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Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.

Bruce Springsteen - Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. Audio CD

A fair review of the Bruce Springsteen "Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J." Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Bruce Springsteen reviews here, or go back to the Bruce Springsteen tabs.

Band: Bruce Springsteen
Title: Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J.
Rating:

Release Date: 1990-10-25
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Blinded By the Light 2: Growin' Up 3: Mary Queen of Arkansas 4: Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street? 5: Lost in the Flood 6: Angel 7: For You 8: Spirit in the Night 9: It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City

EASILY MY FAVORITE BY THE BOSS....
The Boss knows how to make a person feel like they are growing younger rather than older. . it's funny how it works. The music rings off better for me now more than in the previous years of my life. Songs that seemed to be old songs for old people when I was a kid, now have a quality to them, where I can relive some of those days past. While he gets older with each passing year he masters the craft even more so. Still, my favorite is his first. The one recorded by the free wheeling Bruce Springsteen and the early swagger of a young E-Street band.

A frenetic mix of styles and lyrical content is strategically placed into every number. It's funny that the man is so loose on this record. Nothing really heavy going down here, but real. . . and he is trying to get inside of your mind a little and blow it up. Every song is an anthem for something on this record,,,an anthem for something small but important, and he sings it loud. my faves are BLINDED BY THE LIGHT and SPIRIT IN THE NIGHT but theres nothing lacking on this bit. Kids, this is The Boss record that never felt old and crusty for me. It's always been young and fresh, and I imagine that it always will.

excellent service
great job!! would highly recommend this company. product arrived in a timely manner, in excellent condition and at a very reasonable price. very satisfied customer.

Greetings to you, Boss
Sometimes he sinks: the acoustic "Mary Queen of Arkansas" is horrific, and the other acoustic number, "The Angel," isn't much better. Recorded when he was 23, Bruce Springsteen's shiny debut is like nine dances over quicksand. But for the bulk of the record, Springsteen jive-talks and rolls his way to success via absurdist anecdotes ("Blinded by the Light," much better than the ridiculously showy Manfred Mann cover), street-myth rambles ("Lost in the Flood"), and youthful underclass poetry ("Growin' Up," "Spirit in the Night"). Even in the case of the aforementioned acoustic nightmares, one is saved by the disarmingly charming "Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street?", the other by the irresistibly straightforward "For You. " Sometimes primitive, often admirably romantic, and consistently smart, "Greetings from Asbury Park, N. J. " had shades of Dylan and Van Morrison--not bad for a twenty-something punk from Jersey.

what a good album
The songwriting is fairly good, the lyrics are interesting (and the kind of lyrics you may be able to relate to if you happen to live in the New Jersey/New York area) and the moody tone of the entire album is pretty delightful. Bruce Springsteen's very first album is probably his best album from the 70's. It has that dark singer-songwriter vibe like the album was recorded in an empty room, and alone. I get that same vibe from Nick Drake's music.

The Bob Dylan's imitations are noticeable though, but Bruce does manage to give his music a unique style despite that, thanks to his distinct voice and his lyrics that are MUCH different from the stuff Dylan was doing. I give this album a better rating than the rest of Springsteen's 70's albums because the songs contain a fair amount of melody.

I prefer this version of "Blinded by the Light" by FAR over the Manfred Mann's Earth Band version (despite being a much bigger Manfred Mann fan). Maybe it's because Manfred Mann's version has been played WAY too many times over the years, or maybe I just prefer the funky/jazzy style of Springsteen's version. I don't really know.

"Growin' Up" is a song just about everyone likes. The vocals are really catchy and feel nostalgic, that's why. My favorite song on the album, and perhaps favorite song by Springsteen, is "Lost in the Flood". VERY powerful lyrics. I love this one a lot. I also really admire "It's Hard to be a Saint in the City" and "Spirit in the Night" (the latter reminding me of Van Morrison with the jazzy horns).

"The Angel" has a pretty and tender melody as well. "Does this Bus Stop at 82nd Street?" is the most underrated song on the album.

Overall, a very good album you need to own.

Springsteen hits the ground running - an impressive 5* debut
On the other hand it is 1973 and this is Springsteen's first album. The sound is hardly audiophile quality and at times the rhymes are forced. I challenge anyone to name another debut so full of top quality songs - each of the songs later covered by Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Blinded by the Night, For You and Spirit in the Night would be a show-stopper on any other LP. In addition Springsteen gives us other great songs - Lost in the Flood, Growin' Up and It's Hard to be a Saint in the City. I think that this is a mind-blowing initial effort. It is one that clearly marked Springsteen as a talent to tab for the future.

Over the course of three decades Springsteen has veered this way and that, both musically and lyrically. There is a world of difference between Greetings and Born in the USA and another world between USA and Nebraska. Lyrically Greetings is undeniably influenced by Dylan - sprawling, poetic, witty, abstract, amusing and dense. Although Clarence is, as always, featured prominently, this Bruce Springsteen is, like The Byrds before him, more folkie than he is rocker. He is a singer songwriter in the best traditions of that genre. Long standing Springsteen fans hold the debut in high regard. I agree with those who believe that this album and The Wild, together with Born to Run and Stranger represent the pinnacle of his catalog. Quibbling as to whether one is superior to another is rather like arguing whether it is Revolver, Rubber Soul, Pepper or Abbey Road - an interesting debate in which there can be no winner.
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You can see a complete list of all Bruce Springsteen discography, or go back to the Bruce Springsteen tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.