BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - PORTLAND 1978
January 7, 2023 – 6:19 am
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BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN AND THE E STREET BAND
Portland 1978 [A JEMS Group Project, 2CD]
Live at the Paramount Theatre, Portland, Oregon; June 24, 1978. Very good soundboard.
Thanks to AK, Tapewyrm, JEMS, goody and mjk5510 for sharing the show at Dime.
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Known Faults:
- Prove It All Night: the first two minutes has some slight swirl/wow and flutter that causes some pitch instability, this
levels out at around the 2-minute mark
- Backstreets: end cut
With the official release of the second night in Atlanta, we’re reminded how great Bruce Springsteen was in 1978. October 1 was largely unheard, obscured not only by inferior quality and missing the second half, but also by the first night, one of five FM radio broadcasts that year.
How, one might ask, did Springsteen and the E Street Band get that good? They were mission-oriented, for sure: the focus Springsteen brought to bear over the course of a relatively short tour is the stuff of legend. Every night could have been the one. Saginaw or Passaic? The Roxy or The Agora? How about either night in Atlanta?
Every fan has a favorite, and the Darkness tour presents choices, alright, whether FM broadcasts, great audience recordings, or ones that originated at the soundboard. This release falls in the last category, and it’s one you may know.
For years, it has circulated as Raising Cain, in a quality that we have come to regard as excellent. This upgrade presents a cleaner, low-generation edition of a very pleasing show recorded as the band made its way down the Pacific Coast.
The 23 songs performed on June 24 find the music climbing to cruising altitude. That’s part of the appeal, as is Springsteen’s matter-of-fact, conversational tone with an audience he seems to be probing, wondering aloud, for example, whether shops in the Northwest ever stocked “Greetings From Asbury Park.”
Like other soundboard recordings from this leg, including Kansas City (June 16, a previous upgrade), Portland seems to anticipate the July 7 FM radio broadcast from The Roxy. With three known ’78 line recordings separated by a week, it’s not a stretch to conclude that someone wanted to hear how the music progressed as the Los Angeles radio date approached. Or as a dry run for Berkeley, where the tour’s first professional multi-track recording took place.
But Portland was no rehearsal. Listen anew for inner workings of the E Street Band, whether it’s Steve Van Zandt’s guitar on “For You” (which sounds prominent in this mix) or Clarence Clemons’ saxophone on “Jungleland.” After intermission, things heat up with typical summer of ’78 flair, stoked by a trio of unreleased songs, “Paradise by the ‘C’,” “Fire,” and “The Promise,” too. (That song appeared in many encores leading up to the FM broadcast from Los Angeles, after which it phased out.)
All Springsteen tours evolved, none more so than in 1978. As Bruce put in the sweat equity to build his audience, fans in the west became prime beneficiaries: the tour played 13 dates in June, July, and December (Portland, of course, got a return visit on December 19). The point that year was to “Prove It All Night,” and June 24 is no exception.
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Transfer:
1st Gen cassettes > DAT > DAT clone x 2 > .wav file > iZotope RX / ozone 9 (mastered) > xAct 2.59 > FLAC
Click on the highlighted tracks to download the MP3s (320 kbps). As far as we can ascertain, these tracks have never been officially released on CD.
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Kindly email us if you encounter persistent problems downloading the files. Also email us if you have any rarities you’d like to share with our readers.
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Disc 1
Track 101. Badlands 5:09
Track 102. Night 3:10
Track 103. Spirit In The Night 8:19
Track 104. Darkness On The Edge Of Town 6:08
Track 105. For You 6:04
Track 106. The Promised Land 5:12
Track 107. Prove It All Night 10:14
Track 108. Racing In The Street 8:04
Track 109. Thunder Road 6:30
Track 110. Jungleland 11:13
Track 111. Paradise By The “C” 4:07
Track 112. Fire 2:55
78 mins
Disc 2
Track 201. Adam Raised A Cain 5:23
Track 202. Mona/She’s The One 12:13
Track 203. Growin’ Up 11:54
Track 204. Backstreets 9:19
Track 205. Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) 12:43
Track 206. The Promise 7:02
Track 207. Born To Run 6:35
Track 208. Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out 6:21
Track 209. Quarter To Three 11:39
84 mins
Click here to order Bruce Springsteen releases.
15 Responses to “BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - PORTLAND 1978”
BBRRRUUUCCCE!
By Roger S on Jan 7, 2023
SSSPPPRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNGGGGSSSSSTTTTEEEEEEEEENNNNN!
By Roger S on Jan 7, 2023
Jesus wept, people on here moan about what so-called trolls post - thank you, @RogerS, for your contribution to musicology. You make @Derrick drooling on about Cactus seem like Lester Bangs.
Oh yes, and swappers, if you’re reading this - fuck off
By Rightup Dias on Jan 7, 2023
SSSPPEEEERRRRMMMM!
By Rightup Dias on Jan 7, 2023
SSSWWAAALLLOOOOWWWWWW!
By Rightup Dias on Jan 7, 2023
As of now none of the images are loading and all the mp3 links are being denied through Chrome because
“This site can’t provide a secure connectionwww.bigozine2.com uses an unsupported protocol. ERR_SSL_VERSION_OR_CIPHER_MISMATCH
Unsupported protocol The client and server don’t support a common SSL protocol version or cipher suite
Seems like this joint is turning into a porn-free fantasy filled smut site! I may check in once in a while but it’s off my daily read list.
Maybe this is a plot to drive the a-holes away?
By Sumdh Umfuqh on Jan 8, 2023
Left behind on the Shelf! BTW of course I read your juvenile blurblings and I only check out what you say for the rapier like wisdom and repartee!?
Duh!
P.S. I’ll fuck off when you do
By swappers on Jan 8, 2023
There’s plenty more where that came from, Swappo my friend.
If you’re sticking around we can have a truce if you want.
Now, where’s that largactyl…
By Rightup Dias on Jan 9, 2023
Who starts these rumors?
By Jocko P on Jan 9, 2023
I get the same error messages on my PC . I use google chrome . Does anyone know what’s going on here ? What is this can’t provide a secure location stuff ? Can’t download pics either nor the music files . Does anyone know if it’s just certain browsers ? What about Mozolla Firefox ? What’s the point coming here if you can’t get the music. Is it strictly for the morons in the comments now ?
By Jeremy on Jan 9, 2023
Rumor has it Bruce gots a Big Un
By U L E on Jan 9, 2023
That’s why he’s Da Boss
By U L E on Jan 9, 2023
Who starts these rumor s. ?
By Jocko P on Jan 9, 2023
Big ole double size hoagie in this dudes trousers is the word . He’s big in the britches
By ELU on Jan 9, 2023
Size matters , bigger is better. Got that fellas ?
By Donna on Jan 9, 2023