Bruce Springsteen – The River

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

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 ;)

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

Having just seen Bruce and the band touring the anniversary of this album, I am taken right back to the show with each and every track...worth every hard-earned dollar I just paid for it.

Seminal 1980 double album from the USA rocker, the song-writing quality is quite good although as with most double albums there are a few fillers in between, but the texts on this album are some of Mr. Springsteen's more understated. The recording quality is ok but the mastering is frankly quite bad, early European pressings were OK, better than the USA pressings but literally all CD pressings sound awful, initial CD transfer from 1982 was used on all releases until 2005 when a Japanese pressing appeared that was slightly better, however that was allegedly not from a master but from a tape copy.

Nice album for people into adult oriented rock but in a bad need of remastering.