Adele Springsteen, who nurtured the budding musical talent of her son, pioneering rock star Bruce Springsteen, died on Wednesday. She was 98.

Bruce Springsteen announced his mother’s death in an Instagram post on Thursday. No cause was given, but Adele Springsteen had struggled for more than a decade with Alzheimer’s disease.

Her son has been outspoken about his relationship with his mother and her influence on him.

Springsteen rented him his first guitar when he was 7, he said in 2021 during his Broadway show, Springsteen on Broadway, which ran for more than two months that year as the city began to emerge from pandemic-related closures.

The show had wide-ranging reflections, including thoughts about his mother.

He also spoke of his mother’s ability to persist in her vivacious spirit even as a
punishing disease took their toll.

New York Times News Service