Bruce Springsteen’s popular artifacts to feature in Grammy museum

LOS ANGELES —
Bruce Springsteen’s most memorable artifacts including his favourite Fender guitar and stage outfits will be on display in a travelling interactive exhibit.

The Grammy Museum announced Tuesday that Bruce Springsteen Live! will open at the Grammy Museum Experience in the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey, on Oct. 1. The exhibit will feature Springsteen and the E Street Band’s live performance footage, instruments, stage costumes and exclusive interviews.

The exhibit in New Jersey will run until March 20, 2022. It will travel to the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles in the fall next year.

“As we reopen the doors to our museum and so many of us return to the workplace, it only seemed fitting that we would look to ‘The Boss’ to lead the way,” said Mark Conklin, director of artist relations and programming at the Grammy Museum Experience Prudential Center, in a statement. “No musical artist has captured the spirit and resiliency of New Jerseyans in song better than Bruce Springsteen, so we couldn’t imagine a more appropriate exhibit at this moment.”

Springsteen’s modified Fender guitar that was featured on several of his album covers such as “Human Torch” and “Born to Run” will be displayed. Other items will include stage clothing from Springsteen and members of E Street along with a signed itinerary from his Human Rights Tour, a six-week benefit tour in 1988. A ticket booth stage prop from the Tunnel of Love tour will also be highlighted at the exhibit.

A saxophone played by the late Clarence Clemons — who performed alongside Springsteen for 40 years — will be on display. The saxophone was passed on to Clemons’ nephew, Jake Clemons, who continues to use the instrument as the newest member of the E Street Band since 2012.

Through an interactive kiosk, visitors will be able to view Springsteen’s handwritten set lists and create their own encores to compare against the legendary performer’s original.

“Few performers embody the soul and excitement of live rock and roll like Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band,” said co-curator Robert Santelli, founding executive director of the Grammy Museum. “This exhibit will undoubtedly get fans excited about seeing Springsteen again in concert, hopefully soon.”

The Grammy Museum partnered with the Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music at Monmouth University.