Glory days, indeed. Baltimore music fans were treated to what could be characterized as a “boss evening” as “Mighty Max” Weinberg, longtime drummer for rock icon Bruce Springsteen, and his four-piece band, Max Weinberg’s Jukebox, performed Thursday night, May 12, at the Gordon Center for Performing Arts in Owings Mills.
Weinberg, who for 17 years anchored the “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” house band, and his group performed an array of classic rock classics, ranging from the Beatles and the Rolling Stones to Cream and CCR to the Ramones and Tom Petty to … Mr. Springsteen himself.
At his concerts, the 71-year-old E Street Band drummer invites audiences to create a setlist in real-time, challenging the band to play songs on demand. Besides the New Jersey-born Weinberg, who has kept the big beat for Springsteen for 48 years, Jukebox band members included Bob Burger, Glen Burtnik and John Merjave, all “blinded by the light” of rock ‘n’ roll.
Among those in attendance was Asher Brook, 10, who played cowbell on the Stones’ classic “Honky Tonk Women” with Max and the guys. (Asher had never played the cowbell before, but got the hang of it.)
Weinberg also told a few anecdotes, including about when he joined the E Street Band.
“There was an ad in the Village Voice for a drummer,” he recalled. “It said, ‘Wanted: drummer for a band. But we don’t want any junior Ginger Bakers [Cream’s drummer].’ Well I wasn’t a junior Ginger Baker, so me and 67 other drummers came to the audition. I got the job, I have been playing for Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band ever since.”
Check out some photos from the concert:
Photos by Stuart Zolotorow





