My credentials as a Bruce Springsteen fan are well documented. I praised his last album, The Rising, perhaps more than I should. I even defended Bruce’s “public service announcement” about the war with Iraq here on NRO, bringing me lots of complaints from readers. (Bruce did me no favors by bringing Al Franken on stage with Rich Lowry in the audience.) In any event, I’m a Bruce Springsteen fan, I’ve been one for many years, and I have no regrets about that. So when I say that I am terribly disappointed by the new Bruce Springsteen releases–The Essential Bruce Springsteen and Live in Barcelona–this is a criticism coming from a loyal, devoted fan.

The Essential Bruce Springsteen aims to make up for the skimpy Greatest Hits collection released several years ago. One CD was far too short for an adequate overview of Bruce’s career from 1973-1995. Having two CDs could rectify the situation, but the decision was made to represent all phases of his career equally, regardless of the quality of the material. Hence, there are three songs from his underwhelming debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ, and three from the superlative Born to Run, three from the mediocre Human Touch/Lucky Town and three from the seismic Born in the U.S.A.

The attraction for the serious Bruce collectors–those who already have the original albums–is a bonus third disc, containing rare material. Some of this has been released before on soundtracks (“Lift Me Up”) or on compilation albums (“Viva Las Vegas”). In addition, there are a few previously unreleased songs. “None but the Brave,” an outtake from the Born in the U.S.A. sessions, is the most impressive: an impassioned vocal, great band performance, and a stinging guitar solo from Bruce. Had it been on the final record, it would have helped defuse the accusations of “pop” some critics leveled. “From Small Things” is another revelation, a rockabilly cut that gives some sense of the band’s studio energy. But “County Fair,” a longtime fan favorite, might as well have been recorded underwater. The same holds true for “Held up without a Gun,” which sounds no better than the circulating bootlegs.

The selling point for the Live in Barcelona DVD is that it marks the first time a Springsteen concert has ever been released in its entirety. While it’s not technically the whole concert, all that’s missing are a few repetitive choruses and crowd singalongs. This is a show from the European leg of the Rising tour, parts of which were originally broadcast in Europe on MTV then here in the States on CBS last year.

Granted, it’s difficult to say that the E Street Band turned in a bad performance. They are far too talented a group of musicians to do that. But this seems to be an energetic performance that never quite takes off, at least not to the levels the band reached during the conclusion of the tour this summer. I saw shows early in the tour and late in the tour, and the later shows were easily tighter.

The weakest moment occurs when Bruce sits down at the piano to bang his way through a couple of tunes. He forgets the words to “Spirit in the Night,” and the acoustic version of the epic “Incident on 57th Street” pales in comparison to the full band version I saw in Philadelphia this summer. The main set–with the Rising material–is solid but the songs are clearly inferior to the older tunes they’re played alongside.

Bruce’s previous DVD, Live in New York City, taken from the 2000 reunion tour, was criticized by some for leaving out the audience, turning it into a somewhat sterile stage performance. The problem on Barcelona is precisely the opposite–too many shots of the crowd. Moreover, some of the cuts are too rapid, indicating an editor who has the same attention span as a gnat with ADD. The sound quality varies; on some songs, it is really well done and others, not so much so. The audience is a bit too high in the mix throughout, though it does lend more of a live feel to the DVD.

This isn’t to say that either release is without any merit. The Essentials collection does an adequate job of representing some, though not all, high points of Bruce’s studio career. (What it reveals most clearly is that Bruce peaked by 1984; the first ten years of his career are represented on disc 1, and the following twenty are on disc 2.) The high point of the Barcelona DVD is the resurrection of “Dancing in the Dark.” Bruce makes up for the lip-synching, polo shirt wearing, boogie with Courtney Cox by turning the song into a straight-ahead rock epic, complete with slashing guitars replacing the synthesizers.

What is inexcusable about both releases are the mistakes. “Trapped” on the bonus Essentials disc is listed as being recorded during the 1980-81 River tour, but it is sonically identical to the previously released version from the Born in the U.S.A. tour. There is a zap of digital noise on “The Big Payback” that isn’t on the original CD release (as a flipside to “Open All Night”). Some of the material on the collection is remastered, but much isn’t. And the songs from Darkness on the Edge of Town, in particular, demand that sort of sonic magic.

On the DVD, not only are there typos–Willie Dixon’s “Diddy Wah Diddy,” which the band played, is confused with “Do Wah Diddy Diddy,” which they did not–but there are technical flaws. Many people have complained, in particular, about problems with disc 2, although mine played fine. Sony is offering replacement discs (1-800-255-7514). For a performer who has made his reputation as a stellar live performer, this sort of glitch is totally unacceptable.

The worst part may be this. We know that Bruce has ample amounts of footage from the legendary Born in the U.S.A. tour. There’s good reason to believe that there is footage from the epic 1978 tour. And yet what’s released is this–a good concert, to be sure, but not the stuff of which legends are made. On the audio side, matters are even worse: Thanks to the Live 75/85 box set we know that some of the greatest concerts Bruce ever performed are safely in the archives. Those ought to see the light of day.

The Who had Leeds, the Allmans had Fillmore East. Hendrix had Woodstock, and Stevie Ray Vaughn had Montreaux (twice). Despite his almost 30 years of rock stardom, Bruce Springsteen has yet to release an official live album or best-of collection that is worthy of his place in rock history. The best documents of his career continue to be the tapes of the many radio broadcasts on the 1978 tour. Neither of these releases changes that.

–Kevin Cherry, an NRO contributor, is a graduate student at the University of Notre Dame in political science.