Bruce Springsteen - 1978-08-26 - Providence, RI (AUD/FLAC)

(Audience FLAC)

Bruce Springsteen

Civic Center

Providence, Rhode Island

August 26, 1978

Audience recording - from master cassette

Audience Stereo Master FOB (Probably Nakamichi Mics and Deck)

Master Cassette > CDR > EAC secure > Audacity (edits) > CD Wave (tracks) > FLAC

Nakamichi MR-1 > Tascam CD-RW900

Azimuth Aligned; Dolby B decoded, no processing or EQ

Total Time - 70:36

Thanks to FF for the cassette

Transfer and encoding by Steve Hopkins

Track listing (70:34):

(1) Summertime Blues (2:35) =>

(2) Badlands (4:32) =>

(3) Streets of Fire (4:13)

(4) Spirit in the Night (8:22)

(5) Darkness on the Edge of Town (5:01)

(6) Heartbreak Hotel (2:09)

(7) Factory (4:07)

(8) The Promised Land (5:44)

(9) Prove It All Night (10:37)

(10) Racing in the Street (8:27) =>

(11) Thunder Road (7:05)

(12) Jungleland (cut) (7:36)

Info file, Md5 signature file, and ffp file are included. Sorry, no artwork.

Comments:

This excellent audience "Darkness"-era recording surfaced in July 2010 courtesy of Dime user Steve Hopkins ("shopkin527") and surprisingly, it hasn't been back since. In terms of sound quality, this rates up with the JEMS audience recordings from the era -- very good mix, clear and prominent vocals, virtually no crowd interference -- although unfortunately it only represents roughly the first half of the show. As Bruce collectors know, the "Darkness" shows in 1978 were somewhat of a breakthrough for Bruce, as he cemented his reputation as one of the best songwriters and performers around; the shows routinely featured great setlists and passionate performances, and this appears to be no exception. Note that although Steve has recorded and shared many wonderful audience recordings over the years, it looks like his role in this one was in the transfer and conversion -- the master itself was provided by another taper (thanks to the commenters who pointed that out).

Unfortunately, the taper notes that he got caught by security midway through the show and wasn't able to record the last half. It's a shame, because this is a worthy document as it stands. There is a recording of the second half of the set which is not of the same quality (I don't have it; if someone could post it that would be great) - not too many surprises in that portion other than an early "Sherry Darling," but it looks to be a strong set.

Hopefully this will fill a gap for some collectors. Many thanks to Steve for his generosity (on this one, plus the many other masters from his archives that have found their way online over the years) as well as the time and effort involved in the transfer of this recording.