On the Line (Gary U.S. Bonds album)

Last updated
On the Line
On the Line Gary US Bonds album cover.jpeg
Studio album by
ReleasedJune 1982
Studio Power Station, New York City
Genre Rock, pop
Length40:29
Label EMI America, Razor & Tie, BGO
Producer Steven Van Zandt, Bruce Springsteen
Gary U.S. Bonds chronology
Dedication
(1981)
On the Line
(1982)
Standing in the Line of Fire
(1984)
Singles from On the Line
  1. "Out of Work"
    Released: June 1982
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [1]

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.

Contents

Background

The musicians accompanying Bonds on the album include many members of the E Street Band. [2] The album includes seven songs written by Springsteen, one written by Steven Van Zandt, and two written by Bonds himself ("Turn the Music Down", "Bring Her Back"), and features a duet with Steven Van Zandt on the track "Angelyne". The album produced one single, "Out of Work" which peaked at #21 on the Billboard Pop Singles charts. [3] [4]

According to the liner notes on the Razor & Tie reissue, after recording the album, Columbia Records had Bruce Springsteen remove his vocals from the tracks, specifically from the track "Angelyne", so Van Zandt stepped up to record the duet instead. Because of this, although Springsteen can still be heard on several of the tracks, he is not credited in the original liner notes. Additionally, the liner notes state that three other songs were recorded for the album but not present on the final release including Springsteen's "Action in the Street", "Lion's Den", and "Savin' Up". [5] [6] Springsteen's studio version of "Lion's Den" and a live version of "Rendezvous" were eventually released in 1998 on his boxset Tracks , and "Savin' Up" appeared on Clarence Clemons' first solo album Rescue (1983); "Action in the Street" remains unreleased. Springsteen's studio version of "Rendezvous" was finally released in 2010 on The Promise .

The album was re-released in 1992 on the Razor Edge label of Razor & Tie music, and then again in 2009 on BGO Records paired with Dedication .

Track listing

All songs written by Bruce Springsteen unless otherwise stated.

Side one

  1. "Hold On (To What You Got)" – 3:05
  2. "Out of Work" – 2:53
  3. "Club Soul City" – 3:36
  4. "Soul Deep" (Wayne Carson) – 3:16
  5. "Love's on the Line" – 3:38
  6. "Turn the Music Down" (Gary L. Anderson) – 3:37

Side two

  1. "Rendezvous" – 2:41
  2. "Angelyne" – 4:03
  3. "All I Need" – 5:10
  4. "Bring Her Back" (Anderson) – 3:45
  5. "Last Time" (Steven Van Zandt) – 4:45

Personnel

Musicians

Additional musicians

Technical

Related Research Articles

<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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes</span> American musical group

Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes are an American musical group from the Jersey Shore led by Southside Johnny. They have been recording albums since 1976 and are closely associated with Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band. They have recorded or performed several Springsteen songs, including "The Fever" (1973) and "Fade Away" (1980). Springsteen has also performed with the band on several occasions. In 1991, Springsteen and the E Street band appeared on Southside Johnny's Better Days album.

<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.

"Independence Day" is a song written and performed by Bruce Springsteen. It was originally released on his fifth album, The River, in 1980. It was recorded at The Power Station in New York, on April 24–25, 1980.

"Out in the Street" is a song written and performed by Bruce Springsteen from the 1980 album The River. It was recorded at The Power Station in New York between March and May 1980, as one of the last songs recorded for the album. Originally, Springsteen was going to keep the song off the album because it was so idealistic.

<i>Dedication</i> (Gary U.S. Bonds album) 1981 studio album by Gary U.S. Bonds

Dedication is a 1981 album by American singer Gary U.S. Bonds.

<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>I Dont Want to Go Home</i> 1976 studio album by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes

I Don't Want to Go Home was the first album by seminal New Jersey rock/R&B band Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes. The work helped establish the basis of the Jersey Shore sound. It was produced and arranged by manager Steven Van Zandt, who also sang, played guitar, wrote the title song, and elicited the contribution of two compositions by Bruce Springsteen, who also wrote the liner notes.

<i>Better Days</i> (Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes album) 1991 studio album by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes

Better Days is an album by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, released in 1991. It yielded minor hits "It's Been a Long Time" and "I've Been Workin' Too Hard". The song "It's Been a Long Time" features shared lead vocals by Southside Johnny, Steven Van Zandt, and Bruce Springsteen and is a reflection back on their early years together in the music business. "I've Been Working Too Hard" features a duet with Jon Bon Jovi. Eight of the eleven songs were written by Van Zandt, harkening back to the Jukes' first three albums which also featured Van Zandt writing, playing guitar, and singing harmony and sometimes duet vocals. One track, "All the Way Home", was written by Bruce Springsteen who later recorded his own version of it for his 2005 solo album Devils and Dust.

<i>The Ties That Bind: The River Collection</i> 2015 box set by Bruce Springsteen

The Ties That Bind: The River Collection is a box set by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. Released on December 4, 2015, the collection is an expanded edition of his 1980 album The River, containing 52 tracks on four CDs along with four hours of video on three DVDs or two Blu-ray discs. The first two CDs feature the remastered version of The River and the third CD contains the previously unreleased The Ties That Bind, a single LP originally intended for release in late 1979 before Springsteen expanded it to the final double LP. The fourth CD, The River: Outtakes, spans the entire The River sessions in 1979 and 1980 and contains eleven previously-unreleased outtakes. The fifth disc contains a 60-minute documentary, The Ties That Bind, which was produced and directed by filmmaker Thom Zimny and features an interview with Springsteen as he reflects on writing and recording The River. The film transitions between Springsteen telling the stories behind the music—and illustrating them with solo acoustic guitar performances—interspersed with period concert footage and photos. The remaining disc(s) feature Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band: The River Tour, Tempe 1980, a new film produced from footage professionally filmed in 1980 using four cameras and recorded in multitrack audio. The film features 23 of 33 songs performed, clocking in at 2 hours, 40 minutes on 2 DVDs, from Springsteen's November 5, 1980, concert at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. Also included is 20 minutes of footage from the late September 1980 River Tour rehearsals held in Lititz, Pennsylvania. The boxed set also includes a 148-page coffee table book featuring 200 rare or previously unseen photos and memorabilia, including a new essay by Mikal Gilmore.

<i>Chapter and Verse</i> (Bruce Springsteen album) 2016 compilation album by Bruce Springsteen

Chapter and Verse is a compilation album by Bruce Springsteen that was released on September 23, 2016. The album is a companion piece to Springsteen's 500-plus-page autobiography, Born to Run, which was released four days later. The career-spanning album features eighteen songs handpicked by Springsteen, five of which were previously unreleased. The album contains Springsteen's earliest recording from 1966 and late '60s/early '70s songs from his tenure in the Castiles, Steel Mill, and the Bruce Springsteen Band, along with his first 1972 demos for Columbia Records and songs from his studio albums from 1973 until 2012.

<i>HSBC Arena, Buffalo, NY, 11/22/09</i> 2016 live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

HSBC Arena, Buffalo, NY, 11/22/09 is a live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, released in November 2016. It is the eleventh official release through the Bruce Springsteen Archives. The show was originally recorded live at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, New York on November 22, 2009. It includes a complete performance of Springsteen's debut album, Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J. along with several other rarities. The show was the last to feature Clarence Clemons before his 2011 death and also was the last date on the Working on a Dream Tour.

<i>Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO, 8/23/08</i> 2017 live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO, 8/23/08 is a live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, released on April 14, 2017. It is the twelfth official release through the Bruce Springsteen Archives. The show was originally recorded live at the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, MO on August 23, 2008, during the Magic Tour.

<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>Olympiastadion, Helsinki, July 31, 2012</i> 2017 live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Olympiastadion, Helsinki, July 31, 2012 is a live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, released on May 23, 2017. It is the thirteenth such release by the Bruce Springsteen Archives. The concert is notable for being, as of the time of its release, the longest by Springsteen and the band, at four hours and six minutes in length. The show also included a brief five-song acoustic set for fans who had arrived early; this is not included on the recording. The concert is the third full-length show from the Wrecking Ball Tour to be released, following Apollo Theater 3/09/12, a rehearsal for the tour, and Ippodromo delle Capannelle, Rome 2013.

<i>Palace Theatre, Albany 1977</i> 2017 live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Palace Theatre, Albany 1977 is a live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, released in August 2017. It is the fifteenth such release by the Bruce Springsteen Archives. The show was recorded on February 7, 1977 at the Palace Theatre in Albany, NY and is the first-ever soundboard recording to surface from the 1977 tour which features early renditions of “Something In The Night,” “Rendezvous” and “The Promise” along with the unreleased original “Action In The Streets” featuring the Miami Horns.

<i>Auditorium Theatre, Rochester, NY 1977</i> 2017 live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

Auditorium Theatre, Rochester, NY 1977 is a live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, released in August 2017. It is the sixteenth such release by the Bruce Springsteen Archives. The show was recorded on February 8, 1977, at the Auditorium Theatre in Rochester, NY and is one of the first soundboard recordings to surface from the 1977 tour which features early renditions of "Something in the Night", "Rendezvous" and "The Promise" along with the unreleased original "Action in the Streets" featuring the Miami Horns.

<i>The Summit, Houston, TX December 8, 1978</i> 2017 live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band

The Summit, Houston, TX December 8, 1978 is a live album by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, released in September 2017, and is the 19th official release through the Bruce Springsteen Archives. The show was recorded on December 8, 1978, at The Summit in Houston, TX during the Darkness on the Edge of Town Tour.