| PILGRIM IN THE TEMPLE OF LOVE |
|
uncirculating |
Note: Written by Bruce in March/April 1996 while on the Ghost Of Tom Joad Tour and premiered live on April 16, 1996. Also known as "Santa Gets A Blowjob".
| THERE WILL NEVER BE ANY OTHER FOR ME BUT YOU |
|
uncirculating |
Note: Also known as "Never Any Other For Me But You". Written by Bruce in mid-1996 while on the Ghost Of Tom Joad Tour and premiered live on September 19, 1996.
| IN FREEHOLD |
|
uncirculating |
Note: Bruce wrote "In Michigan" backstage in Kalamazoo, MI while on the Ghost Of Tom Joad Tour and premiered it live the same day, September 24, 1996. The concept was to write a song which included the name of the state of the location he was playing. He then expanded on the premise of the song and premiered the almost completely rewritten "In Freehold" on November 8, 1996 in Freehold, naturally. Also known as "Freehold". It is unclear whether this song was recorded during studio sessions.
Note: Written by Bruce in the summer or early autumn of 1996 while on the Ghost Of Tom Joad Tour and premiered live on October 16, 1996. The Devils & Dust recording is a hybrid of two sessions quite some years apart. The basic track (Bruce, Danny Federici, Marty Rifkin, Soozie Tyrell and Patti Scialfa) emanates from 1997 or 1998, Thrill Hill West, Beverly Hills. CA, recorded by Toby Scott and produced by Springsteen and Chuck Plotkin. The drums (Steve Jordan) and bass guitar (Brendan O’Brien)were added to the mix in 2004, at Masterphonics, Nashville, Tennessee, and Southern Tracks Recording, Atlanta, Georgia, which is the likely reason why this released version is credited as a Springsteen-Plotkin-O'Brien production.
| THE HITTER - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE HITTER - V2 |
5:53 |
DEVILS |
Note: Written by Bruce in the autumn of 1996 while on the Ghost Of Tom Joad Tour and premiered live on November 13, 1996. Recorded during studio sessions in 1998 (this version does not circulate). Re-recorded in 2004 and released on Devils & Dust. The core recording (which may date from 1997–98) is Springsteen solo, on all instruments (vocals, guitar, keyboards, and percussion). The strings (Nashville String Machine) and horns (Brice Andrus, Donald Strand, Susan Welty, and Thomas Witte) were recorded and added in 2004.
| SELL IT AND THEY WILL COME |
|
uncirculating |
Note: Written by Bruce during December, 1995 and early January, 1996 while on the Ghost Of Tom Joad Tour. Premiered live January 10, 1996.
| BENEATH THE FLOODLINE |
|
uncirculating |
Note: Performed during a soundcheck at The Spectrum, Philadelphia, PA, on September 17, 1984 during the Born In The USA Tour. It was later recorded at several solo sessions between November 1997 and January 1998, before the E Street Band were reunited, when it was quietly sidelined, along with the album he was then working on. Possibly composed after the Born In The U.S.A. studio sessions ended, it is also missing from Tunnel Of Love session logs, according to a search of Sony records.
| UNDER A BIG SKY |
|
uncirculating |
Note: "Under A Big Sky" was recorded in April 1998.
| GAVE IT A NAME - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| GAVE IT A NAME - V2 |
2:47 |
TRACKS |
Note: V1 was recorded between December 1990 and late January 1991 at either the Record Plant, Soundworks West or A&M Studios in Los Angeles. Planned for inclusion on the Tracks boxset, but Bruce was unable to locate the master tape, so he re-recorded the song V2 on August 24, 1998 at his home studio in Colts Neck, NJ, and it's that recording which can be found on Tracks. Springsteen told Melinda Newman in an interview with Billboard published in November 1998, "What happened is I cut the original at the time I cut these other songs [Bruce is referring to songs like "Over The Rise", "When The Lights Go Out", "Loose Change" etc., which were all recorded around the December 1990–January 1991 period], but we couldn't find the master tape of it, and I really liked the song. So Roy Bittan came out, and we re-cut it in August."
| THE PROMISE - V1 |
5:32 |
DO-2 / UP / SOTE / LUTHER |
| THE PROMISE - V2 |
5:27 |
LM-2 / DDO / DO-3 / AM / SC / O711S |
| THE PROMISE - V3 |
7:11 |
DDITV / AM / UP / MT1 |
| THE PROMISE - V4 |
7:24 |
PROMISE: DELUXE |
| THE PROMISE (strings-full harmony) - V5 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE (solo) - V6 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE - V7 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE - V8 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE - V9 |
4:41 |
18TRACKS |
| THE PROMISE - V10 |
5:49 |
PROMISE |
Note: Debuted live on August 3, 1976 at the Monmouth Performing Arts Center in Red Bank, New Jersey, featuring Bruce solo on the piano, and deeply personal lyrics. Later live versions would continue to feature Bruce on piano, with Roy or Danny accompanying him on glockenspiel. The song was played regularly during the 1976–1977 Lawsuit Tour, but according to studio documentation it was not recorded in the studio until late June 1977. V1 was most likely recorded during sessions on June 30, 1977, though further work was done on July 1, 7, 8 and 13. The June take master was transfered to comp. reel and ruffs tape, and was used in V10, mixed in 2010. Unlike his live versions, all of the Darkness studio recordings in circulation include the E Street Band, though solo takes were also attempted. After a break that included a trip with Steve to Utah and Nevada, Bruce came back to the studio with slightly revised lyrics, and recorded V2 on August 24 or 30, 1977, which was on the tracklist for the aborted 'Badlands' release (see artwork). However, Bruce was back on September 28 and 30, 1977, recording V3 at the Record Plant, which some collectors and hardcore fans consider the definitive version. Over 7 minutes long, and sporting an arrangement for the full E Street Band, it was first released unofficially on 'Deep Down In the Vaults' in the mid-1990s. This version was barely in the can when a Rolling Stone reporter suggested that the song was about his now-settled lawsuit with Mike Appel, which Bruce sternly denied, and has denied ever since (he wrote the music and the first set of lyrics before the lawsuit was filed in 1976). Nevertheless, Springsteen soon re-wrote the first two lines of verse 3, with "Well, my daddy taught me how to walk quiet and how to make my peace with the past, I learned real good to tighten up inside and I don’t say nothing unless I’m asked" replacing "I won big once and I hit the coast, oh but somehow I paid the big cost." Landau agreed with solidifying the narrative, and when recording concluded in January, and a ten-song track sequence for Album #4 was prepared, "The Promise" was the last song on side two.
On January 12, 1978, V4, with revised lyrics, was recorded with the band, and also filmed live in-the-studio by Barry Rebo, later released with the The Promise:The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story. It is confirmed that strings were recorded and dubbed to the January 12 master (Landau confirmed this, and a mix tape exists with three versions; V3 "old verse", V4 "new verse", and V5 "strings and full harmony" (see illustration). But on January 24, 1978, without the E Street Band, Springsteen sat down at the piano and recorded V6 by himself, just as he did for 22 shows while locked out of the recording studio. A total of ten sessions were held from January 17 to March 7 (a seven-week period). Meanwhile, he finished "Candy's Room", "The Factory Song" and "Darkness On the Edge of Town" in early March, and decided to not include "The Promise". He has said he could not get a recording he was happy with, and that he "felt too close to it." In 2010, Springsteen noted that "It was a song about defeat, and it was self-referential, which made me uncomfortable. I didn't want it to overtake the album, which in the end, was not my personal story. I wanted Darkness to be completely independent of that, so I left it off. But I remember saying to myself, this is something I can sing later; the distance helps it now."
During a Darkness Tour rehearsal in Asbury Park on May 19, 1978, a full band version (including the "Daddy taught me how to walk quiet" lyric) was rehearsed, and full band version was performed on the tour's opening night in Buffalo. The next night, Bruce reverted to the solo piano version, which was played regularly during the early part of the tour. When Tracks was released in 1998, both "The Fever" and "The Promise" were absent from the 66-song tracklist. Both were later included on 18 Tracks, in part due to fan demand. Instead of releasing the existing V3 or V5 versions, Springsteen re-recorded "The Promise" from scratch (V9) on February 9 and 12, 1999 at Boxwood Studios, Colts Neck, New Jersey, in a solo piano version that many felt paled in comparison to the 1976–78 versions. In an interview with Charlie Rose, Springsteen stated, "Basically, I went back and I listened to it and we never really got a good recording of it in my opinion. It's been a favorite song of a lot of people … It sort of was the sequel to "Thunder Road" in some fashion, it referred back to those characters. But I went back and we sort of had a very plodding, heavy-handed version of it. I couldn't quite live with it, so maybe another time."
V1 and V3 were used as the base tracks for V10, the version on The Promise outtake album, with overdubbed strings, guitars, glockenspiel, and double tracked vocals. Two lines of verse three were removed ("I followed that dream through the southwestern tracks, the dead ends and the two-bit bars / When the promise was broken I was far away from home, sleeping in the backseat of a borrowed car") and a modern string arrangement by Ken Ascher was recorded in July 2010.
| GIVE MY LOVE TO ROSE |
4:17 |
2002 'Kindred Spirits' Johnny Cash tribute |
Note: Written by Johnny Cash. Recorded at Boxwood Studios, Colts Neck, New Jersey on February 12, 1999 and produced by Springsteen (alone). Bruce solo, on vocals and guitar. The performance was also video recorded and first broadcast commercially on April 18, 1999 as part of the Johnny Cash Tribute special on the USA's TNT network. The recording was not officially released until September 2002 on the Cash Kindred Spirits tribute album. The video of the performance has yet to be officially issued, although it circulates among collectors via copies of the original TV broadcast.
Note: Recorded at Thrill Hill East (Bruce's New Jersey home studio) in March 1999. Produced by Springsteen (alone). Bruce handles vocals and all instruments. Written by Bruce specifically for the John Sayles movie Limbo and first released on the movie soundtrack album in June 1999.
| THE WALL - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE WALL - V2 |
|
HOPES |
Note: Written December 1997–January 1998. The title and idea came from Joe Grushecky and the rest was written by Springsteen after he and Patti Scialfa visited the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington. Bruce premiered the song live on February 19, 2003 at Somerville Theatre in Somerville, MA, and prefaced the performance by mentioning that he'd visited the Vietnam Memorial in Washington in December 1997 and that several days later Grushecky (in advance of their songwriting sessions) sent Bruce a newspaper clipping about the Vietnam Memorial. Grushecky subsequently wrote a different, but similarly themed, song called "On The Wall" that appeared on his 2002 Fingerprints album. Recorded in the late '90s (perhaps during sessions for Tracks) with the E Street Band, including Danny Federici. Played twice during 2005's Devils & Dust Tour. V2 issued on 2014's High Hopes, produced by Ron Aniello and Springsteen.
| LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
| LAND OF HOPE AND DREAMS - V3 |
6:58 |
WRECKING |
Note: Written by Bruce sometime in 1998 or early 1999. The song was premiered live with the E Street Band on March 18, 1999 for the Reunion Tour. A later live version with the E Street Band was officially released on the Live In New York City package. Cut in 2011 and issued on the Wrecking Ball album. V3 features Springsteen, Aniello (some combination of guitar, bass, keyboards, drums, percussion and/or loops), Charlie Giordano (piano, B-3 organ), Curt Ramm (trumpet, cornet), Clark Gayton (trombone), Stan Harrison (clarinet, alto sax, tenor sax), Ed Manion (tenor & baritone sax), Dan Levine (alto horn, euphonium), Art Baron (euphonium, tuba, sousaphone, penny whistle), Clarence Clemons (saxophone solo), and Soozie Tyrell (violin & backing vocal), with backing vocals from Patti Scialfa, Lisa Lowell and Michelle Moore and the Victorious Gospel Choir. Steve Van Zandt is uncredited, but clearly audible at times.
Note: Co-written by Springsteen and Joe Grushecky in July 1995 and first released by Grushecky on the album Coming Home on February 10, 1998. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band V2 first broadcast during episode five of 'From His Home To Yours' on E Street Radio on June 3, 2020.
| I'M NOT SLEEPING |
|
uncirculating |
| I'M NOT SLEEPING |
3:56 |
GUEST: HOME |
Note: Co-written by Springsteen and Joe Grushecky in July 1995 and released by Grushecky on the album Coming Home on February 10, 1998, without the presence of Bruce Springsteen. Springsteen first performed the song live on November 4, 2010, with Joe Grushecky and The Houserockers.
Note: Co-written by Springsteen and Joe Grushecky in July 1995, released by Grushecky on the album Coming Home, on February 10, 1998, without the presence of Bruce Springsteen. Unknown whether Springsteen recorded version exists.
Note: Co-written by Springsteen and Joe Grushecky in July 1995. Released by Grushecky on the album Coming Home, on February 10, 1998, without the presence of Bruce Springsteen. Unknown whether a Springsteen recorded version exists.
| 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.
| 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 |
US3 / HDT / TRACKS / 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.
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.
| 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.
| BISHOP DANCED (live) |
4:21 |
TRACKS |
Note: "Bishop Danced" had a short life span, from December 5, 1972 to March 2, 1973. When it was chosen for Tracks, a live recording from January 31, 1973 was used. No studio take is known to exist, but we have included the song here. Bruce explained before the song, "Uh, this next song is a kind of nonsense song. I'll give you a quick rundown … It's about a bishop and his wife and this violin player in West Virginia. It's about how their daughter lost her mother to mathematics out on a business trip in Detroit." Which explains why some forgotten vinyl bootlegger titled it, "Mama Knows Arythmatic Knows How To Take A Fall".
| HEY SANTA ANNA - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| HEY SANTA ANNA - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
| HEY SANTA ANNA - V3 |
4:50 |
UNE / PS / EY / US5 / SA914 / FOTF |
| SANTA ANA - V4 |
4:33 |
TRACKS |
Note: "Santa Ana", referenced in 1973 Sony logs as "Hey Santa Anna", possibly received the former name for its inclusion on Tracks in 1998. Also known as "My Contessa" and "The Guns Of Kid Cole", thanks to bootleggers with unknown motives. Written in late 1972 or early 1973, and performed live regularly during 1973. Both V1 and V2 are early recordings from June 22 and 26, 1973, and remain uncirculated. V3 was recorded on June 28, 1973, and for many years was considered a complete, though unofficial, version. However, V4 released on Tracks, is an embellished mix, with overdubs added on July 1, 1973, including piano (David Sancious), a layer of acoustic guitar (Bruce), calypso percussion (Richard Blackwell), and Suki Lahav (vocals). The flute heard in V3 (courtesy of Clarence Clemons), has been entirely removed from V4. Mixing was done by Louis Lahav (1973) and Thom Panunzio (1998). Look for the lines "French cream won't soften those boots, baby, French kisses will not break your heart"; since this track was never released, Bruce later put them to good use in "She's The One".
| JOHNNY & THE HURRICANES SONG - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| JOHNNY & THE HURRICANES SONG - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
| SEASIDE BAR SONG - V3a |
3:37 |
UNE / PS / EY / US5 / FOTF |
| SEASIDE BAR SONG - V3b |
3:29 |
TRACKS |
Note: Written in late 1972 or early 1973. V1 and V2 are early takes, logged as "Johnny & The Hurricanes Song", on June 22 and 26. V3a was a completed take on June 28, 1973, under the title "Seaside Bar Song". Two more sessions, most likely involving overdubs and mixing, took place on July 1 and July 24, 1973. The version released on Tracks in 1998 is certainly a different mix to V3a, with 8 seconds trimmed, despite adding a count-in. However, a count-in by Bruce at 0:35 of V3a is gone from V3b, and Vini's drumming is a different track.
| PHANTOMS aka WILD ZERO AND BLIND TERRY - V1 backing track |
6:04 |
BIS / ROOI / ATMF |
| PHANTOMS - V2 backing track#2 |
5:44 |
US5 / ROOI / SA914 |
| PHANTOMS - V3 |
5:37 |
uncirculating |
| ZERO AND BLIND TERRY - V4 |
5:53 |
SA914 / EY / BTF / PS / FOTF |
| PHANTOMS - V5 |
5:37 |
DDITV / MT1 / ROOI / SA914 |
| ZERO AND BLIND TERRY - V6 |
5:54 |
TRACKS |
Note: "Phantoms", also known by the titles "Over The Hills Of St. George" and "Over The Hills Of St. Croix", was written during early 1973, and apparently performed live several times during May and June, notably including the sole recorded performance on June 13 at Binghampton, NY. Sony logs during The Wild, The Innocent sessions show "Phantoms" was worked on June 22 and 26: this produced V1, the backing track of both final studio tracks of "Phantoms" and "Zero And Blind Terry" (also dubbed "Wild Zero And Blind Terry" out in bootleg world later on). V2, an alternate and unreleased instrumental take, was also recorded on one or both of these dates. Up until June 28, these takes were referred to as "Phantoms"; at that session, vocal tracks and instrumentation were added to V1 for both "Phantoms" V3, and "Zero and Blind Terry" V4, completing each. But on July 1, 1973, Bruce added additional dubs to Phantoms V3, making V5 the final take. The date of the circulating version is either June 28 or July 1. "Zero and Blind Terry" was first played live on July 18, 1973 at Max's Kansas City, New York, NY. Sony studio logs only mention "Zero" on June 28 and August 7, 1973. V1, the unreleased backing track sometimes called "Wild Zero" by bootleggers, but never called "Phantoms", except in the Official Sony logs we rely on. Along with V2, a shorter, alternate backing track that was not used, it is reasonable to assume one or both were recorded June 22 and June 26, 1973, any number of times, under the name "Phantoms" only. The first take logged of "Zero and Blind Terry" did not occur until June 28, the rock on which these statements are made. Then the studio logs list one or more takes of both of our titles on June 28, 1973, which we designate as the never heard V3 (Phantoms), and the standard version of "Zero" V4. It was pressed to acetate, used as the publishing demo, but not included on album #2. It has circulated on various boots for many years, much loved by collectors and hardcore fans. According to the Tracks session data, V6, the version on the 1998 collection, comes from the June 28 session. The logs show the June 28 version was referenced on November 5, 1997, but we could not identify the source and dates of the overdubs applied to the version on Tracks. Sancious's piano was certainly not recorded on June 28, nor were the backing vocals by Suki Lahav. The June 28 basic track was sent out as a publishing demo, in an early mix from June 28 or earlier. An overdubbed flute that had been removed by June 28 was still there. Most, and possibly all of the overdubs described here were done by and included in the August 7 session, mixed and stored away with the invisible title of V6, never circulating until being released on Tracks. Suki Lahav is also credited in the Tracks booklet. Statements referring to "Phantoms" as an early or work-in-progress version of "Zero And Blind Terry" are incorrect. These are two different songs, with no overlapping lyrics.
| LINDA LET ME BE THE ONE - V1 |
4:32 |
WAR / BWNH / BTRS / BTRCS / VAFH |
| LINDA LET ME BE THE ONE - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
| LINDA LET ME BE THE ONE - V3 |
4:27 |
TRACKS / BTRCS |
Note: V1 of "Linda Let Me Be the One" was probably recorded either May 8 or 19, 1975 and has a more tentative vocal and is shorter than the later takes. V2 and V3 were recorded at Record Plant on June 29, 1975 (not June 28, as found in the Tracks liner notes) and feature a much stronger vocal, a different intro and a different saxophone part. Springsteen recorded two different versions, a "hard slow version" and a "ballad version." Further work was undertaken (either mixing or overdubs) on July 8. As of July 2, 1975, it was sequenced for Side 2, track 1 of Born To Run, but bumped from that slot in favor of "Born To Run", and then from the album entirely by "Meeting Across The River". It later became the sole outtake from the Born To Run sessions to be issued on Tracks. According to Backstreets: Springsteen, The Man And His Music by Charles R. Cross, the lyrics may have evolved from the early tune "Theme For The Imaginary Waitress (Fountainbleu)".
| THUNDERCRACK - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| THUNDERCRACK - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
| THUNDERCRACK - V3 |
|
uncirculating |
| THUNDERCRACK - V4 |
|
uncirculating |
| THUNDERCRACK - V5 |
8:23 |
TRACKS |
Note: Written in mid-1972. This was performed live regularly, usually as the big show closer, from October 1972 right up until Vini Lopez's departure from the band in February 1974. "It ended three or four different times - you didn't know where it was going to go. It was just a big, epic show-ender that was meant to leave the audience gasping a little bit for their breath - "Hey, who was that guy? That was pretty good…," Bruce said at a 1999 interview for Mojo. On the first known day of Wild & Innocent sessions, May 14, 1973, at 914 Sound Studios, the band recorded V1 of "Thundercrack" before moving on to 8 takes of "Circus Song". Work was resumed with V2, on June 22, 1973, then additional takes, overdubs or mixing took place on August 7 V3, and August 9, V4, but later comments by Springsteen indicate the song was not completed to his satisfaction, or perhaps a completed version could not be found for 1998's Tracks. V5 added background vocals by Vini Lopez, cut in 1997, to approximate the sound of live performances. "I found a version which was actually pretty good, called up Vini Lopez and I said, "Vini, I have some singing for you to do" and Vini - he's a caddy master at a golf course - he just comes by and I said, "Remember this song?" He came in and sang all his parts completely unprompted, like he remembered it exactly from 25 years ago," Bruce added at the Mojo interview. Regarding its omission from his second album, Springsteen said there just wasn't room enough for "Thundercrack" and "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)." Whether he meant his two biggest show-closers ever on the same record, or lack of disc space, is unknown.
Note: The same night Springsteen introduced "Something In the Night" at the Monmouth County Arts Center, Red Bank, NJ, he also played "Rendezvous" for the first time. The song remained a regular in the setlist throughout the remainder of the 1976–77 tour. When the Darkness sessions began on June 1, it was one of the ten songs recorded that evening, and additional takes were logged on June 2, 3, 8, and 17, 1977, all at Atlantic Studios. One of these was V1, an otherwise good take, but the audio is marred by a vocal drop-out during the first verse. V2 was recorded on September 29, 1977 at Record Plant Studios, and officially released on The Promise in 2010. In a 1978 interview, Springsteen said the song was kept off Darkness On The Edge Of Town because it didn't fit thematically. Bruce personally taught the song to The Knack's drummer Bruce Gary in October, 1978, but it would be Greg Kihn who first recorded a cover (released in April, 1979). A live version recorded December 31, 1980, at Nassau Coliseum, was used for Tracks, which may indicate Bruce wasn't satisfied with the available studio versions at the time (1998).
| GIVE THE GIRL A KISS - V1a |
|
uncirculating |
| GIVE THE GIRL A KISS - V1b |
3:47 |
TRACKS |
Note: V1a was recorded at the Record Plant on November 10, 1977. The Horns Of Love, the horn section from the Tunnel Of Love Express Tour (Ed Manion on baritone sax, Mark "The Love Man" Pender on trumpet, Richie "La Bamba" Rosenberg on trombone, and Mike Spengler on trumpet, with newcomer and Max Weinberg 7 member Jerry Vivino stepping in for Mario Cruz on tenor sax) overdubbed the brass parts around 1998 prior to the release of V1b on Tracks.
Note: "Iceman", also known as "New Ballad", was recorded at Record Plant on October 27, 1977. It was soon forgotten in the mass of songs created during the Darkness sessions, though it became popular bootleg cut. In a 1998 interview, Bruce recalled, "it was just something that I didn't get at the time that I did it." The second line of "Iceman", "I wanna go out tonight, I wanna find out what I got," was transplanted to verse 2 of "Badlands" in December. V1b is almost identical to V1a, with the exception of a drop-out at 0:56, studio noises and the count-in, which are not present on the official 1998 release on Tracks.
| BRING ON THE NIGHT - V1 |
2:29 |
ATEOD / UP / LM-12 / MT2 |
| BRING ON THE NIGHT - V2 |
3:15 |
LM-9 |
| BRING ON THE NIGHT - V3 |
4:10 |
LM-9 |
| BRING ON THE NIGHT - V4 |
0:31 |
LM-9 |
| BRING ON THE NIGHT - V5 |
1:20 |
LM-9 |
| BRING ON THE NIGHT - V6 |
1:54 |
LM-11 |
| BRING ON THE NIGHT - V7 |
2:35 |
TRACKS |
Note: According to documentation, there was a song called "Bring On The Night" in 1977, but no audio currently circulates from that period. The title can be found on a May 1977 list of 'New Songs', as well as one other handwritten document. Some sources claim that V1 is a take from a Darkness-era practice or rehearsal session, but 'Lost Masters 12' dates it to a 1979 rehearsal at Telegraph Hill which seems more likely, although the sound quality is noticeably better than the vast majority of audio from these rehearsals. There is no reference to "Bring On The Night" in the Darkness session logs, although they are incomplete. It appears that if "Bring On The Night" was worked on during the Darkness sessions, it was put aside before Springsteen returned to it after the tour concluded in early 1979.
V2–V5 are all acoustic demos from around January–May, 1979 at Springsteen's home in Holmdel, NJ. V6 is a band rehearsal recorded on May 14, 1979, according to the liner notes of 'Lost Masters IX'. V7 was recorded at Power Station studios on June 13, 1979, and though it was included on a very early track sequence for the fifth album, it failed to make the cut, and was not considered for The River in 1980. It was eventually issued on the 1998 Tracks compilation.
Note: Springsteen introduced a new song at a rehearsal show at the Main Point on September 19, 1974. By October, it would come to be known as "A Love So Fine", but in early performances the chorus was "A Night Like This" and the title was written as such on at least one contemporary setlist. On October 4, 1974, Springsteen changed the chorus, replacing the "A Night Like This" with "A Love So Fine". His musicians carried handwritten setlists that night, that still used the title, "A Night Like This".
Studio logs show that a track titled "A Night Like This" was recorded at 914 Sound Studios on October 16, 1974. While there is little doubt this was "A Love So Fine", it is not known how many takes and configurations were taped. Only an instrumental backing track of "A Love So Fine" remains from this era. It has been in heavy bootleg circulation since the late seventies, first issued on vinyl 'E Ticket', and then on many CDs from 1989 onwards, including 'Born In The Studio' and 'War And Roses'. There is evidence it was the October 16 recording. According to studio documentation, a session on that day produced a two-inch master reel that has "A Love So Fine" and "Born To Run" paired, supporting this viewpoint, and that an engineer used the old title of "A Night Like This".
It appears that Springsteen took the "A Love So Fine" backing track and the verses he had fine-tuned on stage for a year, changed the chorus for a third time, and created "So Young And In Love", which was issued on Tracks in 1998. The contradictory liner notes date the recording to 1/6/74 (January 6). Bruce was on tour in Cambridge, MA that day, and musicians Roy Bittan and Max Weinberg, also credited, did not join the band until August 1974. However, the rest of notes indicate the venue was Record Plant Studios in New York City, and Jimmy Iovine was the engineer. It is possible the correct date was January 6, 1978, during sessions for Darkness On The Edge Of Town, and that the liner notes date is simply a misprint. However, close listening reveals the backing track is the exact same track he laid down in October 1974, but now with overdubbed vocals. It is possible the vocal track was recorded in January 1978, with Bruce singing over the 1974 backing track. Springsteen has also stated in an interview with Mojo in 1998 that the cut on Tracks is from the Darkness sessions. "So Young And In Love" was mixed in 1998 by Ed Thacker and sequenced amongst Darkness-era songs.
Note: Originally titled "For Hearts Of Stone" before Darkness sessions began. No evidence of a recording session has been found until October 14, when a demo was cut for Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, along with "Talk To Me", and later handed to Steve Van Zandt on a cassette tape. There are obviously some dates to be found, judging by the performance of the band, and the complete lyrics. Steve was preparing to produce the Jukes' third album, and the two songs were Bruce's contributions to the effort. The band recorded this take live in the studio, with the sax of Clarence Clemons the only horn present. Southside Johnny used the E Street Band base recording for the title track of the Jukes' 1978 album, adding his vocal and the Miami Horns to create one of their best known songs. In 1998, Bruce had a horn section (Cruz-Manion-Pender-Rosenberg-Spengler) added to the 1977 recording, which was V2 on Tracks.
Note: "Don't Look Back" was composed early in 1977, during the time Bruce was barred from the recording studio, and was played live regularly during the Lawsuit Tour. Once Bruce's legal case was settled, the E Street Band entered Atlantic Studios, New York, on June 1, 1977. That night they recorded at least ten songs, including "Rendezvous", "Because The Night", "I Wanna Be With You", and, according to biographer Dave Marsh, "the screaming rocker, "Don't Look Back"". Thom Panunzio, assistant engineer, said the session was recorded and transferred to a cassette they called "the Star Wars demo tape." "That was an album, in my opinion, that was great from beginning to end," Panunzio later said. In a 2002 interview with Mark Binelli of Rolling Stone, Springsteen said, "We had great arrangements…the band sounded really good. We recorded about ten or twelve songs in one night, and I realized they weren't any good. It was terribly disappointing…they were centerless, they were coreless, so I went back to the drawing board."
Sony logs show takes were recorded on June 1, 6–8, 17, and 24, 1977. It is thought that V1 and V2, which are instrumental backing tracks, were recorded on June 6–8, while V3 may be the "screaming rocker" from June 1; all were definitely recorded during June 1977. V4 was recorded at Atlantic Studios on July 2, 1977, and mixed (with possible overdubs) on February 28 and March 2, 1978 at the Record Plant. V4a is a widely bootlegged version with a prominent defect in the second verse. V4b sounds like the same take, complete with Springsteen's count-in, and V4c is the officially released version with the count-in removed. "Don't Look Back" was included on album sequences June 1977 to April 1978, but removed on May 5, 1978 to ensure the album was not too long. The claim that it was replaced by "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" is doubtful, since both were included on the April 18 sequence.
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V1 |
2:37 |
LM-12 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V2 |
3:41 |
LM-12 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V3 |
1:36 |
LM-12 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V4 |
4:07 |
LM-12 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V5 |
3:37 |
LM-12 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V6 |
4:32 |
LM-12 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V7 |
4:29 |
LM-12 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V8 |
5:41 |
LM-13 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V9 |
2:13 |
LM-13 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V10 |
3:30 |
LM-13 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V11 |
3:45 |
LM-13 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V12 |
4:17 |
LM-13 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V13 |
3:47 |
LM-13 |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V14a |
3:52 |
DROC1 / RN / ATMF |
| RESTLESS NIGHTS - V14b |
3:41 |
TRACKS / RIVER: OUTTAKES |
Note: V1 through V7 are rehearsal workouts at Telegraph Hill on January 10, 1980, and V8 through V13 are from the following evening, January 11. V14 was recorded at Power Station on January 14, 1980, but was not completed until April 12. Final dubbing and mixing was done on May 2, 1980, mainly to reduce the track length. Included on an April 1980 shortlist for the double album, but was beaten out by "Ramrod" and "I'm A Rocker".
| A GOOD MAN IS HARD TO FIND (PITTSBURGH) - V1 |
3:40 |
private |
| A GOOD MAN IS HARD TO FIND (PITTSBURGH) - V2 |
3:12 |
TRACKS |
Note: V1 is a Colts Neck band rehearsal from April 1982. Very similar to the final take, slightly slower with some lyrical variation. V2 is the result of two days at the Power Station on May 5 and 6, 1982.
Note: V1 is an acoustic demo recorded a few days after the Three Mile Island nuclear accident on March 28, 1979, which inspired the song. Recording sessions for Album #5 began at Power Station studios on April 3, with engineer Bob Clearmountain. Multiple takes of "Roulette" were recorded over the first two days, followed by several days of mixing by Clearmountain and Springsteen. The song was set aside until April 1980, when Springsteen, engineer Neil Dorfsman, and his co-producers Landau and Van Zandt were reviewing all completed masters, and recording or re-recording instrumental and vocal tracks as needed. Over April 11 and 12 new "Roulette" tracks were recorded, including vocals, and Dorfsman mixed or remixed some of the tapes. He recalls that the new vocals were discarded in favor of the original April 1979 tracks. Toby Scott mixed it as one of the five extra tracks designated for b-sides, etc., after finishing the twenty primary tracks Springsteen had designated for The River.
V2 is incomplete, with double-tracked lead vocals and a slower tempo. The lyrics show some variations to later versions, and the tape fades out during the guitar solo. The vocal in V3 is not finished, while V4 is the master recorded in April 1979, with multiple vocal, keyboard, guitar and other instruments recorded in 1979–80 at Springsteen's direction, for dubbing and mixing. For unknown reasons, many of the mixes created by Clearmountain, Dorfsman, and Scott leaked out to bootleggers, in addition to the officially released b-side and remixed album cuts on Tracks and The Ties That Bind 2015 anniversary box. There are at least eight different mix variations in circulation, and more exist in private collections. The Tracks mix features more snare drum but less guitar than the mix found on the 1988 b-side to "One Step Up". Bruce states in his autobiography that "Roulette" was recorded shortly after the MUSE benefits of September 21 and 22, 1979, but that is incorrect. In a 1998 interview with Mojo magazine, Springsteen bared his soul. "It was the first song we cut…and maybe later on, I thought it was too specific. I may have just gotten afraid—it went a little over the top, which is what's good about it. In truth it should have probably gotten put on. It would have been one of the best things on the record."
Note: AKA "Living In A Dollhouse", V1 and V2 are acoustic demos recorded around January–June 1979 at Springsteen's house. V3 was recorded at Power Station on August 20 and 21, 1979 and issued on Tracks.
Note: Written in 1979 and heavily inspired by The Raspberries. Two slightly different mixes. Recorded at Power Station studios on October 9, 1979.
Note: "Loose Ends" was recorded at Power Station studios on July 18, 1979. Take 1 was described by engineer Neil Dorfsman as "mix #1, original vocal and original sax," then followed by a double four-count by the Boss. This has a rougher but clear, single-tracked lead vocal, with some slight differences in the phrasing and very minor changes to the lyrics. The circulating recording has no overdubs and the nine second double count-in; the vocals by Bruce and Steve Van Zandt include six "looooose ends" refrains, double the amount on V2. Double-tracked vocals can be found on V2, the second and final take. Bob Clearmountain mixed V2a in September 1979 for The Ties That Bind, but a month later Bruce cancelled that release, and it would be nineteen years before the song finally saw the light of day. V2b was remixed in 1998 by Ed Thacker for Tracks. In 2015, the 1979 mix was released as The River: Single Album, which omits the count-in, and is re-titled "Loose End". There are only three "loooose ends," but the guitars do the fourth, and there is an instrumental fade. The guitars are higher in Clearmountain's 1979 mix, in comparison to V1 and the mix on Tracks,which are more keyboard focused. It also has five "loooose ends," and drum rolls after the last three. Lyrics from "Loose Ends" can also be found in "Little White Lies", and "Baby I'm So Cold", an outtake from Born In The U.S.A.
| LIVING ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - V1 |
3:52 |
LM-12 |
| LIVING ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - V2 |
4:26 |
LM-12 |
| LIVING ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - V3 |
4:16 |
LM-12 |
| LIVING ON THE EDGE OF THE WORLD - V4 |
4:14 |
TRACKS / RIVER: OUTTAKES |
Note: V1 through V3 are rehearsal workouts at Telegraph Hill on November 15, 1979. V4 recorded at Power Station on December 7, 1979. Aspects of this song would later appear in "Open All Night" and "State Trooper" from 1982's Nebraska.
| WAGES OF SIN - V1 |
2:00 |
LM-10 |
| WAGES OF SIN - V2 |
0:20 |
LM-10 |
| WAGES OF SIN - V3 |
3:05 |
LM-10 |
| WAGES OF SIN - V4 |
5:10 |
LM-10 |
| WAGES OF SIN - V5 |
4:49 |
TRACKS |
Note: V1–V4 make up an interesting group of takes recorded at Springsteen's home in Colts Neck, NJ during January–April 1982. V5 is most like the final version on Tracks, recorded at The Power Station on May 10, 1982. "Wages Of Sin" #3 on 'Lost Masters Volume 10' is actually "Bells Of San Salvador" V4.
| TAKE 'EM AS THEY COME - V1 |
5:32 |
LM-9 |
| TAKE 'EM AS THEY COME - V2 |
1:50 |
LM-9 |
| TAKE 'EM AS THEY COME - V3 |
0:54 |
LM-9 |
| TAKE 'EM AS THEY COME - V4a |
4:25 |
DROC2 / ATMF |
| TAKE 'EM AS THEY COME - V4b |
4:24 |
DDITV |
| TAKE 'EM AS THEY COME - V5 |
4:25 |
TRACKS / RIVER: OUTTAKES |
Note: V1–V3 are acoustic demos recorded at Springsteen's home in early 1979. V1 appears to be primarily harmonies with bluffed lyrics. V2 includes some clearer lyrics, although it's obvious the song is in the very early stages of development in the last two verses. V4 and V5 are backing tracks from the Power Station. Logs show work on December 5, 1979 and April 10, 1980. Included in an archival concept list put together by a Sony engineer in 1993, prior to Tracks release.
Note: Evolved from "Mary Lou" and early versions of "Little White Lies" that used "Be True" vocals over unique backing. The only takes for this track all occurred on July 18, 1979 at Power Station, and a mixing or overdub session took place on April 22, 1980, before it was included on an April 1980 shortlist for the double album. Six different mixes are known: V1a runs fast with minimal vocal effects, V1c has a double-tracked vocal on the second verse, bridge, break, and has no sax except tail, V1d has double tracked vocals, background vocals and a different sax solo, V2 is the 1981 b-side to "Fade Away"; the version on 'Down By the River' (3:23) sounds exactly like V2 when slowed down by 6%. V3 is the mix released on Tracks, and version 4 is V1d released in 2015 on The Ties That Bind: The River Single Album.
| RICKY WANTS A MAN OF HER OWN - V1a |
2:47 |
DROC1 / RRR / RN / ATMF |
| RICKY WANTS A MAN OF HER OWN - V1b |
2:48 |
private cdr |
| RICKY WANTS A MAN OF HER OWN - V2 |
2:54 |
LM-5 |
| RICKY WANTS A MAN OF HER OWN - V3 |
2:43 |
TRACKS / RIVER: OUTTAKES |
Note: V3 recorded July 16, 1979. V1 and V2 also recorded around this time. Similarly arranged versions, with some slight lyric differences between each. Another session took place at Power Station on April 10, 1980, likely a mixing or overdub session. Selected for (and later removed from) August 1979 and April 1980 album sequences. Differences between V1a and V1b are imperceptible, aside from a slight change to the count-in.
Note: First cut during the Darkness sessions, with V1 recorded at Atlantic Studios on the evening of June 1, 1977. Logs show that more takes were recorded on July 1, 1977 (also at Atlantic), and there was a complete take on September 12, at Record Plant. Held over for The River sessions, and both V2 and V3 were recorded on May 31, 1979 at Power Station, New York. There was another session on June 21, and mixing/dubbing on September 24, 1979, but the final May 31 take was the one used for Tracks.
Note: "Mary Lou" didn't make the cut for the double River album, but it played an important role in the development of several songs, and was eventually released on two official collections. V1–V4 are rehearsal takes, recorded in Spring 1979 at Telegraph Hill, working on music and lyrics. V5–V11 are full band rehearsals recorded at Telegraph Hill on May 14 and 16, 1979 (note: the September 16, 1979 date in the 'Lost Masters IV' liner notes is incorrect). Work resumed at Power Station studios for three days starting with May 30, 1979, resulting in V12, with takes also recorded on May 31 and June 1. Studio logs show final takes, dubs or mixing on July 13, 1979, and V13 is the completed track released on Tracks and The Ties That Bind: The River Collection. On June 1, 1979, "Little White Lies" V2 was cut using the lyrics of "Mary Lou", which was only a temporary "loan," with V3 recorded on June 13, with its own lyrics. However, on July 18, Springsteen cut "To Be True", again borrowing "Mary Lou's" lyrics, this time permanently.
Note: "Stolen Car" is actually the tale of two songs. The first "Stolen Car" was written, recorded and sequenced for release on the aborted album, The Ties That Bind, between June and September 1979. Springsteen later re-wrote and re-recorded the song and released it on The River in October 1980. "Stolen Car" was first recorded at Power Station on June 20–21, 1979, with takes attributed to the latter date. V1, the first take, contains different lyrics and is longer. V2 is referred to as "The Stanton Lake" version, because it started with that line. Take 3 (V4) was selected for The Ties That Bind, with final dubbing and mixing (by Bob Clearmountain) on September 24, 1979. It was later officially released on Tracks in 1998, and on The River Single Album in 2015, now dubbed "Stolen Car Vs. 1". V3 is the fourth and last distinct take of this arrangement. It was this take that was on a tape that fell into the hands of bootleggers, subsequently dubbed "Son You May Kiss the Bride", and pressed into a vinyl LP of the same name. It contained four unreleased River tracks, the title track, "Loose Ends", "Where The Bands Are", and "Don't Do It To Me" (aka "Little White Lies").
Despite the song being completed, Bruce was dissatisfied and decided months later to radically alter the musical arrangement. V5 is less than a minute of a solo take, and in V6, Springsteen sings over a tape of a band rehearsal of "Restless Nights", both recorded in January 1980. V7–V14 were recorded on January 16, 1980 at Telegraph Hill, and feature revised arrangements. The end result was V15, which was recorded at Power Station on January 21 and February 20, with overdubs and mixing undertaken on April 1 and 9, and May 9, 1980. The final mix for The River was by Toby Scott, at Clover Recorders, Los Angeles, CA in May–July 1980, with Springsteen watching over his shoulder.
| VIETNAM - V1 |
3:15 |
FFOD / HNWB / MT2 |
| VIETNAM BLUES - V2 |
2:00 |
FFOD / HNWB / MT2 |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. BLUES - V3 |
2:22 |
FFOD / HNWB / MT2 |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V4 |
0:30 |
FFOD / HNWB |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V5 |
4:45 |
FFOD / HNWB |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V6 |
3:10 |
FFOD / HNWB |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V7 |
2:55 |
FFOD / HNWB |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V8 |
4:00 |
FFOD / HNWB |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V9a take 1 |
3:06 |
LM-1 / HNWB |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V9b take 1 mix 2 |
3:06 |
TRACKS |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V10 take 2 |
8:09 |
THLBB / UH / GS / BUERM / MI |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V11a take 4 mix 1 |
4:34 |
BITUSA / ESSENTIAL / GREATEST |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V11b take 4 mix 2 |
4:52 |
LM-19 / THLBP |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V12 |
|
uncirculating |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V13 take 9 |
|
uncirculating |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V14a freedom mix |
7:20 |
1984 EP |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V14b radio mix |
6:10 |
1984 EP |
| BORN IN THE U.S.A. - V14c dub mix |
7:36 |
1984 EP |
"I'm a long gone daddy, I don't need you anyhow."
—Hank Williams, 1948
Note: Writing and recording began at Springsteen's home in Colts Neck, New Jersey during October 1981 as the demo "Vietnam" or "Vietnam Blues". V3 is now titled "Born In the U.S.A. Blues", re-titled after Jon Landau sent Springsteen a Paul Schrader script called Born In the U.S.A. V4 is a take from November 1981, with the lyrics "Born baby in the U.S.A., I believe in the American way." V5 through V8 were recorded in December, and V9 was recorded on the portastudio Mike Batlan had set up on January 3, 1982. Bruce included it on the "Nebraska demos" cassette tape he sent to Jon Landau. In his notes to Landau, Bruce described the song as a "little ditty. should be done very hard rockin." A copy leaked to bootleggers from Batlan, then V9b was mixed in 1998 and officially released on Tracks. V10 and V11 were recorded in just four takes (two complete), at Power Station studios with the E Street Band, on April 27, 1982. V10 is the 8+ minute extended jam ending, where Max Weinberg takes his shot at the title, as Bruce would say. V11a (take 4) became the first song on side one of the album Born In The U.S.A. V11b continues where 11a fades out, with an extended synthesizer ending; it was leaked out of the sessions, and released unofficially on the bootleg 'This Hard Land'. V12 represents takes 5–8 recorded on April 28, 1982, and V13 is take 9 on May 3, 1982. V14a thru V14c are dance remixes of V11, undertaken by Arthur Baker, and recorded at Shakedown Studio in New York City in September 1984. Toby Scott was the recording engineer for the remixes (which include additional vocals by The Latin Rascals), which were first released in December 1984.
| COME ON (LET'S GO TONIGHT) - V1 |
2:32 |
FFOD / HNWB |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V3a |
1:45 |
LM-16 trk 10 / UH / GS |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V3b |
1:45 |
LM-18 trk 13 |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V3c |
1:39 |
LM-18 trk 10 |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V3d |
1:51 |
1985 b-side / BACK |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V3e |
1:49 |
TRACKS |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V4 |
2:55 |
LM-16 trk 11 / MT2 / ESR |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V5 |
2:58 |
LM-17 trk 12 / GS |
| JOHNNY BYE-BYE - V6 |
3:41 |
LM-17 trk 13 / GS |
Note: Between legs of the River Tour in March 1981, Springsteen recorded a demo (V1) at his home, combining lyrics from Darkness On The Edge Of Town outtake "Come On (Let's Go Tonight)" with some newly written lyrics over new music. This recording can be found on bootlegs 'Fistfull Of Dollars' and 'How Nebraska Was Born' under the title "Bye Bye Johnny". A dark and foreboding arrangement used the discarded lyrics, including the part about Elvis dying, and became a Nebraska-style song.
In 1962, Chuck Berry wrote "Bye Bye Johnny", a sequel to "Johnny B. Goode", where a mother sent her musician son off to Hollywood to be a star: "She drew out all her money from the Southern Trust, and put her little boy aboard the Greyhound Bus." Bruce decided to use those lines in 1981 in the opening verse of a new song that used most of the lyrics from "Come On (Let's Go Tonight)", calling it "Johnny Bye-Bye". He kept the lines about the death of Elvis and added lines about Memphis, all over a bouncy hillbilly blues rhythm. Despite performing the song regularly on the River Tour, Bruce did not record it as part of the January 1982 Nebraska demos at Colts Neck; the legendary Nebraska version of "Johnny Bye-Bye" does not exist. The version on the tape he sent Landau was almost certainly a live July 1981 recording. When the Nebraska tape was backed up in June 1982 in its entirety, alternate takes and all, there was still no "Johnny Bye-Bye".
The first studio take of "Johnny Bye-Bye" was recorded on April 27, 1982, at Power Station, New York. This audio does not circulate, but is listed above as V2. In all likelihood, this is a solo take. Studio documentation shows that Springsteen returned to the song in the winter of 1983, with sessions on January 4 and March 9 and 24 all at Bruce's Hollywood Hills converted studio, Thrill Hill West, Los Angeles, CA. According to the Tracks liner notes, the official V3 was recorded in January, and five different mixes circulate. V3d, released February 6, 1985 as the b-side to "I'm On Fire", features a different drum overdub to that found on the mix chosen for Tracks, V3e. V3b and V3c have slight but noticeable variations in their mixes.
V4 and V5 were recorded on March 9 at Thrill Hill West and are different takes of a slower acoustic arrangement with a gentle synthesizer backing, slight lyrical differences and overdubbed with chirping crickets at the start and end. By far the definitive performance is V6, from March 24, 1983, which includes a poignant extra verse at the end, not found on the other versions. "Johnny Bye-Bye" was included on the July 1983 sequence for Born In The U.S.A., but did not make the final cut. After the lawyers met, Bruce and Chuck became composing partners, the song now registered as Springsteen-Berry.
| SHUT OUT THE LIGHT - V1a |
4:33 |
LM-16 / UH |
| SHUT OUT THE LIGHT - V1b |
3:25 |
LM-18 |
| SHUT OUT THE LIGHT - V1c |
3:56 |
1984 b-side / BACK |
| SHUT OUT THE LIGHT - V1d |
3:51 |
TRACKS |
Note: All of the above use the same core recording from January 19, 1983 at Springsteen's home studio in Los Angeles, but four different mixes. V1a is considered by many to be the definitive version of the song – it contains two additional verses that were cut from the three other mixes. V1c contains a violin part courtesy of Soozie Tyrell that she overdubbed, probably on May 23 or 25, 1983 at The Hit Factory (her first session work for Bruce). V1d brings the violin more to the fore in the mix. "Shut Out The Light" was considered for the album before it was released in 1984 as the b-side to "Born In The U.S.A.". The theme of a Vietnam veteran returning home was also explored in the 1981 demo "Vietnam", which also includes the opening couplet "The runway rushed up at him as he felt the wheels touch down / He stood out on the blacktop and took a taxi into town."
| CYNTHIA - V1 |
3:24 |
LM-18 / GS |
| CYNTHIA - V2a |
4:01 |
SO / MAT / UH |
| CYNTHIA - V2b |
4:10 |
TRACKS |
| CYNTHIA - V3 |
|
uncirculating |
Note: V1 was recorded April 20–21, 1983 at Thrill Hill West, Bruce's Hollywood Hills home, in rockabilly style for a set of home demos. V2 was Bruce re-recording this with The E Street Band on June 15, 1983, not April 20 as the Tracks notes claim, at The Hit Factory, New York in a much more rocking arrangement. "Cynthia" was resurrected over a decade later on May 23, 1995 (V3); studio logs show takes were recorded at Thrill Hill West with a four-man backing band of Danny Federici (keyboards), Garry Tallent (bass), Marty Rifkin (pedal steel, dobro) and Gary Mallaber (drums), the same day as "The Ghost Of Tom Joad".
| MY LOVE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN - V1a |
3:12 |
private cdr |
| MY LOVE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN - V1b |
4:20 |
LM-19 / THLRR / UH / GS / THLBP |
| MY LOVE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN - V1c |
4:32 |
MI / UH / GS |
| MY LOVE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN - V1d |
4:20 |
TRACKS |
Note: Recorded at the Power Station over three days on May 5, 6 and 7, 1982. The studio venue listed in Tracks is incorrect. All of the above four mixes are very similar, but V1b has Springsteen adding a count-in, vocalizations over the first thirty seconds of the song, and a complete ending. V1a cuts early. V1c and V1d fade out, and the V1d mix (used for Tracks) has slightly different vocals at the end of the song, maybe a 1998 vocal. Bruce Springsteen said in 2001 of the song: "I don't know why it got left off. It was one of those things we pulled out in the first rehearsal and went, Whoa!"
Note: V1 and V2 recorded at the Power Station (not The Hit Factory, as the Tracks liner notes suggest) on May 11, 13, and 14, 1982. Springsteen returned to it with more takes recorded on January 3 and 15, 1983 at his home studio in Los Angeles, designated V3. Re-recorded in January 1995 at The Hit Factory, New York City during the Greatest Hits sessions. Frank Pagano guests on percussion instruments. V4 is the brief snippet shown in the Blood Brothers video that accompanied Greatest Hits. V5 and V6 are two different recordings, though very similar, and V7 is a full take marked as take #3, with mandolin, accordion, and an extended coda. After all these rerecordings, a 1982 Born In The U.S.A. studio session version was issued on Tracks a few years after the Greatest Hits sessions concluded.
Note: "Frankie" was composed by Springsteen in early 1976, just after the 1975 Born To Run Tour. According to Christopher Sandford's Point Blank, a demo of "Frankie" was recorded in January 1976, along with a completed recording of "Darkness On The Edge Of Town". However the accuracy of this information is unclear, as early recordings of the latter song from June 1977 indicate most of the words were still unwritten. However, "Frankie" was near completion when it was debuted live on the Chicken Scratch Tour in late March 1976.
When Springsteen returned to the studio after the litigation with Mike Appel was resolved, "Frankie" was recorded on June 3, 1977, and again on July 12, both at Atlantic Studios. V2 and V3 may be from those sessions. Apparently, "Frankie" did not fit Bruce's concept for the album, and it was set aside, not to be recorded again during the Darkness sessions. When writing "Candy's Room" a few months later, Bruce lifted some lyrics from "Frankie", specifically, "In the darkness, there'll be hidden worlds that shine." Five years later, "Frankie" was recorded on May 14, 1982, at the Power Station, New York, on the last day of three weeks of sessions. Take 10 was chosen, and completed with several overdubs. Though it was not included on Born In The U.S.A., V3d was considered for Greatest Hits, again missing the cut, before being selected for the Tracks compilation in 1998. One other mix, V3a, has the same saxophone overdub during the instrumental outro as V3d. V3b and V3c were alternative mixes without sax. It is not known if the takes from 1977 were ever considered for Tracks.
| TV MOVIE - V1 |
2:40 |
private |
| TV MOVIE - V2a |
2:34 |
LM-19 / UH |
| TV MOVIE - V2b |
2:39 |
TRACKS |
Note: V1 is a band rehearsal from Colts Neck, probably from around late 1981. Very similar to V2, the final studio recording cut on June 13, 1983 and issued on Tracks. Two different mixes known; V2a has saxophone; V2b has the saxophone deleted.
| STAND ON IT - V1 |
3:03 |
TRACKS |
| STAND ON IT - V2 |
2:30 |
1985 b-side / TRP / BACK |
Note: Recorded on June 16, 1983 at The Hit Factory, New York. V2 was released as the b-side of the single "Glory Days" on May 22, 1985. V1, which is possibly the original take that V2 was mixed from, contains an additional verse and complete ending, both missing from the single release. It was released on Disc 3 of Tracks in 1998.
| LION'S DEN - V1 |
0:55 |
FFOD / HNWB |
| LION'S DEN - V2 |
2:18 |
uncirculating |
| LION'S DEN - V3 |
2:18 |
TRACKS |
Note: "Lion's Den" was first recorded late March to early April, 1981, at Springsteen's home in Colts Neck, NJ, and consists of the chorus, repeated. It was bootlegged under the title "Daniel In The Lion's Den". V2 is a base track recorded at The Hit Factory on January 25, 1982, during the Gary U.S. Bonds sessions. V3 overdubs the 1998 horn section (Cruz-Manion-Pender-Rosenberg-Spengler) for Tracks over the V2 base track. The original 1982 element was not recorded by Toby Scott but rather by Neil Dorfsman, the engineer for the Bonds LP.
| SMALL TOWN GIRL (CAR WASH) - V1 |
2:04 |
TRACKS |
| CAR WASH - V2 |
|
uncirculating |
Note: V1 recorded on May 31, 1983 at The Hit Factory, and logged under the title "Small Town Girl". Six months after it was in the can, Springsteen returns for another go on November 30, 1983 (V2). V1 was later selected for Tracks, now titled "Car Wash".
Note: Recorded on January 12, 1984 at The Hit Factory, New York, NY. The recording date listed on Tracks (February 3) could be a mixing date.
| BROTHERS UNDER THE BRIDGES |
5:02 |
TRACKS |
Note: Recorded on September 14, 15, and 16 and October 10, 1983 at The Hit Factory in New York, with a take from September 14 chosen for Tracks.
| MAN AT THE TOP - V1a |
4:08 |
uncirculating |
| MAN AT THE TOP - V1b |
3:16 |
TRACKS |
Note: Recorded on January 12, 1984 at The Hit Factory, New York, NY, take 2, slow acoustic version. Springsteen premiered the song live on July 12, 1984 on the Born In The U.S.A. Tour. Thanks to the Panda for providing track length of full cut with hard stop, before it was downsized and faded out for Tracks.
| PINK CADILLAC - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| PINK CADILLAC - V2 take 2 |
5:21 |
LM-1 / HNWB / MT2 |
| PINK CADILLAC - V3a |
3:45 |
BUERM / 1984AC |
| PINK CADILLAC - V3b |
4:21 |
private cdr |
| PINK CADILLAC - V3c |
3:33 |
1984 Japan b-side |
| PINK CADILLAC - V3d |
3:33 |
1984 b-side / TRACKS / CAST |
Note: Two acoustic takes were recorded around January 3, 1982 at Springsteen's home in Colts Neck, NJ. "Pink Cadillac" was one of the few songs from the acoustic Nebraska not to be recorded with the band in the May 1982 sessions at the Power Station, but V3 was recorded on May 31, 1983 at The Hit Factory in New York. Officially released in May 1984 as the b-side to "Dancing In The Dark". V3b has the complete ending, V3c is a mono mix that for some reason was only issued on the Japanese single. Included on a 1984 album artwork prototype, in place of both "No Surrender" and "I'm Goin' Down".
Note: Recorded February 1987 at Thrill Hill Recording, Rumson, New Jersey (Springsteen's home studio), with Bruce on all instruments.
| JANEY, DON'T YOU LOSE HEART - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| JANEY, DON'T YOU LOSE HEART - V2a |
4:31 |
UH / GS / MI / 1984AC |
| JANEY, DON'T YOU LOSE HEART - V2b |
3:24 |
1985 single / TRACKS / BACK |
| JANEY, DON'T YOU LOSE HEART - V3 |
|
uncirculating |
Note: "Janey, Don't You Lose Heart" V1 and V2a were both recorded on June 16, 1983 at The Hit Factory, New York. V2b was released September 7, 1985, as the b-side of "I'm Goin' Down". V2a had a much longer fade out and features Steve Van Zandt on background vocals and guitar. V2b is the same recording, except Nils Lofgren's new vocal and guitar parts, recorded on July 14, 1985, are overdubbed, replacing the tracks by Van Zandt. On the twelve year anniversary of the 1983 recording date, V3 was recorded at Thrill Hill Recording, Beverly Hills, CA, with a lineup of Bruce, Gary Mallaber (drums), Garry Tallent, Marty Rifkin, and Chuck Plotkin (keyboards).
| IF YOU NEED ME - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| WHEN YOU NEED ME - V2 |
2:53 |
TRACKS |
Note: Originally titled "If You Need Me". Recorded on January 20, 1987 at Thrill Hill Recording, Rumson, New Jersey (Springsteen's home studio), with Bruce on all instruments. The drums (Gary Mallaber) and violin (Soozie Tyrell) were added to the core recording in 1998 for Tracks.
| THE WISH - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE WISH - V2 |
5:09 |
TRACKS |
Note: Recorded February 22, 1987 at Thrill Hill Recording, Rumson, New Jersey (Springsteen's home studio), with Bruce on all instruments. The drums (Gary Mallaber) were added to the core recording in 1998 for Tracks.
Note: Recorded February 22, 1987 at Thrill Hill Recording, Rumson, New Jersey (Springsteen's home studio), with Bruce on all instruments.
Note: Recorded April 4, 1987 at Thrill Hill Recording, Rumson, New Jersey, with Bruce alone, on all instruments. Included on early album track listings, replaced by "Tunnel Of Love".
Note: Recorded on February 27, 1990 at Oceanway Studios, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles guitar and vocals and his three-man backing band on this recording is the same as on "Viva Las Vegas" - Bob Glaub (bass), Ian McLagan (keyboards), and Jeff Porcaro (drums). A copyright for this song was filed on September 6, 1995, with a creation date of 1993. A second filing on December 29, 1998 amended the creation date to 1990.
Note: Recorded on June 29, 1990 at Oceanway Studios, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles guitar, bass and vocals and his two-man backing band on this recording is Roy Bittan (keyboards) and Shawn Pelton (drums).
| GAVE IT A NAME - V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| GAVE IT A NAME - V2 |
2:47 |
TRACKS |
Note: V1 was recorded between December 1990 and late January 1991 at either the Record Plant, Soundworks West or A&M Studios in Los Angeles. Planned for inclusion on the Tracks boxset, but Bruce was unable to locate the master tape, so he re-recorded the song V2 on August 24, 1998 at his home studio in Colts Neck, NJ, and it's that recording which can be found on Tracks. Springsteen told Melinda Newman in an interview with Billboard published in November 1998, "What happened is I cut the original at the time I cut these other songs [Bruce is referring to songs like "Over The Rise", "When The Lights Go Out", "Loose Change" etc., which were all recorded around the December 1990–January 1991 period], but we couldn't find the master tape of it, and I really liked the song. So Roy Bittan came out, and we re-cut it in August."
Note: Recorded on January 25, 1990 at Soundworks West, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles guitar and vocals and his four-man backing band on this recording is Randy Jackson (bass), David Sancious (keyboards), Michael Fisher (percussion), and Jeff Porcaro (drums).
Note: Recorded on December 4, 1990 at Soundworks West, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles guitar, bass, keyboards and vocals and his one-man backing band on this recording is Jeff Porcaro (drums).
Note: Recorded on December 7, 1990 at Soundworks West, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles vocals and all instruments except for Roy Bittan (keyboards).
| WHEN THE LIGHTS GO OUT |
3:05 |
TRACKS |
Note: Recorded on December 6, 1990 at The Record Plant, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles guitar, bass, and vocals, and his two-man backing band is Roy Bittan (keyboards) and Jeff Porcaro (drums).
Note: Recorded on January 31, 1991 at The Record Plant, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles vocals and all instruments except for Roy Bittan (keyboards).
| TROUBLE IN PARADISE |
5:22 |
TRACKS |
Note: Co-written by Springsteen (lyrics) and Roy Bittan (music). Recorded December 1, 1989 at Soundworks West, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles guitar and vocals and his three-man backing band on this recording is Randy Jackson (bass), Roy Bittan (keyboards), and Jeff Porcaro (drums).
Note: The final song completed as part of the Lucky Town sessions. Recorded January 18, 1992 at A&M Studios, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles all guitars and lead vocals and his two-man backing band is Roy Bittan (keyboards) and Shawn Pelton (drums). Bittan is credit as a co-producer of this recording. Apparently Bruce wrote this following the December 30, 1991 birth of his daughter in Los Angeles.
| PART MAN, PART MONKEY – V1 |
|
uncirculating |
| PART MAN, PART MONKEY – V2a |
4:26 |
HD |
| PART MAN, PART MONKEY – V2b |
4:31 |
TRACKS / 18TRACKS / 1992 b-side |
Note: Written in 1986 and first recorded during the 1987 Tunnel Of Love sessions, then performed live regularly during the 1988 Tunnel Of Love Express Tour. Bruce re-recorded the song during the Human Touch sessions, and that version was released as a 1992 b-side, and then later on Tracks. This studio version dates from January 1990 at Soundworks West, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles guitar, bass, and vocals, and his two-man backing band is David Sancious (keyboards) and Omar Hakim (drums). V2a and V2b are extremely similar and may in fact be identical mixes.
Note: Recorded on January 29, 1991 at A&M Studios, Los Angeles. Springsteen handles vocals and all instruments.
| BACK IN YOUR ARMS - V1 |
0:34 |
YBNT2 / BB |
| BACK IN YOUR ARMS - V2 |
3:16 |
YBNT2 / BB |
| BACK IN YOUR ARMS - V3a |
4:38 |
DDITV / GT |
| BACK IN YOUR ARMS - V3b |
4:33 |
TRACKS |
| BACK IN YOUR ARMS - V4 |
4:57 |
private |
| BACK IN YOUR ARMS - V5 |
4:47 |
private |
Note: Recorded in January 1995 at The Hit Factory, New York City. V1 is a brief snippet shown in the video. V2 is an incomplete alternate take. V3b (recorded on January 12) is the officially issued recording. V3a is the same basic recording as V3b but with the keyboard deleted and a different, more passionate vocal by Springsteen. Many consider V3a to be the superior version. V4 is an early take (#1) with some bluffed lyrics and an overdubbed introduction with some nice organ work. V5 is take #6.
| BROTHERS UNDER THE BRIDGE |
4:51 |
TRACKS |
Note: No direct relation to the 1983 Springsteen song also found on Tracks, except for the similar title. Recorded on May 22, 1995 at Thrill Hill Recording, Beverly Hills, California. Springsteen handles guitar and vocals and his 5-man backing band on this recording is Danny Federici (keyboards), Garry Tallent (bass), Marty Rifkin (pedal steel, dobro), Gary Mallaber (drums) and Soozie Tyrell (violin). A copyright was filed on November 1, 1996, under the title "Brothers under the Bridges" with a creation date of 1995. A second one was filed for "Tracks" on December 29, 1998, with the title "Brothers Under the Bridge", referencing the prior 1996 filing. It declared the publication date as November 10, 1998. Perhaps the title was amended to not conflict with his earlier song.
Note: Written in late 1971, as evidenced by a dated lyric sheet titled "(I Got The) Fever For The Girl", on display at the Hard Rock Cafe, Sydney, Australia. It is believed the earliest known live performance was during a March 1973 residency at Oliver's in Boston, though rumors of 1972 performances exist. It was played live several more times into May. The studio version was recorded (in one take) on May 16, 1973 at 914 Sound Studios, though rumors have persisted for years that it dates from WGOE Studios, Richmond, VA on May 31. The recording features the Springsteen-Federici-Tallent-Clemons-Lopez lineup (pre-Sancious) and doesn't include any overdubs. Mike Appel requested the studio take for publishing purposes, and Laurel Canyon Publishing company registered it as "Fever For The Girl". "The Fever" was all but forgotten after it was recorded, dropped from the live set in mid-1973, and not included in any track sequences for album #2.
In late 1973, Appel and partner Jim Cretecos included it on an acetate of unreleased masters sent to UK Publisher Intersong Music. At the same time, cassettes of 7:41 track of "The Fever" were prepared, and sent to radio stations known to be supportive of young Springsteen's music, a rather short list. However, the song became an underground hit in places like Houston, Phoenix, and Boston. In Philadelphia, according to a listener, "the song exploded!" With vigorous backing by influential Philly DJ and Bruce fan Ed Sciaky, the song was played on WMMR as part of their regular rotation. Meanwhile, the publishing acetate fell into the hands of bootleggers, and soon "Fever" and "Resurrected" were being sold under the counter at record stores.
"The Fever" became a legendary '70s progressive FM-radio hit, but nowhere as big as in Houston, Texas, thanks to the March 1974 Liberty Hall shows, and several radio broadcasts. After an interview by KLOL-FM's Ed Beauchamp on March 8, Springsteen was invited back the next day with the E Street Band, for a lengthy afternoon radio performance that included highlights from both his albums, plus a rendition of "The Fever". That night at Liberty Hall, a fan yelled for "The Fever" and Bruce responded with "it's a weird thing, "The Fever"… that song "Fever" we did as a demo tape about a year ago… and Mike here… sent it down to just this radio station, you know…and it's a song we never even did but, uh, like, we did it on the radio today, but I promise if we'll come back, we'll work it up for you." At the late show the next day, Springsteen introduced the song by saying: "We're gonna try something now, this is a song we haven't done in about a year but we found out that they sent a demo down here…we're gonna give it a try for you, hope we'll remember…it's a song we did about a year ago, no, we did it when we were recording the second album…they sent the tape down here and I guess KLOF has been playing it you know…who?…is that wrong? Sorry, folks but whoever, the radio station." David Sancious later said he had been under the impression it was an old Sam Cooke classic.
After the band left Texas, "The Fever" was not played again live until they returned on July 14, 1978 in San Antonio. Springsteen had "gifted" the song to his friend Southside Johnny in December 1975 for his debut album, so he no longer considered it for his setlists. But his hardcore fans had other ideas, persuading him to play it on the Darkness Tour in many cities because, according to Bruce, "people would jump onstage and grab me by the head and scream, 'Bruce! Fever!'" It was played at Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston the next evening, and twenty-two more times to the end of the Darkness Tour. Though he joined Southside Johnny for duets many times, it was not released or played by Springsteen for the next 20 years. In 1998, a huge uproar ensued when it was omitted from //Tracks, leading to its official release on 18 Tracks the following year. The fans have made "The Fever" one of Springsteen's greatest lost classics. It has also become Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes' greatest hit, performed over 1,000 times since 1976.
In early 1977, a bootleg 7" demo (the studio take from 1973) of "The Fever" was released on "Bruce Records", coupled with "Rendezvous", recorded live on November 4, 1976, at the Palladium, New York, which opens with Bruce calling out "New York! Go ahead, Max!" In 1979, The Pointer Sisters recorded the song under the title "(She Got) The Fever", for their album Priority. The song was part of the soundtrack to the 2007 film Lucky You.
| THE PROMISE - V1 |
5:32 |
DO-2 / UP / SOTE / LUTHER |
| THE PROMISE - V2 |
5:27 |
LM-2 / DDO / DO-3 / AM / SC / O711S |
| THE PROMISE - V3 |
7:11 |
DDITV / AM / UP / MT1 |
| THE PROMISE - V4 |
7:24 |
PROMISE: DELUXE |
| THE PROMISE (strings-full harmony) - V5 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE (solo) - V6 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE - V7 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE - V8 |
|
uncirculating |
| THE PROMISE - V9 |
4:41 |
18TRACKS |
| THE PROMISE - V10 |
5:49 |
PROMISE |
Note: Debuted live on August 3, 1976 at the Monmouth Performing Arts Center in Red Bank, New Jersey, featuring Bruce solo on the piano, and deeply personal lyrics. Later live versions would continue to feature Bruce on piano, with Roy or Danny accompanying him on glockenspiel. The song was played regularly during the 1976–1977 Lawsuit Tour, but according to studio documentation it was not recorded in the studio until late June 1977. V1 was most likely recorded during sessions on June 30, 1977, though further work was done on July 1, 7, 8 and 13. The June take master was transfered to comp. reel and ruffs tape, and was used in V10, mixed in 2010. Unlike his live versions, all of the Darkness studio recordings in circulation include the E Street Band, though solo takes were also attempted. After a break that included a trip with Steve to Utah and Nevada, Bruce came back to the studio with slightly revised lyrics, and recorded V2 on August 24 or 30, 1977, which was on the tracklist for the aborted 'Badlands' release (see artwork). However, Bruce was back on September 28 and 30, 1977, recording V3 at the Record Plant, which some collectors and hardcore fans consider the definitive version. Over 7 minutes long, and sporting an arrangement for the full E Street Band, it was first released unofficially on 'Deep Down In the Vaults' in the mid-1990s. This version was barely in the can when a Rolling Stone reporter suggested that the song was about his now-settled lawsuit with Mike Appel, which Bruce sternly denied, and has denied ever since (he wrote the music and the first set of lyrics before the lawsuit was filed in 1976). Nevertheless, Springsteen soon re-wrote the first two lines of verse 3, with "Well, my daddy taught me how to walk quiet and how to make my peace with the past, I learned real good to tighten up inside and I don’t say nothing unless I’m asked" replacing "I won big once and I hit the coast, oh but somehow I paid the big cost." Landau agreed with solidifying the narrative, and when recording concluded in January, and a ten-song track sequence for Album #4 was prepared, "The Promise" was the last song on side two.
On January 12, 1978, V4, with revised lyrics, was recorded with the band, and also filmed live in-the-studio by Barry Rebo, later released with the The Promise:The Darkness On The Edge Of Town Story. It is confirmed that strings were recorded and dubbed to the January 12 master (Landau confirmed this, and a mix tape exists with three versions; V3 "old verse", V4 "new verse", and V5 "strings and full harmony" (see illustration). But on January 24, 1978, without the E Street Band, Springsteen sat down at the piano and recorded V6 by himself, just as he did for 22 shows while locked out of the recording studio. A total of ten sessions were held from January 17 to March 7 (a seven-week period). Meanwhile, he finished "Candy's Room", "The Factory Song" and "Darkness On the Edge of Town" in early March, and decided to not include "The Promise". He has said he could not get a recording he was happy with, and that he "felt too close to it." In 2010, Springsteen noted that "It was a song about defeat, and it was self-referential, which made me uncomfortable. I didn't want it to overtake the album, which in the end, was not my personal story. I wanted Darkness to be completely independent of that, so I left it off. But I remember saying to myself, this is something I can sing later; the distance helps it now."
During a Darkness Tour rehearsal in Asbury Park on May 19, 1978, a full band version (including the "Daddy taught me how to walk quiet" lyric) was rehearsed, and full band version was performed on the tour's opening night in Buffalo. The next night, Bruce reverted to the solo piano version, which was played regularly during the early part of the tour. When Tracks was released in 1998, both "The Fever" and "The Promise" were absent from the 66-song tracklist. Both were later included on 18 Tracks, in part due to fan demand. Instead of releasing the existing V3 or V5 versions, Springsteen re-recorded "The Promise" from scratch (V9) on February 9 and 12, 1999 at Boxwood Studios, Colts Neck, New Jersey, in a solo piano version that many felt paled in comparison to the 1976–78 versions. In an interview with Charlie Rose, Springsteen stated, "Basically, I went back and I listened to it and we never really got a good recording of it in my opinion. It's been a favorite song of a lot of people … It sort of was the sequel to "Thunder Road" in some fashion, it referred back to those characters. But I went back and we sort of had a very plodding, heavy-handed version of it. I couldn't quite live with it, so maybe another time."
V1 and V3 were used as the base tracks for V10, the version on The Promise outtake album, with overdubbed strings, guitars, glockenspiel, and double tracked vocals. Two lines of verse three were removed ("I followed that dream through the southwestern tracks, the dead ends and the two-bit bars / When the promise was broken I was far away from home, sleeping in the backseat of a borrowed car") and a modern string arrangement by Ken Ascher was recorded in July 2010.
