Western Stars

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Commercially Released: June 14, 2019
Produced by Ron Aniello and Bruce Springsteen
Recorded by Ron Aniello and Toby Scott, assisted by Rob Lebret and Ross Petersen at Thrill Hill Studio
All tracks Mixed by Tom Elmhirst, Joe Visciano (assistant) at Electric Lady Studios
Mastered by Bob Ludwig at Gateway Mastering
Photography by Kalle Gustafsson (Stock photo of Trunck Archive)

Overview

Bruce Springsteen's first new studio album in five years takes his music to a new place, drawing inspiration in part from the Southern California pop records of the late '60s and early '70s. The album was recorded primarily at Springsteen's home studio in New Jersey, with additional recording in California and New York. Columbia Records released Springsteen's 19th studio album on June 14, 2019. "This record is a return to my solo recordings featuring character driven songs and sweeping, cinematic orchestral arrangements", says Springsteen. "It's a jewel box of a record." The 13 tracks of 'Western Stars' encompass a sweeping range of American themes, of highways and desert spaces, of isolation and community and the permanence of home and hope. The album was recorded primarily at Springsteen's home studio in New Jersey, with additional recording in California and New York.

In an interview in Variety, Springsteen reacted to the question if Western Stars was his most recent burst of writing? "Yeah, I would say so, which is unusual because I wrote most of that before [2012's] "Wrecking Ball", and I stopped making that record to make "Wrecking Ball", and then I went back to it. So it's been awhile since I've written, but that's not unusual. That's occurred plenty of other times in my working life. It's the record I wrote before Wrecking Ball but could not finish, and in attempting to finish it, I wrote "Wrecking Ball". So the roots of the record go back quite a ways. Sometimes you have to wait for these puzzles to sort themselves out, and it can take years. I mean, I have a record that I've been working on that's 20 years old. That's just the way the process is working at the moment."

Released

Western Stars

#	Song Title	Running Time	Release
1.	HITCH HIKIN'	3:37	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
2.	THE WAYFARER	4:18	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
3.	TUCSON TRAIN	3:31	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
4.	WESTERN STARS	4:41	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
5.	SLEEPY JOE'S CAFÉ	3:14	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
6.	DRIVE FAST (THE STUNTMAN)	4:16	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
7.	CHASIN' WILD HORSES	5:03	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
8.	SUNDOWN	3:17	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
9.	SOMEWHERE NORTH OF NASHVILLE	1:52	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
10.	STONES	4:44	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
11.	THERE GOES MY MIRACLE	4:05	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
12.	HELLO SUNSHINE	3:56	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST
13.	MOONLIGHT MOTEL	4:16	WESTERN / WESTERN: OST

^{Total Running Time: 50:59}

Additional Information

Artwork

^{© All credits to the original photographer. If you want your photo to be removed, let us know, and we will remove it.}

^{Note: The artwork for "Western Stars" is a stock photo from Trunck Archive, and was taken by photographer Kalle Gustafsson.}

Personnel

• Bruce Springsteen: Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Glockenspiel, Synth Strings, Banjo, Percussion, Electric Guitar, B3, Piano, Orchestral Samples, Celeste, Organ Solo, 12-String Guitar, Mellotron

• Ron Aniello: Upright Bass, Piano, Electric Guitar, Percussion, Vibraphone, Bass, Synth Strings, Orchestral Samples, Acoustic Guitar, Drums, B3, Celeste, Loops, Synth, Background Vocals
• Jon Brion: Drums, Celeste, Electric Guitar, Farfisa, Moog, Timpani
• Lenny Castro: Conga, Shaker, Tambourine
• Matt Chamberlain: Drums
• Rachel Drehmann: French Horn
• Curtis King: Backing Vocals
• Matthew Koma: Backing Vocals
• Rob Lebret: Electric Guitar, Baritone Guitar
• Greg Leisz: Pedal Steel
• Ed Manion: Saxophone
• Cindy Mizelle: Backing Vocals
• Michelle Moore: Backing Vocals
• Marc Muller: Lap Steel, Pedal Steel
• Gunnar Olsen: Drums
• Marty Rifkin: Pedal Steel
• Matt Rollings: Piano
• David Sancious: B3, Piano
• Patti Scialfa: Backing Vocals
• Toby Scott: Loop, Programming
• Leelanee Sterrett: French Horn
• Soozie Tyrell: Violin
• Luis Villalobos: Violin
• Stone Hill Strings: Scott Tibbs (String Arrangement, Conductor)
  • Lisa Kim, Hyunju Lee, Joanna Maurer: Violin
  • Shmuel Katz, Rebecca Young: Viola
  • Alan Stepansky: Cello
• The Avatar Strings: Rob Mathes (String Arrangement, Conductor)
  • Lisa Kim, Hyunju Lee, Elizabeth Lim-Dutton, Joanna Maurer, Suzanne Ornstein, Annaliesa Place, Emily Popham, Sharon Yamada, Jungsun Yoo: Violin
  • Désirée Elsevier, Vivek Kamath, Robert Rinehart: Viola
  • Nathan Vickery: Cello

Media

Related Releases

• All Versions
  • Western Stars

• Other
  • Western Stars (Songs From The Film)
  • Western Stars (The Film)

• Single
  • Western Stars ^{(Record Store Day/Black Friday Exclusive, November 28, 2019)}

• Digital Releases

• Hello Sunshine
• There Goes My Miracle
• Tucson Train
• Western Stars

On The Tracks

HITCH HIKIN' - V1		uncirculating
HITCH HIKIN' - V2	3:37	WESTERN

Note: V1 of "Hitch Hikin'" was recorded on October 20, 2010, at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

THE WAYFARER - V1		uncirculating
THE WAYFARER - V2		uncirculating
THE WAYFARER - V3	4:18	WESTERN

Note: "The Wayfarer" was recorded on March 18, 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Engineer Toby Scott recorded two complete versions, adding a few bars at the end of V2. V3 was completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019.

TUCSON TRAIN - V1		uncirculating
TUCSON TRAIN - V2	3:31	WESTERN / 2019 single

Note: "Tucson Train" was recorded October 2, 2012, at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. A lyric transcription was completed for its appearance on a proposed release of Western Stars in 2015, but those plans were cancelled. The track was completed by Ron Aniello and Bruce Springsteen, and released in 2019.

WESTERN STARS - Demo		uncirculating
WESTERN STARS	4:41	WESTERN / 2019 single

Note: A demo of "Western Stars" was recorded most likely in 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

SLEEPY JOE'S CAFÉ - Demo		uncirculating
SLEEPY JOE'S CAFÉ	3:14	WESTERN

Note: A demo of "Sleepy Joe's Cafe" was most likely recorded 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

DRIVE FAST (THE STUNTMAN) - Demo		uncirculating
DRIVE FAST (THE STUNTMAN)	4:16	WESTERN

Note: A demo of "Drive Fast (The Stuntman)" was first recorded in 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

CHASIN' WILD HORSES - Demo		uncirculating
CHASIN' WILD HORSES	5:03	WESTERN

Note: A demo of "Chasin' Wild Horses" was first recorded in 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

SUNDOWN - Demo		uncirculating
SUNDOWN	3:17	WESTERN

Notes: A demo of "Sundown" was recorded in 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

SOMEWHERE NORTH OF NASHVILLE

1:52

WESTERN

Note: Unlike the rest of the songs released on Western Stars, "Somewhere North of Nashville" was most likely written after 2017.

STONES - Demo		uncirculating
STONES	4:44	WESTERN

Notes: A demo of "Stones" was recorded in 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

THERE GOES MY MIRACLE - Demo		uncirculating
THERE GOES MY MIRACLE	4:05	WESTERN / 2019 single

Note: A demo of "There Goes My Miracle" was recorded in 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

HELLO SUNSHINE - Demo		uncirculating
HELLO SUNSHINE	3:56	WESTERN / 2019 single

Note: A demo of "Hello Sunshine" was most likely recorded 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

MOONLIGHT MOTEL - Demo		uncirculating
MOONLIGHT MOTEL	4:16	WESTERN

Note: A demo of "Moonlight Motel" was most likely recorded 2010 at Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, New Jersey. Completed by Ron Aniello and Springsteen over a period of several years, ending early 2019, as stated by Ron Aniello on his Instagram: "started in 2010… finished in 2014… finished again in 2018. Sometimes it takes a minute…"

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^{Studio Sessions: Western Stars}

Performance

	Count
Hitch Hikin'	1
The Wayfarer	1
Tucson Train	1
Western Stars	1
Sleepy Joe's Café	1
Drive Fast (The Stuntman)	1
Chasin' Wild Horses	1
Sundown	1
Somewhere North Of Nashville	1
Stones	1
There Goes My Miracle	1
Hello Sunshine	1
Moonlight Motel	1

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Full Album Performances

^{Performed live as a full album 1 times.}

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• 2019-04-00 Stone Hill Farm, Colts Neck, NJ

Gallery/News

^{© All credits to the original photographer. If you want your photo to be removed, let us know, and we will remove it.}

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Photoshoot:

^{Click for more photos ...}

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Links:

• AUK’s top 10 americana albums ever: Ewan Lury ^{(AmericanaUK)}
• Ranking Among Springsteen's Finest Epics, New Western Stars Album Reviewed On Vinyl, Tidal, Download ^(Audiophile)
• MEN WITHOUT WOMEN Here's to the cowboys: Springsteen does his time in the desert on Western Stars ^{(Backstreets Review)}
• Bruce Springsteen Announces New Album ‘Western Stars’ ^(JamBase)
• Bruce Springsteen's 'Western Stars' Grows More Satisfying with Repeated Exposure ^(PopMatters)
• New Springsteen Album "Western Stars" June 14 ^{(Steve Hoffman Music Forum)}
• It's a new era for Bruce Springsteen and this time it's personal ^(USAToday)
• Bruce Springsteen on Broadway, His Next Album and Loving New Jersey ^(Variety)

Lyrics

• Chasin' Wild Horses
• Drive Fast (The Stuntman)
• Hello Sunshine
• Hitch Hikin'
• Moonlight Motel
• Sleepy Joe's Café
• Somewhere North Of Nashville
• Stones
• Sundown
• The Wayfarer
• There Goes My Miracle
• Tucson Train
• Western Stars

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