Springsteen And E Street To Tour, Record In 2012! [VIDEO]

The tour will kick off in Europe, beginning in the middle of May and running until the end of July. Fans should wait until the announcement of cities and dates, expected later this week, before cashing in their frequent flyer miles and lining up their travel plans.

As for the new album, Springsteen says “we want you to know that the music is almost done (but still untitled), (and) we have almost settled on the release date (but not quite yet.)” OK, so that’s not a ton to go on, but the fact the he’s using the word “we” pretty clearly indicates this will be an E Street band record, and not another solo venture.

The formal announcement reads as follows:

"Well, things are starting to heat up down on E Street. A lot of you have been hearing that Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band will be on tour in 2012. That is absolutely correct. The European dates run from the middle of May until end of July and are being announced this week. Info on the U.S. dates and the World tour dates will (be) coming up shortly. In addition, we want you to know that the music is almost done (but still untitled), we have almost settled on the release date (but not quite yet), and that we are all incredibly excited about everything that we're planning for 2012. That's all the info we have for right now, but we'll get back to you -- real soon."

Great news but still no mention of who will be playing saxophone or how the absence of the late Clarence Clemons could effect the band's set list.

Regardless "The Big Man" will be sorely, sorely missed. Check out this video of the two working off one another back in the day: