weeks ago. Altogether, Bruce is very well represented in space by now. A few years ago he had an asteroid named after him. Read more

   

Backbeat Books is planning to release a book by Clive Young called Crank It Up. The book will be a rare look into the sound systems at concerts with big names such as Dixie Chicks, U2, and not least Bruce. In fact, there will be a whole chapter dedicated to The Rising Tour where the writer talks about how the sound progressed throughout the tour. It may get a bit technical here and there, the author warns, but it should still be an interesting read for serious Springsteen fans. The book is called Live Sound Secrets of the Top Tour Engineers and will be available in April from Backbeat Books. Read more

   

Bruce's publisher, Shore Fire, has released the following statement concerning Philadelphia DJ Ed Sciaky's death:

"Pioneering radio personality Ed Sciaky passed away yesterday at the age of 55. As a DJ at Philadelphia's WMMR and other influential FM radio stations in the city, Sciaky was instrumental in the careers of such artists as Bruce Springsteen, Yes and Billy Joel. He is survived by his wife, Judy, and their daughter, Monica.

The following are statements from Bruce Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt regarding Sciaky's passing.

Bruce Springsteen:
"Ed Sciaky was the kind of DJ whose passion was the lifeblood for artists like myself. His support for my work brought me to an audience in Philadelphia that has remained one of my strongest to this day. Ed was the DJ as true rock and roll fan...the very spirit of the music he loved. He will be greatly missed."

Steven Van Zandt:
"Ed Sciaky will never die.
That is what being legendary is all about.
As long as the music of the bands he played lives, he lives.
I loved him.
I'll miss him
. Ed Sciaky will never die." Read more

   

Legendary Philadelphia disc jockey, music fan, and friend of Bruce Springsteen, Ed Sciaky, has died, 55 years old. Ed Sciaky was probably the first disc jockey in the world to play Bruce Springsteen's music on the radio in the early Seventies, and he played an important role in making Bruce a household name on the East Coast. Since then Springsteen has always been prominently featured in his radio broadcasts, not least in his Sundays With Springsteen shows on WMGK where Sciaky has now ended his career way too soon. So far there hasn't been an official reaction from Bruce, but Little Steven told Philadelphia Daily News, "I loved him. I'll miss him". So will thousands of radio listeners in the US and elsewhere. RIP. Read more