Hank Azaria's latest role: Playing Bruce Springsteen

Actor Hank Azaria has portrayed many roles over the course of his career. Some people may remember him as major league baseball announcer Jim Brockmire in “Brockmire,” Phoebe Buffay’s scientist boyfriend, David on “Friends,” the outrageous gay housekeeper Agador Spartacus in the 1996 film, “The Birdcage” or perhaps voicing one of his multiple characters (bartender Moe Szyslak, police chief Clancy Wiggum and convenience store manager Apu Nahasapeemapetilon) on the long-running Fox animated series, “The Simpsons.” However, these days Azaria is facing a new challenge at age 60.

He has assumed the role of The Boss in his Bruce Springsteen tribute band, Hank Azaria & the EZ Street Band. He’s currently on a theater tour of the United States performing classics like “Born to Run,” “Hungry Heart” and “Glory Days” while telling stories in between. All net proceeds from the show benefit Azaria’s The Four Through Nine Foundation, which is committed to social justice, education and recovery causes.

Prior to his gig on Friday at the Patchogue Theatre for the Performing Arts, Azaria spoke to Newsday about how this adventure began, his passion for Springsteen and what he gets out of the experience.

You are a well-established actor in TV, film and animation. What made you start a Bruce Springsteen tribute band?

I turned 60 last April and I was trying to cheer myself up around that number. I got this crazy idea of holding a reverse surprise party. I’m a huge Bruce Springsteen fan and most of my friends are too. I thought, “What if I tell everybody I have a Springsteen tribute band coming to play but I don’t say that I’m going to front it?” It became a vocal challenge for me. I’ve always done comedy singing, which involved staying in character and carrying a tune. I never worked harder on a vocal task in my career. I really got obsessed. In lieu of presents, I had people donate to my foundation. We raised $30,000 that night and the songs went over better than I could have imagined. I thought, “We should do this a lot!” I wish I started this years ago because I didn’t realize how much joy I’d be unlocking for myself.

What does Bruce Springsteen mean to you?

Springsteen is my hero and my all-time favorite artist. What sets him apart is the feeling that he is singing personally to you. The poetry of the songs plays like a movie in your head. The main way I express love for someone is by imitating them. I’ve met him twice and during the show I tell the story of both times. I fanboyed on him so hard that I seriously made an idiot of myself. My buddy calls it “Bruce Juice,” which is the mania that overtakes people when they see him. I’ve been to about 25 shows. My first was 1980 on “The River Tour.”

What does your live show consist of?

I’m basically just a fan who is a little bit better at mimicking than most people and I have the means to put together an amazing group of musicians who can sound like the E Street Band. During the show I share what these songs mean to me. I introduce “She’s the One” with the story of the night I met my wife, which was love at first sight. Sometimes I share how Bruce came up with a song because I’ve done a lot of research on him. I play with the audience a lot too in my Bruce voice. It’s almost like a one-man show with a great Springsteen tribute band. The main thing is to get across that communal joy as we share our collective love of Bruce.

How did you initially discover Springsteen’s music?

It was at summer camp in 1976. A buddy of mine was playing the “Born to Run” album and I heard “Backstreets” then fell completely in love with that album. I was locked in.

What was the biggest challenge you faced in putting this together?

I’ve become a student of singing and singing like Bruce is like its own subcategory. That rasp of his is not easy to recreate without destroying your voice. Bruce himself has described his shows as “running a marathon while screaming.”

What have you learned in the process?

I didn’t expect to discover a new way of performing at age 60. I learned a lot about vocal discipline. I did stand-up early in my career and to me this feels like a mashup between stand-up and a musical. If you blink from the back of the room, you might think you’re at a Springsteen show.

By David J. Criblez

david.criblez@newsday.comDavidJCriblez

David J. Criblez is a reporter for Newsday's exploreLI, covering entertainment-related events from local music to stand-up comedy to festivals.