Maps of Music

Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978)

Where the lyrics of Darkness on the Edge of Town take you, and where it was really made.

Springsteen first recorded at Atlantic Studios, but in September 1977 he moved the sessions to the Record Plant, where most of Born to Run had been made.

Key places

Where the sessions began (1977)

Recording site Atlantic Studios (New York City) — Springsteen began recording his next album here with the E Street Band on June 1, 1977. The sessions moved elsewhere by September. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

The main recording studio (1978)

Recording site The Record Plant — Springsteen moved the sessions here in September 1977 after growing frustrated with Atlantic's sound and environment. Most of Born to Run had been recorded at this studio earlier. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Home of the cover photograph (1978)

Album cover Haddonfield, New Jersey — The cover photo was taken inside photographer Frank Stefanko's home in Haddonfield, New Jersey. The source gives only the town, not the exact address. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

The Circuit in Asbury Park (1978)

In the lyrics Asbury Park — Some songs on the album still take place around the Circuit, a loop of streets west of the boardwalk in Asbury Park. The area is a setting for the lyrics, not a single building. Google Maps · Apple Maps

Album story

Overview

• Darkness on the Edge of Town: fourth studio album by Bruce Springsteen
• Released June 2, 1978 by Columbia Records
• Recorded with the E Street Band in New York City from June 1977 to March 1978
• Springsteen and Jon Landau produced, with help from Steven Van Zandt
• Ten tracks on the final album
• Built around ill-fortuned characters who fight back against overwhelming odds
• Musically strips away the Wall of Sound production of Born to Run

Background

• Born to Run (1975) was Springsteen's breakthrough album
• Springsteen sued former manager Mike Appel in July 1976 for ownership of his work
• The legal proceedings kept him out of the studio for almost a year
• He toured the US and Europe with the E Street Band during that time
• He wrote new material on the road and at his farm home in Holmdel, New Jersey
• The lawsuit settled on May 28, 1977, with Springsteen buying out his contract

Recording

• Sessions began at Atlantic Studios on June 1, 1977, four days after the legal proceedings ended
• By September 1977 he moved recording to the Record Plant
• Recording completed in January 1978, with overdubs into February and March
• "Darkness on the Edge of Town" was recorded at the tail end of the sessions in March 1978
• Carpeted studio floors muffled resonance, hindering the plan to record backing tracks live
• Mixing extended into May 1978 and Chuck Plotkin replaced Jimmy Iovine on the mix
• Mastered by Mike Reese in Los Angeles

Cover

• Cover photo taken by Frank Stefanko inside his home in Haddonfield, New Jersey
• Stefanko had been introduced to Springsteen by Patti Smith
• Springsteen appears as a tired man in a floral wallpaper bedroom on the cover

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Born September 23, 1949 in Long Branch, New Jersey; grew up in Freehold, New Jersey.
• Inspired by Elvis Presley and the Beatles, began playing with local bands in the 1960s, including the Castiles, Steel Mill and the Bruce Springsteen Band.
• Formed the band that became the E Street Band in October 1972; the name came into use in September 1974.
• Signed to Columbia Records in 1972 by John Hammond; debut album Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. released January 1973.

Members

• Performs solo and with the E Street Band, his backing band since 1972.
• Long-time members include Clarence Clemons, Danny Federici, Steven Van Zandt, Roy Bittan, Max Weinberg and Patti Scialfa.
• Clemons died June 18, 2011; Federici died in 2008.

Career

• Born to Run (1975) brought worldwide fame; Born in the U.S.A. (1984) became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
• Won an Academy Award in 1994 for "Streets of Philadelphia"; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999.
• Has sold more than 140 million records worldwide; holds 20 Grammy Awards and a Special Tony Award.
• The 2023–2025 tour with the E Street Band was among the highest-grossing tours in history.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Critics praised the album's music and performances but were divided on the lyrical content
• Peter Silverton of Sounds said the production showed the ill effects of too much recording time
• Robert Hilburn of the Los Angeles Times said the record combined Born to Run's musical splendor with stronger production touches
• Robert Christgau of The Village Voice wrote that a limited genre could illuminate mature philosophical insight on some tracks
• Dave Marsh of Rolling Stone hailed it as a landmark rock and roll record
• Placed on several best-of-1978 lists, at number one in NME
• Number two in Record Mirror and Rolling Stone, number three in Sounds

Reappraisal

• Widely regarded as one of Springsteen's finest works, with some considering it his best
• Reviewers see it as a harbinger of his later career and the basis of his songwriting for the next decade
• Keith Cameron of The Guardian called it the bedrock of the Springsteen legend
• Colin Larkin called it anticlimactic
• Gary Graff criticized its production as criminally flat
• Steven Hyden named it his favorite Springsteen record

Records

• Reached number five on the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart despite selling less than Born to Run
• Remained on the chart for 167 weeks, selling more than three million copies
• UK chart peak: number 14
• Top ten in the Netherlands (4), Canada (7), Australia (9), and Sweden (9)
• "Prove It All Night" reached number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100
• "Badlands" charted at number 42
• Certified three times platinum by the RIAA in 1999
• Ranked number 151 on Rolling Stone's 500 greatest albums list in 2003, and number 91 in the 2020 revision

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The title Badlands was dropped to avoid confusion with a Bill Chinnock album of the same name.
• Springsteen gave several songs to other artists, including "Because the Night" to Patti Smith and "Hearts of Stone" to Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes.
• Van Zandt hated the final mix, while still praising some of the record's songs.
• Springsteen himself defaced a Los Angeles billboard promoting the album on July 4.
• Karon Bihari, whom Springsteen briefly dated in the 1970s, claimed that "Candy's Room" was about her.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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