A pair of New Jersey exports, Bruce Springsteen and Trey Anastasio, joined forces on the beach in Asbury Park on Sunday during the second and final day of Sea.Hear.Now Festival 2024. This marked the second time Anastasio and Springsteen had collaborated onstage following Bruce’s appearance with Phish at Bonnaroo in 2009.
Midway through an early evening set by his eight-piece Trey Anastasio Band, following a joyous rendition of “Push On ‘Til the Day”, the Garden State-raised Phish guitarist stepped to the microphone to address the crowd gathered on the sand. “Thank you, everybody, thank you,” he said. “So, very quickly, I wanna say [to] every person out here in the audience, I’m just as excited as you are. I grew up in New Jersey. I swam on this beach when I was a kid. And when I was 14 years old, I was allowed to go to my first-ever concert ever, my 16-year-old sister took me, and that concert was… the Jadwin Cage [in Princeton, NJ], November 1st, 1978. I saw Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.”
He continued, through excited spurts of laughter, “So, if you’re wondering where I got the idea to play like we were just playing, the whole show was like that. And I’m incredibly honored right now… we were backstage, we asked Bruce if he would come out and play one with us and he said yes. So, this is the thrill of a lifetime for me. Ladies and gentlemen, Bruce Springsteen.”
With that, Springsteen strode onstage with his Telecaster, wrapped Anastasio in a warm embrace, and gave the crowd a quick “How we doing?!” before following the band into one of his own beloved deep cuts, “Kitty’s Back”, the loose, laid-back blues vamp from his 1973 sophomore LP which has long functioned as a launchpad for live improvisation at E Street Band shows.
The song proved to be a perfect pick for the jam band icon and his group. A grinning Anastasio piped up to add backing vocals on the chorus and squared off with the elder rockstar to trade some tasteful blues licks but mostly seemed happy to kick back and watch the Boss be the Boss along with the tens of thousands of other starstruck fans on the beach. Saxophonist Kenneth Whalum also got a moment in the spotlight with a Clarance Clemons-reminiscent solo to help drive the performance home.
“See you later!” Springsteen crowed, stoking excitement for his headlining set as he took his leave.
“Bruce Springsteen, home again,” Trey laughed as he gathered himself to continue the show. “I never thought I’d have to follow Bruce Springsteen on a beach in Asbury Park.”
Related: Phish’s Trey Anastasio Sits In With Billy Joel At Madison Square Garden [Photos/Videos]
Despite the jokes, and regardless of his typical positioning as a festival headliner, Anastasio seemed genuinely excited to be opening for Springsteen in Springsteen country. Following big takes on “The Moma Dance”, “Olivia”, “Sand”, and “Everything’s Right”, he pulled out a string of Bruce-style superlatives to introduce his bandmates. “I’m Trey, I play guitar,” he said to round out the intros. “We’re gonna play one more song [“First Tube”] and then we’re gonna bring out the E Street Band, a little band from Asbury Park, New Jersey.”
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The sit-in with Trey Anastasio Band was just one small piece of a busy 24 hours for the Boss in his old stomping grounds. He also stopped by Saturday’s The Ocean Avenue Stomp Sea.Hear.Now late-night at The Stone Pony for an extended sit-in alongside Danny Clinch‘s Tangiers Blues Band and the Ocean Avenue Stompers horns, Robert Randolph, and more, jumped in with The Gaslight Anthem at the festival’s Park Stage following his appearance with TAB on Sunday, and hosted his own three-hour headlining set on the beach with the E Street Band to close out the event. Check back on Live For Live Music for more coverage of Bruce Springsteen’s big day at Sea.Hear.Now 2024 in Asbury Park.
Below, watch a video of Bruce Springsteen joining Trey Anastasio Band for “Kitty’s Back” at Sea.Hear.Now in Asbury Park, NJ. Scroll down to view a gallery of photos from the set via Ron Valle.
Trey Anastasio Band w/ Bruce Springsteen – “Kitty’s Back” (Bruce Springsteen) – 9/15/24
[Video: Sammy Steinlight]
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Setlist: Trey Anastasio Band | Sea.Hear.Now Festival | Asbury Park, NJ | 9/15/24
Set: Mozambique, Cayman Review, Push On ‘Til the Day, Kitty’s Back (Bruce Springsteen) [1], The Moma Dance, Olivia, Sand, Everything’s Right, First Tube
Notes: [1] with Bruce Springsteen on guitar, vocals.
