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Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.

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Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. is the debut studio album by Bruce Springsteen. It was produced by Mike Appel and Jim Cretecos from July through September 1972 at the budget-priced 914 Sound Studios. The album was released January 5, 1973, by Columbia Records to average sales but positive critical reviews.

"Blinded by the Light" and "Spirit in the Night" were released as singles by Columbia, both failing to reach the U.S. charts; however, "Blinded by the Light" was later covered by Manfred Mann's Earth Band in 1977, reaching number one in the United States and Canada.

In 2003, the album was ranked at #379 in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time[1] and in 2013 Rolling Stone named Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. as one of the "100 Greatest Debut Albums of All-Time".[2] The album also reached #60 on the Billboard 200 album chart.

Background

Springsteen and his first manager Mike Appel recorded the album at the low-priced, out-of-the-way 914 Sound Studios to save as much as possible of the Columbia Records advance, and cut most of the songs in a single week.[3]

There was a dispute not long after the record was recorded—Appel and John Hammond preferred the solo tracks, while Springsteen preferred the band songs. As such, a compromise was reached—the album was to feature five songs with the band ("For You," "Growin' Up," "Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?" "It's Hard to be a Saint in the City," and "Lost in the Flood") and five solo songs ("Mary Queen of Arkansas," "The Angel," "Jazz Musician," "Arabian Nights" and "Visitation at Fort Horn").[4]

However, when Columbia Records president Clive Davis heard the album, he felt that it lacked a potential hit single. As such, Springsteen wrote and recorded "Blinded by the Light" and "Spirit in the Night".[5] Because pianist David Sancious and bassist Garry Tallent were unavailable to record these songs, a three-man band was used—Vini Lopez on drums, Springsteen on guitar, bass and piano, and the previously missing Clarence Clemons on saxophone.[5] These two songs bumped "Jazz Musician," "Arabian Nights" and "Visitation at Fort Horn," leaving a total of seven band songs and two solo songs. The album was originally slated to be released in the fall of 1972, but was moved back to early 1973 to avoid the pre-Christmas crush.[6]

Both "Blinded by the Light" and "Spirit in the Night" were released as singles by Columbia, but neither reached the U.S. charts.[6] Manfred Mann's Earth Band released a version of "Blinded by the Light" on their album The Roaring Silence, which reached number one on Billboard's Hot 100 on 19 February 1977 and #1 on the Canadian RPM chart the same day.[6] This recording of "Blinded by the Light" is Springsteen's only number one single as a songwriter on the Hot 100.[6] His best showing on the Hot 100 as a performer was in 1984, with "Dancing in the Dark", which peaked at number two for four weeks.[6] Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. first charted in the United Kingdom on June 15, 1985, in the wake of Springsteen's Born in the USA tour arriving in Britain; it remained in the top 100 for ten weeks.[7]

On November 22, 2009, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. was played in its entirety for the first time by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, New York, to celebrate the last show of the Working on a Dream tour.[8]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Absolute Punk[9]
AllMusic[10]
Chicago Tribune[11]
Christgau's Record GuideB+[12]
CreemB[13]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[14]
MusicHound Rock2.5/5[15]
Q[16]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[17]

In a contemporary review for Rolling Stone, Lester Bangs hailed Springsteen as a daring new artist who sets himself apart from his contemporaries with songwriting that either has a serious meaning or showcases his uninhibited gift for verbose, overloaded lyrics and rhyme schemes. "Some of [his words] can mean something socially or otherwise", Bangs said, "but there's plenty of 'em that don't even pretend to, reveling in the joy of utter crass showoff talent run amuck and totally out of control".[18] Peter Knobler wrote in Crawdaddy that "he sings with a freshness and urgency I haven't heard since I was rocked by 'Like a Rolling Stone' ... the album rocks, then glides, then rocks again. There is the combined sensibility of the chaser and the chaste, the street punk and the bookworm."[19] Creem magazine's Robert Christgau said Springsteen's songs are dominated by the kind of mannered emotional transparency and "absurdist energy" that made Bob Dylan "a genius instead of a talent".[13] In Christgau's Record Guide (1981), he wrote that despite the grandiloquent, unaccompanied "Mary Queen of Arkansas" and "The Angel", songs such as "Blinded by the Light" and "Growin' Up" foreshadow Springsteen's "unguarded teen-underclass poetry", while even the maundering "Lost in the Flood" is interesting.[12]

In All Music Guide to Rock (2002), William Ruhlmann gave Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. five stars and said that it combined the mid-1960s folk rock music of Bob Dylan, accessible melodies, and elaborate arrangements and lyrics: "Asbury Park painted a portrait of teenagers cocksure of themselves, yet bowled over by their discovery of the world. It was saved from pretentiousness (if not preciousness) by its sense of humor and by the careful eye for detail ... that kept even the most high-flown language rooted."[20] In 2003, the album was ranked number 379 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[1] They ranked it 37th on their list of greatest debut albums.[21]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Bruce Springsteen

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Blinded by the Light"5:06
2."Growin' Up"3:05
3."Mary Queen of Arkansas"5:21
4."Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?"2:05
5."Lost in the Flood"5:17
Side two
No.TitleLength
6."The Angel"3:24
7."For You"4:40
8."Spirit in the Night"5:00
9."It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City"3:13

Unreleased outtakes

As with all of his albums, Springsteen recorded more songs than could fit on the album. Many of the outtakes have been released throughout the years on various bootlegs, but have never been given an official release. Most are in a raw, demo form featuring just Springsteen, and were not fully completed. Demos such as "Mary Queen of Arkansas," "Growin' Up," "Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?" and "It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City" were released on the Tracks boxset.[22]

  • "Arabian Nights"
  • "Visitation At Fort Horn"
  • "Jazz Musician"
  • "Lady and the Doctor"
  • "Cowboys of the Sea"
  • "Two Hearts in True Waltz Time"
  • "Street Queen"
  • "The Chosen"

Personnel

Song-by-song musician credits

1. "Blinded by the Light"

  • Springsteen – guitar, electric bass, keyboards, vocals
  • Clemons – saxophone, backing vocals
  • Lopez – drums, backing vocals
  • Wheeler – piano

2. "Growin' Up"

  • Springsteen – guitar, vocals
  • Lopez – drums
  • Sancious – piano, keyboards
  • Tallent – electric bass

3. "Mary Queen of Arkansas"

  • Springsteen – guitar, harmonica, vocals

4. "Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street?"

  • Springsteen – guitar, vocals
  • Lopez – drums
  • Sancious – piano
  • Tallent – electric bass

5. "Lost in the Flood"

  • Springsteen – vocals
  • Lopez – drums
  • Sancious – piano, organ
  • Tallent – electric bass

6. "The Angel"

  • Springsteen- vocals
  • Davis – double bass
  • Sancious – piano

7. "For You"

  • Springsteen – guitar, vocals
  • Lopez – drums
  • Sancious – piano, keyboards
  • Tallent – electric bass

8. "Spirit in the Night"

  • Springsteen – piano, electric bass, clapping, vocals
  • Clemons – saxophone, clapping, backing vocals
  • Lopez – drums, clapping, backing vocals
  • Wheeler – piano

9. "It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City"

  • Springsteen – guitar, vocals
  • Lopez – drums
  • Sancious – piano
  • Tallent – electric bass

Charts

Chart (1973) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[25] 71
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[26] 35
UK Albums (OCC)[27] 41 (see below)
US Billboard 200[28] 60

The album first charted in the UK on 15 June 1985, in the wake of the Born in the USA tour arriving in Britain, and remained in the Top 100 for ten weeks.[7]

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[29] Gold 35,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[30] Silver 60,000^
United States (RIAA)[31] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Levy, Joe; Steven Van Zandt (2006) [2005]. "379 | Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. – Bruce Springsteen". Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (3rd ed.). London: Turnaround. ISBN 1-932958-61-4. OCLC 70672814. {{cite book}}: External link in |chapterurl= (help); Unknown parameter |chapterurl= ignored (|chapter-url= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/the-100-greatest-debut-albums-of-all-time-20130322/greetings-from-asbury-park-n-j-19691231
  3. ^ "Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ". Stoneponylondon.net. 1973-01-05. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
  4. ^ Gaar, Gillian G. (2016). Boss: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band - The Illustrated History. Minneapolis: Voyageur Press. p. 36. ISBN 978-0-7603-4972-4.
  5. ^ a b "Happy 40th: Bruce Springsteen's 'Greetings From Asbury Park, New Jersey'". CBS. 1973-07-05. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
  6. ^ a b c d e Lester Bangs (1973-07-05). "Greetings From Asbury Park, NJ". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
  7. ^ a b The Guinness Book of British Hit Albums, 1996
  8. ^ Goldstein, Stan (November 15, 2009). "Bruce Springsteen to play the entire 'Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.' album in Buffalo". nj.com. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
  9. ^ "Bruce Springsteen – Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. – Album Review". AbsolutePunk.net. Retrieved 2014-02-21.
  10. ^ Ruhlmann, William. Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. at AllMusic. Retrieved 29 November 2005.
  11. ^ Kot, Greg (August 23, 1992). "The Recorded History of Springsteen". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved July 8, 2013.
  12. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (1981). "Bruce Springsteen: Greetings from Asbury Park NJ". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the '70s. Da Capo Press. p. 366. ISBN 0306804093.
  13. ^ a b Christgau, Robert (April 1973). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". Creem: 70. Retrieved 28 October 2011.
  14. ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). "Bruce Springsteen". Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0857125958.
  15. ^ Graff, Gary (1996). "Bruce Springsteen". In Graff, Gary (ed.). MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Detroit: Visible Ink Press. ISBN 0787610372.
  16. ^ Williams, Richard (December 1989). "All or Nothing: The Springsteen back catalogue". Q. p. 149.
  17. ^ Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Bruce Springsteen". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. London: Fireside. pp. 771–773. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Portions posted at "Bruce Springsteen > Album Guide". rollingstone.com. Retrieved 7 February 2011.
  18. ^ Bangs, Lester (July 5, 1973). "Bruce Springsteen Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. > Album Review". Rolling Stone. No. 138. Archived from the original on June 20, 2008. Retrieved 20 March 2004. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  19. ^ Knobler, Peter; Mitchell, Greg (2004). "Who Is Bruce Springsteen and Why Are We Saying All These Wonderful Things About Him?". In Sawyers, June Skinner (ed.). Racing in the Street: The Bruce Springsteen Reader. Penguin Books. pp. 30, 36. ISBN 0142003549.
  20. ^ Ruhlmann, William (2002). "Bruce Springsteen". In Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (eds.). All Music Guide to Rock: The Definitive Guide to Rock, Pop, and Soul (3rd ed.). Backbeat Books. p. 1062. ISBN 087930653X.
  21. ^ "The 100 Best Debut Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2013-04-08.
  22. ^ "Brucebase - Greetings From Asbury Park - Studio Sessions".
  23. ^ Carlin, Peter Ames (2012). Bruce. New York: Touchstone. p. 129. ISBN 978-1-4391-9182-8.
  24. ^ https://twitter.com/StevieVanZandt/status/774377379494060032
  25. ^ "Australiancharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.". Hung Medien.
  26. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.". Hung Medien.
  27. ^ "Bruce Springsteen | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
  28. ^ "Bruce Springsteen Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  29. ^ NO certyear OR id WAS PROVIDED for AUSTRALIAN CERTIFICATION.
  30. ^ "British album certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J." British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  31. ^ "American album certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Greetings from Asbury ParkN.J." Recording Industry Association of America.
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