Is "The River" Springsteen's best album ?

**2-1B** · 08-07-2004

I can't say for sure but I often feel this way.
I know it's not really fair since it's a double length album so the quality is that much deeper but hey, I'll take 4 tracks of that collection and put it up against ANYTHING else he's ever done:

-Ramrod
-Out in the Street
-Cadillac Ranch
-Two Hearts

And for the slower, moodier stuff, I love
-Fade Away
-The River
-Point Blank

I think The Boss has so many incredible albums but The River seems to always rank at or near the top of my list. No doubt, if I ever feel down and sad, all I have to do is play the intro to Ramrod and I can't help but smile.

**derek** · 08-07-2004

it's hard to pick a favorite. i think it's kinda like asking a parent "which child do you love best"

, but if i had to choose, i'd say "tunnel of love", followed closely by "human touch" and "nebraska" ........but you surely can't go wrong with "the river".

and i just love the 4 disc live boxset he did years ago. that story he tells about getting his draft notice and his fights with his dad is just priceless.

**2-1B** · 08-07-2004

INTERESTING, Derek gives a nod to 2 non-E Street albums (Tunnel of Love & Human Touch).

Human Touch is a great album but I prefer it's sister album, Lucky Town.
That's definitely my favorite non-E Street album with such gems as
-Better Days
-Lucky Town
-Leap of Faith
-If I Should Fall Behind

Hell, I might as well bring up BITUSA even though it's looked down on as being too commerical or too "sell out." I don't care ! Even if you take away the "hits" like BITUSA, Glory Days, Dancing in the Dark, I'm on Fire, etc., (all of which I love, well except for the title song because I don't go nuts for it) anyway, setting aside those "hits", I can still pull No Surrender and Bobby Jean off that album and name them as 2 of my all time favorites.

That live boxset is indeed awesome !

Derek, what about Tracks ? It's unbelievable to me that a guy like Springsteen can put out a 4 disc collection of unreleased stuff, songs that were not even "good" enough to put on an album at the time and it still blows away much of the best work of many other artists.

-Seaside Bar Song
-Rendezvous
-Sad Eyes
-Pink Cadillac
-My Love Will Not Let You Down

Those 5 songs are also near the top of my list.

How about Born to Run ?
Another solid album, obviously it has the anthem title track but it's rich with
-Thunder Road
-She's the One
-Tenth Avenue Freeze Out
-Jungleland

**derek** · 08-09-2004

i've never understood why some say "B.i.t.USA" was a sellout album. i never thought bruce sold out, it was just that, for whatever reason, a bigger audience found him. it's true it was his most popular work, but i see the same themes in that album as i do in all his other stuff...songs about love and folks having a hard time with life.

.......yea i love tracks. i saw an interview on time where van zandt said bruce always has an album ready to go, and just note books full of un-recorded songs.

if you had to choose a least favorite bruce album, what would it be? mine would be "the wild, the innocent and the E street shuffle". it's definately not a bad album, but i think bruce hadn't yet found his "voice" and storytelling ability that attracted me to his stuff.

**TheDarthVader** · 08-10-2004

Are you guys kidding me? Yall are not thinking outside of the box. There is only one Springsteen album that beats all of the rest. And that is........

Bruce Springsteen Greatest Hits

Lets see: Born to Run, Thunder Road, Badlands, The River, Hungry Heart, Atlantic City, Dancing in the Dark, BITUSA, My Hometown, Glory Days, Brilliant Disguise, Human Touch, Better Days, Streets of Philadelphia, Secret Garden

What album can top that? If a person has to own at least one Springsteen album, it has to be his greatest hits album.

B.
TDV

**El Chuxter** · 08-10-2004

Both of the Boss's compilations are woefully incomplete.

The first is missing so many great songs, it's not funny.

The more recent does a much better job, but still lacks a lot of great tracks--hits with a great deal of radio play, I might add. The third disc makes it worth picking up, though.

And, c'mon! Both are missing his best song ever, "Pink Cadillac"! Okay, so it's not quite his best, but it is an awesome song, and got a ton of radio play several years ago.

I'm ashamed to say I don't actually have most of Springsteen's older albums yet. The record industry has this way of knowing exactly when I pick up someone's back catalog, then re-releasing it with 12 bonus tracks on each album for the same price a month later. I'm convinced if I hold out a bit longer, that'll happen with the Boss.

But out of the ones I have, I actually think I like the rarities box set, Tracks, the best.

**2-1B** · 08-11-2004

Originally Posted by TheDarthVader

Are you guys kidding me? Yall are not thinking outside of the box. There is only one Springsteen album that beats all of the rest. And that is........

Bruce Springsteen Greatest Hits

Lets see: Born to Run, Thunder Road, Badlands, The River, Hungry Heart, Atlantic City, Dancing in the Dark, BITUSA, My Hometown, Glory Days, Brilliant Disguise, Human Touch, Better Days, Streets of Philadelphia, Secret Garden

What album can top that? If a person has to own at least one Springsteen album, it has to be his greatest hits album.

B.
TDV

Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, infinity . . .

Those are all great tracks (well, except for Secret Garden which I don't really care for) but it's still not his best collection. Woefully incomplete.

As much as I love most of the songs on Greatest Hits, I'd STILL rather put in The River. Um, Hungry Heart and The River (title track) are on GH but those are 2 of my lesser favorites from that album.

It's kinda dumb to argue a "best of" CD collection as it pertains to Bruce because his albums are SO DEEP with great cuts that it's pointless to compile a single disc "best of" (see my earlier post about the quality of his 'throw away' stuff on Tracks.

).

Derek, I can't commit right now to a Least Favorite album but I do see what you are saying about The Wild, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle. Still, there are some great songs on there like Kitty's Back (they did it on Conan last year !

and ROSALITA (which he dusted off for last year's tour and I got to see it live !).

Least Favorite . . . well, when I listen to Darkness on the Edge of Town I find that I never cared much for the title track or Prove it all Night. Not sure why, they just don't do it for me. But then on that same album I'll take Candy's Room (!!!), Badlands, and Adam Raised a Cain.

Chux, you've GOT to pick up the Boss' old albums, you've just got to !
I believe Best Buy has a 3 pack of Greetings From Asbury Park, The Wild . . . , and Darkness on the Edge of Town (basically the first 2 albums and the 4th - Born to Run is of course sold separately

) and it costs about $27 for the 3 CDs.

Let me give a mention to The Rising as one of my absolute favorite Boss records. Probably in my top 3, DEFINITELY top 5. I played the hell out of it for about 2 years straight although I have cut back lately. There's only one song I don't care for that much and it is Worlds Apart.

Man, I can't get enough of Waitin' on a Sunny Day, Mary's Place, Further on up the Road, Lonesome Day, You're Missing and many others !

Derek, do you like "For You" from Greetings from Asbury Park ? Just checking.