Bruce Springsteen – The River

CBS/Sony in Japan improved both of Bruce's sonically problematic early LPs: Born To Run is more transparent on top and The River has a bit more depth and low end. Buy either one with confidence.

My copy from Japan came with a tri-fold OBI that reads cat.#EGR-20066 though everything else seems the same (no Japanese lyrics or inserts either)

A sprawling masterpiece concerning the trials of working & destitute people & the triumph of rock n’ roll in which the Boss extends his run of fantastic albums finding him at peak perfection featuring a range of musical moods and complex emotional concerns along with plenty of good time up-tempo rockers & darker thought provoking introspective lyrical pieces. The sheer quality of the individual songs still sounds fresh today as it harnesses BS’s live performance energy & encapsulates the classic E Street sound & spirit.
An essential rock and roll album.

Music sounds dated but the nail in the coffin is the sound on my 1980 Ken Perry mastered edition. Overall weak sound, virtually no bass. Little separation of instruments so it gives a thin blended presentation. It sounds like listening to the hi-fi system in another room

My 1980 Dutch pressing mastered by Ken Perry. The music is kinda dated but the nail in the coffin in my first playing for several years is the sound. Extremely thin and weak. No bass to speak of. Poor separation of instruments and little power in the vocals. It sounds like the stereo system is in another room, which is the opposite of the cliche' "it sounds like they are playing in the room with me"

I'm glad to read these reviews. This is an album I have wanted to add to my collection for years but I did not want a new pressing and figured someday I would find a clean copy in a store. Yesterday was that day. I found a close to M- copy. I bought it then Degritted it for an hour (each platter). It's spinning now....

This is a really good album, I want to give it a 5 but I gave it a 4. It sounds really good but it sounds compressed/limited, and like all instruments are in the blend and nothing stands out to me. If this makes sense. That said, for how it was mastered, it sounds good but I think it could have been mastered better. But, maybe that is how Bruce likes it? I don't know. Something is lacking, I'm rambling as I'm trying to find the right way to say it. It could be better, but it is really good. ;)

Bottom line, I'm very happy I found a clean copy of River. It's a great album and I'm not a Bruce fan but I see myself walking into my sister's room in 1980 and seeing this record on the floor (granted no sleeve and in a pile of other vinyl. But that is a different topic, how we took care of our vinyl as kids ;) )

If you like Bruce? Get this, you won't be disappointed ;)

Amazing sounding pressing. This is the one to get! OG!

Going to the EQ and turning up the bass and mids a bit really evens the shrillness of the original recording out, and it ends up sounding pretty solid.

Sounds as good as any Bruce Springsteen album could. As with All of his albums, there’s sibilance. Seems like that’s just how he wanted to sound, ‘cuz Born In The USA is the same and my copy of that is a Mint original press. Where this press shines is in the slow quieter tracks.
Slight warp to the records just like Every modern pressing. Which means it Cannot be “Audiophile” vinyl as stated on the hype sticker, lol. Lacquer cut by Chris Bellman so I guess this is as good as it gets. It’s Okay. Nothing mind blowing

I have to disagree with Roseberg, the mastering sounds much better than any digital version and sounds good to great overall