Through the Empires of Dust I Chant Your Name: High Hopes

Tonight:

(2014)

Bryan: We have arrived at Bruce's last full album of original (mostly) new material. There will be two last posts next weekend, one for Chapter and Verse and some other wrap-up odds and ends, and one annotated version of the Updated Rankings. But for studio album purposes, the wild ride that began with 1973's Greetings from Asbury Park stops here. 

I have neither snazzy intro nor opening remarks from Bryant this time around - though here's a link to his post on "What Are Little Girls Made Of?" that I keep hoping to get to properly - so let's just jump right in.

"High Hopes"

Bryan: 3/5 Who'd have thought Tom Morello could blend in this well with Bruce and the gang? The song's not bad but not incredibly memorable for me.

Bryant: I just wrote about this song a few weeks ago when I listened to the Blood Brothers EP version, and I’d already halfway forgotten that it’s a cover song. It just sounds like a Springsteen song to me, albeit one that’s received a Tom Morello sheen and some Sessions Band spiffification. 3.5/5 Good stuff.

"Harry's Place"

Bryan: 3.75/5 Interesting different sort of tune for Bruce, and the distorted guitars really add the crucial element.

Bryant: I’m blushing on account of Bruce’s pottymouth on this one. I joke, but I’m sure some of his older fans probably did frown when he dropped not one, not two, but three eff-bombs. I’m not onboard with what Morello does here; he’s not helping the song much. 2/5 If there is such a thing as a fight between “Mary’s Place” and “Harry’s Place,” I’m Team Mary all the way.

Bryant: Interesting! I really like what Morello does here. But I'm Team Mary, as well. I like the idea of cage-matching the characters from Bruce's catalog. That'd be a fun post all of its own. 

"American Skin (41 Shots)"

Bryan: 2/5 Musically, not bad - of all the versions, the one I prefer I guess. But the context bugs me. What happened to Amidou Diallo is different enough from what happened to Trayvon Martin (to pick one of the disingenuous obsessions from a certain corner of our media-academe) that it makes me a little uncomfortable. Plus, it's just such a different environment. I guess my thinking is this: being superficially antiracist/ superwoke, within a narrow range of media choices/ triggers, is kind of the hallmark / default position of a certain type of brain-dead reactionary these days. For Bruce to basically expand this song "in the context of 2012" or whatever he says, is to approve of such brain-dead reactionaries/ defaults. (More likely, he - like many liberals of his or even our own generation - just isn't aware of the distinction.)  "hey, here's this song" not only dilutes the message of the original, it tacitly approves a very disingenuous approach to a serious topic. I don't like having to wrestle with all of this stuff just to get to the message/ feel of the song. 

Bryant: Those processed vocals at the beginning nearly run this off the rails for me before it even gets going good. What’s that all about? At what point did producers think it sounded cool for vocals to sound as if they were coming from a telephone that was submerged in Crisco? At what point did audiences embrace it? In any case, I love this song … but I do not love this recording of it. So this is an odd case for me, and I’m torn as to how to score it. I’ll go for 2/5. Bruce’s vocals are vastly superior on the Live In NYC version, and I’ll take the soothing uplift of a Clarence Clemons sax solo over the admittedly-fine guitar solo here any day of the week. Clarence is not present, but Jake Clemons is … briefly; the mix actually allows Morello’s guitar to come in over the top of him and then OVERRIDE HIM. This is not an acceptable use of saxophone on a Springsteen album, even if the Clemons in question is not Clarence. And while the live version seems appropriate in length to me, this studio version feels interminable. Weird!

"Just Like Fire Would"

Bryan: 3/5 Not bad.

Bryant: *shrug* 2.25/5 Another one I forget is a cover.

"Down in the Hole"

Bryan: 4/5 Really like this one. Almost sounds like he's sampling "I'm On Fire" and singing/ performing new stuff over it. And close enough to that where I think it might have been his intent, even. I guess this and "Harry's Place" were written for The Rising but ended up here. I like them better here so right call.

Bryant: I kinda wish this had been a cover of that Tom Waits song from The Wire.  More of those telephone vocals at the beginning. I bet Brendan O’Brien did that, the sonofabitch. It’s almost worse when he flicks that switch off and Bruce’s vocals suddenly turn normal. I mean, why do any of that? I agree that the song sounds like a sequel to “I’m on Fire.” I wonder if you aren’t meant to literally think this is about the same guy. That’d be an interesting way to try to evoke the impact of 9/11. I do like this song. 3/5 I’d be higher on it if not for the way it opens.

"Heaven's Wall"

Bryan: 3/5 I'd like this one more if there was a tad less repetition. I don't know how many times is too much - I call it the "We Built This City" rule - but I know it when I hear it. Still nothing really bad going on here.

Bryant: I don’t like the chorus at all.  It’s okay when Bruce does it, but when the choir does it, it’s just not for me. This song is alright, though. I also find it to be guilty of the “We Built This City” maxim – which for me is the “Rock and Roll All Nite” maxim – but not to such a degree that it wrecks the song. It gets close, though, and then some of the other production choices walk it right up to the edge of that happening. 1.75/5

"Frankie Fell in Love"

Bryan: 2.5/5 It's okay but doesn't do much for me. 

Bryant: Instinctively, I suspect that this song means something to Bruce autobiographically that I don’t know. It feels like a sequel to some song of his from the eighties. It’s okay. 2.25/5

Bryan: Very true on this feeling like a sequel. It isn't, so far as I can tell, but yeah, it definitely feels like it should be. I hope it's about Frank Stallone. 

"This Is Your Sword"

Bryan: 2.5/5 Ditto.

Bryant: Not bad. 2.5/5 I wonder if somebody has edited a Game of Thrones video to this. Probably so.

"Hunter of Invisible Game"

Bryan: 4/5 Quite like this one and am eager to watch the short film. 

Bryant: This is indeed pretty great. 3.75/5

Bryan: (months later) Okay, I have now seen it. Not bad. It makes a good double feature with the music video / short-film-by-another-name for "I'm On Fire." It's basically post-apocalyptic Bruce looking through some personal effects and walking through the ruins with a torch and an ax and such. 

Directed by Thom Zimny and also starring Danielle Panek as "Woman."

"The Ghost of Tom Joad"

Bryan: 4/5 I much prefer it like this with lots of eruptive solos and cymbals and such. Probably too long. 

Bryant: I mean, whatever, but did this really need to be rerecorded? It’s good; not to the level of the original for me, but I’ve certainly got no issue with somebody preferring this take. There are live versions with Morello to satisfy that urge, though, so why put this on an album? Don’t get me wrong; I don’t mind (even a little bit), I just wonder how decisions like that get made but “The Fever” could go unreleased for thirty years. 3.95/5 This rocks. I can’t give it a score equal to the original, but I’ll get very close.

"The Wall"

Bryan: 4.15/5 Pretty moving tune.

Bryant: This is another winner, in my book. 3.5/5

"Dream Baby Dream"

Bryan: 4.75/5 Man do I love this. I've never heard the original, although Suicide is one of those bands I've always heard about. I need to delve into them one of these days. I didn't think there was another 4.75 in the catalog and happy to discover I'm wrong. Strong end to the album here.

Bryant: I’ve never heard the original (which is true of the other covers on this album).  Doesn’t seem like the sort of thing that would have been recorded by a band called Suicide.  I should probably look it up just so I have a better handle on what Springsteen did here. But for now, I kinda don’t want to. This is pretty great. 3.5/5

~

Bryan: Total 40.65 Average 3.39 Well! Strong finish here, good collection of tunes.

Bryant: 33.95 total, 2.83 average. A more robust score than I expected, but it’s not unearned; a few songs excepted, this is a strong collection.

But wait, there's more!

Also 2014, a vinyl-only DVD Special Features for High Hopes sort of deal.

"American Beauty"

Bryan: 1.75/5 Not much to this one. The melody, riff, title, and vibe are all kind of generic. Not a great vocal.

Bryant: I don’t even like this as much as you do. Bruce’s vocals are awful. 1.5/5 And that might be generous.

"Mary Mary"

Bryan: 3/5 I like this one. Good lyrics, sparse arrangement used to good effect.

Bryant: Doesn’t really go anywhere, but as a sort of sketch, it works just fine. 2.25/5 I like the background vocals and the production in general.

"Hurry Up Sundown"

Bryan: 2/5 "A fun piece of modern power pop" as Bruce describes it. It might be that, I have no idea, but it doesn't ring my bell.

Bryant: I think Bruce and I have different ideas of what modern power pop is. This does virtually nothing for me. 1.75/5 

"Her Blue Eyes"

Bryan: 3.5/5 When I first heard about this - a song about the Bush-era abuse of prisoners in Iraq, released in the middle of the Obama-era - I thought Great, another circle jerk for fellow travelers. I say this as a fellow critic of Bush-era abuse of prisoners, just not necessarily the constant harping on about one side of the aisle. But once I heard it, I liked it quite a bit. I try my damnedest to not let the "before" POV influence how I evaluate it as a song/ part of Bruce's catalog. I think it's easily the best song here, and the rather pretty music conflicts well with the harshness of the imagery/ lyrics.

Bryant: I’m not paying close enough attention to the lyrics on these more recent songs for me to have noticed what this song was about if I had not already read it via your comments.  I’d probably just think it was about kinky sex. Bruce might have intended that, which is a satisfyingly dark thought. I’m probably one of those fellow travelers you mention, by the way. I’m not politically active enough to actually count for much in that regard, but if it’s a binary proposition with Democrats on one side and Republicans on the other – it isn’t, but it sure does seem like it most of the time – then I’m team blue. I hear what you’re saying and all, but the other team wants to build a wall between here and Mexico, so what I know for 100% certain is that I don’t want to buy what they’re selling. If the other team is selling even 75% bullshit, then that still puts me 25% in the plus column until a better option comes along. Mainly, though, I just want to sit in my apartment and not be a part of any of that mess.  

Bryan: Likewise I hear what you're saying, as well. Like Kirk with the no-win-scenario, I just don't believe in binary opposition. But if my hand was forced, my own math would add up differently. For pretty much the same reasons, though.

Bryant: Anyways, this is a good song that may grow on me with repeat listens. 2.5/5

~

Bryan: Total 10.25 Avg 2.56 I like that Bruce does this sort of thing, but I don't always love the results.

Bryant: 8 total, 2.00 average. I’m happy to hear new Springsteen music even if it’s just so-so. Philosophically, I admire him for putting this out as a vinyl exclusive. (Not counting digital downloads, of course.) In general, it’s pretty cool that vinyl has experienced a resurgence. Supposedly the same thing has started to happen with cassettes, of all things. Nostalgia is fun for everyone, I guess, even if it’s a nostalgia for a thing you never took part in to begin with. 

Bruce with Mom.

UPDATED RANKINGS:

Bryan:

Lucky Town 2.15

Greetings from Asbury Park 2.19

Magic 2.27

The Ghost of Tom Joad 2.44 
American Beauty 2.56
Working on a Dream 2.71

In Concert / MTV Plugged 2.82

Tracks 2.83

Chimes of Freedom 2.86

Wrecking Ball 2.86

Blood Brothers 2.88

Human Touch 2.9

The Promise 3.08

Book of Dreams 3.1

Hammersmith Odeon, London 3.1

The Rising 3.3

Devils and Dust 3.36

High Hopes 3.39

The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle 3.43

Live in New York City 3.5

Loose Ends 3.63

Greatest Hits (New Tracks Only) 3.65

We Shall Overcome: The Pete Seeger Sessions 3.67

The River 3.71

Tunnel of Love 3.8

Darkness on the Edge of Town 3.82

Live ’75 - ‘85 4

Live in Dublin 4.11

Born to Run 4.41

Nebraska 4.5

Born in the USA 5.4

Bryant:

Human Touch 1.7
American Beauty 2.00

Hammersmith Odeon, London '75 2.04

Lucky Town 2.15 
Working on a Dream 2.23

The Ghost of Tom Joad 2.46

Magic 2.46

Devils and Dust 2.48

Book of Dreams 2.58

Chimes of Freedom 2.69

In Concert / Mtv Plugged 2.75

Greetings from Asbury Park 2.75

Wrecking Ball 2.77

Tracks 2.81

High Hopes 2.83

Blood Brothers 2.9

The Promise 2.99

The Rising 3.1

Live in Dublin 3.22

Tunnel of Love 3.35

We Shall Overcome: The Pete Seeger Sessions 3.37

Greatest Hits (New Tracks Only) 3.38

The River 3.39

Live in New York City 3.48

The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle 3.68

Live ’75 - ‘85 3.7

Loose Ends 3.92

Born to Run 4.35

Darkness on the Edge of Town 4.4

Nebraska 4.63

Born in the USA 4.88

Cut You in Half While You're Smilin' Ear to Ear: Magic

To-night!

(2007)

Bryan: Bryant you old such-and-such! Are you ready to shake the pillars of heaven?

Bryant: I'm not saying I've been everywhere and I've done everything. But I do know this is a pretty amazing planet we live on here. And a man would have to be some kind of fool to think we're all alone in this universe.

Bryan: It's the final countdown! It's Magic. It's...

"Radio Nowhere"

Bryan: 2.5/5 It's okay.

Bryant: I’m paying more attention to the sound/production of these songs thanks to the malefic influence of Dog Star Omnibus, and right off the bat, I can tell I’m going to ding this song a few points for its production. There’s a strong rock song here, and the production did not quite find it. This isn’t bad, though; I do like it. 2.5/5

"You'll Be Comin' Down"

Bryan: 2/5 Seems kind of redundant of "Lucky Town." At least in the chorus.

Bryant: Damn, I had not noticed the similarity to “Lucky Town.” I guess that’s why I like this song! Well, that and Clarence. I think it’s probably true that having a Clemons sax solo – even a mediocre one, which this one is – is going to add about a half a point for me. 2.5/5

"Living in the Future"

Bryan: 1.75/5 Meh.

Bryant: I like this song. 2.5/5 My scores are stuck in a rut, apparently.  I blame the production, which is just … off. I can’t entirely put my finger on why I feel that way about it, but Wikipedia gives me a few clues. First, Brendan O’Brien also produced The Rising (which I felt the same way about), so I think he might be at fault here. Second, apparently the band did not record as a unit thanks to the scheduling challenges. Now, for all I know, Born to Run was recorded exactly the same way. All I know is that there is an artificial feel to these songs that does them no favors. The good news is that I bet there are great live versions of all of these; they do seem to me like fundamentally good songs, so a great performance of them could and would elevate them into another category, at least for me.

Bryan: With regard to Brendan O'Brien:

In the 90s when my old band Boat Chips started recording we were right at the end of the Analog Age. Actually, that's not quite true; that age was well and truly done by the mid-90s but as far as home recording was concerned, I mean, we were still operating on the previous age's premises. We did our first few albums on a 6 track, then the next few on a 8 track, then we had Cakewalk and some other software. (For me, it was a dizzying progression. I handled zero percent of this side of stuff and would just show up and do my part; occasionally I'd plug in a microphone and by the end of our recording career in 2004 I was trusted to attach the pop filter, even) When I saw music on the computer screen for one of our songs, it looked a bit like this:

That's not actually one of our tunes, just to give a visual idea. What you have there is the digital readout of the loudness and softness of the mix, with the peaks and valleys of sound. I bring all this up because while Boat Chips was futzing like a million other bands with spiffy new home recording software, the professional bands themselves were drafted into The Loudness War. That was the result of the industry's progression from primitive recording to the digital age. (I hope I set this up right! It's meant to be parallel.) Suddenly, everything - regardless of the tune - started to look like this:

Brendan O'Brien is a producer of this Loudness era, and Magic is a Loudness War record. Over-compressed as shit with the dynamic range choked to death. That's what won, though - it became about eliminating the highs and lows in the range and pressing it all against a digital ceiling.

I admire Bruce's saviness about his career, and I see his working with producers like B'oB as a concession to the realities of the biz. I can respect that. I do kind of wish he (Bruce) gave a bigger crap about this and worked with someone like Butch Vig (whose production sensibility might be considered of the Loudness variety, but I like his ear/ touch quite a bit) instead of Brendan O'Brien (who I do not). 

But sooner or later, Bruce must figure, he's going to play it live and have to communicate its meaning better than the studio anyway so maybe he just shrugs it off. It's all about the tune for him.

Now, Butch Vig - there's a Loudness-era producer who can do all the same tricks but whose ear is fantastic; there isn't a record he produced that isn't a masterpiece of dynamic range, for my money. (Especially those Garbage ones.) I wish Bruce had hooked up with him instead of B'oB for these albums.

I say this as a mostly tone deaf, still-technologically-challenged, ungrateful whelp. But that's my take on it all. If his early albums suffered from not having someone at the console who captured the songs as adroitly as the they deserved, these new ones have to overcome the Loudness Solid Block of Blah That Has Hoodwinked The World. Trouble is, I don't think the songs are good enough for that (although they do sound better live.)

I hope this digression hasn't been tedious.

Bryant: Not even slightly. It helps me understand my reaction to this stuff.  I can remember the incongruity the sound of The Rising held for me on the first listen, second listen, third, etc. Back then I had no notion of why I was hearing it that way, no notion that the production might be the reason why I was hearing it. But I knew that it didn't entirely match my personal definition of what "Bruce Springsteen" sounded like. That definition varied from "Blinded by the Light" to "Highway Patrolman" to "Dancing in the Dark," too, so it's not like I had a narrow corridor that the Boss could fit in and that was it.

At the same time, though, the album didn't entirely NOT match my personal definition of "Bruce Springsteen," either. They seemed like fundamentally Springsteenian songs, just ... missing something. Or with something added.

I didn't know. I kind of do now, and while the intricacies of production are still somewhat mysterious to me, I'm getting to where I'm more attuned to it.

Very interesting!

"Your Own Worst Enemy"

Bryant: 2.5/5 More of the same.

Bryan: 1.75/5 Yeah, more meh. I like the "your flag flew so high it drifted into the sky" line but this is just boring. On this particular topic, I prefer this one. Which I bet the E Street Band would have turned into something special. I can't picture Bruce singing it, but maybe Steve.

"Gypsy Biker"

Bryan: 1.75/5 Ditto.

Bryant: If I pay close attention, I make a good guess as to what Bruce is singing. I’m not paying particularly close attention, though; the song doesn’t make me want to. But, again, it’s not bad; just kind of bland and uninspiring. 2/5

"Girls in Their Summer Clothes"

Bryan: 3/5 A bit more purposeful of a song. Still not the most interesting melody/ arrangement but it's fine.

Bryant: I think this aspires to a sort of Phil Spector sound, but holy Hannah does it not get there. Brendan O’Brien is a hack; I instinctively know him to be the Akiva Goldsman of music production. 2.5/5

Bryan: Someone needs to add that to his wiki! And credit you.  

"I'll Work For Your Love"

Bryan: 3/5 The opening sounds old school E Street-ish and then into the generic sound of the rest of the album.

Bryant: It’s alright. 2/5 This wants to be in the vein of “You Can Look But You Better Not Touch” and just doesn’t get there.

"Magic"

Bryan: 2.5/5 The music's okay but here's a rare lyrical misfire from Bruce IMO - the ending irony ("bodies hanging in the trees") just comes out of nowhere and sounds silly to me rather than withering-insight/irony. Message confusion.

Bryant: This is my favorite song on the album. This surprises me; I didn’t remember it at all. Your note about the lyrics being incongruous piqued my interest. As I mentioned earlier, I’m doing a shoddy job of paying attention to the lyrics on this album – (a) because I always do, (b) because the production is a sock full of mud, and (c) because the songs are a bit on the mediocre side and are not calling for my attention – so I wasn’t sure whether I agreed with you or not. But I decided to give Bruce the benefit of the doubt and assume that since that’s how the song culminates, he intended everything that came before it to support it. A bit of research turned up this quote from an interview with Rolling Stone: "The song 'Magic' is about living in a time when anything that is true can be made to seem like a lie, and anything that is a lie can be made to seem true.There are people that have taken that as their credo.The classic quote was from one of the Bushies in The New York Times: 'We make our own reality. You guys report it, we make it.' I may loathe that statement – the unbelievable stupidity and arrogance of it – more than I loathe 'Bring it on' and 'Mission accomplished.' That song, it's all about illusion: 'Trust none of what you hear / And less of what you'll see / This is what will be' – we make it. Until you get to the last verse: 'There's a fire down below / It's coming up here... There's bodies hanging in the trees / This is what will be.' That's the heart of my record right there." I think that musically, the song supports this notion; it cues you that while he’s singing about magic, it’s not a good or fun type of magic. The song is ten years old now, and the topic he’s singing about it so much worse. Or, if you prefer, my perception of it is so much worse; it’s an important distinction, obviously. Either way, I respond to this song. 3.25/5 I think the production benefits this song rather than getting in its way.

Bryan: I like your take on it. I like the song a bit more now that I've heard it a few times. I can definitely appreciate what Bruce was trying to do, but I don't think he pulled it off here.

Brave of Bruce to object to this stuff from Republicans, though. Maybe the idea will catch on. Lord knows there's enough discussion of any other-side-of-the-aisle "magic!" Particularly from musicians and actors.

"Last To Die"

Bryan: 2.5/5 Good but still kind of generic - is it the arrangement? I don't know. Something about this seems like the wrong approach.

Bryant: Not bad. I agree that it is generic. The string-sounding section toward the end is awful. I’m not sure what it even is.  Synthesized strings? A wall of guitars? It sucks balls, is all I know. There’s a good song buried under all this oatmeal. 2/5

"Long Walk Home"

Bryan: 2/5 Good lyrics/ idea but suffers from the rest-of-the-album disease: i.e. it all just sounds generic/ over-compressed. This is the precise opposite production problem to  Asbury Park. 

Bryant: There’s a sense of drama in this song that pulls me into it, so I assume that when I discover the great live version that I’m sure exists, that will become a favorite. This is not. 2.5/5 plus Clarence, so 3/5. I’d have recast this in the mold of “I’m on Fire,” with some light sticks-on-the-edge-of-the-drum percussion and some wistful synth and group vocals by Bruce and Clarence and Steve.

"Devil's Arcade"

Bryan: 2.25/5 Might've made a better U2 song - seems better suited for them. Or maybe it would've benefited from a more Nebraska type arrangement.

Bryant: I’d be happy to hear U2 cover this, if only so they’d make something cohesive out of it. The nine-note melody that pops up throughout and is mostly played on electric guitar (I think) is problematic, and I don’t entirely know why. Bottom line is that I don’t like it. The song itself, overall, is okay. 2/5

"Terry's Song"

Bryan: 2/5 Musically I'll give this one more of a "1.5" but the idea/ tribute is sweet and I tip my cap with an extra half a point.

Bryant: I like this more than you do, although it may be purely because it sounds more organic. Compared to much of the rest of the album – to which it was apparently a late addition – it’s a breath of fresh air. 2.75/5

~

Bryan: Total 27.5, Avg 2.27 There's some nice Clarence on this album, but none of the songs really excite me much. Seems like the kind of music people who know how to write songs/ rock out would put out but there's little essential here.

Bryant: Overall – 29.5 total, 2.46 average. This is a frustrating album. It scored the same as The Ghost of Tom Joad for me, but if I were asked to pick a favorite, it’s be Magic, easily. But giving it a bit of actual attention – as opposed to merely using it as background music – reveals that the production really did let the songs down quite badly. Are they bad songs, though? Not at all; it’s a good collection. So if I were to work at them, and gain an appreciation for the context that underpins each, I can imagine this becoming more of a favorite for me. After all, I do believe that context – the context of the title song, for example – matters, and I can think of examples of becoming a much bigger fan of a song after something caused me to recontextualize it. (Placement in a movie will do that for me quicker than anything, except maybe for hearing the story of how and why it was written/recorded.)

That said, it’s not necessary for context to be present in order for a song to work. I always think of “New York City Serenade” in that regard. I remember the first time I heard that song, it felt like my mental definition of “music” was being rewritten on the fly. Did I know what the song was about? No. Didn’t matter; I felt the song. An understanding of its context can probably make me love it more, but it wasn’t necessary in order for the love of it to come into being.

I like all of the songs on Magic, and I might say that I get close to loving a few of them; but I never quite get all the way there. Maybe I still will. That’s possible. It’s equally possible that somebody else would have that blossom of love burst forth upon their first listen. I see no reason why that isn’t possible, too.

For my own tastes, though, this one is fine, but not magical.

Bryan: I want to buy this on vinyl and see that stamped on the back!

UPDATED RANKINGS:

Bryan:

Lucky Town 2.15

Greetings from Asbury Park 2.19

Magic 2.27

The Ghost of Tom Joad 2.44

In Concert / MTV Plugged 2.82

Tracks 2.83

Chimes of Freedom 2.86

Blood Brothers 2.88

Human Touch 2.9

Book of Dreams 3.1

Hammersmith Odeon, London 3.1

The Rising 3.3

Devils and Dust 3.36

The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle 3.43

Live in New York City 3.5

Loose Ends 3.63

Greatest Hits (New Tracks Only) 3.65

We Shall Overcome: The Pete Seeger Sessions 3.67

The River 3.71

Tunnel of Love 3.8

Darkness on the Edge of Town 3.82

Live ’75 - ‘85 4

Live in Dublin 4.11

Born to Run 4.41

Nebraska 4.5

Born in the USA 5.4

Bryant:

Human Touch 1.7

Hammersmith Odeon, London '75 2.04

Lucky Town 2.15

The Ghost of Tom Joad 2.46

Magic 2.46

Devils and Dust 2.48

Book of Dreams 2.58

Chimes of Freedom 2.69

In Concert / Mtv Plugged 2.75

Greetings from Asbury Park 2.75

Tracks 2.81

Blood Brothers 2.9

The Rising 3.1

Live in Dublin 3.22

Tunnel of Love 3.35

We Shall Overcome: The Pete Seeger Sessions 3.37

Greatest Hits (New Tracks Only) 3.38

The River 3.39

Live in New York City 3.48

The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle 3.68

Live ’75 - ‘85 3.7

Loose Ends 3.92

Born to Run 4.35

Darkness on the Edge of Town 4.4

Nebraska 4.63

Born in the USA 4.88

~

Hey folks, there'll be no Sunday Night Springsteen tomorrow - see you next year!