| “THE BRUCE PROJECT” PREMIERES ON SEPTEMBER 23 A live music special for Bruce Springsteen’s 70th birthday |
This Monday the 23rd through Thursday the 26th, between 6 and 10 (but only 6-9 on Monday as explained below) in the evenings I’ll be asking listeners to become members as WFUV’s fall membership drive will be going on. This is the station’s first member drive since I took over the evening show back in April and it’s important that I pull my weight when it comes to fundraising. Please, please, please consider becoming a member of the unique non-profit radio station that has been my radio home now for over a decade. If you do it during my show or otherwise make mention of the fact that Eric Holland is your main man, better and better! Any amount contribution makes you a member and you can scoop up some a spiffy thank-you gift like a t-shirt, sweatshirt, cap, live CD or download of exclusive live performances, or even join as a marquee member and get invitations to intimate shows in and around New York. You can call 833-907-WFUV (9388) or go online here.
| It happens to be Bruce Springsteen‘s 70th birthday on Monday, and WFUV is celebrating this local hero in a significant and heartfelt way. (This bit cribbed from a station press release written by station web queen/interviewer/host of the UKNY show Kara Manning.) That evening, from 9-10 p.m., WFUV will premiere its original program, The Bruce Project, a one-hour special of live covers of Springsteen’s songs by artists who consider him an influence and inspiration. The starry lineup of performers includes The Head and the Heart, the Amy Ray Band, The Hold Steady’s Craig Finn, The Tallest Man on Earth, and Robert Randolph & the Family Band. All performances were recorded at FUV’s Studio A at Fordham University in the Bronx. In the program, Springsteen’s fellow songwriters and admirers, like Glen Hansard and Rosanne Cash, offer their perspectives on the cultural resonance of the venerated New Jersey musician. “I can think of no other artist more deserving of this deep dive into his legacy than Bruce,” says FUV Music Director Russ Borris. “There’s vast reverence and respect for him in the music community, not to mention the long road of influence he has forged over his six-decades-long career.” The Bruce Project was compiled over the past nine months and now culminates in 10 stellar performances of Springsteen’s hits – and lesser-known gems too. London-based songwriter David Gray picked one of his Springsteen favorites from 1982’s Nebraska, “Mansion on the Hill” – a song that Gray calls “simple and wonderful.” Shreveport, Louisiana newcomers Seratones gravitated towards “State Trooper,” another meaningful cut on that same album, a song which singer AJ Haynes says that she connects with in a particularly personal way. Fellow Jersey musicians are duly represented: Titus Andronicus kicks out a triumphant cover of “Glory Days,” from 1984’s Born in the U.S.A and Pete Yorn calls his choice, “Your Own Worst Enemy” from 2007’s Magic, “exactly my life at that time.” And Ray, who admits that she always feels a little reticent covering Springsteen in public since she loves his music so much, broke her own rule (again) for The Bruce Project and played a riveting version of “Racing in the Street,” found on 1978’s Darkness on the Edge of Town. An artist-to-artist love letter, The Bruce Project is the first in the series of Project programs that WFUV will undertake in the future. While it’s always illuminating to delve into artist influences in interviews, the realization of one artist’s impact on another, via live performance, brings that respect to another level. “The variety of voices and points of view from the artists covering Bruce brings new depth to these storied songs,” says FUV Program Director Rita Houston. “As Glen Hansard explained to me, ‘You know, there are many great songs in our lives. There’s not many that you go and learn.'” |
- Artists and Songs:
- Glen Hansard – “Drive All Night”
- Amy Ray Band – “Racing in the Street”
- Robert Randolph & the Family Band – “Ain’t Got You”
- The Tallest Man on Earth – “Tougher Than the Rest”
- Seratones – “State Trooper”
- David Gray – “Mansion on the Hill”
- Titus Andronicus – “Glory Days”
- Pete Yorn – “Your Own Worst Enemy”
- Craig Finn – “Magic”
- The Head and the Heart – “Hungry Heart”
The Film Western Stars, following Springsteen’s album of the same name released earlier this year, is expected to hit theaters next month!
