Springsteen to kick off tour April 1

NEW YORK, Jan. 27 (UPI) -- Rock 'n' roll icon Bruce Springsteen says on his Web site that he plans to begin his latest U.S. and European concert tour with The E Street Band in April.

Springsteen recently performed at U.S. President Barack Obama's inauguration festivities and is set to sing at Super Bowl XLIII Sunday. His recently released 24th album, "Working on a Dream," is also earning favorable reviews.

The recording artist said he and the band will kick off their tour April 1 at California's HP Pavilion at San Jose. They then plan to make stops in Arizona, Texas, Colorado, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Georgia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, West Virginia, New York, Virginia, Minnesota, Ontario, New Jersey and Illinois, before heading to Holland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Ireland, France, Italy and Spain.

"Towards the end of recording 'Magic,' excited by the return to pop production sounds, I continued writing. When my friend, producer Brendan O'Brien, heard the new songs, he said, 'Let's keep going,'" Springsteen recalled in a posting on his Web site. "Over the course of the next year, that's just what we did, recording with the E Street Band during the breaks on last year's tour. I hope 'Working on a Dream' has caught the energy of the band fresh off the road from some of the most exciting shows we've ever done. All the songs were written quickly, we usually used one of our first few takes, and we all had a blast making this one from beginning to end."