As a librarian I used to feel that it was my holy duty to collect all the Bruce books I could get my hands on. In recent years, however, I have somewhat modified this obligation, so now I only buy books that I really want and that aren't just another rehash of Dave Marsh's classics: Born to Run and Glory Days.
Well, even with this constraint on myself, it looks like the fall of 2006 is going to be an expensive one. There are at least three new Bruce books that deserve a lot of attention. First of all Dave Marsh is about to release a brand new book about Bruce. Unfortunately it won't be vol. 3 of his biography series, but it still looks promising. It's called Bruce Springsteen on Tour: 1968-2005. It's authorized by Bruce himself and is simply a celebration of Bruce's live performances with loads of pictures and trivia.
Then there's Robert Santellis new book Greetings From E Street: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, which Backstreets already speaks very fondly of. And finally Eric Meola who took the picture that graces the cover of the Born to Run album will release a book called Born to Run: The Unseen Photos with lots of pictures from the Born to Run photo shoot that haven't been published before. In that connection, you can read an interview with Eric Meola on PopPhoto.com where he talks about the book and his relationship with Bruce. Read more
Again, as a lot of you already know, Bruce has personally denounced rumors that he and Patti are separated. Yesterday, in a rare move, he published a statement on his official website assuring the public that he and Patti are as committed to each other as they have always been. Hopefully that will put the speculation to rest, but then again, maybe not. The statement is already being dissected by fans who have noted that he doesn't say outright that he loves Patti. I call that nitpicking. Those are words on a screen. No one who's seen the two together in real life, whether on the street or on stage, would ever get the idea that there's anything wrong with their relationship. The only "evidence" we've seen so far, is what some anonymous sources allegedly has told New York Post, which is the kind of newspaper that doesn't usually let truth get in the way of the temptation to sell a few more copies. So let it rest, if nothing else for the Springsteen kids' sake. Read more
Most of you have probably read or heard about the gossip stories in the press that Bruce and Patti have separated because of Bruce allegedly being involved with a widow from the 9/11 attacks. So are the rumors true? My honest opinion? No, they are not true. This sounds like a rehash of a story that ran in January and which even then was based on old information. In other words, there may at some point have been a little crisis in their relationship, but it was worked out and things are fine again, if there ever was a problem. Of course, you cannot rule out completely that the press is indeed on to something. After all, the rumors of Bruce's relationship with Patti and his breaking up with Julianne were also started in the gossip press (back then I didn't believe it either). If so, stranger things have happened, and it's not something that will affect my view on Bruce or his work the slightest. Real things happen in real people's lives, as they say. The only thing that's certain is that no matter what the press writes or whether there's a basis for any of it, we'll never know a fraction of the actual truth behind it or who is to blame for what, if anything, so it's not up to anyone but their closest friends and relatives to pass judgement. Read more
...Sam Moore, that is. Bruce has added his vocals to a duets sort of album by the old soul master. He helps out on the second track, "Better to Have and Not Need". The album is coming out on August 29, but you can listen to the whole thing as streaming audio here. And let me say, some of it is not half bad. It may not hold a candle against his classic songs like "Soul Man", and "Hold On, I'm Comin'", but it's better than a lot of stuff out there. Bruce does a good job too. The roar in his voice is back. He should use it some more on his next album. Read more
A few days ago the official announcement of an expanded version of The Seeger Sessions was released. The album will be hit the stores on October 3 and will include extra songs, an extended documentary on DVD, live footage, photos and what not (read the press release here). Since the extra songs will be available for download individually on iTunes, you can't accuse the Bruce camp of truly milking the fans. You are not forced to buy all the same songs again in order to get the new ones. That's a good thing.
Still, there's something about this release that seems forced and that just doesn't sit right with me. I think... although of course I can't be sure... that The Seeger Sessions was originally meant to be a parenthesis in the bigger scheme of things. Just a quick release to fill out a void until Bruce came up with a new album of his own songs. Sure, a quick tour was in order too. But it's like Sony (or is it Bruce and Landau themselves?) tries to turn every single Springsteen release into a blockbuster the size of Grand Canyon. But you know, sometimes even a Bruce album is just that... an album. The Seeger Sessions as enjoyable as it is would in my opinion fit in that category. It's not a major release that deserves the same hoopla as for instance the Born to Run 30th Anniversary Edition. Now, that was worthy of a box. And the same goes for his other classic albums up to at least Born in the USA. But those albums all stood the test of time. The Seeger Sessions got very good reviews and probably sold better than expected, at least in Europe, but it's hardly a classic yet that begs for expansion and celebration.
Well, obviously someone in charge disagrees with me. Whether it's just a way to make more money or if they are actually consciously trying to change Bruce's legacy and make him known as the "folk intepreter" instead of "boss of rock 'n' roll" I don't know. Whatever the case, come October 3 I will be first in line for this expanded version in my local music store, because that's just the way I am. And I'm probably going to love all the extra material too. But that doesn't mean I think releasing it was necessarily the right thing to do from a Bruce legacy point of view. Read more
OK, you probably think it needs lots of things... like, announcements of never-ending E Street Band tours, juicy insider info, and a link to the Electric Nebraska sessions. Well, granted, it needs all those things too. But what I was thinking was, it needs more multimedia! So let me try something new. I want to try to embed a video from youtube.com. It's a lousy cell phone video of Bruce playing "Long Tall Sally" with John Fogerty the other night as mentioned below. And it's not even complete. But it's still pretty cool.
OK, here goes. Let's see what happens:
Read more
Yes, I'm talking about Bruce. After an unusually quiet summer Bruce finally appeared in public again (not counting horse shows with his daughter) when he joined John Fogerty at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ. They sang "Long Tall Sally" together and that was that. Hopefully this means his summer vacation is over and that he will be a bit more visible again. Read more
A recent interview with Jon Landau on an Australian newspaper site has made the cyberworld buzzing with excitement. In the interview Landau more than suggests that we haven't seen the last full concert release from the old days or the last outtakes compilation in the Tracks vein. This adds fuel to the rumors that a DVD release of the July 8, 1978, show in Phoenix is being prepared for release. If that is true we are in for something completely mindblowing. The Hammersmith 1975 release, as sublime as it was, will quickly be overshadowed by a full-length Darkness show. I happened to watch a clip of that show the other day. Not one of the usual songs that have circulated in ages (including the version of "Rosalita" that you can find on Video Anthology 1978-2000), but a clip that showed Bruce in the middle of "Raise Your Hand" standing on the piano looking out across the fully lit arena where thousands of ecstatic fans are dancing in the stands. The clip wasn't more than perhaps a minute or two long, but it was enough to send shivers down my spine and make me drool for more. If that's what's in store for us on an official release, it's almost too good to be true. Read more
Finally Bruce Springsteen's management found out that there's a European tour happening in the fall. After most of the shows have been announced locally and tickets gone on sale weeks ago, the official press release came out today. To be fair, it did include four shows that hadn't been made public before, including three shows in the UK (Birmingham, London, Sheffield) and a third show at Dublin's The Point. You can read the press release... no, not on the official website as of this moment (their webmaster - if there is one - must be on summer vacation), but on Greasy Lake and I reckon most other Bruce sites worth their salt.
One of the interesting things is that for the first time since 1997 Bruce is going to play three nights in a row on a couple of occassions. Back in 1997 it was on the subdued Ghost of Tom Joad solo acoustic tour, which probably wasn't as straining on the voice as these Seeger shows (not that I know a thing about singing), so this is the first time probably since the early Seventies that he's going to do 2½ hours of loud singing three nigths in a row. Let's hope his voice is up to it. I mean, there must be a reason he doesn't usually do it.
As many will have read elsewhere Bruce is planning to release an expanded version of the Seeger Sessions album, this time subtitled American Land. It is supposed to hit the shelves on September 5. No official track list has been revealed. The only thing that's certain is that "Bring Them Home" will be on it, and a good guess would be that it also includes "American Land" since they decided to use it as the subtitle. Other than that we can hope for, and most likely expect, stuff like "How Can a Poor Man....", "Long Black Veil", "When the Saints..." and perhaps other tour regulars. The problem is, we're going to have to shell full price for these 5-6 songs or however many it will be and we will be buying the whole original album again. Personally, I've never been one to complain when Bruce has re-released stuff with previously unreleased bonus tracks, such as Greatest Hits, 18 Tracks, and Essential. After all, those releases were the result of some sort of creative selection process where a new flow was created and songs appeared in a new context. Plus compilations of an artist's or band's best or most succesful songs have just always existed and have always been justified by their ability to introduce an artist to new, potential fans.
With this expanded Seeger Sessions album it's different. For all we know it's exactly the same album again, but with a few more songs. What's the point of that if not to make a quick buck from people who are going to buy it again? Sure, those songs are important and make some fine statements about current events, but if the message was the main factor, why not release those new songs separately? Record some more Seeger songs - enough to fill another album - and make it Seeger Sessions Volume 2?
Well, of course, there's always the "if you don't want it, don't buy it" option, but I'm one of the suckers. I'm going to buy it no matter how wrong I think it is. That's just what Bruce does to me. I crave everything he releases. I wouldn't be too sure if that will be the general rule among hardcores this time around though. The Seeger Sessions project is unpopular enough as it is in certain hardcore circles, and many people bought the first edition reluctantly. They sure as hell aren't going to shell out again. Even people who like the album will hesitate a whole lot more than if it had been an E Street Band project.
Database Error: Expression #1 of SELECT list is not in GROUP BY clause and contains nonaggregated column 'gl_main_v6.news.id' which is not functionally dependent on columns in GROUP BY clause; this is incompatible with sql_mode=only_full_group_by
