Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: Hammersmith Odeon, London '75

Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band: Hammersmith Odean London '75 (2005)

**** (out of 4)

Thunder Road / Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out / Spirit in the Night / Lost in the Flood / She's the One / Born to Run / The E Street Shuffle / It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City / Backstreets / Kitty's Back / Jungleland / Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) / 4th of July, Asbury Park / Detroit Medley / For You / Quarter to Three

In the liner notes from Bruce Springsteen on the DVD release of this concert, the singer talks about their first trip to London and then he dares any young band to try and top the setlist they performed at this concert. Overall this is an incredibly raw and powerful performance that really jumps off the screen and right into your lap. The amount of energy is without question legendary Bruce and the setlist just makes the night even better. It's funny but sometime in today's time you go to concerts and just wish you could hear certain rare tracks but then you get a concert like this where most of those tracks you wish you could hear now and right there in their full glory. The show starts off with a masterful performance of "Thunder Road" and it's without question one of the strongest openings I've seen from any concert. Things just keep picking up steam with each song and some of the highlights include a terrific jam during "It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City," the jam during "Backstreets" and when has "Born to Run" not been done with fire and passion? This film was released as part of Born to Run's 30th Anniversary and it's rather amazing to see how good this show look. It doesn't have a professional look to it so there's no gloss but what it does have is a certain raw look that really captures the performance and also fits it. Fans of The Boss are certainly going to get a kick out of this show and those new to him will see what all the legendary comments about his live shows are all about.

This is a really bad concert rendition. First of all the lighting is abysmal. Next, this is filmed right at the cusp of Bruce's fame when Columbia was pushing the crap out of making him a star. So you get a totally inauthentic Springsteen.

The worst part is you can barely see anything I got bored about 30 minutes into this and I'm a huge fan

Even with poor lighting and film quality, you can still feel the energy of Bruce and the E Streeters come through. I loved all of the versions, except the E Street Shuffle, which really didn't work for me. The arrangements were great and varied. Unlike another commentator, I loved the slower, acoustic versions of Thunder Road and For You. The band was really on that night. Have they ever had an off night?. Although Bruce was not bounding around the stage as he often does, the joy and passion in which he performs radiates through the screen. And he sang with great range, emotion, and clarity. My only complaints would be: 1. it's too short; 2. not enough guitar solos by Bruce; and 3. "Incident on 57th Street" wasn't included. What were they thinking? This is the best song on his first two albums, and one of my all time Bruce favorites, if not my #1 favorite. Watch and enjoy. You won't be disappointed!

I was lucky enough to see Springsteen in concert before Born To Run. Those were the days - no problem getting tickets to his concerts. And this show will illustrate why a ticket to an E Street Band show is so valuable. Few performers could connect with an audience the way Springsteen can. Whether he is performing a solo acoustic concert or with the entire E Street Band as he does here, Springsteen makes you feel he's singing only to you and channeling everything you believe about cars, love and rock 'n roll.

This is the classic E Street Band, all young and with a lot of hair on their heads and faces. Garry, Danny, Miami Steve, Mighty Max, the Big Man, Roy and the Boss. What a lineup!

Hard to believe but the hype surrounding Springsteen at this time actually understated just how good the E Street guys were live. These guys are right up there with The Allman Brothers pre Duane's death or the Stones around Sticky Fingers or The Who at Isle of Wight as the greatest rock bands. Plus they are still performing today.

The set list is classic E Street.

Thunder Road (acoustic); Tenth Avenue Freeze-out; Spirit In The Night; Lost In The Flood; She's The One; Born To Run; The E Street Shuffle; It's Hard To Be A Saint In The City; Backstreets; Kitty's Back; Jungleland; Rosalita; 4th of July Asbury Park; Detroit Medley (Devil W\ A Blue Dress-Good Golly Miss Molly-CC Rider-Jenny Take A Ride); For You; Quarter To Three

The DVD comes with the 30th anniversary edition of Born To Run and is worth the price as a stand alone product. The fact that you get remastered Born To Run and a 90 minute doc on the making of the album is a bonus.

This is a chance to see one of the greatest performers and bands at the height of their talents. Long live rock 'n roll!

So... the way it's lit and shot is a little underwhelming by today's standards. The band is also finding its feet in terms of stage presence and personas- their technical skills when it comes to playing the music are already impeccable, but they're not as much fun to watch as they are a few years later and onwards, when they're all used to playing on stage, and more comfortable with being as goofy as Bruce himself can be.

His antics in this are pretty funny at times, and with Rosalita at least, you can start to see some of that infectious and goofy E Street Band chemistry.

Thankfully, despite a slight lack of confidence and a less than amazing visual style, this is still a very good concert movie on the strength of the music alone. By and large it's not terribly shot for its time, just a little dark in the lighting department- it is still good it exists, and I love seeing Bruce and the band together so young, of course.

And the music itself is so good. Many versions of songs here are debatably better than the studio versions (especially the faster-paced She's The One and It's Hard to be a Saint in the City, as well as the absolutely epic 17-minute version of Kitty's Back).

When listening to the live album by itself, opening track Thunder Road is a little underwhelming, but it's probably the one song on here truly enhanced by the visuals. A dimly lit Bruce alone on stage, with only a piano and a harmonica, and singing a quiet, lonely version of one of his best and most powerful anthems is a memorable start that gave me some serious goosebumps.

Like with any Bruce concert movie, if you're a big fan, you'll love it. If you're a Bruce purist, you'll probably really really love it, because from a technical perspective, it's probably the best Bruce and the E Street Band ever sounded live.

If you'd rather watch a movie than listen to an identically lengthy album, then this is a good way to experience the legendary band in it what might have been its musical prime.