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One of the most beloved icons of American music has a new album out as of two days ago and I found that somehow, he does not have his own thread on a forum that has maintained active threads on like, The Electric Six. I'm going to try to add more to this OP tonight, including pictures and some more about the E Street Band, but I figure a discussion can start before all that. Let me know if you have anything you'd like to add to the thread, either by posting here or by PMing me. This thread shall be the new home of all things related to The Boss, the king of heartland rock, the god of New Jersey, the hero of sportswriters everywhere, etc. A brief guide to Bruce's studio albums: Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. (1973) Bruce's debut is his attempt to be the next Bob Dylan, but sounds more like Van Morrison. There are hints of the artist to come in his storytelling and prose style, and the songs are mostly solid, but it doesn't have the fire of peak E Street. Songs a newbie may know: Blinded by the Light (more famously covered by Manfred Mann's Earth Band), Spirit in the Night The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle (1973) Released eight months after Greetings, this album unleashes the full power of the E Street Band, with long compositions that veer off into jam territory. Probably the most loose and fun album in his discography. Songs a newbie may know: Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) Born to Run (1975) The album that vaulted Springsteen to superstardom. He famously appeared on the covers of both Time and Newsweek simultaneously after this came out. Contains several of the greatest rock songs of all time. At least five of the eight tracks here are in regular rotation on classic rock radio. Songs a newbie may know: Born to Run, Thunder Road, Jungleland, Tenth Avenue Freeze Out, Backstreets Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978) The long-awaited follow-up to Born to Run sheds the relentless enthusiasm of its predecessor in favor of a slightly darker tone. I would wager that this is the "fan favorite" and easily among his best works. Songs a newbie may know: Badlands, Prove It All Night, The Promised Land The River (1980) This double album is very well regarded but feels like the forgotten album of Bruce's peak. As with most double albums, it's a mixed bag, containing some beautiful tracks as well as some real clunkers. I wouldn't recommend starting with this record, but it's great overall. Songs a newbie may know: Hungry Heart, The River Nebraska (1982) Demo quality acoustic recordings that defied expectations to become one of his most beloved albums. This is Springsteen at his darkest and rawest. Unsurprisingly this is very popular among people who don't like Bruce generally. Born in the USA (1984) A gargantuan selling album that earned Springsteen a new audience and had the unfortunate side effect of turning off a lot of people that are unfamiliar with his past work. There are many enduring hits on this album but it also has extremely mid-80s production that dates it. Perhaps his most divisive work. Songs a newbie may know: Born in the USA, Dancing in the Dark, Glory Days Tunnel of Love (1987) After the massive success of Born in the USA, Bruce got divorced and dropped the E Street Band, changing his sound massively. This is a brooding, synth-heavy album that is extremely appealing to a certain type of fan. Human Touch and Lucky Town (1992) These albums suck rear end. The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995) Bruce recovered from his pair of duds with another melancholy folk album that explores the decimation of the American working class. There's a reason Rage Against the Machine covered the title track. One of his better post-peak albums in my opinion. The Rising (2002) A super long record that remains his most beloved 21st century album. This is the feeling of post-9/11 liberal America in a nutshell. Also the first album with the E Street Band in almost 20 years. Songs a newbie may know: The Rising Devils & Dust (2005) Another solid, folky singer/songwriter offering. We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (2006) Bruce and a collection of roots and folk musicians play the songs of legendary protest singer Pete Seeger. Highly critically acclaimed. Magic (2007) The E Street Band returns once again for a series of really solid songs as Bruce is in elder statesman mode. For my money, this is his best of the 21st century. Working on a Dream (2009) Like Magic but not as good and with a stupid cover. Wrecking Ball (2012) A slight return to form with a political focus and some interesting experimentation. High Hopes (2014) I have not listened to this but from what I understand it's a bunch of previously unreleased tracks and also Tom Morello is here. Western Stars (2019) A cinematic and very aged album with a bit of a Western theme and lots of orchestral arrangements. Sounds kind of like Bruce was tapped to soundtrack a Disney movie about cowboys.
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Jun 17, 2019 15:56
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The only thing I'd add is that Springsteen and the E Street Band still routinely perform sets that put bands forty years younger to shame. I last saw them on The River Tour in 2016 and they played for just a touch over three hours. Even if you're not a die hard fan it's worth it to see them play live at least once to say you've had the experience.
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Jun 18, 2019 00:45
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howe_sam posted:The only thing I'd add is that Springsteen and the E Street Band still routinely perform sets that put bands forty years younger to shame. I last saw them on The River Tour in 2016 and they played for just a touch over three hours. Even if you're not a die hard fan it's worth it to see them play live at least once to say you've had the experience. The second leg of that tour was my first and so far only live experience with them. Eagerly awaiting 2020 dates.
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Jun 18, 2019 01:24
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Henchman of Santa posted:The second leg of that tour was my first and so far only live experience with them. Eagerly awaiting 2020 dates. If people want a taste of the live show, there's a selection available for sale on nugs.net. They've got every show from 2016 and 2017, but older stuff is a little more sporadic, which is a shame because I'd love to buy copies of the other two shows i was at.
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Jun 18, 2019 02:32
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As I’ve gotten older, Tunnel of Love has become more and more my favorite Springsteen album. It has his best, realest lyrics by far. It’s Bruce’s equivalent of Jackie Brown. It might not be as flashy as the stuff that came before it, but it tells a mature, emotional story.
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Jun 18, 2019 03:29
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i was never a Bruce fanatic but I was given an opportunity to see him on Broadway and when you get that opportunity you take it, obviously. The man just has a presence, he held the entire theater in his hand for the whole whole show, telling stories from his life and singing his songs in a very stripped down manner, and songs like Thunder Road and Born in the USA and Born to Run and Dancing in the Dark take on a very different context when he's just performing them with just a guitar/piano and nothing else. It's on Netflix now, I haven't had the opportunity to watch the filmed version but I hear it's great. Be ready with the tissue though because when he starts talking about his mom and singing The Wish you are going to be sobbing. Also when he talks about Clarence before Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out. And when he talks about his dad. Also the moments where he and his wife duet are really wonderful, you can feel the love between them when they perform. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1xDzgob1JI DC Murderverse fucked around with this message at 04:50 on Jun 18, 2019 |
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Jun 18, 2019 04:47
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Henchman of Santa posted:Human Touch and Lucky Town (1992) I'd been told this for years, but having just discovered the title track of Human Touch a week ago, I think it's a minor classic. So give that a shot at least.
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Jun 18, 2019 07:58
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Lucky Town and Human Touch both have some excellent songs (Souls of the Departed, Lucky Town, Better Days, Human Touch, Soul Driver) but don't really make for a great album. They are both fairly different so you can't say they would have been better if you just took the best of both. Human Touch sounds very much like it was supposed to be an E Street Band follow up to Tunnel of Love, but Lucky Town actually sounds very different. The Other Band tours kicks rear end too, lots of great shows from that one. If you do go over to nugs.net buy the Meadowlands 1993 show they have up. It's an incredible, eclectic set list. The songs with Southside are great, the acoustic stuff is good and the live arrangement of 57 Channels is so radically different and great. High Hopes is a really great album and for my money the best thing he's put out this century followed by Magic. Tom Morello adds so much to it and the tour that followed is one of the most interesting ones Bruce has done. Lots of weird, unexpected stuff like that great cover of Stayin Alive. Western Stars is really good. It's so different from every album he's ever done before. Definitely has the feel of the mood he was in when he wrote Working on a Dream but musically it sounds nothing like it. But you can kind of feel the vibe in a few of the songs and Drive Fast sounds like it is in conversation with The Wrestler. The release also means that we are that much closer to the release of the legendary hip hop album. MassRafTer fucked around with this message at 04:42 on Jun 21, 2019 |
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Jun 21, 2019 04:30
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If anyone has anything about the archival stuff like Tracks and The Promise I can add it to the OP.
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Jun 21, 2019 05:11
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Henchman of Santa posted:Human Touch and Lucky Town (1992) haha it only has 330k views.
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Jun 21, 2019 06:23
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Local Hero kicks rear end. I’m gonna do a real effort post when I come home from work. Let me just say that I’ve shaken the man’s hand and his concerts are the closest I’ve come to a religious experience.
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Jun 21, 2019 19:23
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Molestationary Store posted:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YAlDbP4tdqc This song isn’t good but a lot of the Human Touch/Lucky Town songs are salvaged in the acoustic Christic shows that are up on the Springsteen Live site.
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Jun 21, 2019 20:00
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Okay, so my Bruce Springsteen post: I became a fan of Bruce on Monday, October 30th, 2006. That's when I saw him with the Seeger Sessions Band at Globen, Stockholm. I had gotten the ticket cheap from a classmate who came over it somehow. I intended it for my mom as a sort of early Christmas present; she's been a fan since -75. But mom (like most Bruce fans I guess?) wasn't that interested in the SSB, and figured I should go instead, since I had never been to a real concert at that point. I figured why not, so I went, but not before I had taken a good listening to the SSB album. I really liked it! It has a pleasant charm and happy sound, which appealed to me. I went to the concert expecting to be thoroughly entertained. I walked out of there, a fan for life. One cannot overstate just how incredible a good Springsteen show is. No matter what band he has behind him; he really, 100%, delivers and then some. The 3 hour show was absolutely incredible. It was some sort of miracle, honestly. I was thinking about it for months afterwards. Here's some samples from that particular concert: The River (great accoustic version) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3DkvDa6LIw Jesus Was An Only Son (tour premiere) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2fcnKztw_c Tom Joad (One of my favorite live performances of anything, anywhere) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AenUqa8iV58 Jacob's Ladder (INCREDIBLE gospel intro and outro) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y_zF8gsp7LI And from there on out, I was a fan. Luckily, Bruce is loving amazing and keeps on comin' for them tours. I've now seen him live 14 times (including the Broadway show #humblebrag), and most shows have lasted more than 3 hours. In Sweden (where he has a big fanbase, more on that below) his shows often goes beyond 3 and a half; one of the 2016 shows he had here ended up at 3 hours and 58 minutes. That's without a warm up band, or any real intermission. If you stumble into this thread by chance and see this, please, for the love of God, never, EVER pass up a chance to see Springsteen live. I cannot stress enough how much of a party his concerts are. There's no real fancy fireworks, lightshows or the like: It's just a goddamn runaway train of rock 'n roll madness. Here's some samples, from a number of shows throughout the years (some of which I have attended): Mary's Place, Gothenburg (I loving love Gospel Bruce) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yxwom4u4AQ0 Quarter to Three, No Nukes (it's so raw and wonderful) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUksPONKOrc Frankie, Gothenburg (a song they play very rarely, this performance is to die for) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bVphX5wJZdM Backstreets, Gothenburg (The only time I have ever cried to music; I was bawling like a child, and I still don't really know why) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=advnEXNOo_U&t=364s Twist & Shout, Gothenburg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQKi5BeOz6Y So let's talk about that last one. "Twist & Shout" has a special place in Swedish Bruce-head's hearts. Rewind to the summer of -85. Bruce and the ESB are touring the world, with two shows in Gothenburg slated for early June. Ullevi Stadium is filled with Bruce-fans from across the country two nights in a row, and the party is loving bananas. My mom was there and can attest (like so many others) that the concrete-built stadium was quite literally bouncing from all the jumping. While some attest "Dancing in the Dark" as the real culprit, there's a tradition since that it was "Twist & Shout" that really sealed the deal for what was to come. As Wikipedia tells it: quote:Ullevi nearly collapsed during a famous Bruce Springsteen concert on 8 June 1985 due to the rhythmic movement of tens of thousands of people in the audience and the clay soil on which the stadium is built. The concert also caused nearly £3 million in damages, while David Bowie's Glass Spider Tour in June 1987 was relocated from Ullevi to Eriksberg because of fears about the safety of the structure.[6] Since then, the concrete pillars supporting the stadium have been extended down to the bedrock. So Bruce essentially rocked the biggest sports stadium in Northern Europe to shreds. That's something. Gonna finish up here with two pictures I took some years back: This pic I took from right up there in front of the stage. I've been in that vicinity many times, but never had a better picture, so there you go.  This is a real awkward picture, but it's from outside his Gothenburg hotel, where I managed to shake his hand and exchange a few words.  In short: I like Bruce. [edit] One of my favorite concert reviews ever was for the second 2008 show in Gothenburg, who had the title "Herresatansjävlar!" which basically means "Holyfuckingshit!" BigglesSWE fucked around with this message at 22:40 on Jun 21, 2019 |
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Jun 21, 2019 22:25
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Henchman of Santa posted:If anyone has anything about the archival stuff like Tracks and The Promise I can add it to the OP. All I will say about Tracks is that this one loving rules: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdLGkFmIflU
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Jun 21, 2019 23:01
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bruce  springste
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Jun 23, 2019 01:36
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https://twitter.com/max_read/status/1143152133178560512?s=21
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Jun 24, 2019 14:47
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 When I was growing up I had a cassette of The Wild, the Innocent, & the E Street Shuffle and wore the drat thing out listening to it. That and Born in the USA are the two Springsteen albums I've probably listened to the most.
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Jun 24, 2019 15:18
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Seeger Sessions because I’m insane. But The Wild, Innocent & E. is pretty drat good. New York City Serenade beats out Jungleland any day in the week.
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Jun 24, 2019 19:16
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Darkness is forever the coolest because it's the best.
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Jun 24, 2019 21:28
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Wild and Innocent is at the bottom of my list. Kitty's Back is great live, E Street Shuffle can be, it was cool to hear New York City Serenade Live and Rosalita is fine, but listening to it as an album is a chore.
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Jun 25, 2019 17:04
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New song, and a new album with ESB is coming in October. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQyLEz0qy-g I guess 2020 decided to end on a high-note.
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Sep 15, 2020 01:06
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Blast Fantasto posted:As I’ve gotten older, Tunnel of Love has become more and more my favorite Springsteen album. It has his best, realest lyrics by far. I say to this day that Tunnel of Love is the best album that he's done. Period. Even though he cheated on Julianne Phillips with his current wife, I think the divorce help him write some of his best work. Also, the super romantic gesture of dedicating the album to his ex wife is one of the most wonderful things ever.
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Oct 20, 2021 04:00
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Tour 2023! https://brucespringsteen.net/ quote:Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band will mark their return to the road in early February, 2023 with a string of to-be-announced US arena dates, followed by European stadium shows kicking off on April 28th in Barcelona and a second North American tour leg starting in August.
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May 24, 2022 11:58
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I can't believe I missed this thread the first times. I got some thoughts to add but what are some favourite undervalued cuts? 'Reno' from 'Devils and Dust' is one of his more quietly devistating songs. But I can't get enough of 'Incident on 57th Street'.
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May 26, 2022 13:27
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57th Street is nice and all, but "New York City Serenade" is right there. There's much stuff that flies under the radar for many but to mention a few: "The Fever", "Brothers Under The Bridges ('83)", "Santa Ana", "Thundercrack", "Loose End", "Be True" and "Where The Bands Are" are all goddamn killers and you'll find them on "Tracks".
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May 27, 2022 23:55
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It was definitely cool to see one of the shows in 2016 where he played nothing but pre Born to Run songs for an hour. With the exception of Prove it All Night which was in that block for some reason, but it had the '78 intro so it was extra cool to see.
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May 28, 2022 22:30
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQKi5BeOz6Y I was at this show, goddamn what a night. Best crowd I've ever had too. The real fun begins at 3:30.
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May 29, 2022 01:51
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New (cover)album out November 11!quote:Bruce Springsteen’s new studio album, a collection of fifteen soul music greats titled Only The Strong Survive, will be released by Columbia Records on November 11. Featuring lead vocals by Springsteen, Only The Strong Survive celebrates soul music gems from the legendary catalogues of Motown, Gamble and Huff, Stax and many more. This 21st studio album from Bruce Springsteen will also feature guest vocals by Sam Moore, as well as contributions from The E Street Horns, full string arrangements by Rob Mathes, and backing vocals by Soozie Tyrell, Lisa Lowell, Michelle Moore, Curtis King Jr., Dennis Collins and Fonzi Thornton. https://brucespringsteen.net/
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Sep 29, 2022 16:57
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The crowd was decrepitidly old at the concert tonight. Like canes and walkers old. It was kind of depressing.
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Aug 31, 2023 03:55
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davecrazy posted:The crowd was decrepitidly old at the concert tonight. Like canes and walkers old. It was kind of depressing. The crowd at TD this spring was younger than I expected, mostly 50-60, I missed the Gillette shows so maybe the old people are looking for a night under the stars. Or maybe I should be checking stubhub for deals on the Meadowlands shows in case much of the crowd has entered hospice care and needs to offload tickets.
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Sep 1, 2023 00:16
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