Letter To You

Bruce Springsteen

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	Sample this album Title by Artist 0:00 / 0:00
1	One Minute You're Here	2:57	$1.29
2	Letter To You	4:55	$1.29
3	Burnin' Train	4:03	$1.29
4	Janey Needs A Shooter	6:49	$1.29
5	Last Man Standing	4:05	$1.29
6	The Power Of Prayer	3:36	$1.29
7	House Of A Thousand Guitars	4:30	$1.29
8	Rainmaker	4:56	$1.29
9	If I Was The Priest	6:50	$1.29
10	Ghosts	5:54	$1.29
11	Song For Orphans	6:13	$1.29
12	I'll See You In My Dreams	3:29	$1.29

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Product details

Date First Available : September 10, 2020
Manufacturer : Columbia
ASIN : B08HJQPS56

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A stunning return from the Western Stars to the Jersey Shore!

Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2020

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As a person who dragged friends to clubs in the 70s to hear this guy named Bruce Springsteen, and stayed with him through the nadir of Queen Of The Supermarket, and listened to him continue to play electric in Fenway Park through the rain - let me tell you this album is the real deal. Yes, the departed members of the E Street Band are missed, God love 'em - but this band plays with the decades of experience and shared memory that you only hoped to hear again one day. Now, I proclaimed Western Skies (Live) a true, mature masterpiece. I felt privileged that Bruce had shared his maturity, accumulated wisdom, and deeply personal insights with us. Not only in the music of Western Skies, but the film, On Broadway, and of course in his stunningly well-written autobiography BTR. But a mature masterpiece implies a leveling off - an apex, or at least a plateau of sorts. Letter To You is nothing of that kind. It's a youthful (though wizened) return to form. It's thrilling, its majestic, and its a helluva rock'n'roll record. Or disc. Or file. Whatever. At the age of 71, Bruce may be slowing down - but his musical soul and wellspring of creativity isn't. Mostly new songs, and some chestnuts off the shelf finally dusted off and recorded - the songs themselves re-explore classic Springsteen themes: religion, small towns, trains, rivers, thoughts of mortality.....and the need to move on. I'm grateful to have been given the opportunity to hear this great, great band play some new tunes once again. For all of us fans - Letter To You is an early holiday present and just what we need to weather these difficult times.

97 people found this helpful

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Robert L. Smith

I Can Feel the Blood Shiver in My Bones: This is a Wonderful Album

Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2020

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It seems as though, at the age of 71, Bruce Springsteen has come full circle. *Letter to You,* his twentieth studio album, faces mortality, and the finality of death, head on, and is in part a fond look backward, evoking friends and bandmates he has lost along the way. And yet, surprisingly, the album as a whole is reminiscent of some of his earliest work, recalling in particular *The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle.*

Indeed, three of the songs included here were written at the very beginning of his career, but have never been officially released until now. These tracks--"Janey Needs a Shooter," "If I Were the Priest," and the very Dylanesque "Song For Orphans," display the elaborate lyrical density common to the Boss's classic early albums, but the restrained majesty of the accompaniment provided by the E Street Band allows them to sit easily alongside the stripped-down directness of the more recent compositions, and the set as a whole is surprisingly satisfying and cohesive.

Along with a handful of peers like Bob Dylan and Paul Simon, Mr. Springsteen is among the very few songwriters who have a legitimate claim to being recognized as serious poets, and his lyrical brilliance is on full display here. "I feel the blood shiver in my bones," he declares in the magnificent "Ghosts," and "shiver" is precisely the right verb, just as the "soft, infested summer" described in an early song was perfectly right 45 years ago. And in the new song "House of a Thousand Guitars," the line about "churches and jails" is surely intended as a nod to "Jungleland."

Perhaps the most poignant offering here is the heartbreaking "Last Man Standing," a tribute to Springsteen's late '60s Asbury Park bar band the Castilles, of which he is now the only surviving member. Like nearly every song here, it achieves a potent combination of wistful tenderness and sheer unbridled power which is impossible to resist.

Bruce Springsteen is indeed still standing, and we can hope that he still has much more music to share with us in coming years. For the moment, however, *Letter to You* is a wise and moving letter to us all, and a fitting coda to a legendary career. Put it on, crank it up, and be grateful.

47 people found this helpful

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Concert Man

Bruce And E. Street Band Deliver Again...

Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2020

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I literally have goosebumps listening to this new album with the E. Street Band.
It is fabulous. Recorded over a five day period, no overdubbing and fancy tricks. This is the band, live, in the studio, and I think this makes the music stand out.

This album reminds me of the early days...The River, Darkness, Born to Run....

Powerful performances by the band, and Bruce continues to boggle the mind at his quality songwriting. He nails it here.

And to top it off, it is one of the best sounding albums of his I've heard in a long time.

Highly recommended....

I hope we get thru this pandemic so we can see this album toured, which Bruce very much wants to do with the band.

BTW, this is the double LP I'm recommending, but it doesn't matter what format you chose, it is a superb album.

Bravo, Boss!!

34 people found this helpful

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\m/arcolino

Auch mit 71 Jahren ist "THE BOSS" kein bisschen müde!

Reviewed in Germany on October 23, 2020

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BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - "Letter to you" (2020)

Lange Jahre war es ja ziemlich still um BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, zumindest was Studioalben betraf, bis er dann letztes Jahr mit "Western Stars" wieder von sich hören ließ. Umso erstaunlicher finde ich, dass er heuer, nur ein Jahr später, schon mit dem nächsten Album rauskommt. Mit seinen 71 Lenzen scheint er noch kein bisschen müde zu sein, auch die Ideen für neue Songs scheinen ihm nicht auszugehen.

"Letter to you" ist das 20. (!) Studioalbum vom "BOSS", ein für ihn typisches Album, dennoch ein ganz besonderes. Musikalisch nicht, da dürften sich SPRINGSTEEN-Fans sofort "zuhause" fühlen, besonders ist es aufgrund seiner Entstehungsgeschichte. SPRINGSTEEN hat sich auf sein Erfolgsalbum "Born in the USA" besonnen, wo er alle Lieder mit seiner E-STREET BAND live bei sich zuhause aufgenommen hat. Dieses Konzept hat er auch für seine neueste Scheibe übernommen, geschadet hat es schon mal nicht. Angeblich wurde das Album in nur 5 Tagen eingespielt, was wohl ein Zeichen dafür ist, dass die Jungs immer noch harmonieren und perfekt aufeinander abgestimmt sind.

Dass dieses Album in fast "familiärer Atmosphäre" aufgenommen wurde, hört man schon ein bisschen raus, denn ich finde, dass es sehr aufgeräumt und entspannt klingt. Das ist nicht die Musik von einem alten Mann der schon alles erreicht hat, das hört sich frisch, dynamisch und durchaus auch leidenschaftlich an.
Wie immer singt der BOSS von Gefühlen und "seinem" Amerika, er weckt bei seinen amerikanischen Fans Emotionen, er macht in erster Linie Musik für seine Landsleute. Das ist auch immer etwas Politisches dabei, manchmal sehr versteckt und unterschwellig, doch wenn man genau hinhört, wie etwa in "House of a thousand Guitars", entdeckt man die Spitzen. Dort singt er "The criminal Clown has stolen the Throne", wer damit gemeint ist, dürfte wohl klar sein. In "Rainmaker" singt er von einer Art "Rattenfänger", dem die Menschen auf den Leim gehen.

Schon nach den ersten Tönen begreift man warum der "alte Mann" immer noch Stadien füllt und es in seine Konzerte auch Großväter mit ihren Enkeln zieht. Seine Musik ist irgendwie zeitlos, das ist guter und klassischer Rock, den man schon vor 40 Jahren gehört hat und vermutlich auch noch in 40 Jahren hören wird. Seine Songs sind mitreißend, sie sind eingängig und sie haben dieses Schlichte, das man einfach nicht auf Knopfdruck hinbekommt. SPRINGSTEEN schafft es, dass sich seine Musik sehr "hemdsärmelig", aber nie belanglos anhört. Ich finde, dass man das im Blut haben muss, das kann man nicht lernen.

Er weiß auch ganz genau was seine Fans hören möchten, genau das präsentiert er ihnen auch auf "Letter to you" wieder, im Prinzip zum 20. Mal. Das ist jetzt nicht böse gemeint, die Konstanz seiner Musik wird von seinen Fans geliebt, seinen Kritikern schwillt dagegen regelmäßig der Kamm.
Fakt ist, die Musik ist nie langweilig, die gefühlvollen und manchmal sehr melancholischen Nummern wechseln sich mit dynamischem BOSS-Rock ab, da ist für jeden was dabei.

Wer den ruhigen BOSS mag, der dürfte beim für einen Opener ungewöhnlichen "One Minute you're here" und dem nostalgischen "Song for Orphans" weiche Knie bekommen, das sind richtig starke Nummern, die sofort hängen bleiben. Bei mir hat das Album jetzt schon einige Runden hinter sich und je öfter ich die Songs höre, desto besser gefallen sie mir.

Wer die gemütlich rockenden Songs bevorzugt, der ist beim Titelsong "Letter to you", "Last man Standing" und dem sehr nachdenklichen "House of a thousand Guitars" bestens aufgehoben. Auch "Rainmaker", mit seinem Western-Flair, gehört zu dieser Art Nummern, beginnt auch eher balladesk, wird dann aber immer kraftvoller, fast schon aggressiv. Besonders gut gefällt mir, dass die Songs nicht aufgemotzt wirken, das ist auf den Punkt gemacht und passt.

Richtig flott gehen "Burnin'Train" und "Ghosts" ab, die Nummern reißen einen auf Anhieb mit, da ist Schmackes dahinter, die finde ich bärenstark ... ganz tolle Songs. Nicht zu vergessen das abschließende "I'll see you in my Dreams", das brutale Ohrwurmqualitäten hat ... einmal gehört ... nie mehr vergessen! ;-)

Die genannten Songs wären dann auch meine Anspieltipps, obwohl ich sagen muss, dass es keinen einzigen gibt, der hinten runter fällt. Das sind eigentlich eine Menge Anspieltipps, was aber unterstreicht, wie hoch die Qualität der Songs insgesamt ist. Das komplette Album bewegt sich auf einem extrem hohen Level, ich kann mir nicht vorstellen, dass es SPRINGSTEEN-Fans geben wird, die davon enttäuscht sein werden.

Mit "Song for Orphans", "Janey Needs a Shooter" und "If I was the Priest" hat er auch drei Songs aus den 70ern ausgegraben, die es bislang noch nicht auf ein Studioalbum geschafft haben. "Janey Needs a Shooter" werden eventuell einige noch von WARREN ZEVON kennen, der den Song damals von SPRINGSTEEN übernommen hat.
Also, da ist auch ganz viel Nostalgie dabei und natürlich ist das auch ein Indiz dafür, dass SPRINGSTEEN-Songs auch nach Jahrzehnten noch funktionieren und nicht altbacken werden. ;-)

Mein Fazit: "Letter to you" ist ein typisches Album von BRUCE "THE BOSS" SPRINGSTEEN, bei dem es alles zu hören gibt, was seine Musik schon immer ausgemacht hat. Kraftvolle und dynamische Songs wechseln sich mit ruhigen, gemächlichen Rockern und gefühlvollen, manchmal melancholischen Balladen ab. Die Songs sind gewohnt "rustikal", Schnickschnack und Firlefanz sind ihm fern, sowas nenne ich gute und zeitlose Rockmusik, die kann man immer hören.

80 people found this helpful

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Mandrek Larl

Something for everybody with the Boss's return to well worn but familiar territory …

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 24, 2020

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When Bruce Springsteen's "Western Stars" was released I was full of praise, but on reflection I think much of that was due to the surprise at the Boss's change of direction, and over the last year I haven't replayed "Western Stars" as much as I had anticipated I would. Instead I've found myself heading back into the telecaster swinging sound of the Boss and the E Street gang, but that's probably because in these strange times I need something to cheer me up.

So what about "Letter To You", does that cheer me up? Well the gang's all here; the boys and girl of the E Street Band, Roy, Nils, Patti, Garry, Stevie, Max, Charlie and Jake are back on board and ready to rock. And that's good because "Letter To You" was, we're told, recorded live but this being 2020 "live" doesn't mean with an audience it just means they played simultaneously in the same room [with nine members of the band including the Boss they obviously weren't subject to the rule of six!]. But that also means that there's nothing new here, this is a return to the safe familiar sound of so many of the Boss's albums and of course it's full of songs of blue collar struggle, of hopes dashed and fears realised; this time though there's a thread of Springsteen's own mortality that runs through the tracks that has led some reviews to describe this as a concept album [!]. Springsteen however despite his seventy plus years remains in fine voice as he works through a range of styles from "solo" reflective songs to stadia rocking bombasts and all points in between, and as ever the E Street Band add their decoration to give this set of songs that distinctive Bruce Springsteen sound.

Opener "One Minute You're Here" with its theme of loss and it's black train metaphor starts as a mournful solo guitar-picking ballad that picks up where "Western Stars" left off, and then gently evolves with muted piano, organ, drums, and an echo on Springsteen's gruff vocals, it's OK but not how I wanted this album to open. But then the gang kicks into gear with the title track "Letter To You", a stop/start rocker ballad, this is the Boss doing what the Boss does best. It's so very Springsteen it wouldn't have been out of place on many of his earlier albums, but with its theme of loss it would have slotted in particularly well on "Tunnel of Love".

"Burnin' Train" is a punky rocker with clashing guitar chords, pounding drums and a lengthy Big Country style swirling guitar solo, it's good but doesn't really go anywhere and frankly it sounds a bit under-developed [perhaps this is the disadvantage of the "live recording process"]. "Janey Needs A Shooter" is another rocker and one of three songs here that apparently failed to make the cut for any of Springsteen's early albums, including "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" or "The River" where it would have fitted in well with its story line, but this resurrection is timely and you can hear the guitar and organ in particular really playing off the vocals.

"Last Man Standing" is a reference to the loss of the other members of Springsteen's first band the Castiles leaving Springsteen now as the "last man standing". It swings but it's not a rocker, and with its changes of tempo it's a bit too Springsteen by numbers and could have come from the "Magic" or Working On A Dream" albums. Similarly "The Power Of Prayer" is nothing special, even Springsteen's voice has lost its raw edge on this track but Jake Clemons is given an extended blow on the outro and its good to hear the E Street sax loud and clear.

For a song entitled "House Of A Thousand Guitars" [this is not a cover of Willie Nile's "House Of A Thousand Guitars"] opening with a solo piano seems a bit of an oxymoron, but it's not long before the rest of the band kicks in and turn this into a good time swing-along, singalong that will make a good live number [that's the type of live where there's an audience].

There are no prizes for guessing the identity of the cheating, lying, conman "Rainmaker" and while I applaud the sentiment the song sounds way more John Mellencamp than Bruce Springsteen and it doesn't fit well with the rest of the album, at least not at this point. Unlike "If I Was The Priest", the second old song that has been resurrected and is a throwback to the sound of "The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle".

Springsteen returns to the loss of former bandmates in "Ghosts", but this time he rocks and how; this is probably my favourite track, it's a six minute bombast that reminds me of "We Take Care Of Our Own"; I find my hands and feet keeping time with Weinberg's and you just know when that cymbal is going to crash, this is the essence of the E-Street Band's DNA and oh how I want to sing this with the faithful at Wembley [or any other stadium].

For "Song For Orphans" Springsteen picks up the harmonica and I'm transported back to the story songs of the "Born To Run" album which is perhaps not to be unexpected as this is the third of the old, but previously unused songs from the '70s; that said there is something that's very familiar, even very Dylan-esque about this song. And then there's the closer "I'll See You In My Dreams" which I had expected to book-end the album alongside "One Minute You're Here" but this is more up tempo and has the band helping out but it's not the song that I would have chosen to close the album with [that would have been "One Minute You're Here"].

So a return to safe and familiar territory, or perhaps territories as "Letter To You" has something for everybody, and that's both this albums crowning glory and its failing. I like most of it, it has the familiarity and comfort of an old pair of shoes, but like an old pair of shoes it's worn in places and that why it's only four stars.

38 people found this helpful

Musicfan

A 'quieter' Springsteen with the E Street band. It gets better with each listen.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 23, 2020

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I look forward to any new release by Springsteen with anticipation and this one has been on repeat play since it arrived. It is very different sounding to his last album (Western Stars) and back to his more recognised sound with the E Street Band. It starts relatively quietly and more subdued than I expected before it really kicks off. It is an album with songs that are often reflective which taking into account his age and his career is to be expected. The band plays with effortless quality without being as 'aggressive' or as rocking as on some past albums. Some great songs but no real 'stadium' or 'heavy' rockers or anthems on this one. A quieter more Americana type rock album than some of his past albums. Its good. Nothing to skip over. If you are a fan of this artist, my guess is that you will enjoy it without you thinking it is his best. It isn't in my view but it is good and well worth a listen. It has many of the sounds of his earlier albums. It is an album that grows with each listen which for me is the sign of a good album. I like it.

26 people found this helpful

old buckskin jacket

Bruce Top, Amazon flop!

Reviewed in Germany on October 23, 2020

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Diese Bewertung betrifft nicht das Album - Unglaublich grossartiges Album vom Bruce - das beste seit langem! Aber..

- auch eine unglaubliche Frechheit von Amazon die nicht mehr gewillt sind die Mp3‘s bzw. den Autorip dem Vinyl-Kunden zur Verfügung zu stellen. Darüber hinaus stellt sich der Kundenservice auf dieses Problem angesprochen, einfach dumm. Nachdem man fast 30 € für die Schallplatte hingeblättert hat, wird die digitale Version nicht mehr zur Verfügung gestellt.
Darauf angesprochen der Kundenservice: „es gibt keine digitale Version oder Mp3‘s zu diesem Album!“ Nachdem ich dies widerlegt habe (die Mp3s kann man sich für extra Kohle natürlich auch auf Amazon kaufen) die nächste Ausrede: es gibt kein autorip für dieses Album. Ebenfalls eine Falschinformation: Es gibt ein Autorip zu diesem Album, aber nur für amerikanische Kunden, beim europäischen Markt möchte man zusätzlich kassieren.
Mehrmals wurde ich mit fadenscheinigen Ausreden abgewimmelt und sie meinten dass dieses Album halt eine Ausnahme ist und das diese Problem für sie neu ist.
Nach etwas recherchieren in diversen Foren wurde klar: Amazon.de bietet Autorip nicht mehr an (offensichtlich um durch den Verkauf von Mp3s extra Geld zu machen und es gab schon zahlreiche Beschwerden von den Kunden. Der Amazon Kundenservice tut so als wäre das Problem neu. Meiner Meinung eine ganz miese Masche und mit solch fadenscheinigen Ausreden eine Verasche und Fehlinformation an den Kunden. Es gibt für mich somit keinen Grund mehr Tonträger auf Amazon zu kaufen.

-) der zweite Grund der schlechten Bewertung: Sony bringt das Album auf zwei Langspielplatten heraus, wobei die zweite Seite der zweiten Platte kein Tonträger mehr ist, sondern einfach lieblos flach geschliffen wurde. Zuerst dachte ich an einen Produktionsfehler (siehe Bild). Schaut einfach grauenhaft aus. Wie gesagt, wenn man als Vinylplattenliebhaber extra viel Geld für die Wirtschaft ausgibt und dann so behandelt wird, überlegt man es sich auch irgendwann. Für das Geld hätte Sony diesen Kunden auch gerne eine Bonustrack zur Verfügung stellen können, da diese Kunden meistens eh gegenüber den Kunden der Cd Versionen benachteiligt werden. Aber so eine Miese Plattenverarbeitung habe ich echt noch nie gesehen.
Ein Downloadcode war ebenfalls nicht dabei. Kapitalismus erreicht gerade eine neue Stufe. Was mich betrifft geht dies in meinem Fall nach hinten los!

Aber es muss sich jeder selbst eine Meinung machen.

Das Album vom Bruce ist auf jeden Fall großartig, unbedingt zulegen.
DAS ENTSCHÄDIGT FÜR ALLES!!!

Vielleicht nicht unbedingt bei Amazon, denen ich aufgrund des bisherigen Service ein Jahrzehnt lang die Treue gehalten habe.

39 people found this helpful

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Mr. A. W. Riggs

At 71 what can we expect ?

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 24, 2020

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Bruce and the Band have made some of the finest records of the last 45 years, time will tell how this fares. Starting off with the reflective 'One Minute You're Here' which is a sort of 'Secret Garden' but lacks the impact of that classic. One of the weakest songs is the title song 'Letter To You' - Bruce usually saves his best songs for the title track as The River. It's a fine record but lacks those 3-4 killer songs. By 'Rainmaker' we are into vintage Bruce.- probably the best song here. The album closes with the classic 'I'll See You In My Dreams'.
Bearing in mind this was recorded pre-Covid we are lucky to have new music from Bruce but having set the bar so high this is a bit of a let down.

13 people found this helpful

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