A sudden death in the family forced hard-touring Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band to cancel their October 26 concert at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, MO, shortly before show time.
Springsteen’s cousin and assistant road manager of 10 years, Lenny Sullivan, was found dead just a few hours before the concert was to start. According to the Associated Press, the 36-year-old’s body was discovered in his hotel room at the Intercontinental Hotel, where the band and tour crew were staying.
An initial announcement on Springsteen’s official Web site attributed the cancellation to “a death in Bruce’s immediate family.” A later update called Sullivan a “warm and sensitive person [who] was beloved by Bruce, the Band, the crew, and the entire Thrill Hill family.”
Thrill Hill is the name of Springsteen’s touring and recording productions company.
Springsteen’s next scheduled appearance is set for October 29 at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 25th anniversary concert at Madison Square Garden in New York, NY. The performance will go on as scheduled this Thursday, a band spokesperson recently told Entertainment Weekly.
Another month of concerts follows in November for the famed rocker and his backing band. Springsteen and his E Street counterparts have ten more concerts booked through November 22 at HSBC Arena in Buffalo, NY.
Springsteen has already been on the road for much of 2008 and 2009, most recently supporting the release of his latest studio album, “Working on a Dream.” Some in the ticket industry worried that the rock legend had oversaturated the market as Springsteen faced flagging ticket sales for his 2009 concerts. More recently, Springsteen has tried to drum up demand for tickets by announcing full-album performances of classics like “Born to Run” and “Born in the U.S.A.” on select dates of his fall tour.
Sullivan’s death is being investigated, but his unexpected passing is not considered suspicious by Kansas City authorities, according to published reports.