16 November - Official Darkness Holiday!! Darkness on The Edge of Town - Official Re-issue News

UPDATE: GOT THE SET EARLY SEE NEW BLOG POST!!!

The long awaited (in my house anyway) re-issue of Darkness comes out on 16 November, here are the details and frankly they are beyond even the most ardent fans expectations:

Bruce Springsteen - "The Promise: The Making of 'Darkness on the Edge of Town'" Sneak Peek from Columbia Records on Vimeo.



IT'S OFFICIAL: DARKNESS FALLS, NOVEMBER 16
Six-disc box set tells The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story
The long-awaited Darkness on the Edge of Town reissue, originally expected for the 1978 album's 30th anniversary, has grown to enormous proportions for its release on November 16 as The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story. The 30th anniversary set for Born to Run comprised three discs, and it would have been reasonable to expect the same for Darkness; instead, this just-announced set doubles down, with six discs: three CDs, and three DVDs. (A 3-CD/3-BluRay edition will also be available.)

For this deluxe edition, the discs will be packaged with an 80-page notebook containing facsimiles from Springsteen's original notebooks from the recording sessions, which include alternate lyrics, song ideas, recording details, and personal notes in addition to a new essay by Springsteen and never-before-seen photographs.

So we're looking at more than six hours of film, and more than two hours of audio. Let's break it down...

CD1: Darkness on the Edge of Town Digitally remastered for the first time (and in our view, the album most in need of such treatment)

CD2 and CD3: The Promise Two discs (which will also be released separately as a 2-CD set and a 4-LP set) containing 21 previously unreleased tracks from the Darkness sessions — songs that, as Springsteen writes, "perhaps could have/should have been released after Born to Run and before the collection of songs that Darkness on the Edge of Town became." Of this material Bruce also writes, "Darkness was my 'samurai' record, stripped to the frame and ready to rumble… But the music that got left behind was substantial." All 21 songs have been mixed by Springsteen's long-time collaborator Bob Clearmountain. According to long-time manager/producer Jon Landau, "There isn't a weak card in this deck. The Promise is simply a great listening experience."

The Promise Disc 1

Racing in the Street ('78 rock version)
Gotta Get That Feeling
Outside Looking In
Someday (We'll Be Together)
One Way Street
Because the Night (original studio recording)
Wrong Side of the Street
The Brokenhearted
Rendezvous (original studio recording)
Candy's Boy
The Promise Disc 2

Save My Love
Ain't Good Enough For You
Fire (original studio recording)
Spanish Eyes
It's a Shame
Come On (Let's Go Tonight)
Talk to Me (given to Southside Johnny)
The Little Things (My Baby Does)
Breakaway
The Promise
City of Night
DVD1: The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town. The documentary directed by Grammy- and Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Thom Zimny. The 90-minute film combines never-before-seen footage of Springsteen and the E Street Band shot between 1976 and 1978—including home rehearsals and studio sessions—with new interviews with Springsteen, E Street Band members, manager Jon Landau, former-manager Mike Appel, and others closely involved in the making of the record. The documentary will first screen at the prestigious Toronto Film Festival on September 14 and will make its television debut on HBO on October 7.

DVD2: A mix of E Street new and old: first the modern-day E Street Band tackles the Darkness album from start to finish (remember back in December, when Bruce and the E Streeters were doing some closed-door filming at the Paramount Theater?), then a wealth of vintage clips from the Thrill Hill Vaults document the Darkness-era band, both in-studio and live.

Darkness on the Edge of Town (Paramount Theater, Asbury Park, NJ, 2009)
A performance of the album in its entirety, shot in HD without an audience and recreating the stark atmosphere of the original album.

Thrill Hill Vault, 1976-1978
From studio rehearsals to live performances, clips here include brand new cuts of the Phoenix footage, re-edited by Thom Zimny.

Save My Love (Holmdel, NJ 76)
Candy's Boy (Holmdel, NJ 76)
Something in the Night (Red Bank, NJ 76)
Don’t Look Back (NYC 78)
Ain't Good Enough For You (NYC 78)
The Promise (NYC 78)
Candy's Room Demo (NYC 78)
Badlands (Phoenix 78)
The Promised Land (Phoenix 78)
Prove It All Night (Phoenix 78)
Born To Run (Phoenix 78)
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (Phoenix 78)
DVD3: Houston '78 Bootleg: House Cut A holy grail of sorts, this is the complete show from December 12, 1978, at the Summit in Houston, TX toward the end of the tour for Darkness on the Edge of Town. They're calling this a "bootleg house cut," as it's the footage that appeared on-screen at the concert.

Badlands
Streets of Fire
It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City
Darkness on The Edge of Town
Spirit in the Night
Independence Day
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Jungleland
The Ties That Bind
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
The Fever
Fire
Candy's Room
Because the Night
Point Blank
She's the One
Backstreets
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Born to Run
Detroit Medley
Tenth Avenue Freeze-out
You Can't Sit Down
Quarter to Three

Duke and The King - Shaky

Lead track from the forthcoming second album (is Simon Felice the hardest working recent open heart surgey person?):


The Duke & The King - Shaky from Silva Screen on Vimeo.


TIP if you want a solo Simon Felice release pop along to Diverse Vinyl for an lp which otherwise I think you can only get at his shows....very sadly I cannot make his Edinburgh gig and the Glasgow Duke show co-incides with Mary Chapin Carpenter....bad.

Bowie Station To Station Remaster Deluxe Edition

Update: This is a sensational release. The new Harry Maslin mix is out of this world and I dont even have 5:1 (? what is that surround sound)

New vocals, new instruments picked out, intro's you could not spot. Amazing.

What does a £100 (or thereby) note get a Bowie fan these days? This lot:

A  5-CD, DVD and heavyweight vinyl Deluxe Edition of David Bowie’s hugely influential 1976’s album, Station To Station with the original album - taken straight off the analogue master – and the much bootlegged live favourite and previously unreleased Live Nassau Coliseum ‘76.

Oh that's not all......


- A 24-page booklet, including:

NEVER SEEN BEFORE Steve Shapiro photo

Geoff MacCormack photos

Andrew Kent live Nassau photos

Extensive memorabilia from the BowieNet archives

- CD: Station To Station – RCA CD Master

- CD: 5-track Singles Versions E.P. incl. previously unreleased version of Station To Station, and for first time on CD, Word On A Wing

- 3 x 12” heavyweight vinyl

- DVD

- 6 panel folded poster – Steve Shapiro photo

Onstage folder

- Replica Backstage pass

- Replica Biog, A4-size

- Replica Ticket

- Replica band line-up

- 3 x 10”x8” press shots

- Replica Fan club folder

- Replica Fan Club Membership card

- Fan club certificate

- 2 small Collectors cards

- 2 A4-size photo prints

- Replica 4-page biography

- 2 x badges

Along with the 5-CDs, it’s all housed in a foam-packed box.

Townsend / Lane - Rough Mix

This is archive album of the week on BBC Radio Scotland Iain Anderson show and is an absolute gem. The record is anything but a Who album and finds Pete in a bit of a reflective almost melancholy frame of mind.

First ever advert...

Scoot along to HMV - some serious clearance bargains.

One Night Only - Say You Don't Want It

Great debut track I have only just heard with great video featuring Emma Watson..

Lou Reed and Blind Boys of Alabama perform Jesus

Interesting clip, it is also worth checking out Letterman clips to marvel at the incicerity and stupidity of Letterman, which I have only ever seen matched by Jay Leno I think! Q Did you write that one? A Eh yes the Velvet Underground classic? Anyway great performance by Lou:

Richard Ashcroft - RPA & The United Nations of Sound

I have had this album for a few weeks now and it is sounding better and better to my ears. Oddly I am not a huge Verve fan, bar the obvious big singles, and think that Richard Ashcroft's solo work is much superior.

It is, despite to hoopla about the hip hop influences, much as you would expect from Ashcroft but the quality of songs, playing from a superb band and the amount of energy in the record really deliver.

The lead single you will have heard I am sure with a video directed by former Skids front man Richard Jobson:



Key tracks are Are You Ready , Born Again , Americaright , She Brings Me The Music , Glory,and Let My Soul Rest.

Best of all is the Sweet Jane absolute rip off track called Royal Highness - it's plagiarism but it is good. The guitarist even nicks a bit of the extended intro from Lou's Live rendition on Rock n Roll Animal! Check out a live version here and try and not sing Sweet Jane!

Ashes to Ashes

Thirty years ago....where does the time go!

Arcade Fire - The Suburbs

I bought this album today after hearing a track on the radio and on a quick run through it is absolutely superb. I did enjoy the previous two albums but this is a step up again for me.

I have nicked this review from "Stevie Boy" on Amazon so if you are SB and want it removed let me know!

Arcade Fire have slowly grown into one of the most important bands of our era. It really does feel like they are the Beatles/Smiths/Radiohead of the 21st century. I won't even talk about Funeral (everyone knows how good it is), & Neon Bible, although criticised for it's overblown production, was a fine album indeed. The Suburbs feels part sister to both these albums & part a whole different universe. They certainly explore new territory here, throwing influences into the mix as diverse as Depeche Mode, Blondie, Neil Young & The Beach Boys as well as the usual Talking Heads/Springsteen/Pixies reference points. What you get is a fantastic modern masterpiece which is so ambitious, it's almost knowing of the fact that there are clear flaws & holes. This however doesn't matter because the high points are so damn good and lets be honest - no piece of work is perfect!


Opening with the title track, the transition between 'the Suburbs' & 'Ready to Start' is euphoric. The sweet, warbly strings of the former give way to heavy guitar riffs, pounding rock drums & electronic effects. 'Modern Man', 'Empty Room', 'We used to Wait' & 'Sprawl II' are also highlights. 'Sprawl II' is a total curveball: it's pure, unadulterated electro-pop, it's nothing like what they've done before and it's absolutely incredible! I could live without 'Half Light II' & 'Wasted Hours', but some people I know actually dig these tunes. I've no doubt that this album will go down in history & cement Arcade Fire into the rock n roll hall of fame for eternity.

Robert Plant - Band of Joy

I am not a huge Plant fan. But the album with Alison Krauss was good, the forthcoming Band of Koy lp features the talents of Buddy Miller among others and so promises to be a good release.

Here is the lead track:

Leonard Cohen Live lp and video - Songs from the Road.

On the face of it not a very exciting release given that Live In London is from the same tour BUT a track recorded at a concert I was at makes this interesting on a personal level:

Due for release on September 14th, here is the tracklist:

Lover, Lover, Lover (Ramat Gan Stadium, Tel Aviv, Israel, September 24, 2009)


Bird On the Wire (Clyde Auditorium, Glasgow, Scotland, November 6, 2008)

Chelsea Hotel (Royal Albert Hall, London, England, November 17, 2008)

Heart With No Companion (Oberhausen King Pilsener Arena, Oberhausen, Germany, November 2, 2008)

That Don't Make it Junk (O2 Arena, London, England, November 13, 2008)

Waiting for the Miracle (HP Pavilion, San Jose, California, November 13, 2009)

Avalanche (Gothenburg Scandinavium, Gothenburg, Sweden, October 12, 2008)

Suzanne (MENA Arena, Manchester, England, November 30, 2008)

The Partisan (Hartwall Arena, Helsinki, Finland, October 10, 2008)

Famous Blue Raincoat (O2 Arena, London, England, November 13, 2008)

Hallelujah (Coachella Music Festival, Indio, California, April 17, 2009)

Closing Time (John Labatt Centre, London, Ontario, May 24, 2009)

Josh Ritter Concert Upload

In advance of the upcoming Josh Ritter show in Oran Mor here is a great chance to download a recent gig:

http://www.thefrontloader.com/2010/08/11/crowd-gets-lit-at-josh-ritter-show-video-bonus-download-live-from-seattle-62710/

Van Morrison - Clyde Auditorium

I have been a Van Morrison fan for as long as I can remember and love almost all of his work.

I have seen him in concert more times than I can remember and so I was thrilled to get a pre-sale link to his upcoming Glasgow gig on 24th October. Unfortunately once you take in to account booking fees the cost per ticket is about £85 (£75 face value).

I have paid this much before (Leonard Cohen). But I knew then I was going to get a least 2 hours from a performer who wanted to treat his audience to a great (as it turned out fantastic show).

For Van I might get 40 - 70 sullen minutes. It's just too much to pay, I cannot really afford it,  and sadly wont be going.

New ~John Martyn Tribute cd

In the works a  tribute album for the late, John Martyn is in the works , we can expect somewhere between 24-26 tracks from artists such as Beck, Lisa Hannigan and Robert Smith from the Cure.




The currently untitled compilation doesn't have a release date as yet. But the artist and track list below can be found on Martyn's site.



1. Small Hours - Robert Smith (from The Cure)

2. Rope Soul'd - The Blackships (Nick McCabe and Simon Jones from The Verve)

3. Go Down Easy - Beth Orton

4. Glorious Fool - Clarence Fountain and Sam Butler (Formerly Of The Blind boy's Of Alabama)

5. Couldn't Love You More - Lisa Hannigan

6. Sweet Little Mystery - Devendra Banhart

7. Go Easy – Vetiver

8. Let The Good Things Come -David Gray

9. Lay it All Down - Donovan

10. May You Never - Snow Patrol

11. John Wayne - Oh My God

12. Tearing and Breaking - Phil Collins

13. Head & Heart - Vashti Bunyan

14. Solid Air - Skye Edwards (Morcheeba)

15. Over The Hill -Ted Barnes featuring Gavin Clark (Clayhill and Unkle)

16. I Don't Want to Know - The Swell Season

17. Dancing - Sonia Dada

18. Certain Surprise - Sabrina Dinan

19. Clutches - Foley (Miles Davis bass player)

20. Angeline - Nicholas Barron

21. You Can Discover - Cheryl Wilson

Tom Jones - Praise and Blame

Tom Jones (yep) has released a superb new album called Praise and Blame which he recorded with the great Ethan Johns (Ryan Adams etc etc). Brillaint selection of songs and includes a cover of Dylans "What Good Am I" and there was a special hours chat and songs from the album on Ricky Ross Another Country on Radio Scotland

Highly recommend you listen to the radio show while you can and check out the album...

http://www.tomjones.com/featured/the-making-of-praise-and-blame/