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| Tonight: |
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| (2010) |
"Darkness on the Edge of Town was my 'samurai' record, stripped to the frame and ready to rumble. But the music that got left behind was substantial." - Bruce
Bryan: It sure was. As the world discovered in 2010 when a good chunk of the left behind appeared on the double album The Promise. Bryant, hello! Are we ready for the task set before us?
Bryant: (Bryant was in the other room during this part, so here's some Remo Williams - my background companion for the evening - for your listening pleasure.)
“This is a trove, a vast clearinghouse from a fertile period, the product of which turned out to be one terrific album. And in addition to containing its share of treasure, The Promise ultimately confirms that Springsteen is a brilliant editor of his own material. (…) "Save My Love", a catchy piano-led tune, isn't going to make Darkness with lines like "If we open up our hearts/ Love won't forsake us." Tell that to the couple in "Racing in the Street".” - Pitchfork review
DISC ONE
"Racing in the Street ('78)"
Bryan: 3/5 Especially like that little break around the 3:20 mark, moreso than the (further) break around 3:40 or so. Actually, with a few listens under my belt now, I think that mid-3-minute section is pretty much the only part I really genuinely enjoy. This remains a Springsteen track (like "Thunder Road") that others love that I'm more or less unmoved by. So it goes! I certainly do not challenge its iconic status.
Bryant: I’m a big fan of the album version, so this early version is interesting to me, but it plays like exactly what it is: an imperfect version of a song that would later be perfected, more or less. Interesting to hear it, but entirely unessential, for my tastes. 2.5/5
"Gotta Get That Feeling"
Bryan: 2.75/5 I can hear some things in here that remind me of better things in the Springsteen catalog. There's a lot of time signature/ strumming mismatching going on here. It's like the call-and-response vocals and sax are one song and the rest of the arrangement is another.
Bryant: I’m coming off the one-two Brendan O’Brien punch of Magic and Working on a Dream, so the sound of this is like … uh … music to my ears, I guess. It’s nothing special, and I think you’d have to say it never really came together. Still, I’ll give it a 2.5/5 because even a mediocrity like this works for me reasonably well.
"Outside Looking In"
Bryan: 3.25/5 Here's one that I think could really have been turned into something maybe even a 5 star song. Not quite there with this version, though.
Bryant: I like this. 2.75/5 Seems like a fundamentally good song that they gave up on before they could make it anything truly special. Still, end result: pretty good.
"Someday (We'll Stand Together)"
Bryan: 3.5/5 Ditto though this one hangs together a tad better all on its own. Not the best Bruce vocal though.
Bryant: Remember that Phil Spector wannabe sound I was talking about on a couple of the previous albums? Well, here it is in the late seventies, except it works. This is pretty strong, in my opinion. 3/5
Bryan: 3.75/5 I kind of really dig this. I'm not sure what, but the melody/ structure really reminds me of something else, though.
Bryant: Clarence adds a lot to this one. Duh; of course he does! Bruce’s vocals work for me, too. I’m with ya; I dig this. 3/5
"Because the Night"
Bryan: 3/5 I gave this song a 4.5 on Live '75 - '85. Still a great tune but not really into this version.
Bryant: This sounds like exactly what it is: a great song that they simply didn’t crack in the studio. Sounds like they kind of gave up on it, donated it to Patti Smith (who added some of her own lyrics) who perfected it, and then used her version as the model for later live versions. As such, it’s hard for me to score this one. Without it, none of that other stuff exists, so I’ve got to respect that. I’ll give it a 3.25/5 for the potential that it exudes even in this form.
"Wrong Side of the Street"
Bryant: I remember watching the documentary about the making of this album (Darkness on the Edge of the Town, that is) and feeling that it was a revelation. I’ve got that DVD on the way, so I look forward to seeing it again so it can explain to me why the sound just wasn’t there on some of these castoffs that form The Promise. This – The Promise, that is – really is a document of failed effort. But holy SHIT, I wish I could manage to fail at that level! This is the difference between genius and talent; if genius is present, then even failure is likely to be entertaining and/or instructive. So something like The Promise, compromised though it may be, is remarkable compared to many other bands’ successes. This particular song is only okay, though, in my opinion. 2/5
Bryan: 3.25/5 Hear, hear on the relativity of such things. Each time we've looked at the castoffs, we've found - consistently - material equal to the best from all other quarters. There's a reason why Springsteen lends himself particularly well to listenthroughs like this!
Bryan: 3.25/5 Not a fave but that's my score for what I think the song is worth - probably could be a classic 4 or higher if it'd been fleshed out.
Bryant: Fuck, I wish Roy Orbison had recorded this. He’d have killed it. And I’d almost be willing to bet one of my testicles that Bruce either wrote this for him or wrote it after listening to him. I love this one. 4.5/5 Speaking of Orbison, I was at my parents’ house one night this past spring, having dinner. After dinner, we were fishing around looking for something to watch, and there was a Roy Orbison concert coming on PBS. It was a 30th anniversary version of Black and White Night, which was a special filmed in 1987. The backing band included Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, Springsteen, the TCB Band (Elvis’s unit), and backup singers kd lang, Bonnie Raitt, and Jennifer Warnes. I’d heard of it, but had never seen it, and was blown right the fuck away by it. Springsteen in particular looks like he’s in heaven; he’s just a dude in the band, backing up a legend, and he’s having a ball doing it. I need to buy the Blu-ray of this; it’s that good. Anyways, yeah, “The Brokenhearted” sounds like it HAD to have had an Orbison influence.
"Rendezvous"
Bryan: 2.25/5 Doesn't do much for me but there are little twinkles here and there that appeal to me. Much better elsewhere.
Bryant: This sounds like a demo version, which I guess it technically was. There are live versions that are vastly better. This is okay, though. 2.5/5
"Candy's Boy"
Bryan: 2.5/5 Definitely the right move ditching this one and sticking with "Candy's Room." Like all the organ-ing, though.
Bryant: Fascinating! I love the original, and this is a very different take on it, but – unlike the version of “Racing in the Streets” that opens this album – it’s different enough that I don’t have to focus on that too much. This is just its own thing, and I dig it. 3/5 Oh, and yeah, the organ is wonderful. (That’s what SHE said…!) [Sorry.] It really is, though.
DISC TWO
"Save My Love"
Bryan: 2.5/5 Another one where the guitar-time is too at odds with the melody/ drums for me. Wiki tells me this is the last thing CC ever recorded. I can barely pick him out in the mix.
Bryant: Wait, what? I don’t think I knew that some of this was recorded in the modern era. I think my ears hear it on this song, though. (Like yours, they do NOT hear Clarence.) Pretty good! It’s obviously a bit like the TNG Blu-ray remasters in that the new stuff is laser-focused on replicating the “old” feel. It more or less works. 3/5
Bryan: 4.3/5 Seems like there's room for a soaring CC solo towards the end of this one, but I like the pub-singalong kind of quality to the outro. I love this.
Bryant: Jesus, this is just great. 4/5 I think this one may also be a TNG version, so to speak. Don’t bother me none.
"Fire"
Bryan: 4.4/5 Much better than the Live set version. Still not as smooth as the Pointer Sisters but this is a pretty legit and tight recording. Would have been a hit all on its own for sure.
Bryant: Still feels to me like they didn’t get all of this one, but that’s okay, I dig it all the same. 3.5/5
"Spanish Eyes"
Bryan: 2.5/5 Kinda boring.
Bryant: A fascinating early version of “I’m on Fire,” but not even vaguely as good. Not bad, though. Is this another modern TNG rerecording? Sounds like it to me, Bruce’s vocals in particular. It’s cool that they took the trouble to do that, but I agree that this song is mostly a bore. 2/5
"It's a Shame"
Bryan: 3.25/5 Nice groove to this one and I like when the horns come in./ the horns in general. It could be better though. I'm sure a fully-fleshed out version (then or now) would net a higher score. Nice showcase of SVZ's "close enough for rock and roll!" harmonies, though.
Bryant: Am I correct in feeling that this is an early version of something that turned into “Prove It All Night”? Some of the music strongly suggests that song. This is … not as good. But it is NOT a shame. 2.5/5
"Come On (Let's Go Tonight)"
Bryan: 3/5 I'd like to have heard the Pete Seeger Band have a go at this - would've been suited well for that particular ensemble.
Bryant: Here’s one that turned into “Factory.” Boy, yeah, the Sessions Band doing this would be great! This is an okay version. 2.5/5
Bryan: 4.25/5 Really dig this one.The ending is probably a "5" but I'm not sure I can go much higher than 4.25 for the overall tune. Cool song though. I can see how it wouldn't have fit in on Darkness. I hear this stuff and I can definitely see how Bruce would've killed it had he come up in the 50s. Maybe not as much as he killed it in the 70s and beyond, I guess, killed it in a different way, though.
Bryant: There is a level of the Tower on which this was a #1 hit for, like, half of 1979. You know there is. And I think that level is pretty close to this one; I don’t think they were far away from getting the song into shape to make it happen on THIS level. It definitely wouldn’t have fit onto Darkness as we know it, but it could have worked like a charm on the River. 4/5 Springsteen gave the song to Southside Johnny for his 1978 album Hearts of Stone (along with the title track), and it’s okay, but not as good as this version.
"The Little Things (My Baby Does)"
Bryan: 2.75/5 Okay but nothing special for me.
Bryant: 3.25/5 Another one that basically shows half of Bruce’s brain was already in The River during these sessions.
"Breakaway"
Bryan: 2/5 Bruce's vocals are kind of depressed here. Not a huge fan of this one.
Bryant: Yeah, I think the vocals do drag this down a bit. But the chorus is kind of weak, too. Not a terrible song, but another example of them having a good idea that they simply didn’t develop as much as they needed to. Clarence helps, of course. 2.5/5 after the customary Clemons half-point addition.
Bryan: 1.5/5 Another one that just sounds like a literalization of Bruce's lower emotional register (i.e. the emotional muck of a depressed landscape.) I get the lyrical importance to the Springsteen biography, but I'm baffled when people (like Rolling Stone) list this as a seminal Bruce work. Musically this could not be more of a slog when compared to the majesty of so many other songs, or, if the literalization of anti-dopamine is the right tallystick, then this uninterestingly describes such emotional terrain. For me. Opinions vary, of course. (And then, it goes on for 6 minutes! Oy vey. No wonder you're depressed, dude.)
Bryant: I’m with you in terms of not quite understanding the cult built up behind this song. I do like it more than you do, though. I’d give it about a 3.5/5, but that’s about a point and a half behind where the average Springsteen nut seems to place it. Fine by me, I’m just not onboard with it to the extent they are.
"City of Night"
Bryan: 3.75/5 Is that SVZ singing? I guess it isn't. I like this one.
Bryant: Bruce is doing one of his occasional weirdo vocals here, and he might even be trying to ape Steve. Good song, though. 3.25/5
"The Way"
Bryan: 3/5 A better recording (or maybe a different singer/band altogether) could really bring this one to life.
Bryant: Nice little song, and not a bad way for the album to end. Nothing special, but solid. Anyone who likes Springsteen who didn’t like this would get a very confused squint from me if they told me about it. 2.75/5
Bryan: According to Backstreets.com, “when asked about THE WAY, Springsteen answered that "the main reason it's hidden is because I never liked it." Conjuring visions of Dean Stockwell, he went on to say "I would like to see it placed in a David Lynch film over a sexually perverse scene. That, to me, is it's righteous home."”
~
Bryan: Total 67.73 Average 3.08 Couple of these tracks ("Ain't Good Enough for You" and "Talk To Me") are every-Springsteen-mix-I-ever-make inclusions for sure. Bryant: 65.75 total, 2.99 average This seems a little low, but it’s probably about right. It places it above at least half a dozen “successful” Springsteen albums, which is pretty remarkable considering that the vast majority of this had previously been deemed not even good enough to make Tracks.
UPDATED RANKINGS:
Bryan:
Lucky Town 2.15
Greetings from Asbury Park 2.19
Magic 2.27
The Ghost of Tom Joad 2.44
Working on a Dream 2.71
Working on a Dream 2.71
In Concert / MTV Plugged 2.82
Tracks 2.83
Chimes of Freedom 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
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
Working on a Dream 2.23
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
Tracks 2.81
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
