| AMERICAN LAND - V1 |
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uncirculating |
| AMERICAN LAND - V2 |
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uncirculating |
| AMERICAN LAND - V3a |
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uncirculating |
| AMERICAN LAND - V3b |
4:25 |
WRECKING |
Note: V1 recorded on January 21, 2006 at the third of the three Seeger Sessions. Bruce recorded another version (V2), this time solo, at his home studio sometime later in 2006. Both studio versions remain unreleased. Written by Springsteen and inspired by the song "He Lies In The American Land" (a Slovakian worker's poem later adapted and set to music by Pete Seeger). A live version (the debut performance, recorded June 22, 2006 in New York City) was issued as a bonus track on the American Land CD edition of WSO in October 2006. V3 was recorded at Stone Hill Studio in spring 2011; the base track was recorded live with Max Weinberg (drums), Ron Aniello (bass), and Charles Giordano (keyboards), and then completed with various overdubs. It was included as a bonus track with some editions of the 2012 album Wrecking Ball.
| DEATH TO MY HOMETOWN - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| DEATH TO MY HOMETOWN - V1b |
3:28 |
WRECKING |
Note: "Death To My Hometown" was written in February 2011, with Springsteen writing the song over "The Last Words Of Copernicus", an old folk hymn performed by The Sacred Harp Singers and recorded by Alan Lomax in 1959. Ron Aniello chopped up the recording for use as a sample in the final track. A base track was recorded at Stone Hill Studio in February 2011 and subsequently completed with various overdubs. Released as a single on May 7, 2012.
| EASY MONEY - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| EASY MONEY - V1b |
3:36 |
WRECKING |
Note: Driving home some time in February 2011, Bruce had the idea for "Easy Money"; he quickly completed the song and, on February 14, brought it to Stone Hill Studio, Colts Neck, NJ, where he had been working with Ron Aniello on unrelated material. They cut a base track that day; the song kicked off a spur of new writing and quickly initiated what became the Wrecking Ball sessions. Overdubs were completed there over the following several months.
| JACK OF ALL TRADES - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| JACK OF ALL TRADES - V1b |
5:59 |
WRECKING |
Note: "Jack Of All Trades" was "written in a fury" in 2009; Bruce cut the base track for the album version around February 2011 at Stone Hill Studio, and completed the song with overdubs at some point in the months following. Tom Morello originally recorded a "frenetic" solo remotely, but Bruce called him to Stone Hill Studio to record something "more elegant." The strings were recorded separately at MSR Studio B in New York City.
| LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS - V1 |
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uncirculating |
| LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS - V2a |
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uncirculating |
| LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS - V2b |
6:58 |
WRECKING |
Note: Written by Bruce sometime in 1998 or early 1999, "Land Of Hope And Dreams" was premiered live with the E Street Band on March 18, 1999 and performed at every show of the 1999–2000 Reunion Tour, including the live version released on the Live In New York City package. The song is an inversion of the gospel song "This Train", also drawing on Curtis Mayfield's "People Get Ready" (which was interpolated into many later live versions and the studio version V2). The (Springsteen-composed) mandolin riff is borrowed from Joe Grushecky's "Labor Of Love".
A studio version was likely attempted with the E Street Band during March 2001 sessions at the Hit Factory (V1), but has never circulated. The song was cut again, in a new arrangement featuring the "People Get Ready" coda, for Wrecking Ball. The base track (V2a) was cut around February 2011 at Stone Hill Studio, with overdubs recorded later to complete the song. Clarence Clemons died before he was able to record the planned saxophone part; Ron Aniello reconstructed the saxophone solo from an earlier live performance, bringing Bruce to tears the first time he played it for him.
| ROCKY GROUND - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| ROCKY GROUND - V1b |
4:40 |
WRECKING |
| ROCKY GROUND - V1c - Modern Mix |
3:22 |
2012 single |
Note: "Rocky Ground" dates to around 2010, originally intended for a gospel film project. Bruce decided to repurpose the song for Wrecking Ball, recording a base track with Ron Aniello around February 2011 at Stone Hill Studio and completing the song via overdubs at some point over the subsequent months. According to the credits, the recording samples the Congregation Of The Church Of God In Christ's version of the traditional gospel song "I'm A Soldier In The Army Of The Lord", recorded by Alan Lomax in 1942, though the audio is hard to match. V1c is the "modern mix," produced by Ron Aniello and Matthew Koma and released on Springsteen's official website in June, 2012.
| SHACKLED AND DRAWN - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| SHACKLED AND DRAWN - V1b |
3:46 |
WRECKING |
Note: "Shackled And Drawn" dates to around 2010, originally intended for a gospel film project. Bruce decided to repurpose the song for Wrecking Ball, recording a base track with Ron Aniello around February 2011 at Stone Hill Studio and completing the song via overdubs at some point over the subsequent months. The recording samples Lyn Collins's 1972 song "Me And My Baby Got Our Own Thing Going", with vocals re-recorded by Cindy Mizelle.
| SWALLOWED UP (IN THE BELLY OF THE WHALE) - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| SWALLOWED UP (IN THE BELLY OF THE WHALE) - V1b |
5:35 |
WRECKING |
Note: "Swallowed Up (In The Belly Of The Whale)" was recorded at Stone Hill Studio, most likely around February 2011, with various overdubs to complete the song recorded later. Included as a bonus track with some editions of Wrecking Ball.
| THIS DEPRESSION - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| THIS DEPRESSION - V1b |
4:07 |
WRECKING |
Note: "This Depression" was written in February 2011, with Bruce recording the base track that month at Stone Hill Studio and completing the song with overdubs in the months following.
| WE ARE ALIVE - V1 |
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uncirculating |
| WE ARE ALIVE - V2 |
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uncirculating |
| WE ARE ALIVE - V3 |
5:36 |
WRECKING |
Note: "We Are Alive" was among the last songs written for Wrecking Ball, some time in spring 2011. According to Ron Aniello, at least two alternate versions were attempted, including the punkish version that Max Weinberg, in an interview with Dave Marsh prior to the Apollo show in March 2012, compared to the Ramones (V1). The released version (V3) was recorded at Stone Hill Studio (likely through a version of the the base track/overdubs process used for the rest of the album). The song's prominent horn riff is adapted from Johnny Cash's "Ring Of Fire".
Note: "We Take Care Of Our Own" was released digitally as the first single from Wrecking Ball on January 19, 2012. It was the first song written for the album, dating to late 2009 or early 2010; the base track for the album version was recorded around February 15, 2011 at Stone Hill Studio and completed there over the next several months. Strings were recorded separately at MSR Studio B in New York City, NY, and overdubbed. The song's opening guitar lick was adapted from Bruce's then-unreleased "Mary Mary".
| WRECKING BALL - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| WRECKING BALL - V1b |
5:49 |
WRECKING / CHAPTER |
Note: Written in September 2009 as a tribute to the soon-to-be-demolished Giants Stadium and premiered there on September 30, 2009. The studio version was recorded in early 2011; unlike most of the Wrecking Ball album, it was tracked live, with Max Weinberg on drums, Ron Aniello on bass, and Charles Giordano on keyboards. This took place either at Very Loud House Studio, Woodland Hills, CA, or at Stone Hill Studio. The song was completed with various overdubs; the strings were recorded separately, at MSR Studio B in New York City.
| YOU'VE GOT IT - V1a |
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uncirculating |
| YOU'VE GOT IT - V1b |
3:48 |
WRECKING |
Note: Most likely written in February 2011, with a base track recorded at Stone Hill Studio and various overdubs to complete the song recorded later.
