Customer Reviews

Greatest Hits

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2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

'Best of' collections are always a bit dicey for old fans of an artist. After all, we already own all the albums these hits are culled from. And in the case of Springsteen, many of his best songs never had any radio play to speak of (e.g., 'Jungleland'). What's more, by starting off with Born to Run this album misses some great songs from his first albums (e.g., 'Growing Up')

Yet I have to disagree with Madam Marie (review written 11/10/99) who questions why an existing fan would buy this CD. The reason is simple: sometimes it's fun to hear songs from throughout Springsteen's career in one sitting. It's a reminder of how his music has changed over time, of how his themes have evolved and of why he's in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And, as all these songs are familiar, it's a great CD for listening to during an hour's drive or working in the office on a Saturday or while working out. True, it lacks the depth and cohesiveness of one of his albums. And while these aren't ALL his greatest hits, they are some of them.

So, for those new to Springsteen it's a fine introduction. For those already fans, it's a nice, easy-to-take package worth having.

Bruce Springsteen is one of the hardest artists to anthologize, since his music went through so many changes over the years. He started out as a Dylan - esque folk singer, then reemerged as a pop superstar, and finally a soft rock staple (thanks to the hit "Streets Of Philadelphia" from the move "Philadelphia"). "Bruce Springsteen - Greatest Hits" is an 18 track collection of his career up to 1995, and tries to give a brief overview of each stage of his career. It succeeds to a point, since it does leave a lot out, and makes a good starting point for beggining Springsteen fans.

Unfortunately, his early years (1975-80) are represented by only three tracks. "Born To Run" is an obvious opening track, and it still remains one of the greatest rock songs ever written. I can honestly admit that I never really enjoyed "Thunder Road" but I do think "Badlands" is an excellent song. However, I was extremely disappointed that thye did not include my favorite song from this era, "Rosalita". This omission is almost unforgivable and I almost deducted an entire star for this omission.

His pop years get the most representation. This is probably my favorite Springsteen era, since it includes all of my favorites: "Hungry Heart", "Dancing In The Dark" (the song with the video with Courtney Cox) and "Glory Days" rank as my all time favorite Springsteen songs. I also really like "Brilliant Disguise". There are some other big hits that should be here (namely the top ten hits from "Born In U.S.A." left off as well as "Tunnel Of Love"), but I'll get to those later.

His later years are covered well. "Streets Of Philadelphia" is a great song, and I like "Human Touch" as well. The three new songs with the E Street Band, however, I didn't really get into, with the exception of "Secret Garden", which became a top twenty hit two years after this album came out.

As I said, this collection is far from perfect. There are many hits left off, including "Rosalita", "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", "Fade Away", "Cover Me", "I'm In Fire", "I'm Goin' Down", "War", "Tunnel Of Love", and "One Step Up". Here's my idea for "The Best Of Bruce Springsteen":

1.Born To Run

2.Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

3.Badlands

4.The River

5.Hungry Heart

6.Atlantic City

7.Fade Away

8.Dancing In The Dark

9.Cover Me

10.Born In The U.S.A.

11.I'm On Fire

12.Glory Days

13.I'm Goin' Down

14.My Hometwon

15.War

16.Brilliant Disguise

17.Tunnel Of Love

18.One Step Up

19.Human Touch

20.Better Days

21.Streets Of Philadelphia

22.Secret Garden

I do understand that some of these tracks will have to be edited to fit onto one cd, but that's fine with me, since it will be the definitve Springsteen collection. Until then, however, this collection will do just fine.

Don't waste your time with this. 1 cd is not even close to capturing Bruce's best songs. Seeing how he is on the SONY label, you are bound to see "The Essential Bruce Springsteen" 2 cd set coming out any time (unless Bruce blocks it). Here you go, Sony, I'll make it easy for you: CD 1: 1. Blinded by the Light 2. Growing Up 3. It's Hard to be a Saint in the City 4. Rosalita 5. Kitty's Back 6. 4th of July Asbury Park (Sandy) 7. Thunder Road 8. Tenth Avenue Freeze Out 9. Backstreets 10. Born to Run 11. Badlands 12. The Promised Land 13. Darkness on the Edge of Town 14. Hungry Heart 15. The River 16. Fade Away 17. Atlantic City CD2 1. Born in the USA 2. Cover Me 3. I'm On Fire 4. I'm Goin Down 5. Glory Days 6. Dancing in the Dark 7. My Hometown 8. War (live) 9. Tunnel of Love 10. Brilliant Disguise 11. One Step Up 12. Human Touch 13. 57 Channels (and nothing on)14. Better Days 15. If I Should Fall Behind 16. The Ghost of Tom Joad 17. The Rising 18. My City of Ruins

I've been a huge Bruce fan for years, but I find listening to this CD frustrating. It's obviously not meant for existing fans -- we already have most of the tracks on the original albums, and the four new ones are hardly essential (although "Murder Incorporated" captures a small taste of the old magic, probably because it's a leftover from the days of "Born in the USA"). But is this really the album to make new converts? Hardly. The selections are skimpy and obvious, and some of the omissions really hurt -- how can a collection of Bruce's "greatest" singles not include "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out," "I'm On Fire" or "Tunnel of Love"? Beyond that, any real Bruce fan knows that many of his best songs were never released as singles, such as "Jungleland," "Racing in the Street," "Reason to Believe" and "Downbound Train." It's a measure of Springsteen's greatness as an artist that a collection containing this many songs still feels as if you're only getting the thinnest layer. My advice to old fans: Don't bother. My advice to new ones: Try almost any original Bruce album instead. This one is a good addition to a bar jukebox, but not for anyone's personal collection.

Advice to new fans: It will be much more rewarding to but Springsteen's original studio albums. I am a huge Bruce Springsteen fan, and there really isn't a bad cut on this album...but any Springsteen fan cannot deny that there are many, many "hits" missing. The new material recorded for the album is great stuff, but if this is supposed to be a greatest hits album, it should have included the obvious hits "Cover Me", "I'm On Fire", "I'm Going Down", "Tunnel Of Love", "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out"...the songs we hear on the radio...and maybe even an earlier cut like "Growing Up", just for some pre-Born To Run material. Again, a fun listen, but it's a bit dissapointing considering this is likely to be the only Boss cd that a lot of people from my generation will ever own (I'm 23).

This is an album no true rock fan can be without. All the songs on this album were written by the one and only Bruce Springsteen, the most talented and original songwriter of our time. Mr. Springsteen I thank you for a great album. So go out and buy this album you won't regret it with songs like "Born To Run," "Thunder Road," "Hungry Heart," "Brilliant Disguise," "Secret Garden," "Murder Incorporated," and all the others that I would like to list, but there are just so many. Mr. Springsteen keep doing what you've been doing for so long, and thank you again.

Even though Bruce Springsteen has had tremendous success on the singles chart, he has always been an album artist first. Some of his most popular songs like "Badlands", "Thunder Road" & "Atlantic City" were never actually released as singles. You are always going to quibble with the selection of an a greatest hits album, especially with someone who has the amount of great songs that Bruce has. This album is a great introduction for fans unfamiliar with him or casual fans who may not want to invest in his entire catalog. It is a cd that should be in the collection of hardcore fans as well as it has four unreleased tracks including the amazing "Murder Inc." A single disk can never truly do Bruce justice, but within the time constraints of a single disk, this is best you can do.

This CD from Bruce Springsteen is really fun to listen to. It contains some of his greatest hits such as "Dancing In The Dark", "Born In The U.S.A" and "Glory Days" and even "Secret Garden" along with some other neat tracks, but unfortunately, I would not call this a greatest hits album...why?...because it is not complete. There are many more greatest hits by Bruce Springsteen that are not on the album. For instance, "Fade Away", "Cover Me", "I'm On Fire", "I'm Goin Down", and "Tunnel Of Love", were all top hits from Bruce Springsteen according to Billboard. Why these tracks are not on here...I don't know but they should be because most of these songs were some of his most popular ones and they aren't even on here. I do like the CD but it would be much better if there were some other hits on here.

I will leave it to others to say whether a Bruce Springsteen box set is overdue. Leaving that issue aside, I feel that this CD is just fine, if you aren't wishing it to be something more than what it is.

Of course, most of the obvious hits are there -- "Born to Run", "The River", "Hungry Heart", etc. What is the most striking inclusion on the album is "Atlantic City", a deeply depressing song from the "Nebraska" album that didn't chart high enough to really be considered a "greatest hit". However, this dour song sets up the last half of the album beautifully -- the next songs are his "Born in the USA" hits, all of which are either upbeat or, at least in the case of the "USA" title track, highly spirited.

For the final stretch of this album, it's a mix of post-"USA" hits that define a change in Springsteen's attitude. Many of the lyrics from songs such as "Better Days" and "Human Touch" show a more reflective songwriter. For those of us living the second half of our lives, this has particular significance.

The last few songs are new ones, one of which is "Secret Garden", which would be used prominently shortly thereafter in the movie "Jerry MacGuire". This isn't to put a gravestone on Bruce's career, but this album from the mid-90s might provide the essential Springsteen, if not the comprehensive Springsteen.

I bought this CD the day it came out in 1995, now five years later this is still my favorite CD by a long shot. Beofre I purchased the greatest hits album i knew only a couple of Springsteens songs primarily the "Born in the USA" stuff from the radio. I was incredibly excited to get this CD and was never disappointed. The changes in Bruce's style from the renegade hero of Born to Run, to the sad man who had lost all his dreams in the River, to the hero returning from Vietnam and becoming disillusioned with America, in Born in the USA. THis also has some of his softer love ballads, Brilliant Diguise, Human Touch and Secret Garden. Everytime I listen to this CD I find something new that I love about it. Since buying this CD I have gone on to buy every other album of Bruce, and while there are some notable exceptions (I'm on Fire and Two Hearts) the album is still the definition of Bruce Springsteen as it encompasses all that he wishes to write about.