14/03/72 - CHALLENGER EASTERN SURFBOARDS, HIGHLANDS, NJ

DON’T YOU WANT TO BE AN OUTLAW (6:57) / IT’S ALL OVER NOW, BABY BLUE (11:30) / WHEN YOU DANCE (13:35) / LOOK TOWARDS THE LAND (9:50) / I’VE GOT TO HAVE YOU BABY (5:39) / FUNK SONG (6:25)

The above mentioned 6 songs are taken from audio of a BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN BAND rehearsal. The band line-up is Van Zandt-Sancious-Tallent-Lopez. In addition to the 55 minutes of music there are nearly 7 minutes of fascinating between-song banter, much of it between Springsteen and Tinker West, who Bruce jokingly refers to as “Stinky”. Tinker appears to be testing some new recording equipment. The sound quality is uniformly excellent. It is evident from the discussions that the rehearsals had been going on for some time before the recording starts. It should be noted that this is not Challenger’s more famous Wanamassa location that Bruce had lived in during the 1969-70 Steel Mill era. Tinker West had relocated the factory to Highlands, NJ in mid-1971 and had then constructed a more professional rehearsal room.

The standout track here is “When You Dance”. Although rough quality live renditions exist, this is a clear rendition, with astounding Springsteen-Van Zandt dual lead guitar interplay. Noteworthy as well is “Funk Song” (also known as “Funk Says Right On”). There are no live renditions of “Funk Song” from this period circulating, however Bruce surprisingly resurrected it during a few shows early on the Born To Run Tour (see gig listings for 23/07/75, 29/07/75 and 08/08/75). In addition to the Dylan song, there is also a cover of “I’ve Got To Have You Baby”, an obscure 1956 R&B single by Jimmy Jones & The Pretenders. The complete 62 minutes of audio is currently in limited circulation. However two of these six recordings have been in wide circulation for some time. “Look Towards The Land” first surfaced on boot “BOUND FOR GLORY” (Flamingo), albeit in vastly reduced sound quality to that found on the master tape. “Don’t You Want To Be An Outlaw” (also known by the titles “Jesse James” or “Billy”) first surfaced on “DEEP DOWN IN THE VAULTS” (E Street). The sound quality on the DDITV boot is only slightly reduced from the master tape.