“Farewell to What?” Bruce Springsteen Unloads Epic Rant on Retirement Plans

Before there was Zach Bryan, there was Bruce Springsteen. Long before American Songwriter noted eerie parallels between the two artists, the “Dancing in the Dark” singer was tapping into the Middle America zeitgeist. Now, 60 years after he got his start, The Boss would like to make it clear that there is Zach Bryan, and there is still Bruce Springsteen. The “Born in the USA” legend recently revealed his retirement plans—or lack thereof.

Bruce Springsteen: “We Ain’t Doing No Farewell Tour Bulls—!”

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band stopped at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia Friday (Aug. 23) as their 2024 stadium world tour enters the home stretch. But if you couldn’t score tickets, don’t stress. There will be more tours—the 20-time GRAMMY winner assured the Pennsylvania crowd of that.

“We’ve been around for 50 f—in’ years, and we ain’t quitting!” Springsteen declared. “We ain’t doing no farewell tour bulls—! Jesus Christ! No farewell tour for the E Street Band!

“Farewell to what?” the 74-year-old rocker continued amidst the crowd’s deafening cheers. “A thousand people screaming your name? Get the hell out. I ain’t going anywhere!”

Only a thousand? Springsteen may be underselling it. On July 19, 1988, the “Nebraska” singer performed before a crowd of 160,000 at Radrennbahn Weissensee in Berlin, Germany. That stop on his Tunnel of Love Express tour still ranks among the top 10 largest crowds ever for a single artist.

[RELATED: On This Day: Bruce Springsteen Performs Behind the Iron Curtain in 1988, Helping To Bring about the End of the Berlin Wall]

“Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band were on one in Philly,” marveled one concertgoer on X/Twitter. “I’m so sore and so tired. I don’t know how this man or this band does it night after night after night.”

‘The Boss’ Returns to Philly One Year After Canceled Show

Last week’s concerts in Philadelphia were makeup shows for last August, when Bruce Springsteen put the E Street Band tour on ice after suffering from a peptic ulcer. The New Jersey native addressed last year’s cancellation during his Friday (Aug. 23) show.

“Anything I did, my belly hurt,” Springsteen recalled. “Trying to sing, my belly hurt. If I tried to play the guitar, my belly hurt. If I went to kiss my baby, my belly hurt! I was laying there thinking, ‘F—, I’d rather be in Philadelphia!’”

Featured image by Jeff Ross/Shutterstock