Tom Morello is returning the favor. After Bruce Springsteen joined his old friend and fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Famer at his “Concert of Solidarity & Resistance to Defend Minnesota!” last month, Morello announced on Tuesday (Feb. 24) that he is postponing a few of his previously scheduled solo shows in May to join The Boss and the E Street Band on their Land of Hope and Dreams U.S. arena tour.
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“After Bruce joined me last month in Minneapolis for our ‘Defend Minnesota’ charity concert, I was reminded how important our platform is, and how crucial the resistance work is that our music can do together at this dangerous historical juncture,” Morello wrote in an Instagram announcement featuring a black and white picture of the two rock icons backstage.
“Together, Bruce, the E Street Band, and I are going to turn a spotlight on the current threats to democracy and human rights happening all around us the in the spirit of freedom, justice, and rock n roll,” Morello continued, adding that the hop-on will mean the push back of his solo gigs. “I have a deep love and respect for all my friends, fans & comrades and I promise that we will find a way to be together for these shows, in these towns, very soon.”
Morello will be on every date of the 20-show run and will sit in on a few songs each night of the outing slated to kick off in Minneapolis at the Target Center on March 31 and run through a May 27 gig at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.
The Rage Against the Machine guitarist and solo performer first took the stage with Springsteen and the E Street band in 2008 at a pair of shows in Anaheim, Calif., then sporadically toured as a member of the E Street Band from 2012-2015, including temporarily filling in for charter member Steven Van Zandt on a March 2013 Australian tour.
Morello has also appeared on several Springsteen albums, including playing on “Jack of All Trades” and “This Depression” on 2012’s Wrecking Ball. He played guitar on eight tracks on 2014’s High Hopes, sharing lead vocals on a rerecording of “The Ghost of Tom Joad” (which RATM covered on their 2000 Renegades cover LP) and lending backing vocals on a rerecording of the searing “American Skin (41) Shots.” Springsteen, in turn, sang alongside Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder on a cover of AC/DC’s “Highway to Hell” on Morello’s 2021 The Atlas Underground Fire solo album.
Springsteen delivered the surprise live debut of his pointed anti-ICE anthem “Streets of Minneapolis” at the city’s legendary First Avenue club on Jan. 30, just days after releasing the quickly recorded protest song that addresses the killings of American citizens Renée Good and Alex Pretti by immigration officers in Minneapolis.
In a video from the show, Morello introduces Springsteen, calling him “my good friend and fellow freedom fighter.” The Boss then strode out with an acoustic guitar and harmonica, explaining that he wrote the song and recorded it the next day and sent it to Morello. “Now I know that Tom is an excitable man,” he said. “I say, ‘Tom, what do you think? It’s kind of soap boxy.’” He revealed that Morello responded that “nuance is wonderful, but sometimes you have to kick them in the teeth.’” The duo also performed “The Ghost of Tom Joad” together at the event.
Both men have been ardent and frequent critics of Donald Trump, with the president’s spokesperson recently referring to Springsteen as a “loser” in a pun-filled statement accusing the rocker of having “Trump Derangement Syndrome.” The tour comes at a time when Trump is facing dismal approval ratings — down from 47% last year to 36% this year — as the America First MAGA leader continues to focus on a number of overseas conflicts while promising to tackle affordability at home, as well as being mired in the near-daily revelations from the partial release of convicted sex offender Jeffery Epstein’s files. Trump, whose name reportedly appears in the files more than 1,000 times, has denied any knowledge of his former good friend Epstein’s sex offenses and has not been charged with any impropriety.
Morello will announced his rescheduled dates in Fort Lauderdale (May 9), Tampa (May 10), Atlanta (May 12), Nashville (May 13) and Milwaukee (May 15) once they are finalized. He has also canceled the following festival dates: Welcome to Rockville (May 8), Sonic Temple (May 16) and BottleRock Napa Valley (May 24).
