Archaeology
By Mitch Berg
Among Springsteen addicts, it’s one of the great unanswered questions; if Bruce had not gotten into his lawsuit with Mike Appell – his first manager, the guy who got him his first audience with the legendary John Hammond at CBS record, and who went on to allegedly mismanage his career over his first two albums – what would the followup to “Born To Run” have sounded like?
NPR brings us the first look at and listen to The Promise – which is much more than an odds-and-sods collection of outtakes. It’s a reconstruction; what might Son Of Born To Run have been?
The NPR piece includes several (time-sensitive) takes from the album; a rare, often-bootlegged, “Because The Night” that is glorious in its raw, punky intensity. “Racing In The Street” is big and loud
November 5th, 2010 at 12:25 pm
Saw the documentary two weeks ago. Pretty good footage, and made with a sense of humor. discusses the law suit with Appell, but is not clear about its resolution. Very good music on that album, which contains my favorite Springsteen song, Racing in the Street. I’ve noted that song in your comments before, although probably under a different name, because I keep losing my login info for the site because I don’t comment much.
November 5th, 2010 at 1:48 pm
I haven’t been this excited for a new album to come out in at least 20 years! I’ve spent far too much time on that NPR website listening to the streams. The Racing in the Street, Rendezvous, Because the Night and of course The Promise are top shelf! Mitch take a look at my new blog btw, you’d appreciate it! http://www.stpaulcd4voter.blogspot.com/
November 7th, 2010 at 8:54 pm
Interesting, though I’ll always prefer Patti’s version of “Because the Night” – feels like Bruce should take the tempo up just a little.
November 8th, 2010 at 8:54 am
I don’t disagree. I like Patti better than Bruce’s studio version.
And I think Bruce knows it; live, he always gooses the tempo a bit.