Watch Bruce Springsteen make Howard Stern cry live on air with a gorgeous piano version of Thunder Road

By
( )
published

Bruce performs a different take on his classic anthem, causing Stern to well up for the "first time ever" on the show

Bruce Springsteen plays the piano
(Image credit: The Howard Stern Show / Twitter)

Bruce Springsteen made a special appearance on The Howard Stern Show on Monday night (October 31), and the New Jersey legend treated Stern and his listeners to an intimate performance of classic hit Thunder Road that even had the veteran talkshow host getting emotional live on air.

In a video since posted on YouTube, Springsteen can be seen discussing the recording process for Jungleland, the closing track from the singer-songwriter's 1975 album Born To Run. The song features a famous solo from E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons, with Stern noting that Springsteen had Clemons in the studio "for 16 hours" to get the solo right.

When Springsteen admits that he can no longer play the piano intro to Jungleland, he gets behind a piano set up in the studio to show off the songs he can still tinkle the ivories for. After flirting with a bit of Born To Run number Backstreets, Springsteen reveals that he actually wrote most of that album on the piano, before surprising Stern with a piano-led run through hallmark anthem, Thunder Road.

The gorgeous rendition leaves Stern feeling teary-eyed as he admits: "You finally got me to cry on the air, it's the first time ever."

Watch the heartwarming moment below.

Bruce Springsteen's new and twenty-first studio album, Only The Strong Survive, lands later this month, November 11, via Columbia. The album is made up entirely of covers of r&b and soul classics, featuring Springsteen's take on songs by Jerry Butler, Frank Wilson, William Bell and many more. 

Merlin Alderslade
Merlin Alderslade
Executive Editor, Louder

Merlin moved into his role as Executive Editor of Louder in early 2022, following over ten years working at Metal Hammer. While there, he served as Online Editor and Deputy Editor, before being promoted to Editor in 2016. Before joining Metal Hammer, Merlin worked as Associate Editor at Terrorizer Magazine and has previously written for the likes of Classic Rock, Rock Sound, eFestivals and others. Across his career he has interviewed legends including Ozzy Osbourne, Lemmy, Metallica, Iron Maiden (including getting a trip on Ed Force One courtesy of Bruce Dickinson), Guns N' Roses, KISS, Slipknot, System Of A Down and Meat Loaf. He has also presented and produced the Metal Hammer Podcast, presented the Metal Hammer Radio Show and is probably responsible for 90% of all nu metal-related content making it onto the site.