New Springsteen Album "Western Stars" June 14*

Yes, mine’s like it.

 

I read it in the darkest way possible upon first listen, and it had such an effect on me that I haven’t gone back to it (the song). Overreaction, no doubt, but a genuine one. Brilliant but..it colored the whole album for me, as it can so easily be taken as a narrative.

 

easily one of the best lps of the year ...

 

Found it. All I had to do was ask my neighbors. LOL

 

I can't stop listening to this entire album all day long, day after day now. Is it really this good? ... telephone poles and trees go whizzing by....

Stones haunts me.

The sound is absolutely fantastic! Glen Campbell never stood a chance.

 

Thank you, I will have to check that one out. I thought that might be the one that people might suggest just based on some of the comments in this thread.

 

Look at the bright side, now you have both.

 

Don't think shot really stands out so much, after all how would you describe a single drink served in a very small glass, usually drunk in one fell swoop?

 

Same here. Just spun it for the first time tonight and it's full of pops and it skips during "Wild Horses". I had to stop playing it -- pretty disappointing.

I'll be taking it back tomorrow with the hopes of getting a better copy. My guess is that this batch is just bad...

 

Wasn’t expecting much after his last few albums but WS surprised me with his most cohesive set of songs maybe since Nebraska. His voice sounds really strong and the production fits perfectly, especially the strings.

 

I

I like the cheesiness - kind of like this is the amateur house band at SJs. It is a change of pace and the album would be too monotone without some form of light number in the middle. Although I have listened only to the CD so far, the 3 track breaks also work well as album sides on the vinyl.

 

Like the cover of Just Like Fire Would as well as the revised version of Ghost, Hunter and studio American Skin as well. Its just not a cohesive album.

 

You have captured the dual meaning perfectly. You wonder why he is going back. There is also the line: Of my lonely bed, I woke to something you said
That it's better to have loved, yeah, it's better to have loved. The character reacts to that thought - the best moment... and goes back. It is ambiguous.

 

I’ve been a CD convert for a long time. One of my sons bought me the vinyl as the cover was so good. Lovely present, but the are unwanted surfaces noises and indeed, slight warps I won’t be going back to vinyl anytime soon.

 

What makes you think everyone hasn’t experienced this?

 

Almost every new record reminds me why I grew to love CDs. Hasn’t stopped me from listening to both

 

Ditto here. Spinning now. I keep popping 4 other discs into my 5 disc carousel but this one remains every time. That's really unusual for me.

 

I purchased the US Barnes and Noble vinyl edition based on the images I saw online. The discs looked cool in the ad (they were essentially white discs with blue swirl-like coloring, which roughly replicated a cloudy sky). When the vinyl arrived, the discs looked nothing like the image in the online advertisement, as the actual discs were virtually clear with some mild blue swirling. Anyway, I played side one of the first disc, which was fairly quiet. Side two was absolutely riddled with surface noise. I never made it to side three and I never will. I'm sure it's blasphemy in these parts but I have entirely no use for vinyl.

For me personally, CDs are superior in every conceivable way to LPs and FLAC files are superior to both. I've ripped my entire CD collection to FLAC. When I'm listening at home, I play FLAC files over the stereo. I also convert every FLAC album in my collection to MP3 so I can also enjoy those albums in the car.

 

This is one reason why I never got back into vinyl and why I don’t miss it.
That and paying $35. for what used to cost around $8.

 

A very good vinyl pressing on a very good turntable— as part of an expensive system — beats CDs every time. But by every other metric and measure , it’s no contest.

 

I'm sure you're right but I'm just not that guy. To that end, I've finally just updated my profile to reflect my configuration:

Pioneer VSXLX102 receiver
one Polk PSW 108 subwoofer
two Polk Audio T50 floorstanding loudspeakers
HP Pavilion Desk Top 590-P0054 computer connected to the receiver via HDMI
Pro-Ject Debut III turntable (red) w/ Ortofon OM-5 cartridge
Sony BDP-S1700 Blu-ray player connected to the receiver via HDMI
Sony DVP-NS725P DVD player connected via digital coaxial (which is my standalone CD player)

Compared to the audiophiles on this forum, I should rightfully be laughed out of the room. But it serves my purposes and it's a huge step up from listening to via earbuds or over laptop speakers.

 

and yet the word "toast" could have worked as well (although will admit it does not rhyme with "lot").We all know how he labors over every syllable, to me, the word "shot" seems specifically chosen to have an almost onomatopoeia like effect on the story and listener.

Again, not saying this is the definite meaning to the song, just playing....

 

A well mastered CD will beat the vinyl every time

 

Maybe. It’s been a long time since I sat down and listened to vinyl, so I defer to the audiophiles who make it their business to seek out the finest in reproductive sound.
But for “the rest of us”, you’re probably right.

 

Same here, and the line about children being a gift almost brings me to tears as I play with my 7 year old twins. I'm not crying, your crying..

I also like to imagine Bruce makes a dual appearance in the song, as the narrator, but also as the "Gearhead in a souped-up '72", 1972 being the year he was signed, a reach maybe, but it just makes me smile