Note: According to Springsteen in Songs, both "Blinded By The Light" and "Spirit In The Night" were written to order after Clive Davis told him in mid-August 1972, there was nothing on Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. which could get radio play. Bruce's response was to go home with a rhyming dictionary, which is what he used to write "Madman’s Bummers", which he changed to "Blinded By the Light", and without delay, "Spirit In The Night" and "Blinded By The Light" were both recorded on September 11, 1972.
After the Greetings sessions were completed, and the master submitted on August 10, most of the not-yet-called The E Street Band had dispersed to other obligations; David Sancious and Danny Federici were in Virginia, and Miami Steve was playing with the Dovells. Bruce found his drummer, Vini "Mad Dog" Lopez, special guest star Clarence Clemons, who had not played in the June sessions, and Harold Wheeler to play piano; he played the rest of the instruments. It is not known how many takes were needed to finish "Blinded By The Light", but it was completed in one day. Before it was released as a single on February 23, 1973, coupled with "The Angel", the engineers at Columbia edited out a verse, reducing the time below four minutes. It was given an extremely limited commercial release in the United States. The lyrics on the back of the 7" picture sleeve are also missing a verse. A stereo fold down mono version is available as the b-side of the white label promo 45.
| DOES THIS BUS STOP AT 82ND STREET? - V1 |
1:55 |
TRACKS / US3 / HDT |
| DOES THIS BUS STOP AT 82ND STREET? - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
| DOES THIS BUS STOP AT 82ND STREET? - V3a |
2:05 |
PS / EY |
| DOES THIS BUS STOP AT 82ND STREET? - V3b |
2:04 |
GREETINGS |
Note: V1 was recorded at Columbia Studio E for Bruce's Columbia audition tape on May 3, 1972 and is officially released on Tracks. V2 was recorded on June 26, 1972 during the Greetings sessions. V3a was recorded the following day and is allegedly a different mix, but the difference, if there is one, is not perceptible. Running time variation is only at fade out. Final overdubs were recorded at 914 Sound Studios (for V3b) and mixing of the album version was on July 12, 1972.
Note: V1 was recorded on February 14, 1972 at Pocketful of Tunes, 39 West 55th Street, New York, NY, at the audition for Mike Appel and Jim Cretecos. V2a was recorded June 27, 1972 at 914 Sound Studios for Greetings. V2b was an overdub session on October 26, 1972, when the track was completed. V2c features slide guitar overdubs recorded by Steven Van Zandt, ultimately rejected by Appel as "too busy."
Note: V1 is 'Eloise', a work-in-progress take with soon to be discarded lyrics, recorded at Mediasound Studios in April 1972. V2 was recorded in John Hammond's office on May 2, 1972, and V3 was cut the next day at Columbia Studio E for his Columbia audition tape, and V3b was officially released 26 years later on Tracks. V4 was an acoustic take, recorded without the band at the first Greetings session on June 7, 1972, and does not circulate. V5 was cut on June 27, 1972, and V6, the final take from that session, was chosen for release on Greetings.
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY take 1 - V1 |
3:05 |
uncirculating |
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY take 2 - V2 |
7:08 |
uncirculating |
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY - V3 |
4:18 |
uncirculating |
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY - V4 |
2:50 |
TRACKS / US3 / HDT /URT2 / EDR |
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY - V5 |
2:40 |
US4 / EDR |
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY - V6a |
|
uncirculating |
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY - V6b |
3:08 |
DDITV / TFTV / SA914 |
| IT'S HARD TO BE A SAINT IN THE CITY - V6c |
3:09 |
GREETINGS |
Note: V1 and V2 were recorded at Pocketful of Tunes, 39 West 55th Street, New York, NY on February 14, 1972, at Bruce's audition for Mike Appel and Jim Cretecos. Bruce started off with a new song, "It's Hard To Be A Saint In The City", which was performed a second time at the request of Appel, who was dazzled by the lyrics. V3 was performed at John Hammond's office, CBS Records, 51 West 52nd Street, New York, NY on May 2, 1972. V4 recorded at Studio E Columbia Records building, 6th floor, 49 East 52nd Street, New York City on May 3, 1972 and officially issued on Tracks. V5 likely recorded at Pocketful Of Tunes Studios, New York, NY in May–June, 1972. V6a was recorded on June 26, 1972, and V6b mixed the following day, June 27. The only difference is that Bruce's vocal on V6b is faded out several seconds earlier than in V6a, which reveals that there were a few "street rapping" words spoken by Bruce that were cut from the officially released version. V6c is the final album track after overdubbing and mixing on October 26.
| LOST IN THE FLOOD - V1a |
5:13 |
uncirculating |
| LOST IN THE FLOOD - V1b |
5:13 |
GREETINGS |
Note: V1a was recorded on June 27, 1972 at 914 Sound Studios and is the Greetings take. V1b contains sound effects (courtesy of Steve Van Zandt) that were overdubbed to complete the track.
| MARY QUEEN OF ARKANSAS - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| MARY QUEEN OF ARKANSAS - V2 |
1:15 |
HDT |
| MARY QUEEN OF ARKANSAS - V3 |
4:18 |
TRACKS / US3 / HDT |
| MARY QUEEN OF ARKANSAS - V4a |
5:19 |
uncirculating |
| MARY QUEEN OF ARKANSAS - V4b |
5:19 |
GREETINGS |
Note: V1 was recorded at John Hammond's office, CBS Records, 51 West 52nd Street, New York, NY, on May 2, 1972. V2 and V3 were both recorded at Columbia Studio E for Bruce's Columbia audition tape on May 3, 1972. V2 was Bruce's first attempt, followed by V3, which was a complete take and has been officially issued on Tracks. V4a and V4b are the same basic recording from June 26–27, 1972 at 914 Sound Studios, with a harmonica overdub added later on V4b, released on Greetings.
Note: "Spirit In The Night" was written in mid-August, 1972 in response to Clive Davis's request for some radio material. Springsteen first tried using the music from "The Fever", but quickly thought otherwise and composed a fresh melody. V1 was recorded on September 11, 1972 at 914 Sound Studios, Blauvelt, New York. The Greetings take, with only Springsteen, Clemons, and Lopez, had Bruce playing multiple instruments. Session man Harold Wheeler provided additional piano. Final dubs and mixing were completed on October 26, 1972, and the song was issued as a single, backed with "For You" and hard on the heels of "Blinded By The Light", on May 11, 1973, produced by Bruce Springsteen, Mike Appel, and Jim Cretecos. A stereo fold down mono version is available as the b-side of the white label promo 45.
| THE ANGEL - V1 |
5:00 |
uncirculating |
| THE ANGEL - V2 |
3:37 |
US3 / HDT |
| THE ANGEL - V3 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE ANGEL - V4a |
3:26 |
PS / EY |
| THE ANGEL - V4b |
|
uncirculating |
| THE ANGEL - V4c |
3:23 |
GREETINGS / 1973 b-side |
Note: Written in early 1972. V1 was recorded by Bob Spitz on a reel-to-reel tape recorder at Pocketful of Tunes, 39 West 55th Street, New York, NY on February 14, 1972, at Bruce's audition for Appel and Cretecos. This recording has never surfaced, and was long ago presumed lost. V2 recorded at Columbia Studio E on May 3, 1972, with John Hammond producing. Track title on tape box for reel 2 mistakenly listed as "Angels". V3 recorded on June 26, at 914 Sound Studios. V4a was cut the next day with a new vocal take. V4b was recorded on June 29, an instrumental track by Richard Davis on upright bass, which was later overdubbed on the finished track. V4c logged on October 26, 1972, overdubbing and final mixing for Greetings.
