Search - :: Before The Fame

This is a Gem

ideaeric | Colorado | 04/21/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Fantastic. Like getting a gift after all these years. These songs, simply put, are Springsteen. Sure, it's 1972, the quality is not perfect - but this is Springsteen pouring out his emotion, the perfect example of what has made him one of the all-time legends - honest song-writing and performing. Springsteen has never been out to impress people, he has many stories to tell, and these songs are his way of communicating his life. Old fans will get some background info on some of his best work, "Eloise" becomes "Growin' Up," "Cowboys of the Sea" becomes "Lost in the Flood." Other reviewers are worried about quality? These were recorded almost 30 years ago, by one man and a guitar (there are other backup musicians, as well), and are heard the way I believe fits them best - raw and true. This is simply Springsteen in his purest form - it was a joy to hear from the first playing. I apologize to Mr. Springsteen if he did not want these released, but this is truely a great collection."

Springsteen Song DNA

tonearm | Metuchen, NJ USA | 07/22/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If the vivid imagery and imaginative story telling of the songs on Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ, The Wild, The Innocent and the E Street Shuffle and Born To Run appeal to you, this collection will seem like an embarrassment of riches. This is Bruce Springsteen at his rococo best, spinning far-fetched tales through tortured scenarios and featuring comic book characters. And they are truly compelling. Sure, as is often the case with most collections of "outtakes", I think Mr. Springsteen made the right call in his tune selections for the early records. These were the songs that should have been left off. But while these songs may not achieve the level of brilliance of those included on his first three Columbia releases, they are valuable in helping the discerning listener chart the genetic course of the Springsteen songwriting style. Some of them are quite entertaining, some border on the tedious, but in each there is a spark of creativity, a phrasing or a sound that those who know his music will recognize as unmistakably Springsteen. This record serves almost as a companion volume to the early released works and serves as a reference source for the origin of the Springsteen sound. No longer relegated to scratchy bootleg tapes and records, the avid Bruce-o-phile can now listen guiltlessly to some of the seminal work of this true master of the rock-n-roll genre."