David Sancious

David Sancious (born November 30, 1953) is an American musician.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s he played in various bands that included Springsteen and future members of The E Street Band, as well as Southside Johnny and Bill Chinnock.

These bands included Glory Road, Dr. Zoom & The Sonic Boom, The Bruce Springsteen Band and The Sundance Blues Band.

From 1970 until the spring of 1973, Sancious divided his time between his native New Jersey and Richmond, Virginia, where he worked at Alpha Studios as a studio musician doing jingles and sessions.

While working in Virginia, he met fellow New Jerseyan Ernest Carter.

During those years, Springsteen played numerous gigs in and around Richmond.

In June 1972, Sancious played keyboards on Springsteen's debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. In July 1972, Sancious recorded some demos with Carter and E Street Band bassist Garry Tallent (who also divided his time between New Jersey and Virginia.) Producer/songwriter Wes Farrell owned the rights to these demos and in 1976 he released them under the title David Sancious, without Sancious's permission.

The E Street Band was named after the street where Sancious's mother lived.

In the band's early days, Springsteen and his bandmates used her garage at 1107 E Street in Belmar, New Jersey as a rehearsal space.

Springsteen began touring with the band in October 1972, but Sancious did not join the band full-time until June 1973.

From June 1973.

Sancious began to tour regularly with the E Street Band.

He added an extra dimension to the band's sound.

Equally influenced by Mozart or Thelonious Monk, he would frequently use classical music or jazz during intros or instrumental breaks.

Springsteen's second album, The Wild, The Innocent, & The E Street Shuffle, was a showcase for Sancious' talents.

His most notable contributions include an organ solo on "Kitty's Back" and an evocative piano intro on "New York City Serenade".

He is also credited with the string arrangement on the latter song, and even played soprano saxophone on "The E Street Shuffle".

He left the E Street Band in 1974 to form his own band, Tone, and released several albums.

He subsequently became a popular session and touring musician, most notably for Stanley Clarke, Narada Michael Walden, Zucchero Fornaciari, Eric Clapton, Peter Gabriel, Jack Bruce, and Sting among many others.

In February 1974.

drummer Vini Lopez left the E Street Band and Sancious recommended his friend, Ernest Carter, as a replacement.

Later in the year Sancious and Carter helped record the title track of Springsteen's third album, Born to Run before leaving the band.

Ironically, the band formally adopted the "E Street Band" name only after the band member whose family lived on that street (i.e., Sancious) left the group.

In August 1974 Sancious and Carter left the E Street Band and formed their own band Tone with bassist Gerald Carboy.

At various times the band would feature Gail Boggs, Brenda Madison, Patti Scialfa, Gayle Moran (from Return To Forever and The Mahavishnu Orchestra), former Brian Auger, and future Santana vocalist Alex Ligertwood.

Springsteen encouraged Sancious in his solo career and made sure music executives heard his demos, leading to a contract with Epic Records.

Tone's 1975 debut album Forest of Feelings was produced by Billy Cobham.

Sancious' work with Tone was a radical departure from the music he played with Springsteen; Tone explored progressive rock, gospel chorus (Fade Away, Sound of Love), and instrumental jazz fusion and had more in common with Return to Forever than Sancious' former boss.

Another album, Transformation (The Speed of Love), followed in 1976, and a third album, Dance of the Age of Enlightenment, was recorded.

However a dispute between Epic and Sancious' new label, Arista Records, over ownership rights meant it was shelved.

He was an early member of Bruce Springsteen's backing group, the E Street Band, and contributed to the first three Springsteen albums, and again on Human Touch (1992), Tracks (1998), and Western Stars (2019).

Sancious is a multi-instrumentalist but is best known as a keyboard player and guitarist.

In 2014, Sancious was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band.

Sancious began to learn classical piano at seven and by eleven he had taught himself guitar.

He was only in his teens when he first became involved in the Asbury Park music scene.

Sancious was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of the E Street Band on April 10, 2014.

Sancious also joined Springsteen and the current lineup (along with Vini Lopez) for a performance of three songs.

He also played two songs with Peter Gabriel, who was inducted on the same night.

In June 2023, Sancious said that he is set to appear on a follow-up to Springsteen's 2022 album Only the Strong Survive and that Bruce has completed 18 songs for the album.

Sancious said he expects to tour with Springsteen to support the album in 2024.