Charles Giordano (born October 13, 1954) is an American

keyboardist A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instru ...

and

accordionist Accordions (from 19th-century German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a reed in a frame). The es ...

. Giordano is known primarily for his work with

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

as a member of the

E Street Band The E Street Band is an American rock band that has been the primary backing band for rock musician Bruce Springsteen since 1972. In 2014, the E Street Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For the bulk of Springsteen's recordin ...

, replacing

Danny Federici Daniel Paul Federici (January 23, 1950 – April 17, 2008) was an American musician, best known as a founding member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, where he was its organist, accordionist and glockenspiel player. Federici appeared on ten ...

as the band's organist following the latter's serious illness and death in 2008 and as a member of Springsteen's

The Sessions Band The Sessions Band is an American musical group that has periodically recorded and toured with American rock singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen in various formations since 1997. History The Sessions Band was first formed in October 1997. That Sep ...

. He is also known for playing keyboards with

Pat Benatar Patricia Mae Giraldo (née Andrzejewski; formerly and still professionally Benatar ; born January 10, 1953) is an American singer and songwriter. In the United States, she has two multi-platinum albums, five platinum albums, and 15 US ''Billboa ...

in the 1980s. Giordano also played with The Bacon Brothers, for a number of years. With Benatar he was usually billed as Charlie Giordano and played for five albums, beginning in 1983; his role in the band was praised by ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' magazine. With Benatar he was identifiable by his glasses and distinctive array of berets, blazers and 1980s-style ties. Giordano also was a member of The David Johansen Group and went on to perform with Buster Poindexter and The Banshees of Blue. As a

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

Giordano's playing has included

Madeleine Peyroux Madeleine Peyroux (born April 19, 1974) is an American jazz singer and songwriter who began her career as a teenager on the streets of Paris. She sang vintage jazz and blues songs before finding mainstream success in 2004 when her album ''Carele ...

's 1996 album '' Dreamland'' and Bucky Pizzarelli's 2000 album '' Italian Intermezzo''; the latter's mix of opera, Italian folk, and swing presaged his appearance in the similarly genre-mashing Sessions Band Tour with Springsteen. Giordano also participated in a 2002 revival of

garage rock Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock music that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The style is ...

band ? and the Mysterians. In 2008, he accompanied British singer Barb Jungr for a short stand in a

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, casino, hotel, restaurant, or nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or drinking, ...

Tours with Bruce Springsteen

* Seeger Sessions Tour with the Sessions Band (2006) * Magic Tour with the E Street Band (2007–2008) * Working On A Dream Tour with the E Street Band (2009) * Wrecking Ball Tour with the E Street Band (2012–2013) * High Hopes Tour with the E Street Band (2014) * The River Tour 2016– Summer '17 with the E Street Band (2016–17) * Springsteen and E Street Band 2023 Tour with the E Street Band (2023-24)

Discography

With James Carter *'' Chasin' the Gypsy'' (Atlantic, 2000) With

*'' We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions'' (2006) *'' Bruce Springsteen with The Sessions Band: Live in Dublin'' (2007) *'' Magic Tour Highlights'' (2008) *'' London Calling: Live in Hyde Park'' (2010) *'' Live from the Carousel'' (2011) *''

Wrecking Ball A wrecking ball is a heavy steel ball, usually hung from a Crane (machine), crane, that is used for Demolition, demolishing large buildings. It was most commonly in use during the 1940s and 1950s. Several wrecking companies claim to have inve ...

'' (2012) *'' High Hopes'' (2014) *'' ''American Beauty'''' (2014) *'' Western Stars'' (2019) *'' Western Stars: Songs From The Film'' (2019) *'' Letter to You'' (2020) With Pat Benatar *''

Get Nervous ''Get Nervous'' is the fourth studio album by American rock singer Pat Benatar, released in October 1982. It debuted on the ''Billboard'' 200 album chart the week ending November 20 and peaked at No. 4, staying on the charts for 46 weeks. Thre ...

'' (1982) *'' Live from Earth'' (1983) *'' Tropico'' (1984) *'' Seven the Hard Way'' (1985) *''

Wide Awake in Dreamland ''Wide Awake in Dreamland'' is the seventh studio album by American rock singer Pat Benatar, and her eighth album overall, released in 1988. After a string of successful albums, this was her last rock-oriented album of the 1980s, before she woul ...

'' (1988) *'' True Love'' (1991)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Giordano, Charles 1954 births Musicians from Brooklyn Living people American people of Italian descent E Street Band members 20th-century American keyboardists American male organists 21st-century American accordionists 21st-century American keyboardists 21st-century American organists The Sessions Band members