Blogness on the Edge of Town

It’s Independence Day

Posted on July 4, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under MP3, Miscellaneous | Leave a Comment

“Independence Day,” Dallas, April 13, 2008

A safe and happy Fourth of July to all! And if you still want to hear Bruce live from Göteborg, Sweden, it’s probably not too late to order Sirius.

Meanwhile, make sure to check out Barbara/Layla’s “4th of July Wishes (Springsteen style …)”

Virtual album!

Posted on July 3, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under Concerts, Recordings | 4 Comments

I can still fondly remember finding the Chimes of Freedom EP next to the cash register at Strawberries Records in Harvard Square back in 1988 — this was before you could find out about such things on the Internet, so I had no idea it was coming out. It was originally released in “Mini Disc” format with a clear plastic case — I still have it, and I have to say that the little thing is just so darn cute.

Well, Bruce is going down the EP route again, but no little disc this time — it’s a digital-only download featuring “highlights” of the Magic tour, due on Amazon and iTunes July 15, according to Backstreets. Though it’s actually more like the best of the guest appearances … What, no Grushecky?

Here’s the track listing, as listed on Amazon.com:

“Always a Friend” with Alejandro Escovedo (April 14, Houston)
“The Ghost of Tom Joad” with Tom Morello (April 7, Anaheim)
“Turn! Turn! Turn!” with Roger McGuinn (April 23, Orlando)
4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)” with Danny Federici (March 20, Indianapolis)

I would have liked to see “Keep the Car Running” with Arcade Fire on there, but still, it’s a nice surprise. Could an actual CD (or double disc) full of actual highlights be coming further on up the road? Stay tuned …

P.S.: I forget to mention the most important part: All proceeds will benefit The Danny Federici Melanoma Fund.

Springsteen. Bruce Springsteen.

Posted on July 3, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under Huh? | 2 Comments

This just in: Pierce Brosnan wants to star in a musical about Bruce Springsteen! No, really.

Pierce told BANG Showbiz: “I’d love to see a musical of Springsteen songs. His songs have got such imagery and poetry. I would like to star in it - I’d have a crack at it. I really enjoyed doing ‘Mamma Mia!’ so why not? In for a penny, in for a pound!”

I would like to take this opportunity to state unequivocally: I would go see that musical.

Springsteen Cover of the Week: Fourth of July, Asbury Park Edition

Posted on July 2, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under MP3 | 1 Comment

The Hollies are probably best known (here in the U.S., at any rate) for their 1966 song “Bus Stop,” which may have been the last top 10 hit to feature an umbrella until the ubiquitous 2007 song of that title by Rihanna. (Described by Bruce Springsteen, you may recall, as a song he “can enjoy tremendously.” No word on his feelings about “Bus Stop,” but it’s not on his iPod.)

Anyway, say what you want about The Hollies — who famously drove Graham Nash out of the group by becoming too psychedelic (oops) — they got on the Springsteen train early, covering “Fourth of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)” way back in 1975. And darn it if it isn’t pretty good. No, really.

So in honor of the Fourth of July, and of course the passing of Madam Marie, here is The Hollies’ version of that classic — and as an added bonus, a repeat of the more recent version by folkie Richard Shindell. And wherever you are this July 4, Danny Federici, I hope the fireworks are hailin’ over Little Eden.

“4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy),” The Hollies

“4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy),” Richard Shindell

R.I.P., Madam Marie

Posted on July 1, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under Brucenalia | 2 Comments

Asbury Park fortune teller Marie Castello, immortalized as “Madam Marie” in Springsteen’s “Fourth of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)”, has passed away at age 93, according to the Asbury Park Press.

Madam Marie bragged that she had told the fortunes of everyone from Judy Garland to Springsteen himself. Legend has it that she told Springsteen he was going to be a success. Springsteen later joked that she told all the musicians that.

In memoriam, here’s a (particularly high quality) fan video of “Sandy” in Antwerp on June 23:

Sandy , Antwerp from Willem on Vimeo.

He gives free concerts in Central Park a bad name

Posted on June 30, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under Concerts, Other than Bruce | 2 Comments

I’m hoping that Blogness on the Edge of Town regular (and mocker of all things Jovi) Tom has some choice words regarding this announcement: Bon Jovi is playing Central Park July 12, following in the footsteps of artists such as Elton John, Dave Matthews, Simon and “Garfinkel” (to quote Mayor Michael Bloomberg) and, yes, Bruce Springsteen.

If you can’t quite recall Bruce’s Central Park stop, you are forgiven: It was way back on Aug. 3, 1974, and according to Brucebase.org, no audio of the show exists — it’s remembered primarily as the last concert wherein Springsteen and the E Street Band opened for another act, one Ms. Anne Murray, who was basically forced to leave the stage when the shouts of “Bruuuuuce” became unbearable. (”You Won’t See Me,” indeed.)

So it only took Jon Bon Jovi 34 years to catch up to Bruce this time around. And just wait until next year, when he does a historic five-night stand at New York’s Bottom Line.

MONDAY NIGHT LINK ROUNDUP:

Review: Backstreets #87

Posted on June 29, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under Brucenalia, Press | 1 Comment

One thing I was doing beach- and pool-side during my break was perusing the latest issue of Backstreets, and I have to say it’s quite an achievement. It’s 114 pages of Bruce, the whole Bruce and nothing but the Bruce. Yes, that’s a lotta Bruce.

In fact, I resisted subscribing for years on the grounds that getting a magazine so intensely focused on a single artist would be confirmation that I’m some kind of obsessive loon-fan. But eventually I gave in, on the grounds that if I’m doing a blog about the guy, that horse is probably out of the barn.

The highlights, probably not surprisingly, are the two interviews with the man himself, one at the kickoff of Magic, the other during the Seeger Sessions tour. In the former, the most noteworthy part for me was the word that a (reportedly scrapped) DVD from the Devils & Dust tour is forthcoming:

“Well, I’ve had something for a while, we just haven’t kind of put the finishing touches on it and found a way to get it out … I’d like to even just sell it at the shows, or find some other way of getting it to people, because at this point, if I do something, I like to document it, and I like to be able to get it to the fans.”

As for the Sessions-era interview, it’s Bruce at his (IMHO) most politically astute:

“Basically what happened in the last six years is, you had a small group of men who developed a particular ideology over a long period of time, who managed to get into power and impress their will on a very immature president and a guy who really shouldn’t have had the job in the first place … They were very effective in doing what they wanted to do — which unfortunately were terrible things.”

As for the rest of the mag, there’s a great point-by-point analysis of Magic by Erik Flannigan, a wonderful and touching essay on Danny Federici by Robert Beverly (in anticipation of a full-fledged tribute in the next edition), a fun Jesse Malin interview and more book, CD, bootleg and news items than I have space to go into here. And the pictures are, as usual, plentiful and artful — it’s worth pointing out the quality of the reproduction, which is stunning.

As for the massive Seeger Sessions section … well, let’s just say I enjoyed the album and am a huge fan of that tour, and even I found it to be too much — I’m fairly sure I didn’t need a two-page Q&A with the banjo guy. That said, you could lop off the whole section and still have a complete, entertaining and informative magazine left behind. So if it’s too much for you, just skim.

You can visit Backstreets.com to subscribe — I recommend you do.

A month-long vacation in the stratosphere

Posted on June 26, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under Miscellaneous | 2 Comments

OK, it’s not a month long — it’s actually about five days — and it’s not in the stratosphere, it’s in Maine and then in N.Y. But I’ll be near a computer only sporadically, so I’ll jump back on the Blogness horse in earnest on Monday … And in the meantime, consider any posts that pop up to be an added bonus!

Random Springsteen YouTube Duet of the Month

Posted on June 24, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under Brucenalia | 2 Comments

I had somehow put this one out of my mind, but apparently on the same night Springsteen was inducted into the Rock ‘N’ Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, he sang a duet of the Beatles’ “Come Together” with Axl Rose. And amazingly, Axl showed up on time, stayed for the entire song, and didn’t swear or get himself beaten up by a clothing designer.

As if that isn’t weird enough, check out this explanation behind the performance, helpfully offered by YouTube commenter SarahRoseJovi (?):

It was a last minute thing, they didn’t practice or rehearse or anything! Rod Stewart was supposed to perform but he couldn’t make it because of an earthquake…so Bruce and Axl were asked…and they said yeah

Hmm … Rod Stewart covering a song originated by a vastly artistically superior artist? I can’t picture it. (Incidentally, in case you were wondering, Rod is sorry.)

Suicide, with no apparent motive?

Posted on June 23, 2008 by Pete
Filed Under MP3, Recordings | 1 Comment

Anyone who saw Springsteen solo on the D&D tour remembers the haunting, inspirational “Dream Baby Dream” that closed many of the shows, and created an immediate stir when it debuted among people who had no idea what the heck it was or where it came from. (Was it a Roy Orbison song? Uh, no.)

Turns out it was by the relatively obscure ’70s duo Suicide, whom few remember now but who influenced no small number of “post-punk, noise, no wave, synth-pop, and industrial acts that followed,” according to Stereogum. (And yes, “no wave” is an actual genre — I looked it up.) Now the group is the subject of a series of tribute EPs, and Springsteen’s homage is among them:

The UK label Blast First (petite) is putting together a year-long, limited-edition series of 10″ EPs and downloads with artists as diverse as Bruce Springsteen, Sunn 0))), Grinderman, Spiritualized, Liars, and fellow early downtown scenesters Lydia Lunch (who was hanging with Suicide as the 17-year-old leader of Teenage Jesus & the Jerks) and “Prince Vince” Gallo, etc.

It’s an eclectic group, if you consider “eclectic” to mean one famous guy and a bunch of people middle-aged squares like me never heard of. [Sunn 0))))?]

“Dream Baby Dream,” Bruce Springsteen (Columbus, Ohio, 7-31-05)

MONDAY NIGHT LINK ROUNDUP:

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