Sometimes unfairly forgotten from lists of essential albums, "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" is a splendor whose only flaw is being sandwiched between two masterpieces: "Born To Run" and "The River." "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" would be the perfect negative of "Born To Run": the romantic teenager is gone, replaced by a disillusioned young man who wants to bite like the proverbial caged lion. The production is also radically different: gone are the Spector-esque fantasies that hovered over "Born To Run," the approach chosen here is more stripped-down and raw. As a result, the E Street Band is asked to ease up on its (sometimes too) heavy artillery. Clarence and his saxophone are asked to stay on the sidelines, with a few exceptions. The dominant trio is undeniably Bittan-Van Zandt-Springsteen. Never again would the guitars have such scope on a Bruce album, literally exploding in the listener's face on a few memorable occasions.
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