When Did England Become a Police State?': E Street Guitarist Outraged After Springsteen & McCartney Cut Off by Curfew

Little Steven is not happy.

Steven Van Zandt, the bandana-wearing guitarist for Bruce Sprinsteen's E Street Band, couldn't believe London concert organizers actually pulled the plug on legendary rockers Springsteen and Paul McCartney Saturday night.

"One of the great gigs ever in my opinion. But seriously, when did England become a police state?" Van Zandt tweeted, before adding: "We break curfews in every country but only English cops needs to "punish us" by not letting us leave until the entire crowd goes."

According to the Associated Press, Springsteen had already gone past the 10:30 p.m. curfew by half an hour at London's Hyde Park  when McCartney took the stage. The two sang the Beatles hits "I Saw Her Standing There" and "Twist and Shout," but the sound was cut before they could thank the crowd, leaving them to walk off the stage in silence.

Concert organizer Live Nation said in a statement it was unfortunate that Springsteen's three-hour set was stopped "right at the very end," but said the curfew had been put in place by authorities "in the interest of the public's health and safety," the AP reported.

According to CNN, restrictions on concerts in London's largest central park have been increasingly tightened in the last year due to noise complaints from neighbors. Events themselves have been cut in number and crowd sizes have been reduced as well.

It wasn't just Van Zandt who had something to say about the unceremonious ending: "Springsteen and McCartney: Only in Britain could a local council pull the plug on the greatest artists of the last 50 years giving it all," British journalist Richard James tweeted.

"@HardRockCalling Apologise to all concertgoers for cutting @Springsteen + Paul McCartney off mid-song. Won't come again," fan Liz Chong posted.