Live in New York City - Springsteen, Bruce (CD 2001)

Recording artists can work better in various recording environments. Some artists work well in the recording studio, since they create complex music that is hard to perform well on stage. Some artists sound better on stage and some create complex music that sounds great on a CD, yet even better on stage. One artist that falls into the last category is Bruce Springsteen.

Ever since he first signed a record deal in the early 1970s, Springsteen has gained a reputation as one of the best live performers in the world of rock and roll. So it seems natural that a live album would be one of the things he would do real well. However, it took him quite a while to get there. His first attempt was in 1985 with the three-CD Live 1975-85 set. The set was good, yet its length made it come off more like a greatest hits (and it did work better in that regard than the pretty good, but way too short and full of missing and replaceable material Greatest Hits album he would do ten years later) rather than an in-concert document. His unplugged album from 1993 was from a transitional period and it captured him in that period. He finally delivered on that live album promise with Live In New York City in 2001.

Live In New York City was recorded in 2000 at Madison Square Garden. The concert was Springsteen's closing performance with the E Street Band of his 1999-2002-reunion tour with them. The show was later broadcast on HBO and saved for posterity on video, DVD and the two-CD recording that I have in my hand.

Live In New York features Bruce with the classic incarnation of the E Street Band. This includes both Nils Lofgren and Steven Van Zandt on guitar, Max Weinberg on drums, Patti Scialfa (AKA Mrs. Springsteen) on guitar and vocals, Roy Bittan on piano and of course the Minister of Soul himself, Clarence Clemons on Sax.

The album begins with Bruce and the E Streeters launching into a tough, intense rendition of "My Love Will Not Let You Down". The song, which Springsteen wrote and recorded in the early 1980s but did not release until his 1998 rarities collection Tracks, is a furious statement of purpose that gets the show off with a bang. Having set the mood, Bruce and the band follow this with a pretty good rendition of "Prove It All Night" (from Darkness On The Edge Of Town).

Next we have "Two Hearts" from 1980's The River album. This one is an up tempo rocker with a catchy Motown-inspired chorus of "two hearts are better than one". Van Zandt assists ably on vocals. Fans of HBO's The Sopranos may chuckle at hearing him sing the line "playing tough guys" due to his weekly performances on the show as mobster Silvio Dante.

"Atlantic City" was originally an acoustic track on 1982's Nebraska. Here it is given a brief shot of electricity that helps to enhance the growing sense of despair that is prevalent at the core of the song as the lyrics tell of a man beset by serious gambling debts. However there is a feeling of determination in the way the chorus is sung that still offers hope, especially in the lines "Put your hair up pretty and I'll meet you tonight in Atlantic City".

Also from Nebraska is the acoustic "Mansion On The Hill" which is a look at dreams of being a rock star from a young boys perspective. That song is a warm-up for "The River" which begins with a minute saxophone solo from Clemons. This works perfectly in setting up the mood of the song, which both somber and chilling. The use of harmonica and the way the song is played add an elements of tension to the lyrics, which deal with reckless teenagers being thrust into the hard reality of adulthood with its responsibilities and finding that their dreams are farther away than they thought if they are even reachable. The song is an all-around great one and Springsteen and his band take us through an emotional wringer.

Next is "Youngstown" from 1995's The Ghost Of Tom Joad. This song is (like "Atlantic City") an acoustic one that has been given a shot of electricity for its live rendition. Here Springsteen sings about the steel workers in the titular Ohio town.

"Murder Incorporated" is a straight-up hard rocker that was released as a new track on the 1994 Greatest Hits album. Good yet not great in its studio incarnation, it's given even greater life in the live version.

Unfortunately, we are then treated to one of the few missteps on this album. The versions of "Badlands" and an unlisted "Born To Run" come off as rather pedestrian for some reason. They are enjoyable, yet they lack exuberance and feeling that are prevalent throughout much of the rest of the disc. Much better is the rendition of "Out In The Street" which throbs with life.

The second disc opens with "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out". This song is a pure rock and roll rave-up that pulses with energy. It is during that song that we are treated to the spiritual side of a Springsteen show. Halfway through the nearly 20-minute song the band lets the music drop to a lower level and Bruce begins to sing lines from "It's Alright" and "Take Me To The River". He then turns into a sort of rock and roll preacher, talking about how rock and roll can save one's soul and giving thanks for having such a good band. He then introduces each band member one at a time before jumping right back into the song and concluding it.

Next we are treated to new songs from Bruce and the band. The first one is entitled "Land Of Hope And Dreams". A spiritual rocker that borrows imagery from Woody Guthrie and revisits it in a way that is undoubtedly Spirngsteenian, this song is one of the most uplifting songs that he has ever done.

The next song is the controversial "American Skin (41 Shots)". As the song begins, Bruce tells the audience "we need quiet". The song, in contrast to the previous number, is a somber one that was inspired by the 1999 shooting of Amadou Diallo by the NYPD. Diallo was an African immigrant who was confronted in his apartment because his neighbors thought that he was a burglar. When Diallo started to reach for his wallet, the police officers thought he was reaching for a weapon and opened fire, killing him. While many cops were not pleased with Springsteen for writing this song, this is not a rebel rousing song like something Ice-T would write. The song looks at the situation from both sides and does not point fingers as demonstrated by the line: "Lena gets her son ready for school/She says on these streets Charles you've got to understand the rules/If an officer stops you/Promise me you'll always be polite/That you'll never run away/Promise mama you'll keep your hands in sight/Is it a gun/Is it a knife/Is it a wallet/This is your life/It ain't no secret/No secret my friend/You can get killed just for living in your American Skin".

"American Skin" concludes the portion of the concert that was shown on TV. The rest of the disc features performances of "Lost In The Flood", "Ramrod", "Don't Look Back", "Jungleland", an acoustic rendition of "Born In The USA" that is closer to the way Springsteen originally intended the song to sound and an emotional version of "If I Should Fall Behind" that features all band members singing and closes the album on a high note.

Live In New York is a success for sure. The album brings a Springsteen show to life with pure feeling. This is the live album that fans have been waiting for for years.