Live 18 Mar 2011 version
I'm a sailor peg and I lost my leg
Climbing up the topsails, I lost my leg
I'm shipping up to Boston (whoa oh oh)
I'm shipping up to Boston (whoaaa)
I'm shipping up to Boston (whoa oh oh)
I'm shipping up to find my wooden leg
I'm a sailor peg and I lost my leg
Climbing up the topsails, I lost my leg
I'm shipping up to Boston (whoa oh oh)
I'm shipping up to Boston (whoaaa)
I'm shipping up to Boston (whoa oh oh)
I'm shipping up to find my wooden leg
Bruce Springsteen everybody!
I'M SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON is a song with lyrics written by Woody Guthrie and music written and performed by Dropkick Murphys who released it in 2005. See the original Dropkick Murphys version for more details.
The above lyrics are for the live 18 Mar 2011 performance of I'M SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON at House Of Blues in Boston, MA. Springsteen shared background vocals (the parts in bold) and played guitar on this song.
Bruce Springsteen was watching the show with his son and Max Weinberg, whose son Jay drummed for the opening act, Against Me! He then joined the band onstage during the encore for three songs: PEG O' MY HEART, BADLANDS, and I'M SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON. This was the band's last performance of a three-night stand at House Of Blues during St. Patrick's Day weekend. It was reported that Jon Landau, Springsteen's manager, called Ken Casey the previous day and said that his client would be at the show. A closed sound-check took place prior to the show, and Springsteen and the Dropkick Murphys went over the songs in front of an audience of about twelve people.
The Dropkick Murphys, a Celtic punk band from Massachusetts, first met Bruce Springsteen in 2005 or 2006 when he attended a gig of theirs in New York. "He came back afterwards and introduced himself," Ken Casey told Rolling Stone. "We were just blown away, but we really hit it off. He's since invited us to play with him a few times."
During their Working On A Dream Tour, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band played the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, MA, on 22 Apr 2009. They were joined onstage by the Dropkick Murphys on GLORY DAYS and AMERICAN LAND. Then the band's guitarist, Tim Brennan, proposed onstage down on bended knee to his girlfriend Diana. Springsteen then dedicated the tour premiere of SO YOUNG AND IN LOVE to the couple, saying that "this was going to be their wedding song."
In his turn, Springsteen made a guest appearance at Dropkick Murphys' 18 Mar 2011 show at House Of Blues in Boston, MA, joining the band onstage for three songs: PEG O' MY HEART, BADLANDS (a Springsteen song that the band had covered on several occasions), and I'M SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON. He also took part of their 29 May 2020 concert at Fenway Park in Boston, MA, joining the band remotely for two songs: ROSE TATTOO and AMERICAN LAND.
Springsteen appears on two Dropkick Murphys studio tracks: PEG O' MY HEART in 2011 and ROSE TATTOO in 2013.
Ken Casey is a lifelong Springsteen fan, and his favorite Springsteen album is Darkness On The Edge Of Town. The Dropkick Murphys have covered BADLANDS live and Casey has said that the band wouldn't say no to recording an entire album as Bruce Springsteen's backing band. "Bruce, we're ready when you are," Casey told Rolling Stone in 2011.
I'M SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON was performed off-tour on 11 Mar 2011 at House Of Blues in Boston, MA, during a guest appearance with the Dropkick Murphys. The song was played in a full-band arrangement featuring Bruce Springsteen on shared background vocals and guitar.
I am looking for a scan of a ticket stub scan from the 18 Mar 2011 show in Boston. If you can help, or if you have any corrections, comments, or additional info, please contact me via the below form or by email: .
List of available versions of I'M SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON on this website:
I'M SHIPPING UP TO BOSTON [Live 18 Mar 2011 version]