Something In Those Nights (Godfather GR 280/281/282)
Disc 1: Trapped, Point Blank, So Young And In Love, Janey Don’t You Lose Heart, Something In The Night, You’ll Be Coming Down, Sherry Darling, Rendezvous (with Danny), Spirit In The Night (with Danny), 4th Of July Asbury Park (Sandy) (with Danny), Murder Incorporated, None But The Brave, Be True, Glory Days (with Bon Jovi), Independence Day
Disc 2: Backstreets, 4th Of July Asbury Park (Sandy), Growin’ Up, Atlantic City, Out In The Street, I’ll Fly Away, Street Of Fire, Loose Ends, Danny Story, For You, Light Of Day, The Ghost Of Tom Joad (with Tom Morello), Roulette, Don’t Look Back
Disc 3: Blood Brothers, Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street, Fire, Lost In The Flood, Turn! Turn! Turn! (with Roger McGuinn), Mr. Tambourine Man (with Roger McGuinn), Always A Friend (with Alejandro Escovedo), All Just To Get To You (with Joe Ely), Terry’s Song, Detroit medley, Bobby Jean, Souls Of The Departed, Wild Billy’s Circus Story, Meeting Across The River (with Richard Davis), Buffalo Gals
Something In Those Nightsis a three disc anthology of the rarities and highlights of the third leg of Bruce Springsteen’s Magic tour. Like all Godfather releases, each disc is packed with material with nothing extraneous being included. As with any collection of this type the sound quality varies, but in general excellent sounding tapes are used for the tracks. It is packaged in a tri-fold gatefold sleeve with two inserts. One lists the track listing and venue information, and the second has the Joe Roberts liner notes. And since that essay perfectly encapsulates the spirit of this set, I’ve reproduced them below.
“The Magic Tour could be easily divided in three legs, not only looking at shows scheduling, but also considering two dates which remain unforgettable in all tramps’ hearts: November 19, 2007 (last show of Danny in the original lineup) and April 17, 2008 when all of us simply felt much more alone.
“With Charlie Giordano at the organ, after a brief tour overseas, Bruce and the E Street Band are back on teh raod on Feb. 28 in Hartford, CT for a 28-show leg in North America. While it’s expected a standard show, given the last performances of the 2nd leg, as Springsteen and the E Street Band got their feet back under them, they are clearly determined to offer something new for this second swing around North America, with several tour premiers here and there, spare gems to enlighten audiences and a re-shuffling of the setlist night after night.
Thus, starting from the kick-off with ‘So Young And In Love,’ this leg gives us a and with a tremendous energy and a renewed joy of being onstage: Bruce is taking requests from the audience, Nils i on fire during his solos, Steve is enriching each night with his typical singing. Most of all, every night you have something special, from ‘Be True’ to ‘Independence Day,’ from ‘Streets Of Fire’ to ‘Detroit Medley.’
“On March 20, the most beautiful surprise for all fans: Danny is onstage again, as a guest, for which will remain his last call with the band. The night is already great for its highlights but when Danny emerges it’s another game and you can judge by yourself listening to ‘Spirit In The Night’ and ‘Sandy.’
“Another great moment has been on April 7, when in Anaheim, CA Tom Morello has guested during ‘The Ghost Of Tom Joad.’ It was a pounding, full-band electric arrangement, featuring Nils on pedal steel, Charlie Giordano on accordion, and Morello on guitar (to put it mildly) and vocals. Imagine a combination of RATM’s ‘Joad,’ which they released in the ’90’s and the E Street Band’s taek on ‘Youngstown.’ Bruce and Tom simply nail it with an incredible solo by Morello, in his inimitable style.
“The band was focused on Morello as he played, one of the few times you’ll see them watching something other than Bruce. The highlight of the show, and one of the highlights of the tour, for that matter.
“Still the worst day of the E Street Band history had yet to come: on April 17, Danny passed away leaving our hearts and souls empty as we never thought they could have been.
“But the show must go on. On April 22, eight days after their last performance, five days after the passing of Phantom Dan, and just one day after the funeral service, Bruce and the E Street Band took the stage in Tampa. There was no question that they’d be honoring Danny’s memory tonight. The real question might have been, how would they do it? The answer: by acknowledging the magnitude of the loss, by embracing Danny’s contributions to the band, by tapping a deep well of emotion and playing their hearts out all night.
“Bruce And The EStreeters took place on stage and watched an emotional film montage of Danny moments (with ‘Blood Brothers’ on the background), then a spotlight lit up Danny’s organ riser where his accordion was propped, too) and remand shining on the empty station for the band’s first song of the night ‘Backstreets.’ Bruce gve a raw and emotional howl at the end, and as he pointed to the organ, the light faded. Later, Roy strapped on the accordion for ‘4th Of July Asbury Park (Sandy),’ ‘We want to thank you for all your prayers and condolences,’ Springsteen told the crowd.
“‘Roy, you better get this right: somebody’s watching…’ Soozie and Patti offered beautiful harmonies and it was a magical performance of this Danny favorite. Bruce wiped away tears and gave Roy a kiss. ‘One more fairy tale’ he said, leading the band into ‘Growin’ Up’ and Bruce recalled once again the early days in Flemington, NJ.
“Tampa not only remains as the most emotional show of Bruce’s entire career but also stands as a great divide with the rest of the tour. From now on, the main theme of the night is a continuous celebration of both Danny and the E Street Band, with new stories added every night and always something special to rediscover from the vaults: ‘Wild Billy’s Circus Story,’ ‘Rendezvous,’ ‘For You,’ ‘Roulette,’ ‘Don’t Look Back’….
“The night after Tampa, Orlando has another great treatment, with the alternate ‘Blood Brothers’ right after Danny’s tribute. ‘Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street?’, ‘Lost In The Flood,’ and ‘Fire’ in the middle, and Roger McGuinn taking lead for ‘Turn! Turn! Turn!’ and trading verses with Bruce on ‘Mr. Tambourine Man,’ a knock-out guest spot that was clearly a thrill not only for the audience, but for the band as well.
“After seven Magic shows in the less than two weeks since Danny Federici’s death, Springsteen and the E Street Band have made it to the end of the spring leg in fine style. Wrapping things up at the rescheduled Ft. Lauderdale show, energy is still up with the band on top of their game, getting ready for our daydream show on Red Bank, NJ at Count Basie Theater on May 7th. But this is another story and we’ll talk about it at the right time.” Joe Roberts
