Springsteen himself has performed the song in a variety of arrangements, including with the E Street Band, and a live recording featuring Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello as guest.

Springsteen had in fact read the book, watched the film, and listened to the song, before writing "The Ghost of Tom Joad",[2] and the result was viewed as being true to Guthrie's tradition.

"The Ghost of Tom Joad" was originally recorded as an E Street Band number, intended for inclusion as one of the new tracks on his February 1995 Greatest Hits album.

The song opened most of the shows on the 1995–1997 solo acoustic Ghost of Tom Joad Tour, and gave audience members a clear indication as to what the night would be like.

"The Ghost of Tom Joad" was featured during the 1999–2000 E Street Band Reunion Tour, in arrangement fairly close to the album's, albeit with Federici often playing accordion and Tallent on stand-up bass.

The song made several appearances on Springsteen's 2006 "big folk" Sessions Band Tour, in a new arrangement that featured member Frank Bruno handling some of the vocals, and two extended instrumental passages that saw soaring interplay between violin, pedal steel guitar, trumpet, and harmonica.

Springsteen and Morello performed this song in acoustic fashion near the end of Pete Seeger's 90th Birthday Concert at Madison Square Garden on May 3, 2009.

[10] Later in 2009, at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert held at Madison Square Garden, Springsteen, the E Street Band, and Morello reprised their full-tilt electric rendition of the song.

Highlighting the song's political import, Springsteen included it in the "Change Rocks" acoustic performances he made at rallies in early October 2008 on behalf of Barack Obama's presidential campaign.

[11] The next year, Springsteen re-recorded the song, at his New Jersey home and accompanied only by his own acoustic guitar and harmonica, for the November 2009 documentary The People Speak.

[12] When Morello replaced Steven Van Zandt for the Australian leg of the Springsteen and the E Street Band's Wrecking Ball Tour in March 2013, the song was a highlighted number in the shows.

[citation needed] As part of the Nurses United protest against NATO Summit Chicago 2012, Morello and Tim McIlrath of Rise Against played an electric version of "The Ghost of Tom Joad" to a packed Daley Center Plaza crowd.

Punk rock band Rise Against covered the song in September 2012 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California with multiple guests including Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine, Brian Fallon of The Gaslight Anthem, and Wayne Kramer.