Springsteen on Broadway (album)

Last updated

Springsteen on Broadway
Springsteen On Broadway Album Cover.jpg
Live album by
ReleasedDecember 14, 2018
RecordedJuly 17–18, 2018
Genre Rock
Length145:43
Label Columbia
Producer Bruce Springsteen
Bruce Springsteen chronology
Chapter and Verse
(2016)
Springsteen on Broadway
(2018)
Western Stars
(2019)

Springsteen on Broadway is a live album by the American rock singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. It features the complete audio of Springsteen's solo Broadway performance at the Walter Kerr Theatre in New York, recorded live on July 17 and 18, 2018, and filmed for Netflix. The album was released on December 14, 2018, by Columbia Records. [1]

Contents

After release, Springsteen on Broadway impacted the top 10 of record charts in more than 10 countries, including Australia, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. In the United States, it reached number 11 on the Billboard 200. A widespread critical success, the album was praised for examining Springsteen's recording persona and an autobiographical dimension recalling the musician's 2016 autobiography Born to Run .

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic 87/100 [2]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg [3]
Financial Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [4]
The Guardian Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [5]
The Independent Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [6]
The Irish Times Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [7]
The Observer Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [8]
Pitchfork 8/10 [9]
Rolling Stone Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [10]
Uncut 9/10 [11]
Vice (Expert Witness)A [12]

Springsteen on Broadway was met with widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 87, based on 15 reviews. [1]

Reviewing for The Daily Telegraph in December 2018, Neil McCormick said "Springsteen on Broadway may not have the musical expanse of his work with the E Street Band, but it is still as powerful as any album he has ever made", especially applauding its autobiographical dimension, which he compared to Springsteen's 2016 autobiography Born to Run . McCormick also highlighted Springsteen's humor and instincts as an onstage anecdotist. [13] Alexis Petridis of The Guardian said listeners of the album will learn that Springsteen's recording persona is "as much a contrived character" as David Bowie's Ziggy Stardust character. Overall, he found that this "cocktail of homespun wisdom, frankness and blatant yarn-spinning is genuinely enthralling, a portrait of the rock star as a complex, conflicted 69-year-old man." [5]

In hailing the performance as "a new type of rock show", Record Collector magazine's Jamie Atkins felt Springsteen is the only musician of his pedigree to have "the connection with their audience, the storytelling nous, the humour and pathos". [14] In Rolling Stone , Will Hermes described it as "by turns audiobook, podcast, and live album, and at its most potent when it becomes a hybrid of the three", [10] while Kitty Empire regarded it as being "located somewhere between a TED talk, an episode of VH1's Storytellers and a confessional ... a hugely nourishing listen". [8] Despite having never been "big on extended spoken-word material or solo-acoustic remakes of exalted songbooks", Robert Christgau said in his column for Vice that he was impressed by performance. [12] In appraising the record as a whole, he said:

The Springsteen this most recalls isn't like any earlier album but the 2016 autobiography he called Born to Run for better reasons than you might imagine. Like that fast-reading 508-pager, its aim is to simultaneously depict and demythologize the Jersey shore and poke major holes in an authenticity it reconceives at a truer level of complexity. [12]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Bruce Springsteen

Disc one
No.TitleLength
1."Growin' Up (Introduction)"2:04
2."Growin' Up"11:59
3."My Hometown (Introduction Part 1)"3:44
4."My Hometown (Introduction Part 2)"3:36
5."My Hometown"3:59
6."My Father's House (Introduction)"4:28
7."My Father's House"6:22
8."The Wish (Introduction)"6:09
9."The Wish"4:24
10."Thunder Road (Introduction)"3:19
11."Thunder Road"5:28
12."The Promised Land (Introduction Part 1)"3:35
13."The Promised Land (Introduction Part 2)"3:34
14."The Promised Land (Introduction Part 3)"4:15
15."The Promised Land"3:59
Disc two
No.TitleLength
1."Born in the U.S.A. (Introduction Part 1)"4:16
2."Born in the U.S.A. (Introduction Part 2)"3:46
3."Born in the U.S.A."4:44
4."Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out (Introduction)"1:10
5."Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out"7:56
6."Tougher Than the Rest (Introduction)"1:25
7."Tougher Than the Rest" (w/ Patti Scialfa)4:29
8."Brilliant Disguise (Introduction)"1:43
9."Brilliant Disguise" (w/ Patti Scialfa)4:47
10."Long Time Comin' (Introduction)"3:08
11."Long Time Comin'"3:54
12."The Ghost of Tom Joad (Introduction)"3:27
13."The Ghost of Tom Joad"4:36
14."The Rising"4:33
15."Dancing in the Dark (Introduction)"2:47
16."Dancing in the Dark"4:10
17."Land of Hope and Dreams"3:57
18."Born to Run (Introduction Part 1)"3:54
19."Born to Run (Introduction Part 2)"3:41
20."Born to Run"5:08
Total length:145:43

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes. [15]

Technical personnel

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Italy (FIMI) [43] Gold25,000
United Kingdom (BPI) [44] Silver60,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Related Research Articles

<i>Born in the U.S.A.</i> 1984 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

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. The album was recorded with the E Street Band and producers Chuck Plotkin and Jon Landau over the course of several years, while Springsteen was also working on his previously released album, Nebraska (1982). It features tighter songs with a brighter, more pop-influenced sound than Springsteen's previous albums, and prominent synthesizer, while its lyrics explore themes of working-class struggles, disillusionment, patriotism, and personal relationships. The cover features a photograph of Springsteen from behind, taken by Annie Leibovitz; it has since become one of the musician’s most iconic images.

<i>The Ghost of Tom Joad</i> 1995 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

The Ghost of Tom Joad is the eleventh studio album, and the second acoustic album, by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on November 21, 1995, by Columbia Records. It reached the top ten in two countries, and the top twenty in five more, including No. 11 in the United States, his first studio album to fail to reach the top ten in the US in over two decades. It won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album.

<i>Lucky Town</i> 1992 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

Lucky Town is the tenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. The album was released on March 31, 1992, the same day as Springsteen's Human Touch album. Lucky Town peaked at number three on the Billboard 200, with "Better Days" peaking at number one on the Mainstream Rock and number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100. Lucky Town has since sold more than one million copies in the United States.

<i>The River</i> (Bruce Springsteen album) 1980 album by Bruce Springsteen

The River is the fifth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on October 17, 1980, by Columbia Records. Springsteen's only double album, The River was produced by Jon Landau, Springsteen, and bandmate Steven Van Zandt. The album was Springsteen's first to reach number one on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart and spent four weeks at the top of the charts. It received critical acclaim and the title track, "The River", was nominated for Best Rock Vocal Performance at the 1982 Grammy Awards.

<i>Tunnel of Love</i> (album) 1987 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

Tunnel of Love is the eighth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on October 2, 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).

<i>The Rising</i> (album) 2002 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

The Rising is the twelfth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on July 30, 2002, on Columbia Records. An immediate critical and commercial success, it was Springsteen's first to top the US Billboard 200 since Tunnel of Love (1987). Hailed as a triumphant return to form for Springsteen, the album won two Grammy awards and marked the start of a successful collaboration with producer Brendan O'Brien. The Rising came seven years after The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995), the longest interlude between studio albums for the artist, and was his first in almost two decades with the E Street Band, with whom he had recently completed a highly successful reunion tour. The album is based in large part on Springsteen's reflections in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks.

<i>Devils & Dust</i> 2005 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

Devils & Dust is the thirteenth studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, and his third acoustic album. 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.

<i>Greatest Hits</i> (Bruce Springsteen album) 1995 greatest hits album by Bruce Springsteen

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.

<i>The Essential Bruce Springsteen</i> 2003 greatest hits album by Bruce Springsteen

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 BMG. 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.

<i>We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions</i> 2006 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

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.

<i>Magic</i> (Bruce Springsteen album) 2007 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

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.

<i>Working on a Dream</i> 2009 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

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.

<i>The Promise</i> (Bruce Springsteen album) 2010 compilation album by Bruce Springsteen

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.

<i>Popular Problems</i> 2014 studio album by Leonard Cohen

Popular Problems is the thirteenth studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen, released on September 19, 2014 in Friday-release countries and on September 22, 2014 elsewhere.

<i>Chaos and the Calm</i> 2015 studio album by James Bay

Chaos and the Calm is the debut studio album by English singer-songwriter James Bay. It was first released on 23 March 2015 via Republic Records.

<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 have never been released. 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>Dark Matter</i> (Randy Newman album) 2017 studio album by Randy Newman

Dark Matter is the fifteenth studio album of original material and first of such in nine years by Randy Newman, released on August 4, 2017, by Nonesuch Records. NPR.org released an advance stream of the album on July 27, 2017. Veteran music critic Robert Christgau ranked it as the sixth-best album of the 2010s.

<i>Western Stars</i> 2019 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

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).

<i>The Legendary 1979 No Nukes Concerts</i> Live album by Bruce Springsteen

The Legendary 1979 No Nukes Concerts is a live album and concert film by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, released on November 19, 2021. It was recorded over two nights, September 21 and 22, 1979, at Madison Square Garden, as part of the No Nukes concerts organized by activist group Musicians United for Safe Energy (MUSE) against the use of nuclear energy.

<i>Only the Strong Survive</i> (Bruce Springsteen album) 2022 studio album by Bruce Springsteen

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 is nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards.

References

  1. 1 2 "Springsteen on Broadway". Metacritic . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  2. "Springsteen on Broadway by Bruce Springsteen". Metacritic . Retrieved September 9, 2021.
  3. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2018). "Springsteen on Broadway". AllMusic . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  4. Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (December 14, 2018). "Bruce Springsteen: Springsteen on Broadway — an affecting personal dimension". Financial Times . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  5. 1 2 Petridis, Alexis (December 7, 2018). "Bruce Springsteen: Springsteen on Broadway review – magical myth-busting with the Boss". The Guardian . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  6. Polard, Alexandra (December 14, 2018). "Bruce Springsteen on Broadway, album review: 150 minutes of theatrical magnetism" . The Independent . Archived from the original on May 24, 2022. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  7. Breen, Joe (December 14, 2018). "Springsteen on Broadway album review: Stories of hurting and healing". The Irish Times . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  8. 1 2 Empire, Kitty (December 15, 2018). "Bruce Springsteen: Springsteen on Broadway; Paul McCartney at Liverpool Echo Arena – reviews". The Observer . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  9. Rose, Caryn (December 14, 2018). "Bruce Springsteen: Springsteen on Broadway". Pitchfork . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  10. 1 2 Hermes, Will (December 13, 2018). "'Springsteen on Broadway' Is the Realest Bruce We've Ever Seen". Rolling Stone . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  11. Watts, Peter (February 2018). "Springsteen on Broadway". Uncut . p. 18.
  12. 1 2 3 Christgau, Robert (May 3, 2019). "Robert Christgau Reviews 'Springsteen on Broadway'". Vice . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  13. McCormick, Neil (December 7, 2018). "Bruce Springsteen, Springsteen on Broadway, review: that's why they call him the Boss". The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  14. Atkins, Jamie (January 2019). "Springsteen on Broadway". Record Collector . No. 488. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  15. Springsteen on Broadway (liner notes). Bruce Springsteen. Columbia Records. 2018. 19075904362.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  16. "Australiancharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  17. "Austriancharts.at – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
  18. "Ultratop.be – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  19. "Ultratop.be – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  20. "Bruce Springsteen Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved December 25, 2018.
  21. "Danishcharts.dk – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
  22. "Dutchcharts.nl – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  23. "Bruce Springsteen: Springsteen on Broadway" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  24. "Le Top de la semaine : Top Albums Fusionnes – SNEP (Week 51, 2018)". Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved December 24, 2018.
  25. "Offiziellecharts.de – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  26. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Bruce Springsteen". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  27. "Italiancharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  28. "Charts.nz – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  29. "Norwegiancharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  30. "Portuguesecharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  31. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  32. "Spanishcharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 28, 2018.
  33. "Swedishcharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  34. "Swisscharts.com – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". Hung Medien. Retrieved December 26, 2018.
  35. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 23, 2018.
  36. "Bruce Springsteen Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved December 25, 2018.
  37. "Bruce Springsteen Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  38. "Classifiche Annuali Top of the Music FIMI/GfK 2018: Protagonista La Musica Italiana" (Download the attachment and open the albums file) (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. January 7, 2019. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  39. "Jaaroverzichten 2019". Ultratop. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  40. "Top 100 Albums Annual 2019". El portal de Música. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
  41. "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2019". hitparade.ch. Retrieved December 31, 2019.
  42. "Top Rock Albums – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  43. "Italian album certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana . Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  44. "British album certifications – Bruce Springsteen – Springsteen on Broadway". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved July 11, 2019.