The concerts will take place at Croke Park, the headquarters of the GAA, as part of “The River Tour” 2016.
Springsteen has a huge Irish following and this will also be an opportunity to research his Irish roots as he has often spoken of doing. If previous visits are any guide hotels will up their prices hugely for the weekend and Dublin will be awash with “Boss” fans.
Springsteen has Irish roots through his paternal grandmother Martha O'Hagan. She married Springsteen's grandfather, Anthony Springsteen, who was of Dutch ancestry, in 1899. Springsteen discussed his Irish roots during his Ellis Island Medal award in 2010.
Read more: Bruce Springsteen shows his Irish roots as ancestors hail from Ireland!
It turns out that Martha's great grandmother, Ann Garrity, hailed from County Westmeath. Garrity left Ireland in 1852, five years after the famine devastated much of Ireland.
In his speech at Ellis Island Springsteen thanked the Irish side of his family the O’Farrells, Garrity and McNicholas clans and stated his wife Patty who is also part irish and he had continued the great Mid-New Jersey tradition of Irish and Italians marrying..
His Irish grandmother settled in the town of Freehold, NJ where Bruce himself was born 65 years ago.
Springsteen went to the Catholic St Rose of Lima School, where he was taught by Irish nuns. It had a lasting impact on him. Some of his later music reflects a Catholic ethos and includes a few rock-influenced, traditional Irish-Catholic hymns.
In a 2012 interview, he explained that it was his Catholic upbringing rather than political ideology that most influenced his music. He noted in the interview that his faith had given him a "very active spiritual life," although he joked that this "made it very difficult sexually." He added: "Once a Catholic, always a Catholic."
Mullingar Town Council and Westmeath County Council have now invited ‘The Boss’ to visit his Irish roots.
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A spokesperson told the Irish Mirror paper: “I was delighted to hear Bruce Springsteen has roots here. I look forward to welcoming him to his ancestral home.”
Springsteen book author Greg Lewis told the paper: “Family and roots are something that are important to Bruce and you can see it in the music.”
“His wife Patty actually has roots in Belfast as well so there is a big connection with both of them.”
The book’s other author, Moira Sharkey, also revealed that the Boss had ordered a copy of the book for himself.
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