“Hotter Coals From The Fiery Furnace”
Bruce Springsteen (“The Jersey Devil”)

This is an attempt to improve the legendary, first Springsteen bootleg, “Hot Coals From The Fiery Furnace.” I recall finding the original LPs in a record bin in East Lansing, MI back in the 80’s. The original can be downloaded from pretty clean vinyl thanks to hrubesh at http://jungleland.dnsalias.com/torrents-details.php?id=38990. The original is reputed to be the very first Springsteen bootleg.  Included are many fantastic and rare performances, especially “Saint In The City,” “E Street Shuffle,” “NYC Serenade,” “For You,” “Tenth…” “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine,” and “Up On The Roof.”  But, most of the original songs have since been released in superior quality on other recordings.

In this version, every song (except (10) “Wear My Ring (Around Your Neck),” (14) “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine,” and (15) “Up On The Roof”) is replaced by a better quality sounding version, generally the best quality currently available on torrent sites.  I have added subtle equalization and level correction to improve the sound where possible.  In addition, this version adds several great covers from the era that seem to fit with the feel of the original collection.  Here is the list:

1. It’s Hard To Be A Saint In The City – 11/1/75 UC Santa Barbara, CA 
2. The E Street Shuffle – 11/1/75 UC Santa Barbara, CA
3. NYC Serenade – 2/5/72 The Main Point, PA
4. Lost In The Flood – 12/12/75 C.W. Post College, Greenvale, NY
5. For You – 2/5/72 The Main Point, PA
6. Night – 12/30/75 Tower Theater, PA
7. Tenth Avenue Freeze Out (slow version) – 12/30/75 Tower Theater, PA
8. Does This Bus Stop At 82nd Street – 4/24/73 The Main Point, PA (first show)
9. You Never Can Tell – 6/3/74 The Agora, Cleveland, OH
10. Wear My Ring (Around Your Neck) (unknown)
11. It’s My Life –  12/12/75 C.W. Post College, Greenvale, NY
12. Sha La La – 12/12/75 C.W. Post College, Greenvale, NY
13. Santa Claus Is Coming To Town –12/12/75 C.W. Post College, Greenvale, NY
14. It’s Gonna Work Out Fine – 8/16/75 The Bottom Line, NY
15. Up On The Roof – 8/16/75 The Bottom Line, NY

BONUS TRACKS:

16. Pretty Flamingo – 10/17/75 The Roxy, L.A.
17. Goin’ Back – 10/17/75 The Roxy, L.A.
18. Wear My Ring Around Your Neck – 12/30/75 Tower Theater, PA
19. Little Queenie – 10/4/75 Palace Theater, Detroit
20. Carol/Lucille – 10/13/75 Houston, TX
21. Detroit Medley – 10/4/75 Palace Theater, Detroit
22. New Orleans – 5/13/76 New Orleans, LA

“Saint in the City” has been misidentified in Bruce databases as coming from the Main Point, PA, April 24, 1973 (second show), and “E Street Shuffle” as from an unidentified source.  Actually, both songs are from the UC Santa Barbara, CA show on November 1, 1975.  (In the “E Street Shuffle” story, Bruce talks about how the night in his story might have been the night after Halloween).  The versions on this torrent are from an improved source than on the original LP.

Also included is a copy of the original album cover insert.  Enjoy!  Haddad8888