Darkness On The Edge Of Town
by Bruce Springsteen

From Freddie55 TOP 100 COMMENTER 12/23/2009 18:00 | #7843 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

I had the immense pleasure of seeing Springsteen live in Toronto in 1978 and 1981. They were the best concerts I've ever been to and I've been to a lot. Having been to the live show gives all of his early albums very special meaning to me. I should also mention that it wasn't all about Bruce. Everyone in his band shone in those legendary shows. (Edited)

Bruce Springsteen's downbeat follow up to the widescreen epic of, born to run. It took three years to come out following some legal wranglings with his ex manager. Bruce was wiser, angrier, and a whole lot more realistic than he was on the romantic, but wonderful predecessor. Darkness, was also influenced sonically by the British punk/new wave movement, especially Bruce's beloved, the clash. Whereas on, born to run, Clarence Clemon's sax was one of the most prominent instruments, here, he's hardly heard, except on a couple of the more less bleak moments. Opener, badlands, is off course one of Springsteen's most celebrated songs, which he still plays at almost every one of his shows. The dark and angry, Adam raised a Cain, is certainly one of those tracks influenced by the clash. Something in the night, is a slower, but no less moodier. Candys room, fizzes by, and that leads into the epic, racing in the street. The promised land, is one of Bruce's special moments, a brilliant song with a lovely guitar/sax solo. If there is a weak track on darkness, it's factory, a song inspired by his father going to work, it's a bit slight. Streets of fire, gets back to the anger of, Adam raised a cain, with Bruce sounding like a demented preacher. Prove it all night, is probably the most poppy moment on the album, but it still suits the album perfectly. The title track closes proceedings, on a high note. Darkness, has become a lot more popular in recent years, some even claiming that it's Springsteen's best album. I personally don't agree with that, but it's certainly in his top five. Excellent.

This album if full of energy. You listen to it and you feel the power of the sound. Songs like Badlands, Adam Raised a Cain, Racing in the Street, Prove it All Night. This is a 5 star standard bearer for the heart of RockNRoll.

After finally making it big with Born to Run, the Boss was hit with legal troubles that kept him from releasing another album for 3 years. That sounds like nothing now but in the 70s that was in eternity. He holed up with the band on a farm and they just kept writing and recording. Some of the angst of legal troubles soaked into the songs to make this the most passioned album he ever recorded. It's not very accessable at first and it really grew on me after listening to the bootlegs from this tour (probably the best ever tour). Give it reapeated listens and it will grow on you. The Promised Land is one of my all time favorite songs. What's truly amazing though is that some of the best songs that were recorded on that farm during this period were not included on the album. Listen to the songs on Tracks and The Promise that were recorded at this same time and he could have easily had 3 or 4 more classic albums from those sessions.

From Romanelli TOP 100 COMMENTER 02/05/2012 15:23 | #36487 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Check out the ferocity of Bruce's guitar on "Adam Raised A Cain". The sheer power of Max Weinberg's drumming on "Candy's Room". The unsurpassed songwriting on "Somewhere In The Night", "Streets Of Fire", and the title track. I still believe that this is one of the most underrated albums of all time, even as high as it's ranked. A masterpiece.