Bruce Springsteen — Live in East Berlin
Recorded July 19, 1988
Radrennbahn Weißensee · Berlin · East Germany
Setlist not available.
Tour albumTunnel of Love1987 · Tunnel of Love ExpressThe performance is part of the Tunnel of Love tour, although the occasion gives more room to the earlier records.“To see Springsteen's first performance in East Germany, sixteen months before the fall of the Wall.”
Context
In July 1988, the Wall still divides Berlin. On the eastern side, at least 160,000 people gather at the Weißensee cycling track for Springsteen's first performance in East Germany. The FDJ organizes the event, but the musician refuses to turn his presence into support for a government.
The E Street Band takes the stage with the five musicians of the Horns of Love. Badlands opens the night, and Born to Run gets the full band back after the tour's acoustic versions. Before Chimes of Freedom, Springsteen reads a message in German and expresses the wish to see the barriers torn down.
Three days later, the tour continues at the Waldbühne, on the other side of the city. The Weißensee recording stays tied to East German television, which films the performance. Sixteen months later, the Wall falls. The concert does not explain that change on its own, but it preserves the meeting of an American stage and a crowd hemmed in by borders.
- Born to Run returns to the full band for the first time on the tour.
Lineup at this show
The lineup of this performance — not necessarily the current one.
- Bruce SpringsteenVocals, guitars and harmonica
- Roy BittanPiano and synthesizer
- Clarence ClemonsSaxophone, percussion and backing vocals
- Danny FedericiOrgan
- Nils LofgrenGuitar and backing vocals
- Patti ScialfaVocals, backing vocals, acoustic guitar and percussion
- Garry TallentBass
- Max WeinbergDrums
- Mario CruzSaxophone, Horns of Love
- Eddie ManionSaxophone, Horns of Love
- Mark PenderTrumpet, Horns of Love
- Richie RosenbergTrombone, Horns of Love
- Mike SpenglerTrumpet, Horns of Love
Trivia
Born to Run gets full-band backing for the first time on the Tunnel of Love Express Tour
Out in the Street gets its only 1988 performance at this show
The event is billed as a concert for Nicaragua without Springsteen's prior knowledge
More concerts by Bruce Springsteen
Official releaseBruce Springsteen
1975·Hammersmith Odeon, London '75
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1984·Live in Toronto
Tour of Born in the U.S.A. (1984)
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1985·Live in Philadelphia
Tour of Born in the U.S.A. (1984)
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1992·In Concert – MTV Plugged
Tour of Lucky Town (1992)
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2000·Live in New York City
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Tour of The Rising (2002)
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2005·VH-1 Storytellers
Album Devils & Dust (2005)
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2006·Live at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, 2006
Tour of We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (2006)
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2006·Live in Dublin
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2009·London Calling: Live in Hyde Park
Tour of Working on a Dream (2009)
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2013·Rock in Rio 2013
Tour of Wrecking Ball (2012)
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2014·March Madness Music Festival 2014
Tour of High Hopes (2014)
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2016·Rock in Rio Lisboa 2016
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2025·Nebraska Live
Album Nebraska (1982)
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2026·Land of Hope and Dreams American Tour (Philadelphia Freedom Cut)
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