They were “New Dylans” together, and their careers paralleled each other.
But they only ever performed together once.
In November 1988, Bruce Springsteen was finally off the road after a marathon year of not one but two tours that took him all around the globe.
But on the night of the 12th, he took a ride up to Tarrytown, New York to take in John Prine’s concert at the local Music Hall. Prine invited Bruce on stage during the encore to join him for one of his oldest and most beloved songs, “Paradise.”
Released in 1971 on Prine’s debut album, “Paradise” was an early archetype for dying town protest songs to come, a true story of the destructive effects of strip-mining on the real town of Paradise Kentucky.
If there had been no “Paradise,” there might have been no “Youngstown.” The two songs share a common theme, and Prine’s lyrics foreshadowed Bruce’s: “When I die, let my ashes float down the Green River/Let my soul roll on up to the Rochester Dam” isn’t all that far from “When I die, I don’t want no part of Heaven, I would not do Heaven’s work well/I pray the devil comes and takes me to stand in the fiery furnaces of Hell.”
But on that November night in 1988, “Youngstown” was still years away from being written. Whether or not Bruce was directly inspired by “Paradise,” he and John certainly gave an inspiring performance of it.
Prine welcomed him to the stage as another loser in the New Dylan contest. He was certainly in good company.
Paradise First performed: November 12, 1988 (Tarrytown, NY) Last performed: November 12, 1988 (Tarrytown, NY)
© July 7, 2026