Bruce Springsteen has released a video for the title cut from Western Stars, his first new studio album in five years. The solo album was written by Springsteen and includes guest appearances from several musicians including his wife, Patti Scialfa. No other member of the E Street Band is on it.
Watch the “Western Stars” video below.
On May 30, he released a video for “Tucson Train,” the first clip from the album which arrived June 14. He had already released the audio track for “Hello Sunshine” on April 26 and a lyric video for “There Goes My Miracle,” on May 16.
The “Tucson Train” clip, shot in black-and-white, shows Springsteen performing with a full band with a string orchestra.
Watch the video for “Tucson Train”
From the album’s April 25 announcement: Springsteen takes his music to a new place, drawing inspiration in part from the Southern California pop records of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s. The album was recorded primarily at Springsteen’s home studio in New Jersey, with additional recording in California and New York.
Watch the lyric video for “There Goes My Miracle”
Western Stars, is his 19th studio album, all on Columbia Records. A first song and video for “Hello Sunshine” was officially released on April 26.
Western Stars is available in the U.S. on CD here and as a 2-LP edition here. In the U.K., order the CD here and the LP here.
“This record is a return to my solo recordings featuring character driven songs and sweeping, cinematic orchestral arrangements,” says Springsteen. “It’s a jewel box of a record.”
Watch the video for “Western Stars”
Related: Our review of the Western Stars album
Springsteen has already revealed that he’ll tour with the E Street Band in 2020, on the heels of a new album that he intends to record with them this fall.
In a May 25 interview with an Italian newspaper, Repubblica, that the eagle-eyed staff from NJ.com spotted, Springsteen was quoted as saying: “We will go on tour next year. I’ll record with the E Street Band in the autumn and when we are done, we’ll go on tour.”
Springsteen will turn 70 on September 23, 2019.
Related: The E Street Band broke their own endurance records on their 2016 tour, performing for over 4 hours
More from the Western Stars announcement: The 13 tracks of Western Stars encompass a sweeping range of American themes, of highways and desert spaces, of isolation and community and the permanence of home and hope.
Ron Aniello produced the album with Springsteen and plays bass, keyboard, and other instruments. Patti Scialfa provides vocals and contributes vocal arrangements on four tracks. The musical arrangements include strings, horns, pedal steel and contributions from more than 20 other players including Jon Brion (who plays celeste, Moog, and farfisa), as well as guest appearances by David Sancious, Charlie Giordano, and Soozie Tyrell. The album was mixed by Tom Elmhirst.
Western Stars Track Listing
1. Hitch Hikin’
2. The Wayfarer
3. Tucson Train
4. Western Stars
5. Sleepy Joe’s Café
6. Drive Fast (The Stuntman)
7. Chasin’ Wild Horses
8. Sundown
9. Somewhere North of Nashville
10. Stones
11. There Goes My Miracle
12. Hello Sunshine
13. Moonlight Motel
Springsteen’s recording career spans over 40 years, beginning with 1973’s Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ. He has garnered 20 Grammys, won an Oscar and a Tony, been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, received a Kennedy Center Honor, and was MusiCares’ 2013 Person of the Year. Springsteen’s memoir Born to Run and its companion album Chapter and Verse were released in September 2016, and he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in November 2016. His historic 236-show run of Springsteen on Broadway at Jujamcyn’s Walter Kerr Theatre from October 2017 to December 2018 also yielded an accompanying soundtrack album and Netflix special.
Related: A “lost” interview with John Hammond who first signed Springsteen
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2 Comments
loved tucson train the man does it again
Wait till you hear the rest of the album. It’s a gem!