Bruce Springsteen’s classic 1982 album Nebraska will be expanded to five discs, including the full-band electric version of the LP that was scrapped in favor of the released solo acoustic record.
The Boss announced the upcoming release of Nebraska ’82: Expanded Edition which will feature many never-before-heard and previously undiscovered recordings from Springsteen’s sixth album, which he famously recorded on a four-track recorder in the bedroom of a rented New Jersey home. Nebraska ’82: Expanded Edition includes a disc of nine outtakes from the original acoustic home recordings (which ended up on the band’s next album); with the second CD featuring eight of the Nebraska songs Springsteen and the E Street Band attempted to record in 1982.
In a video teaser for the set issue, Springsteen says, “Over the years, I’ve been asked about ‘Electric Nebraska,’ and I always thought the question was ridiculous. And finally I went back into the vault and there it was. We threw out the keyboards and played basically as a three-piece.”
The expanded edition, due out on Oct. 17 from Sony Music, will feature the legendary “Electric Nebraska” session — featuring E Street Band members features bassist Garry Tallent, drummer Max Weinberg, keyboardist Danny Federici, pianist Roy Bittan and guitarist Stevie Van Zandt — which features solo rarities, tracks from a one-off 1982 solo session and a previously unreleased, stripped-down version of the rock anthem “Born in the U.S.A.”
Springsteen said in a statement about the late April 1982 trio recording of ‘Born in the U.S.A.’ that “it was kinda like punk rockabilly. We were trying to bring Nebraska into the electric world.” (you can hear the electric version of “Born in the U.S.A.” – HERE.)
Nebraska was released on Sept. 30, 1982 as Springsteen’s sixth album. Following his extensive tour in support of 1980’s The River, Springsteen recorded demos for Nebraska made on a basic four-track cassette tape machine, with subjects dealing with serial killers, childhood memories and depression. Springsteen attempted to rerecord the songs with the E Street Band, however, the reworked versions didn’t ‘work’ and he made the decision to release the solo acoustic recordings. He soon returned to the studio to make Born in the U.S.A. with the E Street Band, which was released in 1984.
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