Bruce Springsteen dances through memories in tribute, similar to a rock star serenading his mother. Adele Springsteen’s legacy shines on.
“I recall your alarm clock ringing in the morning, Mom. I would lie in bed and listen to you getting ready for work, including the sound of your makeup case hitting the sink. And the ladies at work, all lipstick, perfume, and rustling skirts—how proud and happy you always looked on your way home.”
“There will be no phone call, flowers, or Mother’s Day card this Sunday. There is no house on the hill with a garden and a nice little yard. I have my hot rod down on Bond Street. I am older, but you will recognize me at a glance. “We will find a little rock ‘n roll bar and go out and dance,” the lyrics say.
Adele Zerilli was born in Brooklyn on May 4, 1925, and moved to Freehold, New Jersey, in 1940, where she and her husband Doug Springsteen raised three children: Virginia, Bruce, and Pamela. She was of Italian descent and raised Springsteen as a Catholic, often attending mass at St. Rose of Lima Church in Freehold.
Bruce Springsteen's mother, Adele Springsteen, has died after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease. Adele was a fixture in many of Springsteen's shows, often bringing her on stage to dance with him. @DavidMuir reports. https://t.co/bGdQtyl3O6 pic.twitter.com/GjgxFLTG9P
— World News Tonight (@ABCWorldNews) February 2, 2024While Springsteen’s father worked various jobs to support the family, Adele became the primary breadwinner, earning enough money to buy Bruce his first guitar, a moment immortalized in the lyrics to his song, “The Wish,” as a “brand-new Japanese guitar” under the Christmas tree, “and how proud and happy you always looked walking home from work.”
When Bruce was a teenager, the Springsteens moved from New Jersey to California, but he stayed in Freehold.
In later years, the Springsteen matriarch cut a mean rug at her son’s shows, joining him on stage for “Dancing in the Dark” at Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia and shaking a tailfeather to “Ramrod” at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
“Not bad for almost 90,” Springsteen told a Philadelphia audience in 2012. Adele Springsteen enjoyed dancing, and her Rock and Roll Hall of Famer son often obliged, taking her to local Jersey venues like The Wonder Bar in Asbury Park for a night out watching Eddie Testa or other entertainment.
During a 2021 performance at Springsteen on Broadway in New York, Springsteen stated that his mother enjoys dancing. “She grew up in the 1940s… (with) the big bands and the swing bands, and dancing was an existential act.”
Springsteen told Today in 2021 that despite her battle with Alzheimer’s, his mother still recognized him. “She cannot speak. She cannot stand. She cannot feed herself. She always smiles when she sees me, though. I am still smiling. “And there is still a kiss,” Springsteen said. “And when she sees me, she makes a certain sound. It is just a sound, but I know what it means: “I love you.”
“And when I put on Glenn Miller and she starts moving in her chair—she does, she does—she begins reaching out for me, to take her back into my arms and dance with her across the floor.”
Springsteen went on to say, “This is an essential part of mom’s spirit; it defines who she is. It transcends language and is more powerful than memory. It embodies. This is what she has put her trust in and lived her life by, and despite everything she has been through, she continues to do so today, as if life’s beauty has never left her. I love her.”
Springsteen is survived by her three children: daughter-in-law Patti Scialfa; sons-in-law Bob Roth and Michael Shave; grandchildren Evan, Jessica, Sam, Ruby Roth, Christopher Shave, and Marisa Potts; great-grandchildren Lily Harper Springsteen, Nicole, and Samantha Shave; and a large family of relatives.
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