Van Zandt grew up in the Jersey Shore music scene, and was an early friend and pre-E Street bandmate of Bruce Springsteen. Springsteen met Van Zandt for the first time in 1966 or 1967 when Springsteen went to the Hullabaloo club in Middletown. Van Zandt was performing a cover of the Turtles' "Happy Together" with the Shadows. They performed together in bands such as Steel Mill and the Bruce Springsteen Band. During the early 1970s, Van Zandt worked in road construction for two years, before returning to show business. In 1973, he toured with The Dovells. The tour ended in Miami on December 31, 1974 with Dick Clark's Good Old Rock 'n' Roll Show at the Deuville Star Theater. After going back to Jersey, Van Zandt continued wearing Hawaiian shirts because he did not particularly like winter, which was how he got the nickname "Miami Steve".