TURN! TURN! TURN!^©

Live 23 Apr 2008 version

Page last updated: 09 Aug 2008

Intro

TURN! TURN! TURN! (TO EVERYTHING THERE IS A SEASON), often abbreviated to TURN! TURN! TURN!, is a song written and composed by Pete Seeger but made famous by The Byrds in 1965. Bruce Springsteen covered the song a couple of times in 2006 and 2008.

Pete Seeger version

The song was written and composed in the 1950's by Pete Seeger who adapted the words from the book of Ecclesiastes (a book of the Hebrew Bible). He added words to it and put it into music, and waited until 1962 to record the song, releasing it in May 1962 on his album The Bitter And The Sweet on Columbia Records. The song can now be be found on several Pete Seeger compilations, including The Essential Pete Seeger (Sony).

The Byrds version

TURN! TURN! TURN! was also recorded, and made famous, by The Byrds on their in 1965. They first released it as a single in October of 1965 (Columbia 43424, with the b-side SHE DON'T CARE ABOUT TIME). It was their second #1 hit after MR. TAMBOURINE MAN. In December that year, it became the title song to the group's second studio album, Turn! Turn! Turn!.

Bruce Springsteen Live Performances

It was reported that Bruce Springsteen and his Seeger Sessions Band practiced TURN! TURN! TURN! on 13 Apr 2006 at the Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ, during The Seeger Sessions Tour private rehearsals. People who listened to the rehearsals from outside the venue commented, "Yes the song made famous by the Byrds. They worked on this a couple of times."

The fist and only live appearance of TURN! TURN! TURN! that year was during the third of the four public rehearsal shows for The Seeger Sessions Tour: 25 Apr 2006 at the Convention Hall, Asbury Park, NJ. It was the first number in the encore, and Bruce sent it out to Pete Seeger. The song was reported to be sound-checked on 21 May 2006 in Stockholm, but it didn't appear on any of the tour's regular shows.

During the 23 Apr 2008 Magic Tour show at Amway Arena, Orlando, FL (a show Show rescheduled from 19 Apr 2008), returning from the encore break, Springsteen announces, "We have a special guest with us tonight, somebody whose music we really grew up on and who's been a tremendous influence in my music [...] We're honoured to have on our stage, from the Byrds, Mr. Roger McGuinn" (read spoken intro above). Byrds lead singer/guitarist Roger McGuinn joins Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band onstage to perform a short set that included TURN! TURN! TUNR! and MR. TAMBOURINE MAN. The above lyrics are for that 23 Apr 2008 live performance.

Official Release

On 15 Jul 2008, Columbia Records released Magic Tour Highlights, a Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band download-only digital EP consisting of four live audio tracks and their accompanying videos. The performances were recorded in Mar-Apr 2008 during the Magic Tour, and feature guest musicians, as well as Danny Federici's last performance with the group. Bob Clearmountain mixed and Bob Ludwig mastered the songs. Frequent Springsteen collaborator and Grammy and Emmy Award winner Thom Zimny edited the videos.

• ALWAYS A FRIEND, performed with Alejandro Escovedo on 14 Apr 2008 at Toyota Center, Houston, TX
• THE GHOST OF TOM JOAD, performed with Tom Morello on 07 Apr 2008 at Honda Center, Anaheim, CA
• TURN! TURN! TURN!, performed with Roger McGuinn on 23 Apr 2008 at Amway Arena, Orlando, FL
• 4TH OF JULY, ASBURY PARK (SANDY), Danny Federici's final performance with the E Street Band, 20 Mar 2008 at Conseco Fieldhouse, Indianapolis, IN

The EP is not really the Magic Tour's "highlights". It's actually more of a terrific sampling of some of the tour's best guest spots, and one truly moving moment among old friends.

The EP is available for download from all digital downloads stores, including the iTunes Store and Amazon.com. The net proceeds from the sales of Magic Tour Highlights will support The Danny Federici Melanoma Fund. These include the artists', the songwriters', and the music publishers' royalties, in addition to all Columbia Records' net profits. The iTunes Store is donating their first year's net profits as well.

The Danny Federici Melanoma Fund was started shortly after Frederici's death, and is dedicated to the research and development treatments for melanoma through funding for clinical trials at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. The fund also aims to help raise awareness for the disease.