Bruce Springsteen shocks Irish punters with surprise performance in local pub

Virgin Radio

5 May 2023, 11:15

Iconic rocker Bruce Springsteen was spotted impressing some local pub-goers while out and about in County Kildare, Ireland. 

The Boss was in town for his sold-out gigs at Dublin’s RDS Arena, and headed out to different spots in the Kildare area to see some local haunts in an area close to his family. 

Springsteen has some strong Irish connections, with his great-great grandmother Ann Garrity reportedly leaving Rathangan during the 1852 famine before settling in New Jersey. 

On Thursday (4th May), Bruce walked into The Burrow Pub in Rathangan and had punters singing along as he burst into a rendition of his 1984 track, My Hometown. 

Videos of the incredible celebrity sighting showed up on fan-page Bruce Springsteen: Blog It All Night, and caught the moment Bruce told the singing crowd: “I’m firing The E Street Band and hiring you guys.”

The spontaneous pub trip comes after Bruce paid a special visit to The Pogues star Shane MacGowan at his home.

The Irish singer-songwriter, 65, has been diagnosed with the rare brain condition encephalitis, which causes the brain to swell and could lead to difficulty with speech and loss of movement.

Shane’s wife, Victoria Mary, shared a photo of the two music greats at home, with Shane in an armchair smiling up at the US star who is leaning over him and smiling with his arm around him.

Victoria, who married Shane in 2018 after 30 years together, wrote on social media: "What an amazing honour and a beautiful experience to get a visit from The Boss!!!

"Such a truly wonderful man and a total genius!"

It seems the feelings are mutual. Speaking in an interview on The Late Late Show two years ago, Springsteen described Shane MacGowan as 'a master'.

“I truly believe that a hundred years from now, most of us will be forgotten. But I do believe that Shane's music is going to be remembered and sung. It's just deep in the nature of it.

"So he's a master, for me, and I've a deep, deep appreciation of his work and working with The Pogues."