Thursday, May 9, 2013

Gary U.S. Bonds: On the Line


Gary U.S. Bonds.  I really don't know all that much about this guy, but something tells me I should.  I only own one record of his, and this is it.  Rather than riffing about what I think I know, here is what available Internet sources say about the record:

"On the Line is an album released by Gary U.S. Bonds in 1982, the second of two Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band collaborated albums from Bonds, the first being Dedication, released the previous year in 1981. The musicians accompanying Bonds on [this] album include many members of the E Street Band.  The album includes seven songs written by Springsteen, one written by Steven Van Zandt, and two written by Bonds himself ("Turn the Music Down", "Bring Her Back"), and features a duet with Steven Van Zandt on the track "Angelyne."  The album produced one single, "Out of Work" which peaked at #21 on the mainstream rock charts.  According to the liner notes on the Razor & Tie reissue, (not this version shown above) after recording the album, Columbia Records had Bruce Springsteen remove his vocals from the tracks, specifically from the track "Angelyne,"  so Van Zandt stepped up to record the duet instead.  Because of this, although Springsteen can still be heard on several of the tracks, he is not credited in the original liner notes.  Additionally, the liner notes state that three other songs were recorded for the album but are not present on the final release including Springsteen's "Action In the Street", "Lion's Den", and "Savin' Up".   Springsteen's version of "Lion's Den" would eventually be released in 1998 on his box set, Tracks while the other two songs remain unreleased.  Springsteen's version of "Rendezvous" was finally released in 2010 on The Promise.  The album was re-released in 1992 on the Razor Edge label of Razor & Tie music, and then again in 2009 on BGO Records paired with Dedication.  The song, "Out of Work", which was written by Springsteen, was rumored to be re-worked and re-titled "Livin' in the Future" for Springsteen's 2007 album, Magic.  Both songs sound a lot alike."  According to someone...

1 comment:

  1. ALL NEW!!! I can see why Bruce Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt keep coming back to Gary U.S. Bonds -- besides that great party sound, he's a delightful, charming guy! Terrific stories in this video interview about good times and bad, but no sex, no drugs! I think you'll enjoy this and hope you'll share it with friends! Thanks! http://www.mrmedia.com/2013/05/hey-bruuuuuuce-gary-u-s-bonds-is-back-with-a-rock-memoir-2013-video-interview/#.UaAdUeu_2pl

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