Bruce Springsteen – Live At The Bottom Line NYC, August 15th 1975

Another Springsteen bootleg. This show has been bootlegged a few times, some of them features the entire set in a multiple LP set. This was a cheap addition to my collection, and one of the last records I was able to buy before the now infamous essential business, self isolate, stay at home and social distancing terms became a sad reality.

Live At The Bottom Line NYC, August 15th 1975 features a small snippet from that show. As far as I know all copies were pressed on black vinyl, with only 500 copies pressed. Here is the track listing:

Side A:

1. Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
2. Spirit In The Night
3. Then She Kissed Me
4. It’s Hard To Be A Saint In The City
5. When You Walk In The Room

Side B:

1. Born To Run
2. Thunder Road
3. Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

Bruce Springsteen – Live At The Main Point: 1975 FM Broadcast

Another Springsteen bootleg. This was a cheap addition to my collection, and one of the last records I was able to buy before the now infamous essential business, self isolate, stay at home and social distancing terms became a sad reality.

As far as I know all copies of Live At The Main Point: 1975 FM Broadcast were pressed on black vinyl, with only 500 copies pressed. Here is the track listing:

Side A:

1. Mountain Of Love
2. Born To Run
3. E-Street Shuffle
4. Thunder Road

Side B:

1. She’s The One
2. 4^th Of July, Asbury Park
3. Back In The U.S.A.
4. A Love So Fine

Bruce Springsteen – Chimes Of Freedom

Bruce Springsteen’s career has spanned multiple decades, and enough of them that his material has been released on pretty much every single physical format possible. And when I say pretty much everything, I mean it. 8-track, reel-to-reel, vinyl, cassette, laser disc, mini disc, CD, VHS, DVD and Blu-ray. Literally the only exception are wax cylinders. Over time most of his releases have been re-issued on the most modern format(s), save for many of his singles and EPs. Sometimes the more modern formats are released in certain regions and markets. This EP is a prime example.

Originally released in 1988 on vinyl and cassette, Chimes Of Freedom was a charity release benefiting Amnesty International and was tied in part to their their Human Rights Now! campaign. The campaign was twenty stop worldwide tour in 1988, of which Springsteen was a part of. The tour itself was done to raise awareness, the Chimes Of Freedom EP however, had some of the proceeds donated to Amnesty International. Future releases were done on CD only in Japan and Europe in 1999.

There are six pressings of this EP, and bear with me as I list them all and go into some of the details about them. Of those seven pressings, two of them have variants; the U.S. and Spanish ones, both of which are promos. The only difference between the Spanish regular and promo versions is a promo stamp. There are major difference with the U.S. regular and promo versions. Aside from a gold promo stamp on the back, the promo version comes in a exclusive envelope, which the record jacket slides into, along with a note to radio stations promoting the EP and charity drive. What? An actual promo? Yes they did exist (and still do, just not to this extent); they’re not just free copies given out to certain people and outlets. This promo is a rather extravagant one. These days promos have been boiled down to a streaming service or encoded MP3.

I just touched on two of the pressings; the remaining four are Europe, Canada, the Philippines and Zimbabwe. Though I’m not quite sold on the authenticity of the Filipino pressing, as it does have a unique catalog number and stock CBS center labels, but apparently comes in random stock jackets with a tiny picture of the actual cover art taped to it.

Aside from that anomaly, all the pressings have the same cover art. A photo of Springsteen in a white shirt with his guitar slung to the side over one shoulder. The track listing is the same between all pressings. All copies were pressed on black vinyl, and if you’re wondering about how many copies were pressed forget it.

Chimes Of Freedom is a live EP, featuring a cover of Bob Dylan’s “Chimes Of Freedom.” The EP features three more songs; “Tougher Than The Rest,” “Be True” and an acoustic version of “Born To Run.” As far as I can tell all tracks on this EP are exclusive to it. They were all recorded on different stops of the aforementioned Human Rights Now! tour.

Bruce Springsteen – The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle (2nd Press)

The only Bruce Springsteen album missing from my collection was The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle. This album stood out for years. I was never able to find a used copy of it at all. It wasn’t a case of not finding a copy in good enough condition at my local record store. I was able to buy many Bruce albums there in fact, all for $3 or less. It took until the Bruce Springsteen box set released in 2014 that obtaining this album was finally accomplished.

But even then I had to wait almost three years to add it to my collection, as it was way overpriced. Retail price on this re-press, along with most of the re-presses of albums found in the aforementioned box set, were around $25. Ridiculous for just a record crammed into a single pocket jacket. Because that is all this re-press is. It doesn’t come with an insert or printed dust sleeve, nor a download card/code. Though this record is pressed on 180 gram vinyl, that simple fact does not justify a hefty price tag like $25.

To make this overpricing even more ludicrous, this album, along with several other Springsteen albums, were released outside of the box set for the first time as part of those lame Record Store Day First releases in 2015. Meaning you could pay even more money for those records just to have them a bit earlier. Many stores on RSD were charging $28 for these Springsteen titles. Even more laughable, RSD had the audacity to say these were “limited to 3,000 copies” when they knew full well they would see a wider release a few weeks later.

All gripes aside, this re-press was done right. It was pressed from the original master tapes. Yes, analog tapes. Thankfully they weren’t destroyed or lost after 40 plus years. So it sounds very good. I won’t say amazing because it was digitally re-mastered. But at least the original tapes were source material. On top of that prices have started to come down, drastically. You can buy this for $14 shipped if you shop around. You might even be able to find it for cheaper though, especially if you wait even longer. Almost everywhere is selling this on sale and has it discounted by at least $5 from that initial $25 (or higher) price tag.

Bruce Springsteen – Lucky Town (2nd Press)

Most Bruce Springsteen albums are easy to find somewhere for reasonable prices. Lots if not most of them are in used bins for under $5 all over the country. There were a handful that stood out though: Lucky Town being one of them. For whatever reason this album was not only tough to find. On the secondary market it fetched upwards of $40. One could argue this album was recorded and released long past his prime, but it’s a solid album. Either way this album slips through the cracks.

It didn’t help that the record was OOP since the early 90s when it was first released. But in 2018 Columbia Records decided to release two box sets encompassing Springsteen’s spanning most of Springsteen’s career. Initially re-pressed inside the second of these box sets in May of 2018, The Ghost Of Tom Joad was eventually released individually outside of said box set a few months later.

Anticipating this move, I held off on buying the box set. It wasn’t the only reason, the biggest of which was the fact I already owned most of the records in it. So there was no need to spend close to $200 on box set just for one or two records I needed/wanted. If I was that stupid I would’ve just spent 40 or so dollars on a first pressing of Lucky Town and been done with it.

No word on pressing info. Odds are there are likely thousands upon thousands of these things floating around at there. But all copies were pressed on 180 gram black vinyl with the record housed in a full color glossy paper dust sleeve and a download card/code for high quality 320 kbps MP3s. When this record was first made available outside of the box set retail price on it was around $25. I find that price ridiculous for a single LP, so I waited and bought this for $16 shipped after taking advantage of a great sale.

Bruce Springsteen – The Ghost Of Tom Joad (2nd Press)

Most Bruce Springsteen albums are easy to find somewhere for reasonable prices. Lots if not most of them are in used bins for under $5 all over the country. There was one however that stood out: The Ghost Of Tom Joad. For whatever reason this album was not only tough to find, but even more so for a price under $100. One could argue this album was recorded and released long past his prime, but it’s a solid album. Either way this album slips through the cracks.

It didn’t help that the record was OOP since the mid 90s when it was first released. But in 2018 Columbia Records decided to release two box sets encompassing Springsteen’s spanning most of Springsteen’s career. Initially re-pressed inside the second of these box sets in May of 2018, The Ghost Of Tom Joad was eventually released individually outside of said box set a few months later.

Anticipating this move, I held off on buying the box set. It wasn’t the only reason, the biggest of which was the fact I already owned most of the records in it. So there was no need to spend close to $200 on box set just for one or two records I needed/wanted. If I was that stupid I would’ve just spent 100 or so dollars on a first pressing of The Ghost Of Tom Joad and been done with it.

No word on pressing info. Odds are there are likely thousands upon thousands of these things floating around out there. But all copies were pressed on 180 gram black vinyl with the record housed in a full color glossy paper dust sleeve and a download card/code for high quality 320 kbps MP3s. When this record was first made available outside of the box set retail price on it was around $25. I find that price ridiculous for a single LP, so I waited and bought this for $16 shipped after taking advantage of a great sale.

Bruce Springsteen – In Concert MTV Unplugged

In an interesting move Columbia Records decided to release two separate box sets comprising Bruce Springsteen’s discography rather than one set. In many cases the albums in the box set were much needed re-presses because the record was highly sought after, and it was OOP before hand. This particular record falls into this category.

In Concert MTV Unplugged is a double LP that was only available in the second volume of the Springsteen box sets that encompass the years 1987-1996. Eventually it was made available for purchase as a stand alone releases outside of the box set, something which I fully anticipated. But in all honesty I kind of regret buying this outside of the box set, because prices on the box set have come down so far that when you divide the cost of the box set by the albums in it, the cost per album comes out to about the same as what I paid for the individual albums I needed out of this box set. The way I’m looking at this is I don’t have records I need to sell on the secondary market that likely won’t sell for a long time, let alone for a price anywhere near what I’d need to break even on what I spent. So in the end I’d be losing a few bucks.

All copies of  In Concert MTV Unplugged were pressed as a double LP on black vinyl in a single pocket jacket (one of those cheap, slightly wider ones to accommodate a double LP), and pressing info was never released and likely never will be. Major labels likely don’t keep track of numbers for a release this large. All copies come with the records housed in printed dust sleeves. But all things considered theses dust sleeves are rather bland, it’s white paper with blue ink, with one side of the sleeve having the liner notes and the reverse side having the lyrics printed on it.

It was originally released in 1993, and only in Europe. Why it was never available in America on vinyl is anyone’s guess. Not that you couldn’t import it; but you couldn’t simply walk into a record store in America and readily find this. You can find this for around $20 if you shop smartly. Prices haven’t fallen remarkably low yet, but considering this initially retailed for $35, if you can buy this for $25 shipped it’s a pretty good deal for now.

Bruce Springsteen – Chapter And Verse

Bruce Springsteen has never really taken a true break from performing in some shape or form. He is either touring, recording, doing press tours, writing books (and doing subsequent book tours) and now you can add performing his own Broadway show to the list. This will touch on the book aspect though, as The Boss wrote an autobiography close to four years ago now (that is how long it took me to buy the accompanying “soundtrack”) entitled Chapter And Verse.

The aforementioned accompanying “soundtrack” goes by the same title, and is full of songs spanning Springsteen’s entire career. It goes as far back as some of his first bands before he went “solo” and formed the E Street Band; The Castiles, Steel Mill and The Bruce Springsteen Band. There are five unreleased songs on this “soundtrack” according to the hype sticker. But with that said, this soundtrack is likely only for the diehard Boss fans out there, as it contains mostly songs that can be found on his studio albums, especially his more popular ones like Born To Run and Born In The U.S.A..

There are really only two variants for the album (some countries are getting pressings done in other countries distributed within their borders), which was pressed as a double LP housed in a wide single pocket jacket. The only somewhat limited one was a Barnes & Noble (B&N) exclusive pressed on “tortoise shell” vinyl, while the widely available variant is on black vinyl. “Tortoise shell” vinyl is simply a brown/orange base with black streaks/marbling in it. It does look like the tortoise shell used for guitar inlays, hair brushes, etc. No official word on pressing info for either variant. All copies come with a download card/code as well having the records in a full color dust sleeves printed on thin glossy paper.

There is a Japanese pressing, which is actually the Euro pressing repackaged with different hype stickers slapped on it. Both of which are on the tortoise shell variant. The hype stickers on the Japanese pressing say “multi colored” vinyl, but that is not exactly accurate. It also has a traditional obi-strip found with many Japanese releases. There is also a Euro pressing on black as well.

When this “soundtrack” first came out it was ridiculously overpriced; around $35. Eventually prices dropped to $30, then $25, but pretty much stopped there. At least in the regular retail market. On the secondary market prices have drastically fallen. You can buy a brand new copy of this for around $15 if you wait long enough for another copy to pop up for that price. The B&N exclusive is still fetching close to full retail $35 for whatever reason.

Bruce Springsteen – Western Stars: Songs From The Film

Bruce Springsteen took his first steps onto the big screen, with a film adaptation (of sorts) of his latest album Western Stars released in late 2019. An accompanying live album was released, entitled Western Stars: Songs From The Film.

It’s the same track list, performed in order as the original album. But there is an additional song tacked on to the end. It’s not quite a b-side given the circumstances of this album. It’s a cover of “Rhinestone Cowboy,” which can only be found on this album.

In somewhat of an unusual twist for Springsteen albums given all the re-presses of his catalog of late, there are variants for this record. There were variants for the studio album Western Stars as well, but overall the Boss’ catalog has not been rummaged through for cash grab colored variants. For Western Stars: Songs From The Film there are only two variants, but two separate pressing.

To cut down on the confusion, there is a U.S. and Euro pressing. And within those are two variants, which are two variants, which are actually the same for both pressings. Pressing info has not been released for any variants or any pressings. There is a widespread variant on black vinyl for both pressings, and a “limited” variant pressed on “clear” with blue and white marbling. In reality there is no clear. It’s a dark blue with very faint hints of white.

The “clear” with blue and white marbling variants were exclusive to Springsteen’s official web store, and depending on which continent to live(d) on you could order from either web store host. All copies come in a gatefold jacket, with the records themselves in printed dust sleeves. All copes also come with the same hype sticker no matter the variant.

Retail price on this is around $30, which seems to be the norm for a double LP these days. Which is sad. I bought this for slightly under $10 before shipping during a ridiculous blowout sale from a distro. I didn’t have to pay shipping, and used a 15% off code to get this for even cheaper.

Normally I would’ve held out for a good sale to buy this, because unless you’re after the colored variant copies of this record will be sitting around for a very long time. Considering this distro slashed the price on this by like 80% fairly early after its release, says a lot. The sale they ran was a price slash I’ve never seen before, so I took advantage of it. $15 is my goal for a double LP, and considering I picked this up for under $10 shipped; I’m still dumbfounded.

Bruce Springsteen – Western Stars 7″

You can make the case that many Record Store Day (RSD) releases are pointless, unnecessary, cash grabs, etc. No case is easier to make than this RSD Black Friday 2019 release, a Bruce Springsteen 7” that features two songs taken from an already released album. This wasn’t even a teaser 7”, or a single featuring an exclusive b-side.  In fact, the two songs found on this 7” were never even released as singles from Western Stars, the Boss’ latest album.

There were 4,750 copies pressed, which in all likelihood means there was an even 5,000 copies pressed. All copies are on blue vinyl, a fact not mentioned anywhere prior to its release. There is a clear rectangle sticker affixed across the center of the cover, which has the artist’s name printed on it. An additional white square RSD Black Friday hype sticker is placed in the top right corner of the cover. One thing of note is that this 7” opens from the top of the jacket, not the traditional right side.

The two songs found on this record are “Western Stars” and “The Wayfarer.” Price point on this is under $10 from the vast majority of stores. You shouldn’t have a hard time finding this for years to come for the aforementioned reason of there is pretty much no reason to buy this unless you’re a diehard fan and/or collector. I bought this during a past RSD release clearance sale at my local store for $5 (originally marked at $9).