Friday, September 23, 2016

Marillion released FEAR

F.E.A.R. (Fuck Everyone and Run)

Marillion

Released: September 9, 2016

Peak: -- US, 4 UK, -- CN, -- AU

Sales (in millions): --

Genre: neo-progressive rock

Tracks:

Song Title [time] (date of single release)

El Dorado [16:46]
I. Long-Shadows Sun [1:26]
II. The Gold [6:13]
III. Demolished Lives [2:24]
IV. F E A R [4:08]
V. The Grandchildren of Apes [2:35]
Living in F E A R [6:25] (9/21/17, --)
The Leavers [19:08]
I. Wake Up in Music [4:27]
II. The Remainers [1:35]
III. Vapour Trails in the Sky [4:49]
IV. The Jumble of Days [4:20]
V. One Tonight [3:56]
White Paper [7:19]
The New Kings [16:45] (7/7/17, --)
I. Fuck Everyone and Run [4:22]
II. Russia’s Locked Doors [6:25]
III. A Scary Sky [2:34]
IV. Why Is Nothing Ever True? [3:24]
Tomorrow’s New Country [1:47]

All tracks written by Marillion.

Total Running Time: 68:10

The Players:

Steve Hogarth (vocals, percussion)
Steve Rothery (guitar)
Pete Trewavas (bass)
Mark Kelly (keyboards)
Ian Mosley (drums)

Rating:

2.958 out of 5.00 (average of 14 ratings)

About the Album:

For their 18th studio album, the band felt “they may well have produced their best ever work.” ^AZ The songs do “bear the hallmark of true quality” ^AZ and “Marillion has certainly not mellowed with age.” ^AZ “With FEAR Marillion show that they are as vital and potent as ever. Peerless and, yes, fearless.” ^AZ

“FEAR sees the band taking on the big themes but they do not see it as their place to preach to people.” ^AZ “The job is simple,” says Steve Hogarth. “We use the amazing privilege of having both a platform and an audience to encourage people to look in the mirror and ask themselves the big questions by doing just that ourselves.” ^AZ

The title, while “certainly provocative,” ^AZ is not meant “in anger or with any intention to shock,” says Hogarth. ^WK It is taken from a line in the song New Kings. Hogarth said, “We’ve used FEAR as a title with some relish, but only as it shows that we haven’t shied away, but it’s said with sadness.” ^AZ He said, “I have a feeling that we’re approaching some kind of…irreversible political, financial, humanitarian and environmental storm. I hope that I’m wrong. I hope that my FEAR of what ‘seems’ to be approaching is just that, and not FEAR of what ‘is’ actually about to happen.” ^WK There are two basic impulses behind human behaviour: Love and Fear, and all the good stuff comes from love.” ^AZ

“New Kings” “looks at the ravening beast that modern capitalism seems to have evolved into.” ^AZ An edit of the song was released prior to the album. “El Dorado examines the notions of political entitlement and the modern challenges for the UK.” ^AZ “The Leavers examines the impact of a transient life on the road for those constantly waving goodbye.” ^AZ

Marillion “are widely considered crowdfunding pioneers” ^WK because of their habit of appealing to fans to finance the making of their albums by pre-ordering them before the albums have even been made. For FEAR, the band joined the online direct-to-fan platform PledgeMusic. They launched the campaign on September 1, 2015, and in a month had pledges from fans in 67 countries to buy the album. This allowed the band to tour South America and North America in 2016.

Resources and Related Links:

DMDB encyclopedia entry for Marillion
^AZ Amazon
^WK Wikipedia

Other Related DMDB Pages:

First posted 8/6/2021; last updated 3/6/2022.

A Bruce Springsteen Retrospective: 1966-2016

Bruce Springsteen

A Retrospective: 1966-2016

A Brief History:

In conjunction with the release of his autobiography, Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen is also celebrated with a new collection of his work, this one spanning fifty years. Here’s a look at five different compilations (and variations of them) which have been released over the years. Collectively, the 50+ songs represented by these collections would make a very respectable career-spanning 4-disc box set.

On the Web:

The E Street Band:

Roy Bittan (keyboards: 1974-present)
Clarence Clemons (saxophone: 1972-2011). Died in 2011.
Jake Clemons (saxophone: 2012-present)
Danny Federici (keyboards: 1972-2008). Died in 2008.
Nils Lofgren (guitar: 1984-present)
Vini Lopez (drums: 1972-74)
David Sancious (keyboards: 1972-74)
Patti Scialfa (keyboards, guitars, backing vocals: 1984-)
Gary Tallent (bass: 1972-)
Steven Van Zandt (guitar: 1975-83, 1995-present)
Max Weinberg (drums: 1974-)

Lists:

Awards:

(Click on award to learn more).

Compilations:

This page highlights the compilations below.

⁹⁵ Greatest Hits (1995) (1975=95, released 1995)
^E03 The Essential (1973-2002, original release: 2003)
^GA Greatest Hits (2009) (American version: 1973-2007, released 2009)
^GE Greatest Hits (2009) (European version: 1973-2007, released 2009)
^C The Collection (1973-2012, released 2013)
^E15 The Essential (1973-2014, re-release: 2015)
^V Chapter and Verse (1966-2012, released 2016)

The Studio Albums:

This page offers snapshots of all the studio albums below, noting those songs which appear on compilations with the codes noted above. Appearing after song titles are the songwriters in italicized parentheses, running times in brackets, and when relevant, the date the song was released as a single and its peaks on various charts. Click for codes to singles charts.

Hover over an album cover to see its title and year of release. Click on the album to go to its dedicated DMDB page.

Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. (1972):

Growin’ Up ^E15,V
Blinded by the Light (2/73) ^E03,GE
For You (5/73) ^E03
Spirit in the Night (5/73) ^E03

The Wild, the Innocent, & the E Street Shuffle (1973):

4th of July (Sandy) (1974 single) ^E03,E15,V
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) ^{E03,GA,GE,C,E15}

Born to Run (1975):

Thunder Road [4:49] (1 CL) ^{95,E03,GA,GE,C,E15}
Born to Run [4:30] (8/25/75, 23 US, 1 CL, 16 UK, 53 CN, 38 AU) ^{95,E03,GA,GE,C,E15,V}
Tenth Avenue Freeze Out (1/10/76, 83 US, 63 CB, 82 CN) ^E15
Jungleland ^E03

Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978):

Prove It All Night (5/23/78, 33 US, 53 CB, 57 CN, 90 AU) ^E15
Badlands (8/78, 42 US, 52 CB, 44 CN) ^{95,E03,GA,GE,C,E15,V}
The Promised Land (10/78) ^E03,C,E15
Darkness on the Edge of Town ^E03,GA,GE

The Promise (recorded 1978, release 2010):

“Fire” and “Because the Night” were recorded in 1978, but not released until The Promise in 2010. Live versions of the songs were on Live 1975/1985 and are the versions listed below.

Fire (live – recorded 12/16/78, charted 11/22/86, 46 US, 14 AR, 54 UK, 42 CN, 82 AU) ^GE
Because the Night (live – recorded 12/28/80, charted 12/6/86, 22 AR) ^GE

The River (1980):

Hungry Heart (10/21/80, 5 US, 6 CB, 28 UK, 5 CN, 33 AU) ^{95,E03,GA,GE,C,E15}
The River (6/13/81, 35 UK) ^{95,E03,GE,E15,V}
The Ties That Bind ^E15
Out in the Street ^E15

Nebraska (1982):

Atlantic City (10/9/82, 10 AR, 49 CN) ^95,E03,C,E15
Johnny 99 (10/9/82, 50 AR) ^E15
Nebraska ^E03
My Father’s House ^V

Born in the U.S.A. (1984):

Dancing in the Dark (5/3/84, 2 US, 1² CB, 1⁶ AR, 4 UK, 3 CN, 5 AU) ^{95,E03,GA,GE,C,E15}
Born in the U.S.A. (6/23/84, 9 US, 6 CB, 8 AR, 5 UK, 11 CN, 2 AU, gold single) ^{95,E03,GA,GE,C,E15,V}
I’m on Fire (2/6/85, 6 US, 8 CB, 6 AC, 4 AR, 5 UK, 12 CN, 12 AU) ^GE
Glory Days (5/25/85, 5 US, 9 CB, 3 AR, 17 UK, 17 CN, 29 AU) ^{95,E03,GA,GE,E15}
My Hometown (11/21/85, 6 US, 7 CB, 1¹ AC, 6 AR, 9 UK, 16 CN, 47 AU) ⁹⁵

Tunnel of Love (1987):

Brilliant Disguise (9/25/87, 5 US, 4 CB, 5 AC, 1¹ AR, 29 UK, 9 CN, 17 AU) ^{95,E03,C,E15,V}
Tunnel of Love (10/17/87, 9 US, 12 CB, 13 AC, 1⁴ AR, 45 UK, 17 CN, 41 AU) ^E03
One Step Up (12/12/87, 13 US, 17 CB, 3 AC, 2 AR, 23 CN, 67 AU) ^E15
Tougher Than the Rest (6/18/88, 13 UK, 35 AU) ^E15

Human Touch (1992):

Human Touch (3/13/92, 14 US, 13 CB, 8 AC, 1³ AR, 11 UK, 2 CN, 17 AU) ^95,E03,C,E15

Lucky Town (1992):

Better Days (3/21/92, 16 US, 2 AR, 34 UK, 75 AU) ^95,E15
Lucky Town (4/10/93, 48 UK) ^E03
If I Should Fall Behind (2/2/94) ^E15
Living Proof ^E03,V

Greatest Hits (1995)

Bruce Springsteen

Released: February 28, 1995

Recorded: 1975-1995

Peak: 1² US, 1² UK, 1⁵ CN, 1¹ AU

Sales (in millions): 4.0 US, 0.6 UK, 15.0 world (includes US and UK)

Genre: rock

Tracks: (1) Born to Run (2) Thunder Road (3) Badlands (4) The River (5) Hungry Heart (6) Atlantic City (7) Dancing in the Dark (8) Born in the U.S.A. (9) My Hometown (10) Glory Days (11) Brilliant Disguise (12) Human Touch (13) Better Days (14) Streets of Philadelphia (15) Secret Garden (16) Murder Incorporated (17) Blood Brothers (18) This Hard Land

Total Running Time: 76:35

Rating:

4.178 out of 5.00 (average of 20 ratings)

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About Greatest Hits (1995):

The first compilation from “The Boss” covered his then more-than-twenty-year career in the span of 18 songs. Included are top ten hits Hungry Heart, Dancing in the Dark, Born in the U.S.A., Glory Days, My Hometown, Brilliant Disguse, and Streets of Philadelphia as well as the quintessential Born to Run.

However, there are other top ten hits (“Cover Me,” “I’m on Fire,” “I’m Goin’ Down,” “War”) omitted from this collection in favor of album cuts like Thunder Road and The River. Despite that, Bruce’s first two albums aren’t represented at all. Instead, there are four new songs, “the best of which is an outtake from the Born in the U.S.A. sessions (Murder Incorporated).” ^95-A The other new songs “follow the synth-laden adult contemporary direction Springsteen began pursuing with ‘Streets of Philadelphia,’ only without the lyricism or melody.” ^95-A In the end, “it’s a mixed bag, drawing an incomplete portrait of one of the prime rockers of the ‘70s and ‘80s.” ^95-A

Tracks Not on Previously Noted Albums:

This Hard Land (recorded 5/11/82) ⁹⁵
Streets of Philadelphia (2/2/94, 9 US, 6 CB, 3 AC, 25 AR, 2 UK, 1^CN, 4 AU) ^95,E03,C,E15
Murder Incorporated (recorded 1982, charted 3/4/95, 14 AR, 5 CN) ^95,E15
Secret Garden (4/11/95, 19 US, 66 CB, 5 AC, 12 A40, 17 UK, 7 CN, 9 AU) ⁹⁵
Blood Brothers ⁹⁵

The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995):

The Ghost of Tom Joad (11/21/95, 26 UK, 34 CN) ^E03,C,E15,V

Live in New York City (recorded 1999, released 2001):

American Skin (41 Shots) ^E03
Land of Hope and Dreams (7/16/02) ^E03

The Rising (2002):

The Rising (7/13/02, 52 US, 26 AC, 16 A40, 1³ AA, 24 AR, 94 UK) ^{E03,GA,GE,C,E15,V}
Lonesome Day (10/6/02, 36 A40, 3 AA, 39 UK) ^{E03,GA,GE,E15}
Mary’s Place ^E03

The Essential (2003)

Bruce Springsteen

Released: November 11, 2003

Recorded: 1973-2002

Peak: 14 US, 28 UK, -- CN, 43 AU

Sales (in millions): 1.0 US, 2.5 world (includes US and UK)

Genre: rock

Tracks, Disc 1: (1) Blinded by the Light (2) For You (3) Spirit in the Night (4) 4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) (5) Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (6) Thunder Road (7) Born to Run (8) Jungleland (9) Badlands (10) Darkness on the Edge of Town (11) The Promised Land (12) The River (13) Hungry Heart (14) Nebraska (15) Atlantic City

Tracks, Disc 2: (1) Born in the U.S.A. (2) Glory Days (3) Dancing in the Dark (4) Tunnel of Love (5) Brilliant Disguise (6) Human Touch (7) Living Proof (8) Lucky Town (9) Streets of Philadelphia (10) The Ghost of Tom Joad (11) The Rising (12) Mary’s Place (13) Lonesome Day (14) American Skin (41 Shots) (15) Land of Hope and Dreams

Tracks, Disc 3: (1) From Small Things Big Things One Day Come (2) The Big Payback (3) Held Up without a Gun (4) Trapped (5) None But the Brave (6) Missing (7) Lift Me Up (8) Viva Las Vegas (9) County Fair (10) Code of Silence (11) Dead Man Walkin’ (120 Countin’ on a Miracle

Total Running Time: 3:21:04

Rating:

4.440 out of 5.00 (average of 15 ratings)

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About The Essential (2003):

2003 saw a much-needed double-disc (three if you count the disc of rarities) treatment of Springsteen’s career. For better or worse, this isn’t just an expansion of 1995’s Greatest Hits. Unlike that collection, Essentials covers all of Springsteen’s studio albums, which means welcome additions like Blinded by the Light, Rosalita, and 4th of July (Sandy) which failed to make the cut for the Greatest Hits.

However, there also unnecessary album cuts like Nebraska, Living Proof, and Mary’s Place. None of these are bad songs, but are hardly as essential as the top ten hits also neglected by Greatest Hits. In addition, this collection jettisons “My Hometown” and “Better Days” and the four songs which premiered on Greatest Hits. We do, however, also get some fantastic post-Greatest Hits songs like The Rising, Land of Hope and Dreams, and American Skin (41 Shots).

Tracks Not on Previously Noted Albums:

From Small Things Big Things One Day Come (1980, outtake from The River) ^E03
Held Up without a Gun (live 12/31/1980, B-side of “Hungry Heart”) ^E03
The Big Payback (1982, B-side to “Open All Night”) ^E03
Trapped (live 8/6/1984, released on We Are the World) ^E03
None But the Brave (1984, outtake from Born in the U.S.A.) ^E03
County Fair (1984, outtake from Born in the U.S.A.) ^E03
Viva Las Vegas (1990, The Last Temptation of Elvis) ^E03
Missing (1995, The Crossing Guard soundtrack) ^E03
Dead Man Walkin’ (1996, Dead Man Walking soundtrack) ^E03
Lift Me Up (1999, Limbo soundtrack) ^E03
Code of Silence (live 6/29/2000 during Reunion Tour) ^E03
Countin’ on a Miracle (2002, acoustic version of song from The Rising) ^E03

Devils & Dust (2005):

Devils & Dust (3/28/05, 72 US, 5 AA) ^E15
Long Time Comin’ ^E15,V

Magic (2007):

Radio Nowhere (8/28/07, 2 AA, 96 UK, 55 CN) ^GA,GE,C,E15
Long Walk Home (9/25/07) ^GE

Greatest Hits (2009)

Bruce Springsteen

Released: January 13, 2009

Covers: 1973-2007

Peak: 43 US, 3 UK, 21 CN, 17 AU

Sales (in millions): 0.37 world (includes US and UK)

Genre: rock

Tracks (American Version): (1) Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (2) Born to Run (3) Thunder Road (4) Darkness on the Edge of Town (5) Badlands (6) Hungry Heart (7) Glory Days (8) Dancing in the Dark (9) Born in the U.S.A. (10) The Rising (11) Lonesome Day (12) Radio Nowhere

Tracks (European Version): (1) Blinded by the Light (2) Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (3) Born to Run (4) Thunder Road (5) Badlands (6) Darkness on the Edge of Town (7) Hungry Heart (8) The River (9) Born in the U.S.A. (10) I’m on Fire (11) Glory Days (12) Dancing in the Dark (13) The Rising (14) Lonesome Day (15) Radio Nowhere (16) Long Walk Home (17) Because the Night (live) (18) Fire (live)

Total Running Time: 53:08 (American version), 79:03 (European version)

Rating:

4.255 out of 5.00 (average of 10 ratings)

Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About Greatest Hits (2009):

Would it be too hard to call this The Best of to avoid confusion with the 1995 collection? The earlier set was billed solely to Bruce Springsteen while this one also credits the E Street Band, but that surely hasn’t stopped a few confused shoppers from buying one and thinking they were getting the other.

This collection is pretty unnecessary. At a dozen songs, the U.S. version is pretty skimpy in the CD era and offers nothing we haven’t had in previous Springsteen compilations. Eight of these songs appeared on the 1995 Greatest Hits and all but Radio Nowhere (released in 2007) were on the 2003 Essentials.

The European edition is much stronger at 18 cuts, including three songs not on any other Bruce compilations: the top ten hit I’m on Fire, Fire, and Because the Night; the latter two are from the Live 1975/1985 box set.

Working on a Dream (2009):

The Wrestler (8/08, 93 UK, 63 CN) ^E15
Working on a Dream (11/21/08, 95 US, 2 AA, 91 CN) ^C,E15
My Lucky Day (11/28/08, 18 AA) ^E15

Wrecking Ball (2012):

We Take Care of Our Own (1/19/12, 11 AA) ^C,E15
Wrecking Ball ^C,V

The Collection (2012)

Bruce Springsteen

Released: March 8, 2013

Covers: 1973-2012

Peak: -- US, 35 UK, -- CN, 6 AU

Sales (in millions): --

Genre: rock

Tracks: (1) Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (2) Thunder Road (3) Born to Run (4) Badlands (5) The Promised Land (6) Hungry Heart (7) Atlantic City (8) Born in the U.S.A. (9) Dancing in the Dark (10) Brilliant Disguise (11) Human Touch (12) Streets of Philadelphia (13) The Ghost of Tom Joad (14) The Rising (15) Radio Nowhere (16) Working on a Dream (17) We Take Care of Our Own (18) Wrecking Ball

Rating:

4.245 out of 5.00 (average of 10 ratings)

About The Collection:

Six of the songs here are make their fourth appearance on a Bruce Springsteen compilation: “Born to Run,” “Thunder Road,” “Badlands,” “Hungry Heart,” “Dancing in the Dark,” and “Born in the U.S.A.” Most of the others are repeats as well. New to the mix are Working on a Dream, We Take Care of Our Own, and Wrecking Ball. The former two would also appear on the 2015 reissue of The Essential.

High Hopes (2014):

High Hopes (Tim Scott McConnell) [4:57] (11/19/96, 15 AA)
Hunter of Invisible Game [4:52] (7/9/14, --) ^E15

The Essential (2015)

Bruce Springsteen

Released: October 2015

Recorded: 1973-2014

Peak: -- US, 15 UK, -- CN, 41 AU

Sales (in millions): -- US, -- UK, -- world (includes US and UK)

Genre: rock

Tracks, Disc 1: (1) Growin’ Up (2) Rosalita (Come Out Tonight) (3) 4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) (4) Thunder Road (5) Born to Run (6) Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out (7) Badlands (8) The Promised Land (9) Prove It All Night (10) The River (11) Hungry Heart (12) The Ties That Bind (13) Out in the Street (14) Atlantic City (15) Johnny 99 (16) Glory Days (17) Born in the U.S.A. (18) Dancing in the Dark

Tracks, Disc 2: (1) Tougher Than the Rest (2) Brilliant Disguise (3) One Step Up (4) Human Touch (5) Better Days (6) If I Should Fall Behind (7) Streets of Philadelphia (8) Murder Incorporated (9) The Ghost of Tom Joad (10) The Rising (11) Lonesome Day (12) Devils & Dust (13) Long Time Comin’ (14) Radio Nowhere (15) Working on a Dream (16) My Lucky Day (17) The Wrester (18) We Take Care of Our Own (19) Hunter of Invisible Game

Total Running Time: 2:36:22

Rating:

4.178 out of 5.00 (average of 15 ratings)

About The Essential (2015):

Someone really needs to learn how to give Springsteen compilations better names. While billed as a reissue of the 2003 set of the same name, this is vastly different. Combined, the two versions cover 49 tracks, but with only 18 songs in common, a dozen of which also appear on 1995’s Greatest Hits. Gone from the 2015 version are “Blinded by the Light,” “Jungleland,” and “Tunnel of Love,” all of which seem more essential than new additions Out in the Street, The Ties That Bind, and Johnny 99.

Part of the discrepancy owes to the extra decade of material the latter collection drew from. The 2015 version includes worthy additions like “Radio Nowhere,” “Working on a Dream,” and “We Take Care of Our Own” (all featured on The Collection) and Devils & Dust, My Lucky Day, and The Wrestler, making their debuts on a Springsteen compilation. None were major hits, but are vital songs in Springsteen’s later repertoire.

Chapter and Verse (2016)

Bruce Springsteen

Released: September 23, 2016

Covers: 1966-2012

Peak: 5 US, 2 UK, 21 CN, 2 AU

Sales (in millions): --

Genre: rock

Tracks: (1) Baby I (2) You Can’t Judge a Book by the Cover (3) He’s Guilty (The Judge Song) (4) The Ballad of Jesse James (5) Henry Boy (6) Growin’ Up (7) 4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy) (8) Born to Run (9) Badlands (10) The River (11) My Father’s House (12) Born in the U.S.A. (13) Brilliant Disguise (14) Living Proof (15) The Ghost of Tom Joad (16) The Rising (17) Long Time Comin’ (18) Wrecking Ball

Total Running Time: 1:17:51

Rating:

4.309 out of 5.00 (average of 11 ratings)

About Chapter and Verse:

At this point, another Springsteen anthology seems like absurd overkill, but this one did have the twist that the songs were handpicked by Springsteen as a companion piece to his autobiography, Born to Run. That means there are five previously unreleased songs (Baby I, You Can’t Judge a Book by the Cover, He’s Guilty (The Judge Song, Ballad of Jesse James, and Henry Boy) here from before Springsteen was signed by Columbia in 1972. None are vital, but they give new perspective on Springsteen’s 50-year career.

Tracks Not on Previously Noted Albums:

Baby I (The Castles, recorded 5/2/66) ^V
You Can’t Judge a Book by the Cover (The Castles, recorded 9/16/67) ^V
He’s Guilty (The Judge Song) (Steel Mill, recorded 2/22/70) ^V
Ballad of Jesse James (recorded 3/14/72) ^V
Henry Boy (recorded 6/30/72) ^V

Resources and Related Links:

DMDB encyclopedia entry for Bruce Springsteen
^95-A All Music Guide review by William Ruhlmann of Greatest Hits (1995)
Wikipedia (Chapter and Verse)
Wikipedia (The Collection)
Wikipedia (The Essentials)
Wikipedia (Greatest Hits – 2009 version)

First posted 6/19/2019; last updated 8/30/2021.