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Steve Van Zandt spoke openly about what he described in his memoirs as a “very public career suicide” when he walked away from Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band.
The rock musician, 73, already had a long association with The Boss when he joined his band in 1975.
However, during the recording of Springsteen’s breakthrough 1984 album born in the USA, Van Zandt chose to leave the group in what he called “the big mistake of my life.”
After leaving, he released several solo albums under his Little Steven moniker and also starred in the critically adored crime drama series. The sopranos as Silvio Dante from 1999 until the show concluded in 2007.
Among his many other ventures are composer, arranger and producer, radio host, author and record label owner. He is now the subject of a new HBO original documentary, Steve Van Zandt: Disciple.
speaking to The Guardian, Van Zandt explained what he wrote in his book, Unrequited crushes, As he revealed, he still has mixed feelings about his decision to leave the E Street Band.
“My whole life I’ve carried with me this guilt and this feeling of, God, if only I could have stayed in the band and still done all these other things,” he said.
“Wouldn’t that have been wonderful? When I analyzed it I realized that it is ridiculous and that that would not have happened.”
By staying in the band, he explained, “there probably wouldn’t have been any solo records, there wouldn’t have been the Sun City registration, there would have been no The sopranos either Lily Hammer.”
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“I don’t know what I would have done,” he continued. “Maybe he would have produced some stuff and who knows where he would have gone? But if I had continued to dedicate my life to Bruce Springsteen’s vision, I would never have realized my potential.
“I haven’t done it yet, obviously, but I did do some things that I don’t think I would have done if I had stayed.”
Van Zandt remains a member of the E Street Band and Springsteen describes him in the documentary as his “rock’n’roll brother.”
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014 along with his E Street bandmates.
Elsewhere this week, Bear Star Jeremy Allen White revealed that he wants to perform his own voice when he plays Springsteen in the upcoming biopic, Deliver me from nothingness.
The actor will play the “Born to Run” singer in the project, which is set around the time he was releasing his 1982 album. Nebraska.
“We’re going to do our best,” White, 33, explained during a red carpet interview with Variety.
He also revealed that he hasn’t met Springsteen yet, although they have been “communicating a little bit through other people.”
“I guess I’m trying to have a little bit of my own process before I meet the man.” Bear The star explained: “I want to try to understand him a little bit so that when I meet him he has a little trust in me.”
