Born Again Savage

Last updated
Born Again Savage
Little Steven Born Again Savage cover.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 10, 1999 (Renegade Nation website) [1]
November 30, 1999 (stores) [2]
Recorded1994
Studio Avatar Studios, New York City
Genre Rock
Length1:01:01
Label Renegade Nation
Pachyderm Records (limited promo)
Producer Little Steven
Little Steven chronology
Revolution
(1989)
Born Again Savage
(1999)
Soulfire
(2017)
Singles from Born Again Savage
  1. "Camouflage of Righteousness"
    Released: 1999
  2. "Salvation"
    Released: 1999
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Entertainment Weekly B− [4]

Born Again Savage is the fifth solo studio album by American musician Little Steven (stage name of Steven Van Zandt), released in September 1999 by Renegade Nation. It was his first album since 1989's Revolution .

Contents

Born Again Savage was a return to the raw, garage rock sound of his second album, Voice of America from 1984. The main topic of the album is religion. The rhythm section on all songs is bassist Adam Clayton (of U2) and drummer Jason Bonham. [5] Jean Beauvoir, who was one of the original Disciples of Soul, sang background vocals on the album. After its release, Van Zandt returned to play with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band for 18 years until reforming the Disciples of Soul for the 2017 album Soulfire .

Background

The songs on Born Again Savage were originally written by Van Zandt in 1989-1990 and were eventually recorded in 1994. After initially being rejected by his then current label, the album was finally released in November 1999 when Van Zandt started his own record label, Renegade Nation. To promote the album, there was a promotional single edit of "Camouflage of Righteousness" released through mp3.com, edited to 4:36; down from the album version's 5:01. Not as many copies of the album were sold as expected. [6]

The album's main theme is the lack of religion and spiritual ideas in daily life. However, "Flesheater" deals with animal rights and vegetarianism, and "Guns, Drugs and Gasoline" touches upon the use of fossil fuel. "Politics, religion and sex interrelate throughout the album," Van Zandt said. [7]

In 2019, the album was remastered for release as part of Van Zandt's career-spanning box set Rock N Roll Rebel: The Early Work . The digital deluxe edition of the album was released on November 22, 2019 containing one bonus track, a 2019 solo acoustic rendition of Van Zandt's song "It's Been a Long Time" originally recorded by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes and released on their 1991 album Better Days .

Liner notes

Little Steven wrote in the liner notes of the album:

This is the record I would have made in 1969 had I been capable.

It took 20 more years to write it and another 10 to get it out but chronological time is overrated anyway ain`t it? It is a tribute to the hard rock pioneers that kept me alive growing up. The Kinks, the Who, the Yardbirds and the three groups the Yardbirds spawned -- Cream, the Jeff Beck Group and Led Zeppelin. It is additionally a statement of profound gratitude to George Harrison, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and the Jefferson Airplane who first turned me on to Eastern melody and philosophy and forever expanded my cross-cultural consciousness. I must also thank Bob Dylan from whom all lyrics flow, and Allen Ginsberg for being a Buddhist among other things. This is the fifth and last of the political albums I outlined when I decided to make my own records. I wanted to learn about what was going on and write about it, talk about it, and hopefully learn something about myself in the process. After 5 albums and 7 years of traveling and studying and looking around I wrote the following liner notes intended for the original release of this record. We live in an insane asylum. A barbaric, merciless cesspool. And in this purgatory filled with disease and ugliness and violence and hatred and injustice and greed and lies and pain and frustration and confusion there are brief, fleeting moments of peace and love and truth and beauty. They are rare. They are years and miles apart. But they are so meaningful that they make life worth living. Those moments give you strength to face the insanity with your balance intact and your eyes focused and you endure and tolerate and survive. And if you`re lucky, real lucky, you can tap that strength and hold on to it long enough to, in your own small way, try to make it all a little bit better. Just a little bit more civil and just. To serve. And you don`t do it for anybody else because no one is going to thank you or reward you or even notice. Don`t kid yourself. You do it for you. For your own soul. Because in this world that`s all the salvation you`re ever gonna get

-Little Steven 1999 [8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Little Steven.

  1. "Born Again Savage" - 4:38
  2. "Camouflage of Righteousness" - 5:01
  3. "Guns, Drugs, and Gasoline" - 4:59
  4. "Face of God" - 7:38
  5. "Saint Francis" - 8:17
  6. "Salvation" - 5:09
  7. "Organize" - 2:13
  8. "Flesheater" - 6:07
  9. "Lust for Enlightenment" - 8:38
  10. "Tongues of Angels" - 8:19
2019 digital deluxe edition bonus track
  1. "It's Been a Long Time" (solo acoustic, 2019 - previously unreleased) - 4:16

Personnel

Musicians
Technical

Chart

[3]

SingleChart (2000)Position
"Salvation" Mainstream Rock 40

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Van Zandt</span> American musician and actor (born 1950)

Steven Van Zandt, also known as Little Steven or Miami Steve, is an American musician and actor. He is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandolin. He has appeared in several television drama series, including as Silvio Dante in The Sopranos (1999–2007) and as Frank Tagliano in Lilyhammer (2012–2014). Van Zandt has his own solo band called Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul, intermittently active since the 1980s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">E Street Band</span> Bruce Springsteens backing band

The E Street Band is an American rock band that has been the primary backing band for rock musician Bruce Springsteen since 1972. In 2014, the E Street Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For the bulk of Springsteen's recording and performing career, the band included guitarists Steven Van Zandt, Nils Lofgren, and Patti Scialfa, keyboardists Danny Federici and Roy Bittan, bassist Garry Tallent, drummer Max Weinberg, and saxophonist Clarence Clemons.

<i>Hearts of Stone</i> (Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes album) 1978 studio album by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes

Hearts of Stone is the third album by New Jersey rock band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, released in October 1978. The album peaked at number 112 on the Billboard 200 chart during the week of January 13, 1979. All of the album's songs were written by Southside Johnny, Bruce Springsteen, and E Street Band guitarist Steven Van Zandt. Van Zandt, the band's manager, also produced, arranged and played guitar.

<i>Men Without Women</i> (album) 1982 studio album by Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul

Men Without Women is the debut solo studio album by American musician Steven Van Zandt, credited as Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul. It was released on October 1, 1982 by EMI America. The title track was inspired by the Ernest Hemingway collection of short stories of the same name.

<i>Freedom – No Compromise</i> 1987 studio album by Little Steven

Freedom – No Compromise is the third solo studio album by Little Steven, released in May 1987 by EMI.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Reunion Tour</span> 1999–2000 concert tour by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

The Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Reunion Tour was a lengthy, top-grossing concert tour featuring Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band that took place over 1999 and 2000.

<i>Sun City</i> (album) 1985 studio album by Artists United Against Apartheid

Sun City is the first and only album by Artists United Against Apartheid, released on October 25, 1985, by EMI Manhattan Records. The Little Steven-led project features contributions from more than 50 artists from the rock, hip hop, soul, funk, jazz, reggae, latin, and world music genres. The album contains two versions of the "Sun City" protest song against apartheid in South Africa as well as other selections in the same vein from that project.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Woke Up This Morning</span> 1997 single by Alabama 3

"Woke Up This Morning" is a song by British band Alabama 3 from their 1997 album Exile on Coldharbour Lane. The song is best known as the opening theme music for the American television series The Sopranos, which used a shortened version of the "Chosen One Mix" of the song.

The Breakers was a rock band from Denmark consisting of Toke Nisted (vocals), Anders Bruus (guitar) and Jackie Larsen (bass). They were influenced by the music of the 60s and 70s, such as The Faces and The Rolling Stones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean Beauvoir</span> American musician

Jean Beauvoir is an American singer, bassist, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer and entertainment executive. He came to prominence in the early 1980s with the punk group the Plasmatics and went on to work with Little Steven, Kiss, the Ramones and as a solo artist.

<i>On the Line</i> (Gary U.S. Bonds album) 1982 studio album by Gary U.S. Bonds

On the Line is an album released by Gary U.S. Bonds in 1982, the second of two on which he collaborated with Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band, the first being Dedication, released the previous year, 1981.

<i>Standing in the Line of Fire</i> 1984 studio album by Gary U.S. Bonds

Standing in the Line of Fire is an album by Gary U.S. Bonds, released in 1984. It is credited to Gary U.S. Bonds and the American Men. The album was a followup to his two Springsteen/Van Zandt-produced albums Dedication and On the Line, though the only carry-over from the previous two albums was Steven Van Zandt, who wrote, sang backing vocals for, and played lead guitar on the title track.

<i>This Time Its for Real</i> 1977 studio album by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes

This Time It's for Real is the second album by New Jersey band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, featuring three compositions by Bruce Springsteen and Steve Van Zandt, as well as an additional five by the latter. Like their first album, I Don't Want To Go Home, there are a number of guest artists and duets, a trend that would be dropped for their next album, Hearts of Stone. "Check Mr. Popeye" features Kenny "Popeye" Pentifallo on vocals with The Coasters on background vocals. The track "First Night" features the Satins on background vocals and Steven Van Zandt on duet vocals. "Little Girl So Fine" features background vocals by the Drifters.

<i>Lilyhammer</i> Norwegian-American television series

Lilyhammer is a crime comedy-drama television series starring Steven Van Zandt about a former New York–based gangster named Frank "The Fixer" Tagliano trying to start a new life in isolated Lillehammer, Norway. The first season premiered on Norwegian NRK1 on 25 January 2012 with a record audience of 998,000 viewers, and premiered on Netflix in North America on 6 February 2012, with all eight episodes available in full for streaming on the service. Lilyhammer was promoted as "the first time Netflix offered exclusive content".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wrecking Ball World Tour</span> 2012–13 concert tour by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

The Wrecking Ball World Tour was a concert tour by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band to promote Springsteen's seventeenth studio album, Wrecking Ball, which was released on March 5, 2012. It was the first tour for the E Street Band without founding member Clarence Clemons, who died on June 18, 2011. The worldwide tour in support of the album, which ended in September 2013, reached 26 countries, the most ever for one of Springsteen's tours. The tour resumed in January 2014 to promote Springsteen's new album, High Hopes, and went under that album's name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">High Hopes Tour</span> 2014 concert tour by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

The High Hopes Tour was a concert tour by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band with special guest guitarist Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine. The tour was seen as a continuation of his previous tour and was in support of eighteenth studio album, High Hopes, which was released in January 2014.

<i>Soulfire</i> (Little Steven album) 2017 studio album by Little Steven

Soulfire is the sixth solo studio album by Little Steven, released on May 19, 2017. It marks his first studio album since 1999's Born Again Savage. The album consists of Van Zandt's versions of songs that he either wrote or co-wrote for other artists and describes it as "me covering me!" In June 2017, Rolling Stone ranked Soulfire number 28 on their list of the "50 Best Albums of 2017 So Far."

<i>Summer of Sorcery</i> 2019 studio album by Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul

Summer of Sorcery is the seventh solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Little Steven, released under the name Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul. It was released on May 3, 2019 under Universal Music Enterprises. It is Little Steven's first album of new material since 1999's Born Again Savage. The album consists of 10 new songs plus a reworking of "Education" from his 1989 Revolution album, and the outtake "Suddenly You" from the Lilyhammer score.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steven Van Zandt discography</span> Cataloging of published recordings by Steven Van Zandt

This is the discography of Steven Van Zandt, an American songwriter, singer, musician, and actor. Van Zandt has been featured on records steadily since 1975 as a member of Bruce Springsteen's The E Street Band and Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, as well as with his own band Little Steven and the Disciples of Soul.

Renegade Nation is a music and entertainment company founded by Steven Van Zandt in 1999. The company focuses on artist management, production, live events, and distribution. It is also the parent company of Van Zandt's independent record label, Wicked Cool Records, and distributes Little Steven's Underground Garage.

References

  1. "Little Steven Issues First Disc in a Decade". MTV News . MTV, 10 Sept. 1999. Web. 2 Apr. 2017.
  2. Rasmussen, Eric Schumacher. "Little Steven Van Zandt Record Not For 'Sopranos' Wise Guys". MTV News . MTV, 25 Feb. 2000. Web. 2 Apr. 2017.
  3. 1 2 Ruhlmann, William. "Born Again Savage - Little Steven & the Disciples of Soul", AllMusic, 2015. Retrieved 2015-1-1.
  4. Weingarten, Marc (October 29, 1999). "Born Again Savage review". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  5. McShane, Larry. "Little Steven Takes on Religion With New Rock 'n' Roll Album", Amarillo, 4 Nov. 1999. Retrieved 2015-1-1.
  6. "U2 Discography - Born Again Savage Album / Little Steven", U2 Wanderer, 1995-2007. Retrieved 2015-1-1.
  7. Katz, Larry (January 11, 2000). "Rocking and Rolling Again". Chicago Tribune . Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  8. "Little Steven - Born Again Savage", Stonepony.de. Retrieved 2015-1-1.
  9. ""The Sopranos" Whitecaps (TV Episode 2002) - Soundtracks", IMDb, 1990-2015. Retrieved 2015-1-1.
  10. ""The Sopranos" Moe n' Joe (TV Episode 2006) - Soundtracks", IMDb, 1990-2015. Retrieved 2015-1-1.
  11. "Music from Lilyhammer".
  12. Little Steven Born Again Savage. Liner Notes. Renegade Nation, 1999.