- “Al who? Dog Day After what?”
A couple of years after it was first announced, the deluxe reissue of Bruce Springsteen’s classic 1978 album Darkness on the Edge of Town will finally see the light of day.
Details on the six-disc box set, The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story, finally surfaced today. Like 2005’s 30th Anniversary reissue of Born to Run, the new and expanded Darkness will include a mix of CDs and DVDs.
But unlike the Born to Run box, the Darkness one is doubling in size to include three CDs and three DVDs. Also unlike the 2005 set, there’ll be rarities this time.
Of course the center of it all is Springsteen’s terrific 1978 album (it includes “Badlands,” “The Promised Land,” and “Prove It All Night,” plus a bunch of others you should know). The reissue — which comes out on November 16, just in time for the holidays (or my birthday, if you’re feeling super generous) — also tags on two full CDs of outtakes and unreleased songs. And many of them have never been available, even within Springsteen’s sizable bootleg ring (and none are repeated from the Tracks box set of leftovers).
The DVDs feature a 1978 concert from Houston, a compilation of live cuts from the era, and last year’s Asbury Park performance of Darkness in its entirety.
Sounds like it’s going to be a very merry Brucey Christmas for fans. —Michael Gallucci
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This article appears in Aug 25-31, 2010.
With the much-anticipated release of a commemorative box set for Darkness on the Edge of Town slated for this November, Bruce Springsteen’s classic record is getting renewed attention in the music world.
For our own preview of what’s to come, we contacted Dick Wingate, who was intimately involved in the launch and marketing of the album and tour. He offers an insider’s view of what the Darkness era meant to Bruce and the band, while painting an often-humorous behind-the-scenes account of some of the tour’s highlights. Enjoy, and be certain to check out the book The Light in Darkness, which one fan said, “… would also make a great companion piece to the commemorative Darkness box set…”