Springsteen Camp Confirms Darkness Box Set

Most eagerly awaited remaster (and maybe some ace concert footage...) of the entire Boss canon? Hey, as good as those Japanese reissues were a few years ago, they were not specifically remasters, just fancy-packaged things, so... Yeah. We're good.

By Fred Mills

Bruce Springsteen's manager Jon Landau, speaking to RollingStone.com yesterday, indicated that the much-rumored, much-anticipated remastered/box set edition of his classic '78 album Darkness On the Edge of Town is about "93 per cent done" - essentially confirming that the project is a "go" for 2010, although Landau didn't disclose a projected release date.

"It's absolutely fantastic and there are just some finishing touches that we need to turn our attention to and finalize and we'll get it out there," Landau said, adding that in addition to the original album finally getting the remastering treatment, is will include " a new documentary about the making of the LP, as well as live footage from the 1978 tour."

Those of us already in possession of professionally-shot, high-quality footage from that tour can only imagine what lurks in the CBS vaults. Needless to say, with appetites whetted by the Born To Run CD/DVD box that came out a few years ago, this amounts to some of the biggest Boss news to date.

Speaking to BLURT about all this, Backstreets magazine editor Chris Phillips agrees, saying, "It's always bittersweet when a Springsteen tour comes to an end, and especially this time, considering it's the last we'll see of the E Street Band for at least a while. And the last dance is just a few days away. But if coming off the road gives Bruce a chance to get back to work on this stuff, that's a heck of a silver lining.

"The Darkness box has been in the works for awhile - we're talking years, not months. And it in particular is something we've been jonesing for, certainly since the album's 30th anniversary last year. Out of all the albums in his catalog, Darkness is the one most in need of remastering. And of course the 1978 tour is legendary, so finally getting some more official live material from that period has been at the top of many fans' lists. Video-wise, it remains to be seen what there might be to represent the tour; I'd be surprised if Bruce has an uncirculated complete Darkness show up his sleeve like the Hammersmith '75 film for Born to Run. But if this thing is anything like the 30th anniversary Born to Run box -- and signs point to yes -- it's going to be a must-have."

Manager Landau further indicated to RS that a concert DVD from the Working on a Dream tour should be ready soon (and prior to the Darkness box). "We're working on some different approaches to a DVD for this tour. We'll release it sometime fairly soon, post-Christmas," he said.

Springsteen and the E Street band will conclude their two-year long Dream tour this Sunday, Nov. 22,  in Buffalo  - no, there will not be a final show in Ohio - where they'll perform as part of the show the complete 1973 album Greetings From Asbury Park.