Bruce Springsteen - The Complete Video Anthology, 1978-2000
by Anthony Potenza, Arnold Levine, Arthur Rosato, Brian De Palma, Carol Dodds

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DVD Reviews of Bruce Springsteen - The Complete Video Anthology, 1978-2000

DVD Review: Here is my review of the first disc:
Summary: 5 Stars

Here's a breakdown of some of the highlights (and lowlights):

Disc One:

"Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)": This is one of Springsteen's great concert songs, filmed in 1978, which some people consider the best period of his performing career. The production values are a little rough. The camera angles are limited and the print quality is poor, but the performance overcomes both of these shortcomings.

"The River" and "Thunder Road": Both of these were taken from the concert film "No Nukes," a record of the 1979 protest concert. The performance is first rate and the production values are a giant leap forward from "Rosalita."

"Atlantic City": This is the first "concept" video in Springsteen's career. In reality, it's a rather low-key montage of black and white images of the eponymous city. Bruce does not appear in the video.

"Dancing In The Dark": Springsteen's first conscious stab at the music video format. This is a pseudo-live performance clip filmed at the first couple of shows of the 1984 tour. Stiff and uninspired, it's better known for having introduced the world to Courtney Cox.

"Born In The U.S.A": Another less-than-successful attempt at a music video. It features live footage of Springsteen in a shotgun marriage to the studio version of the song. The lack of mobility for the camera, combined with the poor lip-synching between the film and the music, show Springsteen still struggling with the music video.

"I'm on Fire": Springsteen leaps into the conceptual video with both feet. A totally non-performance video, it features Bruce playing an auto mechanic. As an actor, he acquits himself adequately, but I don't think Robert DeNiro will lose any sleep.

"Glory Days": Probably the most successful concept video of the Born in the U.S.A. era, it combines footage of Springsteen as a baseball-obsessed construction worker with a lip-synched performance of the entire E-Street Band in a working class bar. It also shows why Bruce will never win the Cy Young Award.

"My Hometown": The first of several purely live performance video, this one was taken form the L.A. Coliseum shows of October, 1985. Simple but effective, it shows Springsteen in his element, playing one of his best songs.

"War": A blistering version of Edwin Starr's classic protest song, this video comes from the same show as "My Hometown." If you look closely, you can see Bruce checking the cheat sheet taped to his arm as he was still just learning this song.

"Fire": A lively and humorous version of the classic song, this was taken from the first Bridge School Benefit concert in 1986. Although this was to promote the live album, this video does not feature the same version of the song. Taken from the in-house video system, the video quality is a little spotty but the performance more than makes up for it.

"Born to Run": A live cut from the 1985 stadium tour, it also intercuts this footage with various shots taken from other shows. No concept here, other to show Bruce Springsteen in his natural element (live in concert) playing one his greatest live songs.

"Brilliant Disguise": This is a bizarre video, showing Bruce alone in a kitchen with his guitar, singing live to a recorded instrumental track. There are no cuts as the camera slowly zooms into his face in one long continuous shot. It's an effective performance and certainly unique for its minimalist approach.

"Tunnel of Love": This video shows a formula that Bruce would use a several more times, combining Bruce-less conceptual footage with shots of Springsteen lip synching. This video probably marks the first time he used the non-concert video format to its fullest advantage.

"One Step Up": Another video in the "Tunnel of Love" tradition, feature shots of Bruce as a straying husband in a girly bar (probably includes the most skin of any Bruce video). The fact that this video predates his affair with Patti Scialfa and his messy divorce from Julianne Phillips makes this one interesting on a whole other level.

"Tougher Than The Rest": This is the first live video from the 1988 tour featuring very well-shot concert footage intercut with shots of various couples kissing and clowning outside the auditorium. On a side note, I don't see anyone could have seen the goo-goo eyes Bruce and Patti Scialfa were making at each other and not known *something* was up between them. Okay, maybe they were acting, but history says otherwise.

"Spare Parts": Another live video, taken from a show on the 1988 European tour. It features a long opening piano interlude with Bruce trying too hard to explain the significance of the song. There's nothing wrong with the performance but the video quality is a little subpar. This may have something to do with PAL video being coverted over to American NTSC standards.

"Born to Run": This is the acoustic-only version of the song from the 1988 tour (same show that produced the "Tougher Than The Rest" video). This has always been one of my favorites versions of this song and the video shows it well, although a concert video of one guy with an acoustic guitar probably won't excite the casual fan, but then they'll probably tune out during Springsteen's LONGwinded introduction.

Description of Bruce Springsteen - The Complete Video Anthology, 1978-2000

Classic Rock Music CDs

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