Roll Your Tapes: Bruce Springsteen Releases ‘Darkness’ Tour Box Through Nugs
Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band’s tour to promote 1978’s Darkness on the Edge of Town has been lauded by casual and hardcore fans alike in the four decades since it happened, with several shows considered among the Boss’ best. A myriad of official live releases through Nugs.net has helped provide evidence to the case – and now, eight of those shows are being collected in a 24CD box set.
Darkness on the Edge of Town Tour 1978 features full sets from that legendary tour which took place across the United States between July and December of that year. As his first trek following a tense international run in the wake of Born to Run three years earlier, these shows were praised for their intensity and variety: album cuts stretched into epic reads, songs began to debut onstage like “Because the Night” and “Fire” (later hits for Patti Smith and The Pointer Sisters, respectively), and the band (saxophonist Clarence Clemons, guitarist Steve Van Zandt, pianist Roy Bittan, organist Danny Federici, bassist Garry Tallent and drummer Max Weinberg) were firing on all cylinders as they started a slow graduation from theaters to arenas.
Part of the Darkness tour’s success owed to as-it-happened accounts of live shows, recorded and mixed for radio broadcast by Born to Run and Darkness engineer Jimmy Iovine. Five of these heavily-bootlegged shows made their official debuts as part of Springsteen’s concert archive and reappear in this box. That includes the collection’s opener, a date at The Roxy in West Hollywood, CA; plus shows from the Capitol Theatre in Passaic, NJ; Atlanta’s Fox Theatre, San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom and a mythic gig at The Agora Ballroom in Cleveland, OH – considered by many to be his single greatest performance or live release.
The box also includes additional Capitol and Winterland sets (the former of which was mixed by legendary engineer Bob Clearmountain) plus a date at Houston, TX’s The Summit – seen on film as part of the box set The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story. Altogether, it’s the ultimate document of one of Bruce Springsteen’s most celebrated moments as a performer. You can order it at the link below, with an expected release date of February 1. Note that these discs are factory-pressed – not CD-Rs – and that the physical empty box is also available to purchase for those who already own the prior CD-R versions of these concerts and don’t wish to upgrade to the new discs.
Darkness on the Edge of Town Tour 1978 (Nugs.net, 2021)
Discs 1-3: The Roxy July 7, 1978 (released as Nugs.net 427734, 2018)
Set One
Rave On!
Badlands
Spirit in the Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Candy’s Room
For You
Point Blank
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Set Two
Paradise by the “C”
Fire
Adam Raised a Cain
Mona
She’s the One
Growin’ Up
It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City
Backstreets
Heartbreak Hotel
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
First Encore
Independence Day
Born to Run
Because the Night
Raise Your Hand
Second Encore
Twist and Shout
Discs 4-6: The Agora, Cleveland 1978 (released as Nugs.net 251878, 2014)
Set One
Summertime Blues
Badlands
Spirit in the Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Factory
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Jungleland
Set Two
Paradise by the “C”
Fire
Sherry Darling
Not Fade Away/Gloria/She’s the One
Growin’ Up
Backstreets
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
First Encore
4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)
Born to Run
Because the Night
Raise Your Hand
Second Encore
Twist and Shout
Discs 7-9: Capitol Theatre, Passaic, NJ September 19, 1978 (released as Nugs.net 491414, 2019)
Badlands
Streets of Fire
Spirit in the Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Independence Day
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Meeting Across the River
Jungleland
Kitty’s Back
Fire
Candy’s Room
Because the Night
Point Blank
Not Fade Away/She’s the One
Backstreets
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)
Born to Run
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Detroit Medley
Raise Your Hand
Discs 10-12: Capitol Theatre, Passaic, NJ September 20, 1978 (released as Nugs.net 407700, 2017)
Set One
Good Rockin’ Tonight
Badlands
Spirit in the Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Independence Day
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
It’s My Life
Thunder Road
Jungleland
Set Two
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Fire
Candy’s Room
Because the Night
Point Blank
Kitty’s Back
Incident on 57th Street
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Encore
Born to Run
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Detroit Medley
Twist and Shout
Discs 13-15: Fox Theatre, Atlanta, GA September 30, 1978 (released through Nugs.net, 2020)
Good Rockin’ Tonight
Badlands
Spirit in the Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Independence Day
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Jungleland
Set Two
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
Night Train
Fire
Candy’s Room
Because the Night
Point Blank
Not Fade Away/Gloria/She’s the One
Backstreets
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Encore
Born to Run
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Detroit Medley
Raise Your Hand
Discs 16-18: The Summit, Houston, TX December 8, 1978 (released through Nugs.net, 2017 – previously released on DVD in The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story – Columbia 88697 76525-2, 2010)
Badlands
Streets of Fire
It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Spirit in the Night
Independence Day
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Jungleland
The Ties That Bind
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
The Fever
Fire
Candy’s Room
Because the Night
Point Blank
She’s the One
Backstreets
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Born to Run
Detroit Medley
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
You Can’t Sit Down
Quarter to Three
Discs 19-21: Winterland 12/15/1978 (released through Nugs.net, 2019)
Set One
Badlands
Streets of Fire
Spirit in the Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Factory
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Jungleland
Set Two
The Ties That Bind
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
The Fever
Fire
Candy’s Room
Because the Night
Point Blank
Mona/Preacher’s Daughter/She’s the One
Backstreets
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Encore
Born to Run
Detroit Medley
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Raise Your Hand
Quarter to Three
Discs 22-24: Winterland 12/16/1978 (released through Nugs.net, 2019)
Set One
Good Rockin’ Tonight
Badlands
Rendezvous
Spirit in the Night
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Independence Day
The Promised Land
Prove It All Night
Racing in the Street
Thunder Road
Jungleland
Set Two
It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City
Santa Claus is Coming to Town
The Fever
Fire
Candy’s Room
Because the Night
Point Blank
Mona/Preacher’s Daughter/She’s the One
Backstreets
Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
Encore
Born to Run
Detroit Medley
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Quarter to Three
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5 thoughts on “Roll Your Tapes: Bruce Springsteen Releases ‘Darkness’ Tour Box Through Nugs”
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Empty boxes sold out right away.
Which is disappointing but also inexplicable for a product pre-order.
The same thing happened with the David Bowie “Brilliant Live Adventures” empty box. It’s an odd trend, for sure…
Agreed.
Although the Bowie site said the large demand will result in a second box or a second print run when all six archive discs are released.
I’m not optimistic that will be the case here.
I was optimistic when I saw this is labeled “Vol. 1” but then George Harrison’s Early Takes stuck in my head.
But kudos for not forcing completist fans to buy the same release twice.
Your knowledge on this box set and Bruce Springsteen has really set my mind I must buy the box set!
Started late in life to really listening to this Storyteller that I believe in.