Bruce Springsteen Performs ‘Chinatown’ With Bleachers at Radio City Music Hall
Jack Antonoff features artists like Carly Rae Jepsen, Lorde, and Lana Del Rey on his original music with Bleachers. For Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night, Bruce Springsteen appeared on “Chinatown,” performing it live with the band at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall.
Jack Antonoff is a New York/New Jersey resident — and a fan of Bruce Springsteen
Antonoff isn’t trying to break free of New Jersey. In the ‘90s, the Bleachers frontman started listening to artists like Fiona Apple and Nirvana. That “journey,” of course, included music from Springsteen.
“It was the first time that I heard feelings that were very close to home — all the deep ones and all the literal ones, you know, names of landmarks,” Antonoff said during an interview with NPR. “But then all the really deep, weird sandpaper feelings of this place and what it means and why is it so weird and why it’s so glorious and why it’s so dark.”
“And that led me on this journey,” he continued. “There’s this amazing local scene going on in New Jersey at the time… I always say: New York music is like reporting from the center of the world, and New Jersey music is reporting from the window outside the party. Totally could not be more opposite vibes.”
In conjunction with the “How Dare You Want Tour,” Bleachers appeared at New York City’s Radio City Music Hall, selling out the venue and holding a big surprise for New Jersey natives.
Bruce Springsteen brought New Jersey to New York City with a surprise performance of ‘Chinatown’
Antonoff performed an acoustic cover of “Jersey Girl” and mixed up some of the lyrics after getting some bad intel from the band. (Only he would sing “take the sadness out of a Wednesday night” on a Tuesday).
Then, the Bleachers member introduced Springsteen to a surprised Radio City Music Hall audience. The crowd broke out in a low “Bruce” hum and cheered just before the Boss played guitar and sang “Chinatown.”
What is ‘Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night’ about?
As a New Jersey native himself, Antonoff often celebrates the Garden State with the symbolism surrounding Bleachers — the most obvious being the overt use of the tomato emoji.
For one YouTube video, Antonoff appeared in the Holland Tunnel, performing a live version of “Chinatown” at the New York/New Jersey border. For the official “Stop Making This Hurt” music video, Bleachers appeared inside Hasbrouck Heights’ Bendix Diner. The band even performed a cover of The Beatles’ “A Hard Day’s Night” while on a bus from New York to New Jersey.
The “device” of Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night, as a whole, is going from New York City over the George Washington Bridge into New Jersey. Antonoff reflects the sounds of New Jersey in songs like “How Dare You Want More,” reminiscing about his New Jersey upbringing with his lyrics.
Even before releasing the 2021 album, Antonoff hosted the Shadow of the City music festival in Asbury Park’s Stone Pony — bringing some of his favorite artists to the Jersey Shore.
