Customer Reviews

On the Line

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Twenty years after his first chart success with party hits like "Quarter to Three" and "Back to New Orleans" Gary US Bonds recorded two albums under the patronage of Bruce Springsteen. Dedication (1981) confirmed that Bonds' truly great voice was as good as ever. Well worth looking out for, with a stunning cover of Lennon/McCartney's "It's only Love" and Springsteen's "This Little Girl"
On The Line (1982), a near perfect set, is a classic rock album.
Largely written and produced by Springsteen and Steve van Zandt, with most of the E-streeters playing along with trademark licks from Clemons, Bittan and Federici.
Standout tracks "Club Soul City", "All I Need " both slower tracks that showcase the impeccable vocals from Bonds and , "Love's On The Line" (classic Springsteen with the boss wailing b.v.'s in the chorus), and my personal favourite Miami Steve's slow rocker "Last Time" which closes the set. Each of the four other Springsteen compositions is top shelf. But then this the perfect voice to deliver Springsteen songs.
Bonds own songs, "Bring Her Back" and "Turn The Music Down" are reminiscent of the party hits he started his career with and are overshadowed by the rest of the set. An absolute must for any Springsteen fan.

This is a great album for driving in the car and just for fun. Hold On (To What You Got) and Out of Work are #1 for singing along and even dancing around while doing chores. Turn the Music Down is just plain fun. Angelyne is a definite Bruce/Little Steven tune. If you like them, you'll like this album. If you are a Gary U.S. Bonds fan from way back, you won't be disappointed. Too bad it seems to be out of print.

So Great an album is "On the Line", from Gary US Bonds ! close your eyes and blindly follow on this line ! Not only because the Boss wrote many titles of this excellent album to my point of view but because this artist of the New Jersey's stage, Gary US Bonds, - is so enthusiastic and ful of energy ! listen trustfully to all those folks' music - Bruce Springsteen, Southside Johnny Lyons, Gary US Bonds, Miami Steve and all undertaking members of the E. Street Nation -, you won't be disappointed i warrant you ! Thanks to Discman-ny, seller on Amazon (five stars) for offering us such a wide range of so-hard-to-find-in french-stores-audio-cd and to all the Amazon team !

The title is not meant to take anything away from Gary U.S. Bonds, because he is a great vocalist and handles these songs at least as well as Bruce would. But this album, due to Bruce's writing, vocals, and co-production (along with Little Steven), give it the feel of an early-Eighties, pre-Born In The USA Springsteen recording. Then again, Springsteen's live shows, and some of his studio recordings, owed more than a little to Bonds' sound from the early-Sixties. Some great originals are here (Club Soul City, Love's On The Line) as well as a great cover of the Boxtops' Soul Deep. I'm a Bruce fan and I listen to this one a lot more than some of his own releases. U.S. Bonds provides interesting liner notes on this excellent Razor & Tie reissue. Note: Columbia supposedly made Bruce remove his vocals from the album, but it sure sounds like he's still on several tracks.