If you’ve already played “We Take Care of Our Own” to death and you’ve had the four song snippets from the Paris press event video on repeat all weekend (unfortunately, that video now seems to be gone from YouTube), and you just can’t wait any longer for new Bruce juice, now there’s hope for more. Absolute Radio has announced that they will be playing a new song from the Wrecking Ball album every day over the next 1½ weeks, starting Monday with “Easy Money”.

The same strategy of gradually unmasking a new album was used for the release of both Magic and Working on a Dream and will probably once again divide fans into two camps: those who can’t get their hands on new stuff fast enough, and those who feel that peeking at their Christmas presents prematurely will spoil the moment of the actual event. Often it’s a question of generations.

Those of us who remember what buying a new Springsteen album was like in the Seventies, Eighties or Nineties tend to belong to the latter camp. We think of way back before the Internet when all we’d heard from the new album was the first single, and possibly only when it was played on the radio, if we happened to be listening. We think of how we’d scramble for the red record-button of the cassette player and try to record as much of it as we could, and then listen to those last two minutes of a song over and over. And then, after weeks and months of waiting, release day itself... How we would go to midnight sales at the local record store, hand over the money like a holy ritual, carry that physical manifestation of Bruce’s state of mind home with us, fix a cup of coffee, arrange the cushions on the couch just right before finally, when the moment was just right, sit down - lyrics and artwork in front of us - for that very first listen of something we knew would be an important part of the rest of our lives. It was grand. It was epic. It was like experiencing babies being born or when our sports team finally wins the cup after 30 years.

Fast forward 20 years. Release day is here. You’ve already heard all or most of the album, because it was leaked online, or they decided to stream all the songs in advance. Owning the CD is merely a matter of form. You sort of owe it to Bruce. Maybe you won’t even listen to the CD because you also already downloaded it from iTunes and put it on your portable player. Or you’re streaming it via Spotify. Of course, not before agreeing to the terms that you don’t really own the music. They’ll just let you listen to it until possibly they’ll change their minds or go out of business. And listen you will, of course, but not on your couch in serene surroundings, wife and kids out of the house. No, since you already heard it, you’ll just give it another listen while you do your workout or drive your kids to soccer practice, and maybe you’ll skip a few songs here and there because you already heard them too many times, and besides, all your online buddies say they suck.

Of course, going back to the way things were is a hopeless task. And it’s not like there aren’t advantages to modern times, or society probably wouldn’t have gone that way. But think about it in the next couple of weeks as more of the new songs are revealed. What does it mean to your overall enjoyment of music and Bruce? Is instant gratification always the best gratification?

Hearing Bruce at that press conference in Paris, you realize he’s still putting as much thought and effort into tiny details as he always has. You may not always like his choices, but there’s nothing sloppy about them. So why should our listening experience be sloppy? Just because music has turned into zeroes and ones, and just because you can delete it or skip it with a slight movement of your index finger, doesn’t mean it can’t change your life and set your soul free. If you let it.

See also this week's poll.

Since joining the E Street Band in 1984, Nils Lofgren has never been one to wait around the phone for Bruce to call and announce the next tour. He always seems to be working on an album of his own or touring the States or Europe either by himself or with a band. Although his loyalty to Bruce is never in doubt, you sometimes wonder if that call from his boss is a little inconvenient.

Take his new album, Old School. He must have just finished this, his first album of new songs since 2008, when the call came from Bruce to put his solo tour plans aside and reserve 2012 for an E Street Band tour. And if it weren’t so wonderful that the E Street Band is back in business, that would be a big shame. Old School is as solid an album as Nils has created in years and contains songs that deserve to be staples in his live repertoire for years to come.

From the bouncy opening blast of the title track to the classic Nils sound of the closing “Why Me”, it’s an album of several highlights and very few misses. Like most good music, it requires a few listenings before it opens up, and Lofgren’s unique voice will always be an acquired taste. But if you’re new to his solo work, Old School is as good a place to start as any. A handful of the songs are downright catchy, and while not as featured as on some of his other solo albums, the guitar work is unmistakably Nils and offers many treats.

Thematically all you have to do is look at the song titles to see where Nils is today mentally. “Old School”, the title track, “60 Is the New 18”, the wonderful Sam Moore duet “Ain’t Too Many of Us Left” and “Miss You Ray” all tell the story of an aging musician looking back on the heydays, but at the same time insisting... no, demanding... to still play a role and have something to offer. And he does, of course. While his songwriting skills will never be in the same league as Bruce’s, he can still put a song together and shape it in the studio without cheating and without cheap computer tricks. The production is unpolished and downright “real” for lack of a better word. Real instruments, real voices with real flaws, real warm, physical presence, all of which is unlike so much new music.

Highlights include the title track, the aforementioned “Ain’t Too Many of Us Left” (a song that wouldn’t have sounded out of place on Southside Johnny’s best albums), “Irish Angel” (one of Nils’ best love ballads since “Valentine”) the tribute to his departed dog Harley, “When You Were Mine”, and last but not least the closing countryish “Why Me” with that wonderful guitar sound that is so Nils.

So while we all soon - and rightly so - will be cheering Nils for his climactic guitar solos and tasty fills that add so much to some of Bruce’s songs, we should take just a little time to pay attention to Nils’ own very worthy new album before it gets knocked out of sight by a Wrecking Ball. It’s true what he says: there ain’t too many of his kind left, so let’s support them while they are still here to appreciate it.

Three days before the first public appearance of the E Street Band sans Clarence Clemons (they will appear on the Grammy show this Sunday... don't miss it!), the veil was lifted for how Bruce intends to carry on the legendary band. The answer is: add lots of people. That's right, no less than five horn players will accompany the E Street Band. In other words, a full-blown horn section. The saxophone will be handled by not one but two people: Jake Clemons - Clarence's very talented nephew - and Ed Manion, who is a long-time member of Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes and who was also part of the Seeger Sessions Band. The other horn players are trumpet player Curt Ramm, who was part of the lineup during the late part of the Working on a Dream Tour in 2009, trumpet player Barry Danielian, and trombonist Clark Gayton. Two other repeats from the Working on a Dream Tour will be singers Cindy Mizelle and Curtis King. If Patti Scialfa will be present on the tour, that's a total of 16 people or about as many as the Seeger Sessions Band.

While some may worry about what this means to the sound and the visual appearance of the band, most fans will probably be happy to see a horn section back on stage for the first time since the Tunnel of Love Express Tour in 1988 (which incidentally also included Ed Manion). The big question is how it will feel to have Jake Clemons and Ed Manion play Clarence's signature solos and what the horn section's presence on stage will do to fill the enormous void left behind by the Big Man. As impossible as that is, the choices Bruce made are sane.

When it comes to Ed Manion, he's anything but a colorless hired hand. As anyone who's experienced the Asbury Jukes horns will know, he's a first-rate showman and will fit perfectly in the E Street Band chemistry. And to still have the Big Man's holy genes included in the band, in the shape of Jake Clemons, is a poignant reminder that the E Street Band is more than just a bunch of good musicians. It's a family and a brotherhood that doesn't die just because its members do.

So with that big question answered, the next piece in the puzzle will be laid when this XXL version of the E Street Band will hit the Staples Center stage on Sunday for the big Grammy Awards performance. It will be magnificent!

See the complete lineup.

Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band will be making an appearance a little sooner than expected. On March 9 they will be on stage at the Apollo Theater in New York City for an exclusive performance and live broadcast on Sirius XM. The performance - apart from probably being a good rehearsal for Bruce and the boys - is part of the satellite radio's 10-year-anniversary celebration. Thus, for now only Sirius subscribers (by January 24) get a chance to attend the concert and only by entering a contest that will be decided by a random draw that will take place around February 23.

Bruce's association with Sirius XM started back in 2005 when E Street Radio appeared on the dial for the first time. It became a permanent fixture on Sirius XM in 2007 and has since worked as a semi-official outlet for Bruce broadcasts. Bruce himself has appeared as a DJ on one occasion and also participated in a fan question session around the time of the Darkness box set.

The show on March 9 will be Bruce's first real performance at the famous Apollo Theater. In 2009 he did a TV shoot there as part of Elvis Costello's Spectacle show.

Another wait is over. After weeks of speculation, the dates for the US part of the Wrecking Ball Tour were announced today. The result is 19 shows in 11 states plus Washington DC, starting in Atlanta, GA, on March 18 and ending in Newark on May 2. As is usually the case, Northeasterners have plenty of shows to choose from, including three in New Jersey and two in New York City, while the rest of the country have to make do with shows in Atlanta, Detroit, Los Angeles, San Jose, Greensboro, Tampa and New Orleans. Surprisingly, there are no shows scheduled for either Chicago or Texas. That may still change - if nothing else, in the fall - but for now this is the gist of it. You can check out the complete list of shows on our tour page. If you're looking for ticket info, please visit backstreets.com, but don't wait too long. The first tickets go on sale this Friday.

The official announcement also included the lineup of the E Street Band and additional musicians, but there was no mention of a replacement for Clarence. Again, this could be subject to change. Especially since Steve Van Zandt recently said in an interview with a Norwegian paper that there would be a replacement. Either he didn't check this with Bruce or nobody has been selected yet. Rumors have been mentioning both Clarence's nephew Jake Clemons and long-time Asbury Jukes saxophonist Ed Manion, but absolutely nothing has been confirmed.

That will be the next thing we have to wait for.

When things happen in the Bruce world they happen fast. Twenty-four hours ago we were clamoring for news about the new album. Now we've heard the first song, seen the video, analyzed the lyrics, read the official press release, and felt that rush of excitement that comes with a new Bruce release.

For the few of you who've missed it: Bruce Springsteen's new album is called Wrecking Ball and will be released in the US on March 6 (March 5 in Europe probably). The first single (as if there were still such a thing as singles) is called "We Take Care of Our Own" and can be purchased as a download from Amazon.com (by people in the US) and streamed from YouTube. There's even a video that goes with it that can also be found on YouTube.

The album will contain 11 songs. Apart from "We Take Care of Our Own", we know two of the other songs: the title track, which Bruce played live on the last part of the Working on a Dream Tour and "Land of Hope and Dreams", which needs no further introduction, except that allegedly its inclusion on the new album is a tribute to Clarence Clemons. It is not known whether "Wrecking Ball" and "Land of Hope and Dreams" are previously released live versions or brand new studio versions. Other song titles include "Rocky Ground", "Death to My Hometown" and "Easy Money". You can find the complete track list in our discography section.

The new song that was released as an appetizer today, "We Take Care of Our Own" is an anthemic full-band piece that is bound to make audiences sing along from Spain to Los Angeles. It doesn't reveal any traces of the hip-hop and other modern influences that the Hollywood Reporter quoted an anonymous source as having heard on the new album. In return, it's clearly about economic crisis and hard times, which was also mentioned in the Hollywood Reporter article. You can read the (correct) lyrics of "We Take Care of Our Own" in the lyrics section.

So while we're a lot better off today than yesterday in terms of feeding our Bruce craving, we still don't know anymore about the US tour than we did a week ago. It will probably start in March, but where and when exactly remains to be seen.

The cover of the new album.

It was unannounced but hardly a surprise when Bruce showed up for last night's annual Light of Day show at the Paramount Theatre in Asbury Park. Since their beginning more than 10 years ago, he's only missed a few of these Parkinson Disease Foundation benefits, and with him being in town on Friday to shoot a video for the upcoming album, most observers would have been more surpised had he chosen to stay away.

The recipe was the same as most years: Bruce made a couple of appearances early in the show during Garland Jeffreys and Willie Niles' performances before making his real entrance as the final act, which was billed as Joe Grushecky & the Houserockers, but quickly turned into Bruce Springsteen with Joe Grushecky & the Houserockers.

For anyone who had hoped to hear one or two tracks from Bruce's upcoming album, that was not to be. But even they could hardly be disappointed with what they did witness, which was an exceptionally loose and physically fit Bruce who was all over the stage and in the crowd during his two-hour performance. The songs chosen were nothing out of the ordinary for these events. "Darkness on the Edge of Town", "Save My Love", "Atlantic City", "Waitin' on a Sunny Day" (with a nod to Clarence where the sax solo usually appears) and with acoustic versions of "Incident on 57th Street" and "Thunder Road" respectively opening and closing his set.

For more information go check out the full setlist and read Stand Goldstein's play-by-play review on NJ.com.

Is this a first ever? Bruce Springsteen just announced a new tour and a new album to appear in 2012 without issuing one of those Shorefire Media press releases. The message with this delightful, if still rather sketchy news, just showed up on his official website yesterday along with  Facebook and Twitter messages. A new album is almost finished, a world tour is being planned, it will be with the E Street Band, and European shows from May to July will be announced this week. Those are the four essential pieces of information that were being presented. Since then, shows in England have indeed been officially announced:

21 June Sunderland, England, Stadium of Light (on sale 3 Dec)
22 June Manchester, England, Etihad Stadium (no on sale date yet)
24 June Isle of Wight, England, Isle of Wight Festival (on sale 25 Nov)
14 July London, England, Hard Rock Calling (on sale 3 Dec)

Most likely, the reason for this unusual announcement by Bruce is that the British, and probably other European festival promotors, needed to announce their lineup now and couldn't wait for Bruce to finish up the details regarding his new album. So for once fans actually have a little time to plan even if we have to wait a few more weeks to hear more about the new album.

The announcement is of course also significant in that it answers the question everybody has been asking since the news of Clarence's death: would the E Street Band continue? The answer, we now know, is YES! If and how Clarence will be replaced still remains to be seen, but apparently the rest of the gang is up for another round of touring.

Last night, in the first of two highly anticipated shows, Bruce and Joe Grushecky tore the roof off the Soldiers & Sailors Memorial Hall. From a setlist standpoint, it was a typical Bruce/Joe show featuring lots of their common war horses like "Never Be Enough Time", "Atlantic City", "Murder Incorporated", and "Code of Silence". But for those present and judging by the videos, it was a Bruce itching to play and entertain. His stage presence and physical energy still defy his age, his voice was in fine shape, and when he performed the last song of the night - a solo acoustic version of "Thunder Road" - he was confident enough to do it with the houselights on and within arm's length of the first row.

Other than proving he still hasn't lost a thing after his relatively long hiatus, the show didn't point in any particular direction regarding the future. No new songs were tried out and no announcements were made. So after tonight's repeat performance and next week's Bob Woodruff Foundation benefit, it's back to waiting for news.

Check out last night's setlist and while you're there, don't miss the videos.

We are approaching the end of another year, and it looks like it may come and go with the only new releases being a separate DVD of The Promise documentary and a re-release of Essential. Sure, rumors of a new album “soon” appear at regular intervals, but so far nothing tangible has emerged and there may be nothing to it.

While this prolonged silence may seem unbearable, it has in fact been less than a year since the last major release (the Darkness box) and only about 2½ years since the last album of brand new material. But those numbers are only unusual in light of the last six years or so. The years that started with the release of Devils & Dust in 2005 and saw a new album every year until 2010 (with the exception of 2008, which in return was a busy touring year) were extremely productive by Bruce standards. Before 2005 a year without a new Bruce album was the rule rather than the exception.

There have been several much worse waits for Bruce fans over the years: the wait for the Born to Run album, the wait for the Darkness album, the wait for the Darkness box set, the wait for the E Street Band to be reunited. But in modern Bruce history, there has been no wait like the one that drove fans out of their minds between 1988 and 1992. The 3½ year wait that started when the last note of the last Human Rights Now! show faded away in the Buenos Aires October sky and ended with the release of Human Touch and Lucky Town in the spring of 1992, is legendary among fans.

It was a period in Bruce history when Bruce releasing a duet with Nils Lofgren was major news (“Valentine”); when fans were excited about Bruce recording a children’s song to a charity album (“Chicken Lips and Lizard Hips”); and when the main story in Backstreets Magazine would be an article about the Cadillac Ranch sculpture in Amarillo, Texas.

Sure, there were rumors the whole time that an album was imminent. Since this was before the Internet, most of the rumors were reported by the Backstreets Hotline in the US and the Badlands Hotline in the UK. I personally spent fortunes calling both of them on a weekly basis in the desperate hope that there would be just the tiniest bit of news or the unlikeliest of rumors. At one point Backstreets did report that venues for a Bruce tour had been booked, but nothing materialized.

What made the wait even worse was how it started out with the announcement that Bruce wouldn’t be needing the E Street Band. This left everything up in the air. No one knew what to expect. A clue was given during one of Bruce’s few live appearances in 1990 when he debuted several new songs at the Christic Institute benefit shows in Los Angeles, including “57 Channels” and “Real World”. Another clue was the release of “Viva Las Vegas” for a benefit album that saw Bruce work with Jeff Porcaro of Toto and other session players. But there was no telling how big of a departure the new music would be and altogether what the lack of E Street Band would mean.

Another unknown factor was Bruce’s new status as a father. When Patti Scialfa gave birth to the couple’s first child in July of 1990 few fans knew just how deeply that would affect Bruce’s life, character and music. Again, the Christic shows offered a glimpse of a strangely insecure and vulnerable Bruce, but surely, it was just a matter of a few more months before the good, old, larger-than-life superstar would be back to reclaim his rock ‘n’ roll throne. After all, it had already been two years with no news.

The months, however, grew to yet another full year of... nothing. His public appearances in 1991 could be counted on one hand, and frustration among fans was on the verge of turning to apathy when finally.... FINALLY... the announcement came. A new single, two albums, a tour, new band, full-scale marketing attack. Bruce was back!

As we all know now, Bruce was indeed back with Human Touch and Lucky Town, but the 3½ year hiatus came with a price. Things were different. Not just because of the new faces on the stage behind Bruce. Bruce himself was different. His untamable power and take-no-prisoners approach had been replaced by a new sensitivity and - dare I say it - contentment. Also, and more importantly, the times had a-changed. Bruce was no longer number one on the charts for months at a time. He was absent from most readers’ polls. The young generations had found new spokesmen in Nirvana and R.E.M. Even among the converted, critical voices were becoming more and more dominant.

It took most of the Nineties for Bruce to find a new role and purpose for himself. How much of a factor his 3½ year hiatus played in the new direction his career took, for better or worse, no one knows. And only time will tell if the wait we are currently going through will result in a similar upheaval. In the 1990’s it was the birth of his children, his sacking of the E Street Band, and a changed world that shaped his music. In this new decade it’s the loss of Danny and Clarence, his own aging, and the rapidly changing music business that can present both serious obstacles and interesting opportunities for him. No doubt all of this is on his and Jon Landau’s minds in deciding what the next step should be.

Meanwhile, all we, the fans, can do is count the days, months and years between albums and hope that, after all, this wait won’t rival that legendary one of 1989-1992.