Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: Greatest Hits
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band release their Greatest Hits
Also In The News
|
The final of this year's series of the Apprentice is expected to draw an audience of several million when it is screened on BBC1 this evening. |  |
Monday, 08, Jun 2009 09:30
Sony Music, out June 8th.
In a nutshell...
The Boss and his band. Need I say more?
What's it all about?
A tracklisting that features some of Springsteen's most famous tracks, it's the natural successor to the other Greatest Hits albums he's released in the past.
This time, though, it features songs recorded exclusively with his E Street Band with whom he made his name before going solo and then back again as years went by.
The song list features classics like Born in the USA, Born to Run, Blinded by the Light, Dancing in the Dark and Glory Days, all of which can be counted among the last half-century's greatest works.
In terms of rock music, Springsteen is iconic and his work proves it. This album is evidence enough, and even if you think you don't know some of his songs - you actually do.
Who's it by
Does the lead man in the E Street Band - and indeed the band themselves - need any introduction at all? For your sake, I would hope not.
Bruce Springsteen is one of the United States' most iconic music figures and he's still going strong now.
Achieving world fame with anthems such as Born in the USA and Dancing in the Dark (which both feature here), the song list from his career reads like a list of the best stadium rock songs of the last 40 years.
This is a collection of the best work from his days with the E Street Band.
As an example...
"Glory Days, well they can pass you by. Glory Days, in a young girl's heart."
"Born in the USA/I was born in the USA."
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
It's got many of the hits you want really. The only reason not to buy it is if you own one of the other Greatest Hits albums, or the entire album collection.
There are few artists on the planet that can thrill an audience like the Boss and this collection of some of his greatest hits from a range of eras is sure to please all sorts - from die-hards and newcomers to his music.
The downside is that Springsteen already has a few albums of this sort on the shelves from years gone by, but the latest release will no doubt attract some new fans.
What the others say
"It is, remarkably, 14 years since Bruce Springsteen released his Greatest Hits collection. Yet there has never been a straight Springsteen/E-Street Band retrospective. That there are only four tracks here since the 1995 collection shows how incidental the band has become to Springsteen's story. But when they get together, especially on 200''s Magic, they remain unassailable." - Daryl Eslea, BBC
So is it any good?
The problem with going into a review as a fan is that you'll almost always be disappointed.
When you know the back catalogue of Springsteen it is all too easy to point to tracks that you would want to see on an album that is meant to showcase his best work.
The inclusion of I'm On Fire is a welcome one, as it did not make the cut in Springsteen's individual Greatest Hits album of 14 years ago.
There are still omissions though, with One Step Up, Two Hearts and No Surrender not making it - though you have to understand that the track selection is limited to his work with the band that are co-credited on this album. You won't get any of Springsteen solo stuff.
That said, the songs that do make it on are really rather good still.
From the anthemic Blinded By the Light that kicks things off, the track order works very well - finishing with the live recordings as bonus tracks that are tacked onto the end.
Getting there via Born in the USA and Born To Run is almost obligatory and you can't help but wonder if a more understated listing may have been better to show off Springsteen's work with his E Street Band.
The problem is that you then listen to the big hits again, and they never get old.
Nothing special here - but fans will still find themselves tapping their feet in the same way they did the first time they heard that famous drumbeat and distinctive guitar riff on the biggest of his big hits.
7/10
Alistair Potter