Bruce Springsteen delivered one of the most moving moments of his 2024 Irish tour when he stepped onto the Nolan Park stage in Kilkenny and opened the night with a haunting, heartfelt tribute to the late Shane MacGowan. With the stadium still settling in, Springsteen strummed the opening chords of “A Rainy Night in Soho,” The Pogues’ timeless ballad, and for a few minutes, the entire arena fell into reverent stillness. It was a gesture loaded with affection and respect — from one legendary storyteller to another.
For many Irish fans, the moment struck deep. This was Springsteen’s first performance in Kilkenny since 2013, and instead of starting with a familiar E Street rocker, he chose to honor MacGowan, who passed away the previous year. As his voice carried across Nolan Park, warm and weathered, the tribute felt less like a cover and more like a conversation with a friend who wasn’t there anymore.
The connection between the two artists went far beyond the stage. Just months before MacGowan’s passing, Springsteen visited him in a Dublin hospital while preparing for his own Irish dates. MacGowan’s wife, Victoria Mary Clarke, shared a touching photo of the two men embracing, describing Springsteen as “a truly wonderful person.” And Springsteen had long voiced his admiration for The Pogues’ frontman. In an interview on RTÉ’s Late Late Show, he said, “He’s the man, you know? A hundred years from now, most of us will be forgotten. But Shane’s music is going to be remembered and sung.” Coming from “The Boss,” it was as high a compliment as any artist could receive.
Springsteen also surprised early-arriving fans in Kilkenny with an unannounced acoustic performance of “This Hard Land” before the official concert began — a small, intimate gift that left the crowd buzzing long before the lights went down.
@radiox #brucespringsteen performs #thepogues’ A Rainy Night in Sono at Nowlan Park, Kilkenny 💚🇮🇪 📹: presidenthaz on X #brucespringsteentheestreetband #brucespringsteenfans #shanemacgowan #thepoguesedit #shanemacgowanandthepogues #arainynightinsoho #shanemacgowantribute #radiox #foryou #fyp #foryoupage ♬ original sound – Radio X
Kilkenny was the second stop on the Irish leg of his world tour, following Belfast on May 9. From there, Springsteen and the E Street Band were set to head to Cork’s Páirc Uí Chaoimh on May 16 before wrapping up in Dublin’s Croke Park on May 19. That final Dublin show marked a staggering milestone: one million concert tickets sold in Ireland since Springsteen’s first appearance at Slane Castle in 1985. It’s a testament to the depth of his connection with Irish audiences — a connection strengthened not just by performances, but by moments like the one in Kilkenny, where he honored a fellow poet whose music runs just as deeply through the Irish soul.
Though Springsteen is forever tied to New Jersey, his Irish roots run generations deep. His great-great-great-grandfather, Christy Gerrity, hailed from County Kildare, and Springsteen has often spoken about feeling that heritage whenever he performs in Ireland. On that rainy May evening in Kilkenny, as he stood beneath the stage lights singing one of Shane MacGowan’s most cherished songs, those roots — musical and ancestral — seemed to meet in perfect harmony.
