45 years ago today (7/20/75), Steven Van Zandt performed his first show as a member of Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band on the first show of the Born to Run tour. The show took place at the Palace Theatre in Providence, Rhode Island, where Van Zandt (Little Steven) would help make a forceful stage presence next to the formidable Springsteen and the big man- Clarence Clemons. Early on Van Zandt supplied a great deal of the lead guitar work for the band in concert, but later settled into more of a rhythm role. Van Zandt left the E Street Band in 1984 but returned in 1999 full time with the E Street Band’s reformation. Watch the E Street Band in A form Live at the Hammersmith Odeon, London ’75 with Van Zandt on board.
