Tracks, pt. 1

We return from our hiatus with a two-parter on this 4-CD set from 1998:

Trimmed down to 66 songs if you can believe it - and I bet you can - from 100. Wiki here for the quick overview. With me as always for the less-than-quick is Mr. Bryant Burnette. Bryant! Good to have you back. 

Bryant: (Bryant was unavailable for this part, but overheard from the Tales From the Crypt playing in the background: "Like it says in the Bible, Uncle Ezra, blood... is thicker than water." So we'll just go with that.)

Bryan: Lots of ground to cover, so let's just dive right in. 

DISC ONE

“Mary Queen of Arkansas” 

Bryant: 1.5/5 I don’t think this is even quite as good as the final album version. No shock, since it was a demo.

Bryan: 1.25/5 I think the demo-ness gives it more of a legit excuse to sound as bad as it does, so I added a quarter point to my original score.

“It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City” 

Bryan: 1.75/5 Not so much for me. But it's not one of my favorites of the E Street catalog.

Bryant: 2.25/5 I like this, but not as much as I like the eventual album version.

“Growin’ Up” 

Bryant: 3.25/5 I like this even more than I like the album version. That one, as you pointed out to me, has some production issues that drag it down. This demo is cleaner, more pure, and arguably more passionate. Good stuff.

Bryan: 3/5 This is kind of cool, though, in its rawness - reminds me of that video footage of him performing this one from the very early days. Authentic early Bruce. I don't really like it any better, but the glimpse / performance is cool.

“Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?” 

Bryant: 2.25/5 I like this basically as much as the album version, all things considered. The band’s playing on the album version is preferable to Bruce’s solo strumming, but the solo strumming somehow makes the abrupt ending of the song work.

Bryan: 2.75/5 I kind of prefer the solo-strumming to the band version, but I'm just not a big fan of this tune. 

“Bishop Danced” 

Bryant: 0.5/5  No. Worst Springsteen song EVER.

Bryan: 0.5/5 Yeah, wow. Fiddlestick, fiddlequick NO.

“Santa Ana” 

Bryan: 1.5/5 I suppose I prefer it marginally more to "Mary Queen of Arkansas" but yeah not for me.

Bryant: 2.25/5 This E Street Shuffle outtake never quite comes together. But I enjoy its manic weirdness; the passion underpinning it counts for something.

“Seaside Bar Song” 

Bryant: 3/5 Okay, NOW we’re talking. It still feels like they didn’t quite get the entire bat on the ball with this one, but it’s pretty great all the same.

Bryan: 3.6/5 Now we're talking indeed! I could listen to a whole bunch of undiscovered jams like this one. 

“Zero and Blind Terry” 

Bryant: A bit before the three-minute mark, the band seemingly creates the millennial yawp. I will forgive them for that, because when they do it, it’s awesome. 2.75/5 This one doesn’t fully land for me, but it’d be impossible for me not to salute the ambition.

Bryan: 3/5 Interesting keyboards/ background for this one. I'd have preferred thisto  quite a few tracks on Asbury Park, actually, but I agree it doesn't quite land. (Nice re: inventing the millennial yawp. I'd never heard that referred to as such before but have noticed the phenom - how couldn't you! - many times.)

“Linda Let Me Be the One” 

Bryant: 2.5/5 The chorus on this one is weak, which is a shame, because if it was up to the rest of the song, this might have been a top-ten hit.  It would have had to actually make the album (Born to Run, in this case), of course.

Bryan: 2.75/5 I like it a little more than you but only a little.

“Thundercrack” 

Bryant: 4/5 Imagine how jealous it must make some other groups to know that Springsteen had a song THIS good that he simply decided to leave off E Street Shuffle. Like, “Nah, I’m good, I got ‘Rosalita’.” Which, to be fair, was true. Still, it’s astonishing that a song like this could go over two decades just sitting in a vault. I’d’ve released it just for Clarence’s “baby’s back.”

Bryan: 4.25/5 Agreed completely. I'd have dumped "Rosalita" and gone with this, myself. Great tune!

“Rendezvous” 

Bryant: 2.5/5 Good little rocker. I wish they’d put the studio version out instead, but the live version will do.

Bryan: 3.5/5 I could've sworn they were going to break into "Rock and Roll All Night" with the drums, count-off, and first chord at the beginning of this one. Not a bad tune.

“Give the Girl a Kiss” 

Bryant: 4/5  Fuck. I mean, seriously; fuuuuuuuuuuck. I get it. This song would not have fit the mood for Darkness on the Edge of Town. But surely there was some way to get this out there. This could, and should, have been a big hit; if not for Bruce, then for somebody.

Bryan: 3.25/ 5 It does seem a little silly for this to sit on the shelf instead of farmed out to someone who could have used it. 

“Iceman” 

Bryan: 2.5/5 Not for me but I can see this as wanting to get somewhere pretty cool. It doesn't, but I tip my cap at the attempt.

Bryant: 2.25/5  I like this alright, but it doesn’t give me anything that I can’t get more effectively 

“Bring on the Night” 

Bryant: 3.5/5 Another one that, at the very least, should have been a big hit for, like, Joan Jett or somebody.

Bryan: 3.5/5 Joan Jett or Tom Petty. Someone, though for sure.

“So Young and in Love” 

Bryant: 4/5 This castoff from Born to Run challenges me to find something to say other than what I’ve already said about some of these obviously-wonderful songs. So how about this: how (or why) did they resist the temptation to, once they’d hit the big-time, simply put out an album a year consisting of these “rejects”? Because, frankly, they passed up selling millions of records. If they’d taken the ten best ones and put out an album in, say, 1986, then it probably spawns half a dozen singles and spends most of the year in the top ten albums.

Bryan: 4/5 Agreed with your comments. The ending reminds me a little too much of SNL, but what can you do. Besides it's probably the other way around - SNL went to a Bruce show in '74 or '75 and voila. 

“Hearts of Stone” 

Bryant: 4/5 I mean, really. This is getting ridiculous. In the case of this one, it was apparently recorded by Southside Johnny at some point. I think I’ve got that laying around somewhere.

Bryan: 3.25/5 Agreed.  

“Don’t Look Back” 

Bryant: 3.25/5 Good advice, except when you’ve got songs as good as this in your repertoire, at which point you should immediately begin looking back to figure out how best to put them to use.

Bryan: 3/5 And agreed again!

Bryan: Total 46.85 Avg. 2.76

Bryant: Total 47.75 Avg 2.81

DISC TWO

“Restless Nights” 

Bryant: 3.25/5 Great keyboard section on this one, among its other virtues. I’d have been hard-pressed to leave this one off The River, but there’s, like, a dozen songs I’d say that about, apparently.

Bryan: 2.5/5 I like all the keyboards and yawping and guitar-ing sections but the verses and chorus (and especially the backing vocals) don't do much for me. 

“A Good Man Is Hard to Find (Pittsburgh)” 

Bryant: 2/5 This literally IS country music. Which is fine, I guess. Not something I’m anxious to have my ears, though.

Bryan: 4/5 Yeah it's country. Although if Eddie Veddar was singing it, who knows. I think it's a solid tune, though - maybe he SHOULD have farmed it out to Dolly Parton or something. It could've been a huge hit. My score is for song quality, not personal enjoyment (which would probably be 3.25.) 

“Roulette” 

Bryant: 3.75/5  There’s a killer guitar riff before the first verse begins, and that’s sufficient to signal you that you’re in for yet another track that only a man overburdened with great songs would consign to unreleased status for over a decade. This is a furious hard-rocker of a song that I can almost hear being covered by Motley Crue, who would likely have turned it into a smash hit.  Because I suck, I needed Rolling Stone to inform me that this was about the Three-Mile Island meltdown. They also informed me that this (another River reject) was first released as a b-side to “One Step Up.” I’m not sure I can imagine two songs going together less well than that.

Bryan: 4.5/ 5 I'm amused at the idea of Motley Crue covering it. Maybe Midnight Oil or something, given the Three Mile Island ness. (Altho, regardless of RS' interpretation/ whatever Bruce says, the lyrics seem ambiguous enough to me.)

“Dollhouse” 

Bryant: 1.75/5  Okay, whew. I guess there WERE at least a few mediocre songs that came out of those River sessions, too. I don’t like this one very much at all, actually.

Bryan: 3/5 Not bad. Another one, tho, where you just wonder why the heck didn't you just give this to someone else to do? There's almost a Clash sort of vibe to this one.

“Where the Bands Are” 

Bryant: 2/5 Like some of the songs from the River sessions that made the album, I’m mildly indifferent to this one. It’s not bad; it’s good a good beat and a catchy chorus. It just doesn’t do much for me.  The backup vocals – Steve? – get on my nerves. Other than that, though, I’ve got no real complaints. (Worth noting: I’m hearing a lot of these songs and mentally pretending Joan Jett was singing them. They’re pretty good that way. She’d have killed this one; make a little fierier and rawer and you’ve got something.)

Bryan: 3/5 And hell there's kind of a Ramones vibe to this one. Which is perhaps less surprising than it sounds, given their mutual love of old / bigtime rock gospel, and even their geographic background. Something about the light out there in Jersey and Queens, I tell you. Anyway, here's one that should have been delivered to the Ramones with a bowtie, and Clarence and SVZ for their soloes, to boot. (Re: your remark about SVZ's vocals, his vocals almost ALWAYS annoy me. He got away with murder. But that's rock and roll!)

“Loose Ends” 

Bryant: 4.25/5 Imagine that in 1986, Springsteen releases an album called Loose Ends that includes this, “Thundercrack,” “Hearts of Stone,” … eh, wait, no.  I’ll assemble that album once I’m done reviewing this box set.  Anyways, just imagine…!

Bryan: 4.25/5 Absolutely re: your 1986 album idea. Why, Bruce, why! Think of that: Born in the USA (bam!), Loose Ends (bam!), Live Set (bam! bam! bam!) Tunnel of Love! (… bam?)

“Living on the Edge of the World” 

Bryant: 1.75/5 Is Bruce channeling the Ramones here? Not out of the realm of possibility. In terms of the attitude, this definitely sounds like what it is (another River reject). It’s not all that good, in my opinion, though. Bruce’s vocals are subpar, and I think it’s because the song doesn’t really fit what he is best at.

Bryan: 3/5 Oh I just saw your Ramones comments for this one. Yeah totally. I guess that was in the air at the time or something.  Like "A Good Man Is Hard To Find" it's difficult not to project this onto another artist and hear what they would've brought to it (in this case definitely the Ramones, or even The Knack). I still kind of like it, though.

“Wages of Sin” 

Bryant: One of the things that confuses me about Tracks is that it is mostly presented in chronological order. But there are occasional weird moments when it isn’t. “Wages of Sin,” for example, is a Born in the U.S.A. outtake, but it’s surrounded by five River outtakes preceding it, and six more that follow it. Which is fine, it just makes you wonder why.  Presumably it was to create what somebody – Springsteen himself, I’d bet – felt was a preferable listening experience. Fair enough, Boss! Oh, yeah, I guess I should score this one. 2.25/5 Not bad, but boy am I glad it didn’t make it onto Born in the U.S.A.! (I say that, but actually, if you play “I’m on Fire” immediately afterward, they go together shockingly well.)

Bryan: 2.25/5 Wasn't there a lot of overlap between The River and Born in the USA sessions? Interesting point about what if this went into "I'm On Fire." I can hear that for sure. 

“Take ‘em As They Come” 

Bryant: 2.25/5 A good, inoffensive rocker. A little bland, but not bad.

Bryan: 2.25/5 I swear - isn't this the riff to "Summer of '69?" Practically. I mean, Bruce tends to stay in the more generic rock chord/riff progressions, so there's always going to be some overlap just from the nature of rock and roll. Different direction for the chorus, though. There's always a thousand ways a simple three chord progression can go. Anyway! Agreed. I probably should even deduct another quarter-point for dragging out the ending as they do.

“Be True” 

Bryant: 4/5 Even better than the live version on the Chimes of Freedom EP would lead one to believe.

Bryan: 3/5 I like it about the same as the Chimes version.

“Ricky Wants a Man of Her Own” 

Bryant: 2.25/5 Another good rocker that isn’t going to light anyone’s shoes on fire, but does exactly what it aims to do.

Bryan: 2.5/5 This would've made a fine b-side to anything on The River or Born in the USA.

“I Wanna Be With You” 

Bryant: 2.5/5 This one was good enough to be on the album.

Bryan: 2.5/5 Agreed. And would've been another number one for Tom Petty, although maybe that's just because parts of this remind me of "Here Comes My Girl."

“Mary Lou” 

Bryant: Am I crazy, or is this seemingly an early version of “Be True”?  If so, it’s an inferior one, so 2/5 from me.  But this isn’t bad; if I’d never heard “Be True,” I’d probably like it better.

Bryan: 2/5 I don't hear too much of a "Be True" vibe, but I'm with you on this stretch of the disc for sure.

“Stolen Car” 

Bryant: A more upbeat version of the song we all know and love from The River.  I dig this one, too, but not as much. 3.5/5

Bryan: 3.25/5 I was surprised to discover I listed my enjoyment of the studio version as a 4 with my score as 4.4. I like this one a little less than you but not by much. 

“Born in the U.S.A.” 

Bryant: 4.5/5 I can’t in good conscience give this the 5 that I gave the album version, but if I’m being honest, I get VERY close to preferring this version. The only reason I’m not committing to saying that I do is that I don’t believe my response to it would be as strong if the original didn’t exist. (I say “original” indicating the album version; in actuality, THIS is the original, having been recorded for, but omitted from, Nebraska.) Either way, I fucking LOVE this version.

Bryan: 5.25/5 I agree with what you wrote, but I'll jump on this grenade for you and give it an extra quarter point. This is fantastic - that river-mud sound of Nebraska and mood fits this one like a glove. You're right, tho - if the other one didn't exist, maybe I wouldn't go quite this high, but it's tough not to love it. My vote for the best track on Tracks. (That isn't named "Pink Cadillac.") Just a haunting, fantastic song. Amazing that there's this alternate-dimension version the equal of such a radio staple. 

“Johnny Bye-Bye” 

Bryant: Apparently this was co-written by Chuck Berry…?  Maybe the music is his and Springsteen gave it different lyrics?  I could probably find out, but I’m too lazy. 2.25/5 for the song, 1/5 for my commitment to Sparkle Motion.

Bryan: 2.25/5 Your score seems about right. This feels like more of a shrug. 

“Shut Out the Light” 

Bryant: 2/5 Not bad, but another clear-cut case of Born in the U.S.A. benefiting from an outtake’s absence.

Bryan: 2.25/5 Agreed, although I like it a little more than you. Definitely should've given this to someone, though, anyone from Kenny Rogers to Suzanne Vega to Natalie Merchant to Motley Crue again.

Bryan: Total 51.75 Avg 3.04 

Bryant: Total 46.25 Avg. 2.72

~

Tune In Tomorrow For Tracks, Discs 3 and 4!