Customer Reviews

Born to Run-30th Anniversary Edition

5 star:		(112)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

Born To Run is the album that took Bruce Springsteen from a struggling recording artist who was almost dropped by his label to simultaneous covers of Time & Newsweek. All the hype surrounding the album is justified as it is a brilliant collection of songs. From the opening harmonica on "Thunder Road" to the closing of the mini-opera "Jungleland", Bruce tells us about Wendy, Terry, Mary, The Magic Rat & Barefoot girl and we hear their stories. Most of the songs deal with escaping one's dull and dreary life for something better. The means of escape are the highways and backstreets. "Born To Run" is an all time classic and I get chills up my spine every time I hear the opening riffs. "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" tells of the origins of the E Street Band. "Meeting Across The River" is underrated and when Bruce played it on his recent tour, it got huge applauses. The production has a big sound to it. On some songs it sounds like a hundred instruments are playing. Bruce wanted a Phil Spector Wall of Sound feel and the album achieves that goal. Jon Landau, his future manager, said after seeing Bruce in concert in 1974 that "he just saw the future of rock 'n' roll". Born To Run helped fulfill that prophecy. Finally, Sony offers a remastered version of the album which one of first to be released on cd in the late 80's. The sound quality is superb and the big sound of the album comes through beautifully. It would have been enough to just have a remastered cd, but this set ups the ante with two DVDs. The first is a full concert from the Hammersmith Odeon in London and it shows a skinny, bearded Boss showing off why his live shows from that era are legendary. The second DVD is a documentary detailing the making of the album and it contains all the key players including Ernest "Boom" Carter who drummed on the title track as well as an integral part of the early E Street Band, keyboardist David Sancious. On top of all that, you get a great booklet that contains unreleased photos. It would be great if Sony takes this approach with other albums in Mr. Springsteen's catalog as this treatment is long overdue for an artist of his stature.

First, a technical issue:

Another reviewer was incorrect. This release DOES NOT contain the Sony DRM/rootkit software. Don't take my word for it, look at Sony's official list:

Amazon doesn't like URL's but you can Google "Sony DRM albums" and find many resources...icluding Sony's own...that list the offending albums. This one is not one of them.

Now:

I am fortunate enough to have grown up on the Jersey shore, and knew who Bruce Springsteen was before 1975. I've followed his growth since then, and have seen him in a number of his tours over the year. I'm an unabashed, unapologetic fan, and he is the only artist of whom I own every title in their discography.

So do this: watch the "Making of Born to Run" DVD first, and then listen to BTR again. In the car --where this album was meant to be played-- or by yourself. The eight songs on this album are damned near each one a home run. Collectively they are an amazing piece of American music making that have stood the test of time.

Then watch the Hammersmith concert video. And if you've been a fan for as long as I have, you'll certainly wonder where the last 30 years when and why Bruce and the band look so old:-)

Just a fine piece of Springsteen and E Street history. You won't be sorry.

If you like Bruce then you already have this, know what it means and understand. If you're thinking about getting this then don't think twice it's alright. If you are not interested then how comes you've read this much already!? The album easily stands the test of time. It is quite simply the essence of what rock'n'roll music is all about. The passion, innocence and power of the songs still have an enormous effect on me 30 years later. I had tears in my eyes by the end of Thunder Road and was walking on air at the end of Jungleland. In 1975 rock music had lost it's spark and passion. It was treading water. What most people don't understand is that this album woke the whole industry and record buying public up. The hype that followed was incredible but not Springsteen's doing. The fact that 30 years later he is still such a major important artist says everything about his character and talent. The Hammersmith show? I WAS THERE! It changed my life. I had never understood how powerful music could be. I was 21. Had seen the Beatles at the same venue! But this was unbelievable stuff. Nobody in those days moved around the stage like he did, orchestrated a band like he did and wrote the songs he was writing. The interaction between band members was fantastic and noone else had it. To be able to see the show 30 years later means so much. I ask any fan of rock music to buy this set. If you're not sure what to expect then great. You will be amazed. I haven't even had time to watch the Wings For Wheels doc. That's for tonight. This is what it is all about. 5 stars is nowhere near enough!

I'll assume that you already know the music. The remix provided no great revelation (did anyone ever say, "I like Born to Run, but if it were mixed better it might really be something special"?) However, this entire set may be seen as an opportunity to embrace the work in a new light, or at least, at a new time in your life. And it turns out that the songs you know by heart are truly great. We learn from the "Wings for Wheels" video that Bruce was looking to make sweeping, cinematic songs, and of course he succeeded in spades; the piano introductions that mark most of these songs serve to set the mood in a very cinematic, dramatic way. "Thunder Road" is an invocation, and thus it appears first on the record; the opening is, as Bruce said on the recent Behind the Music, an invitation. And we go along for the ride, and it is spectacular. Think of the way "Jungleland" opens, the violin and piano; the scene perfectly set.

"Tenth Avenue Freeze Out," "Night" "Backstreets" and "She's the One" are stone cold classics that still raise the hair on your arms when he plays them live, and will when you listen again here; "Meeting Across the River" ages far better than we might have thought. "Born to Run" is one of the 10 greatest rock'n'roll songs ever written. For me, though, the one song that benefits most from a fresh listen is "Jungleland." Sweeping in its grandeur, over 9 minutes long, and the culmination of the story songwriting Bruce began on his first two albums. The vocalizing he does after the final, whispered "Tonight... in... jungle... land..." may be one of the greatest rock vocal performances ever. He says it all in those closing moments, without saying a thing.

Watch the documentary first; it provides an informative window into the creative process, and places the Born to Run record in historical context. Then listen to the album. Then play the concert DVD. At the time, this was thought to have been a disappointing performance by the E Street Band, but the proof is there on the tapes. This is an opportunity to see one of the great live rock'n'roll bands of all time, unchallenged, at THE quintessential time in their evolution. It is the first tour with the classic Born to Run line-up: Max Weinberg and Roy Bittan actually joined the band during the recording sessions, as did Miami Steve, who isn't even on the album. This is Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band as they live in your mind's eye: skinny, scraggly, unkempt; big hats, bonded together with a whole lot to prove, and intent on proving it (all night) at any cost. The sheer thrill of youth and rock'n'roll and "making it" has maybe never been captured so succintly before. These are moments you can never recreate; maybe these musicians are more skilled now, but they will never be 25 years old with everything on the line again. The hair on your arms WILL stand up when you watch this concert, and you will experience a rock'n'roll epiphany, a little taste of old time religion and redemption delivered with piano, glockenspiel, Fender telecaster and brassy sax.

I, like others, caught the Hammersmith show on PBS.

While I was born and raised in NJ, as a black man, Bruce just was not on the radar for me, ya know? I grew up on hip-hop and R&B. I respected Bruce, but never really GOT IT.

Hokay.....I get it! Twentysomething Bruce and the E-Street Band, that is what I needed to see.

WHAT A SHOW! I watched it three times this holiday season.

Great musicians, great songs, great venue. Wow.

If you are a fan of live music and musicianship, you gotta see this DVD. One of THEE live rock and roll concerts of all time, right here.

A great album sounds better and Springsteen fans will be experiencing nirvana (no, not the band silly--the other nirvana)with the concert DVD. The cinemascope production makes this album sound bigger, bolder and with better depth than before.

The CD remaster sounds terrific. The booming production makes the previous CD sound tinny by comparison and captures the raw power of the original vinyl release. There aren't any extra tracks or outtakes and that's a pity because you know there have to be some around somewhere. By the way, Amazon refers to this as the "first retooling" of any Springsteen album. That's not quite true--"Born to Run" received a 20 bit remaster limited edition release about a decade ago. That remaster sounded very good but this new version has better clarity and depth.

The Hammersmith/Odeon Concert from 1975 is the crown jewel here for fans. This concert which hasn't been available on DVD before looks quite good with solid sound as well. Springsteen performs most of "Born to Run" as well as classics such as "It's Hard to Be A Saint in the City" and "Spirit in the Night". It's an entire vintage concert with the Boss and his band in top form.

The "making of" DVD covers everything from the pressure that Springsteen was working under to produce a hit album for Columbia Records to working with the band in the studio to achieve the sound he wanted for the album. Finally the "Hype" of Springsteen that threatened to overtake the value of the album and the artist is also discussed. Featuring vintage footage and new interviews, it's a marvelous glimpse into the creation of one of the top ten albums of all time. There are also three performances from 1973 recorded in Los Angeles-"Spirit in the Night" "Wild Billy's Circus Story" and "Thundercrack".

The whole package comes in a large cardboard box with a cardboard replica of the original vinyl packaging for "Born to Run" and cardboard holders for the DVDs. The CD features a label that mimics the Columbia label for the original "Born to Run" and looks like vinyl on both the top and bottom (it's an unusal looking CD in that it's all black except for the label area). I do agree that these probably should have been released in something a bit sturdier but that's pretty minor and easy to fix--go out and buy some jewelboxes. Finally, there's a booklet with numerous rare and previously unreleased photos of Springsteen and the band. A brief essay from Springsteen's book "Songs" is included. The 1975 concert also has a couple of paragraphs written by Springsteen about the experience of seeing and performing in London for the first time.

30 years later it's still a great album given a deluxe presentation by Columbia. A great Christmas package for the Springsteen fan in your family whether they be middle aged or teenagers.

Those who buy this set hoping to obtain a remastered diamond, will find something similar to what they know. The engineers have added some definition to the pieces, skimmed some strident noise off the top and cleaned up the bass. But over all, it's the same album. An undistinguished remastering job.

The making-of CD is fascinating and feature-length. It's probably worth the price of admission alone.

outer The package design is imaginative but odd. Sure, the box is sturdy, but shouldn't this event have merit some modified jewel cases instead of cardboard envelopes? Couldn't the booklet have actually included some essays instead of some of the endless rock-archival photos that tell us very little? Couldn't the producers have added some outtakes to the album disk, which runs under half its potential length?

The original BTR album is an icon, and this aniversary album deserved a more arresting remastering job.

Without a doubt, the highlight is the DVD of the 1975 show in London. "Born to Run," the album, had put him on the cover of "Time" and "Newsweek" the same week in October, 1975, one of the very few times that has happened for a non-news story.

The publicity and hype generated by Columbia records was so overwhelming that there was a backlash: "Nobody can be that good."

So here we see his first show ever in the UK, playing to an audience of professional critics and amateur skeptics, people thinking, "hey, 'Rock and Roll Future,' this is the land of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, The Who - who do you think you're kidding. No unknown kid from America deserves 'Time' and 'Newsweek.'"

The show begins in almost total darkness, a piano softly plays, then harmonica, and a soft spotlight lights the kid from New Jersey who sings "Thunder Road," accompanied by only piano. An unknown song at the time, "Thunder Road" has become a Springsteen classic. IMHO, especially given the expectations, it is a perfect understated opening.

The DVD has the entire show, including everything from the hard rock of "She's the One," and "Born to Run," the song, to a much slowed down version of "For You," an underated sleeper on his first album, "Greeting From Asbuty park, NJ." Bruce accompanies himself on the piano and I swear, this version of "For You" is so beautiful it could be the scruffy New Jersey kid channeling god.

Any skeptic who walked out of this show thinking Springsteen was merely hype has no ears, no taste, or was xenophobic. The show gives more than a big hint that this Springsteen guy is for real, as a songwriter and performer, and that "Born to Run," especially, is an extraodinary album. There are only eight songs, but none are fill. Repeated listenings of the four corners of the album (before CDs) "Backstreets," "Jungleland," Thunder Road," and the title song are so good they become... well, addictive, works of genius, and lead to still more listening. "Tenth Avenue Freeze Out," "Night," and especially "She's the One" could each be the centerpiece of almost any other album. Even the whispered "Meeting Across the River," fits and helps the album become a coherent whole. The songs taken together are more than the sum of the parts.

As a footnote I'll offer the opinion that Bruce only wrote one other album that is as good as "Born to Run" and that is his next one, "Darkness on the Edge of Town." Everything he has released is good; a good bit of it is great, but I don't think anything else matches "Born To Run" or "Darkness." I don't know if two other back to back albums this good have ever been released.

The DVD of the show gives us a big early peek at the guy who would develop into rock's greatest performer. By 1985 he would be the biggest rock star in the world, selling out multiple nights at football stadiums.

The remastered CD is nothing special to my ears. Perhaps an audiophile could hear improvement. The DVD, "The Making of 'Born to Run,'" is interesting, but will probably appeal mainly to fans.

However the DVD of the 1975 London show ought to appeal to anyone who likes Bruce, or rock & roll, or showmanship, or history. Its a treat.

The important thing about this disc set is the Hammersmith Odeon Concert DVD. It was the first concert outside the US for Bruce and the band and you call feel the nervous energy when they enter the stage. They rise to the occasion. A great peformance. Brilliant playing by all bandmembers. Crystal clear sound. Excellent selection of songs. For some reason the people that were there that night spread the word that it was an off night for Bruce. This film proves them wrong. The documentary is ok. The remastered Born To Run album sounds better than the original, so I guess the remastering is done properly.

Where to begin?

the album stands in its own right as the pure experience of music it was and it is now still. Really, it's hard to believe this is the same guy wearing bandanas and looking all pumped up ten years later.

The documentary is interesting; no real surprises, other than learning most of the songs were composed on piano.

Then the Hammersmith concert! This is incredible live experience and a testament to the singer's ability to change phrasing, to communicate the love for the music always sounding fresh: such passion for the music is not commony found I suppose: even Bruce himself falls short now in comparison.

(songs: Thunder Road; Spirit in the night; I'ts hard to be a saint in the city; Kitty's back; Backstreets, etc...)