Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band are built to last — and that's no accident.
Drummer Max Weinberg shared secrets to the band's onstage stamina and career longevity Sept. 28 during the Springsteen Archives' “Springsteen On Screen: From the Vault With Thom Zimny and Max Weinberg” at the Pollak Theatre on the university's campus in West Long Branch.
“You eat right, you sleep a lot,” said Weinberg during a Q&A session at the conclusion of the program. “It’s focusing and realizing you have a responsibility. So it’s simple but it’s not easy.”
Springsteen and the E Street Band, whose core members are in their 70s, regularly play three hour-plus shows.
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“For me it goes by in a flash,” said Weinberg, a Newark native. “I don’t get tired. I don’t know why — I can't. He's the one who decodes when to stop. I can't say, 'Hold on a second, Bruce!' ”
Weinberg joined the band in September 1974.
“You're up there and he counts off the first song and you’re literally on a rocket ship, so you find reserves you never thought you would have,” Weinberg said.
The Boss knows how to inspire the band, Weinberg added.
“He has a lot of mottos,” Weinberg said. “For example, 'It never pays to not wait for a cue.' Think about that. Another one is, 'We're not up here to be good, we're up here to transform their lives.' ”
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Weinberg, 73, had open heart surgery in 2010 years after being diagnosed with a heart condition. His doctor monitored him behind the drums with the E Street Band and said he shouldn't have been able to do it with his condition. The doctor wrote a medical journal article on it, but did not identify Weinberg.
Three months ago Weinberg, dad to drummer Jay Weinberg, monitored himself during a three hour-plus show.
“I burned 4,000 calories, no kidding,” Weinberg said. “My heart rate was 172 and the average heart rate was 148, which if I’m working out … and my heart rate is 170, I'm on the floor. It’s time to stop. I don’t know, you get in a mood — that's all I can say.”
Weinberg, who also starred on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” and “The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien” for 17 years, works out regularly with a trainer. He was the first member of the E Street Band to do so.
“They made fun of me,” said Weinberg, now known as "Mighty Max." “I started working out with a trainer in '78. Steve (Van Zandt)and Bruce were always like, 'You're working out? We're not playing long enough.' I introduced Bruce to that trainer and he became Lou Ferrigno.”
At the Sept. 28 event, seven largely never before seen clips were shown, with introductions by Zimny and commentary by Weinberg:
- “Then She Kissed Me” from the Bottom Line in New York City, 1975.
- “Jungleland” recording studio footage, 1975.
- “When You Dance” rehearsal footage from Springsteen's former home studio in Holmdel, 1976.
- “Raise Your Hand” rehearsal footage from Springsteen’s former home studio in Holmdel, 1976
- “Cadillac Ranch” from Slane Castle in Ireland, 1985
- “Carol” from concert at the Monmouth Arts Center, now the Count Basie Center for the Arts, in Red Bank, 1976.
- “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)” from the Bottom Line in New York City, 1975.
The “Jungleland” clip was not from the final released version, and it exposed the Springsteen and E Street Band's creative process.
“Barry, you can’t do this while I’m doing this,” said Springsteen to Barry Rebo at the conclusion of the grainy black and white “Jungleland” clip.
“The other thing I haven't seen too much of is his face,” quipped Weinberg after the “Jungleland” clip. Weinberg famously sits behind Springsteen on stage.
Attendees were asked to put cell phones into pouches upon entering the theater on Saturday.
Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music at Monmouth University preserves and promotes the legacy of Springsteen and his role in American music while honoring and celebrating American greats like Woody Guthrie, Robert Johnson, Hank Williams, Frank Sinatra and more.
A new archives and center and museum is under construction on the university's campus. The building will house archives and include exhibition galleries and a 230-seat theater that will include similar programs as “Springsteen on Screen,” said executive director Robert Santelli. Target opening is 2026.
Zimny's “Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band” will debut Friday, Oct. 25, on Hulu and Disney+. The doc is a deep dive into the rehearsal, format and creative process of the band's current tour.
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Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at cjordan@app.com.
