Devils & Dust | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | April 26, 2005 | |||
Recorded | 1996–1998, March–August 2004, January 2005 | |||
Studio | Southern Tracks Recording Studio, Atlanta, GA Thrill Hill Recording, Los Angeles and New Jersey | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 50:55 | |||
Label | Columbia | |||
Producer | Brendan O'Brien, Bruce Springsteen, Chuck Plotkin [notes 1] | |||
Bruce Springsteen chronology | ||||
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Singles from Devils & Dust | ||||
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Devils & Dust is the thirteenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, and his third acoustic album (after Nebraska and The Ghost of Tom Joad ). It was released on April 25, 2005, in Europe and the following day in the United States, where it debuted at No. 1 on the US Billboard 200 album chart.
Springsteen revealed that many of the songs from Devils & Dust dated back a decade or more. [1] He wrote "All the Way Home" for Southside Johnny to use in his album Better Days (1991). "Long Time Comin'" and "The Hitter" were written and performed on Springsteen's 1996 solo Ghost of Tom Joad Tour. "Devils & Dust" featured in soundchecks during The Rising Tour in 2003. The following year it was on the set list for at least one Vote for Change show, but was swapped out at the last moment for a 12-string guitar rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner", which he would later release for free through his official website. [1]
On March 28 the title track was featured as an exclusive preview on AOLmusic.com. [2] The next day it was released on iTunes, and also on DualDisc, the DVD side of which featured Springsteen performing and commenting on five tracks: "Devils and Dust", "Long Time Comin'", "Reno", "All I'm Thinkin' About", and "Matamoros Banks". [3] Springsteen embarked on a solo Devils & Dust Tour to promote the album. [4]
Starbucks had been considered a possible retail outlet for the album, as it had accounted for about a quarter of all sales for the recently successful Ray Charles's Genius Loves Company . [5] The company declined, with news coverage citing as reasons the song "Reno", with its reference to anal sex, [6] and Springsteen's refusal to approve a co-branded disc and promotional deal that prominently featured the Starbucks name. "There were a number of factors involved. It [the lyrics] was one of the factors, but not the only reason," Ken Lombard, president of Starbucks Entertainment, told Reuters. [5] At a concert at the Tower Theater in Philadelphia, Springsteen introduced "Reno" by joking that the album would be available "at Dunkin' Donuts and Krispy Kreme stores everywhere." [7]
The album was Springsteen's seventh No. 1, and fourth No. 1 debut, on the Billboard albums chart, his second for an album containing only previously unreleased content, and his first ever without the E Street Band. [8] It went gold in the US in 2006, where it had sold 650,000 copies as of November 2008. [8]
Aggregate scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Metacritic | 81/100 [9] |
Review scores | |
Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [10] |
Robert Christgau | A− [11] |
PopMatters | [12] |
Rolling Stone | [13] |
Tom Hull | A− [14] |
In a rave review, Rolling Stone lauded the album as being "in striking and affecting ways... Springsteen’s most audacious record since the home-demo American Gothic of 1982’s Nebraska ". [15] The songs are "rendered with a subdued, mostly acoustic flair that smells of wood smoke and sparkles in the right places like stars in a clear Plains sky", David Fricke wrote. "Shocked by the song about sodomy? Wait 'til you hear the Dylan impression" was how The Guardian opened its review, citing the "Reno" lyrics, "Two hundred dollars straight in, two-fifty up the ass", and which it reports Springsteen as having justified with the remark, "It's just what felt right". It found the album to be flawed, but praised that it "rarely does what you expect it to". [6]
Devils and Dust received five Grammy Award nominations, three for the song "Devils & Dust"; Song of the Year and Best Rock Song. Springsteen was nominated for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance, and the album for Best Contemporary Folk Album and Best Long Form Music Video. [16] He took home the award for Best Solo Rock Vocal, which he had previously won for "Code of Silence" and "The Rising". [16] During the February 8 Grammy telecast, Springsteen gave a live solo performance of "Devils & Dust", adding "Bring 'em home" at the finish, and then immediately turned and left the stage without staying to receive his partial standing ovation. [16]
All songs are written by Bruce Springsteen.
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Devils & Dust" | 4:58 |
2. | "All the Way Home" | 3:38 |
3. | "Reno" | 4:08 |
4. | "Long Time Comin'" | 4:17 |
5. | "Black Cowboys" | 4:08 |
6. | "Maria's Bed" | 5:35 |
7. | "Silver Palomino" | 3:22 |
8. | "Jesus Was an Only Son" | 2:55 |
9. | "Leah" | 3:32 |
10. | "The Hitter" | 5:53 |
11. | "All I'm Thinkin' About" | 4:22 |
12. | "Matamoros Banks" | 4:00 |
Adapted from the liner notes:
Technical
Chart (2005) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA) [17] | 10 |
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria) [18] | 1 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders) [19] | 1 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia) [20] | 5 |
Danish Albums (Hitlisten) [21] | 1 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100) [22] | 1 |
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [23] | 3 |
French Albums (SNEP) [24] | 3 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [25] | 1 |
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ) [26] | 16 |
Italian Albums (FIMI) [27] | 1 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ) [28] | 13 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista) [29] | 2 |
Portuguese Albums (AFP) [30] | 10 |
Scottish Albums (OCC) [31] | 1 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [32] | 1 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [33] | 1 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) [34] | 1 |
UK Albums (OCC) [35] | 1 |
US Billboard 200 [36] | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA) [37] | Gold | 35,000^ |
Austria (IFPI Austria) [38] | Gold | 15,000* |
Belgium (BEA) [39] | Gold | 25,000* |
Canada (Music Canada) [40] | Gold | 50,000^ |
Denmark (IFPI Danmark) [41] | Gold | 20,000^ |
Germany (BVMI) [42] | Gold | 100,000‡ |
Ireland (IRMA) [43] | Platinum | 15,000^ |
Italy sales in 2005 | — | 120,000 [44] |
Spain (PROMUSICAE) [45] | Gold | 50,000^ |
Sweden (GLF) [46] | Gold | 30,000^ |
United Kingdom (BPI) [47] | Gold | 100,000^ |
United States (RIAA) [48] | Gold | 500,000^ |
* Sales figures based on certification alone. |
Born in the U.S.A. is the seventh studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on June 4, 1984, by Columbia Records. Produced by Springsteen, Jon Landau, Steven Van Zandt, and Chuck Plotkin, the album was recorded in New York City with the E Street Band over two years between January 1982 and March 1984. Some of the songs originated from the same demo tape that yielded Springsteen's previous album, the solo effort Nebraska (1982), while others were written after that album's release. The sessions yielded between 70 and 90 songs; some were released as B-sides, some later saw release on compilation albums, while others remain unreleased.
The Ghost of Tom Joad is the eleventh studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on November 21, 1995, by Columbia Records. His second primarily acoustic album after Nebraska (1982), The Ghost of Tom Joad reached the top ten in two countries, and the top twenty in five more, including No. 11 in the United States. It was his first studio album to fail to reach the top ten in the US in over two decades. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album.
Human Touch is the ninth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. The album was released on March 31, 1992, the same day as Lucky Town. It was the more popular of the two, peaking at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, and lead single "Human Touch" peaking at number one on the Mainstream Rock and number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. "Human Touch" has since Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for over one million copies sold in the US, and was nominated for Best Rock Vocal Performance at the 1993 Grammy Awards.
Lucky Town is the tenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. The album was released on March 31, 1992, the same day as Springsteen's ninth studio album Human Touch. Lucky Town peaked at number three on the Billboard 200, with lead single "Better Days" peaking at number one on the US Mainstream Rock and number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Lucky Town has since been certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for over one million copies sold in the US.
Tunnel of Love is the eighth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on October 5, 1987. Although members of the E Street Band occasionally performed on the album, Springsteen recorded most of the parts himself, often with drum machines and synthesizers. Tunnel of Love is not officially regarded as an E Street Band album, as The Rising (2002) was marketed as his first studio album with the E Street Band since Born in the U.S.A. (1984).
The Rising is the twelfth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on July 30, 2002, on Columbia Records. The album is based in large part on Springsteen's reflections in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks the year before. The album was a critical and commercial success, representing Springsteen's first album to top the US Billboard 200 since Tunnel of Love in 1987.
Tracks is a four-disc box set by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released in 1998 containing 66 songs. This box set mostly consists of never-before-released songs recorded during the sessions for his many albums, but also includes a number of single B-sides, as well as demos and alternate versions of already-released material.
Greatest Hits is the first compilation album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released February 27, 1995, on Columbia Records. It is a collection of some of Springsteen's hit singles and popular album tracks through the years along with four new songs at the end, mostly recorded with the E Street Band in 1995. The latter constituted Springsteen's first release with his backing band since the late 1980s. Some of the songs are shorter versions of the original album releases.
18 Tracks is an album by Bruce Springsteen, released in 1999. All but three selections had been on the boxed set Tracks, released six months before. This single album was intended to capture more casual fans, and thus was oriented towards the shorter, more pop-oriented selections from Springsteen's vault.
The Essential Bruce Springsteen is a compilation album by Bruce Springsteen, released on November 11, 2003. The collection is part of a series of Essential sets released by Sony Music. It includes songs from various Springsteen albums and concerts up to the year 2003. A limited-edition third disc includes previously unreleased cuts, B-sides, contributions to soundtracks and benefit albums, covers, and an alternate, "country-blues" acoustic version of "Countin' on a Miracle" from The Rising (2002).
We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions is the fourteenth studio album by Bruce Springsteen. Released in 2006, it peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and won the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album at the 49th Grammy Awards.
VH1 Storytellers is a concert and discussion DVD by Bruce Springsteen, expanded from the airing of an episode of the VH1 television series VH1 Storytellers on April 23, 2005. Tied into promotion for his album Devils & Dust at the time, it was released in video form half a year later.
Bruce Springsteen with The Sessions Band: Live in Dublin is a 2007 video and audio offering that captures in-concert performances from the Bruce Springsteen with The Seeger Sessions Band Tour recorded in November 2006 at The Point Theatre in Dublin, Ireland. The release consists of a concert DVD, a Blu-ray Disc, and separate two-CD audio set. A "special edition" of the CD set includes the concert DVD as well. The album is dedicated to friend and Irish show-business giant, Jim Aiken.
Magic is the fifteenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released by Columbia Records on LP on September 25, 2007, and on CD on October 2. It was his first with the E Street Band since The Rising in 2002, and topped the charts in six countries, including the US and UK, going triple platinum in Ireland. Two songs from the album – "Radio Nowhere" and "Girls in Their Summer Clothes" – won a total of three Grammys, making Magic the second of only two Springsteen albums with three wins, after The Rising. It ranked No. 2 on Rolling Stone's list of the Top 50 Albums of 2007.
Working on a Dream is the sixteenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on January 27, 2009, through Columbia Records. It topped the charts in nine countries, including the US, where it was Springsteen's ninth No. 1. "The Wrestler", which appeared as a bonus track, won a Golden Globe award. E Street Band guitarist Steve Van Zandt said that Working on a Dream completed a trilogy which started with The Rising (2002) and continued with Magic (2007), all of which were produced by Brendan O'Brien.
The Promise is a compilation album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released November 16, 2010, on Columbia Records. The album is a collection of previously unreleased songs which were recorded during the Darkness on the Edge of Town sessions in 1977–1978, with some vocals and additional instrumentation overdubs recorded in 2010. It was released in 2CD and 3LP formats. The album is also available as part of the box set The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story. The two-CD version of the release entered the UK Albums Chart at number 7. It had been in production for many years and was originally scheduled to be released for the 30th anniversary in 2008. The Promise debuted at number 16 on the Billboard 200, while the box set, The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story, debuted at number 27.
High Hopes is the eighteenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on January 14, 2014, by Columbia Records. It went to the top of the charts in eleven countries, and was Springsteen's eleventh No. 1 album in the United States, a record surpassed only by the Beatles and Jay-Z. It was his tenth No. 1 in the UK putting him on par with the Rolling Stones and U2. Rolling Stone named it the second-best album of 2014.
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.
Western Stars is the nineteenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on June 14, 2019, by Columbia Records. It was produced by Ron Aniello, who worked with Springsteen on his two previous albums: Wrecking Ball (2012) and High Hopes (2014).
Only the Strong Survive is the twenty-first studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on November 11, 2022, through Columbia Records. The album is a cover album of R&B and soul songs, and his second cover album following We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (2006). It was announced on September 29, 2022, along with the release of "Do I Love You ", a cover of the song by Frank Wilson. The singles "Nightshift", "Don't Play That Song" and "Turn Back the Hands of Time" followed throughout October and November 2022. The album title is an eponymous reference to its first track, a cover of the original "Only the Strong Survive" by Jerry Butler. The album was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.