18 Tracks is a single-disc distillation of 1998's four-CD box set Tracks, the superb retrospective assembling unreleased material spanning the breadth of Bruce Springsteen's storied career; also featuring three previously unissued songs, this new, streamlined release is a frustration from both a critical and consumer standpoint.
The issue of record company greed aside, the greatest disservice is actually to those listeners who buy the disc as a substitute for the full Tracks box; each of its 66 cuts is an invaluable addition to the Springsteen songbook, so even casual fans need the complete package to discover lost classics like "Thundercrack," "Give the Girl a Kiss," "Wages of Sin," and "The Wish" -- just 18 of these gems are simply not enough.
Which means, then, that 18 Tracks is ultimately most essential for those hardcore fans who already shelled out for most of the material in question anyway; and though it's appalling to force the devoted to buy a full-length album for just three new songs, at least each is excellent, in particular longtime fan favorites "The Fever" and "The Promise" (the latter newly recorded for inclusion here).
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Growin' UpBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 02:40 | 6 MB | 10 MB |
| 2 | Seaside Bar SongBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 03:34 | 8 MB | 24 MB |
| 3 | RendezvousBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 02:51 | 6 MB | 21 MB |
| 4 | Hearts of StoneBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 04:31 | 10 MB | 28 MB |
| 5 | Where the Bands AreBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 03:45 | 8 MB | 28 MB |
| 6 | Loose EndsBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 04:02 | 9 MB | 30 MB |
| 7 | I Wanna Be With YouBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 03:24 | 7 MB | 24 MB |
| 8 | Born in the U.S.A.Bruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 03:11 | 7 MB | 20 MB |
| 9 | My Love Will Not Let You DownBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 04:26 | 10 MB | 34 MB |
| 10 | Lion's DenBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 02:19 | 5 MB | 16 MB |
| 11 | Janey, Don't You Lose HeartBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 03:25 | 7 MB | 24 MB |
| 12 | Sad EyesBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 03:50 | 8 MB | 23 MB |
| 13 | Part Man, Part MonkeyBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 04:31 | 10 MB | 31 MB |
| 14 | Trouble RiverBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 04:21 | 9 MB | 32 MB |
| 15 | Brothers Under the BridgeBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 04:58 | 11 MB | 26 MB |
| 16 | The FeverBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 07:39 | 17 MB | 47 MB |
| 17 | The PromiseBruce Springsteen | Bruce Springsteen | Play | 04:48 | 11 MB | 20 MB |
| 68 mins | 156 MB | |||||
| 68 mins | 446 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mike Appel | Producer |
| 2 | Joel Bernstein | Photography |
| 3 | Roy Bittan | Piano |
| 4 | David Boucher | Mixing Assistant |
| 5 | Barbara Carr | Management |
| 6 | Phil A. Ceccola | Cover Photo, Photography |
| 7 | Harry Choron | Design |
| 8 | Sandra Choron | Art Direction, Artwork |
| 9 | Bob Clearmountain | Mixing |
| 10 | Clarence Clemons | Guest Artist, Percussion, Saxophone, Vocals |
| 11 | Jim Cretecos | Producer |
| 12 | Mario Cruz | Sax (Tenor) |
| 13 | Neil Dorfsman | Engineer |
| 14 | The E Street Band | Group |
| 15 | Danny Federici | Accordion, Glockenspiel, Keyboards, Organ |
| 16 | Michael Fisher | Percussion |
| 17 | David Gahr | Photography |
| 18 | Omar Hakim | Drums, Guest Artist |
| 19 | John F. Hammond | Producer |
| 20 | John Hammond, Sr. | Producer |
| 21 | Jimmy Iovine | Engineer |
| 22 | Randy Jackson | Bass |
| 23 | Jon Landau | Management, Producer |
| 24 | Louis Lehav | Engineer |
| 25 | Annie Leibovitz | Photography |
| 26 | Nils Lofgren | Guest Artist, Vocals |
| 27 | Fred Lombardi | Photography |
| 28 | Vini Lopez | Drums |
| 29 | Bob Ludwig | Mastering |
| 30 | Gary Mallaber | Drums |
| 31 | Ed Manion | Sax (Baritone) |
| 32 | Jim Marchese | Photography |
| 33 | Kooster McAllister | Assistant Engineer, Mixing Assistant |
| 34 | Thom Panunzio | Engineer, Mixing |
| 35 | Mark Pender | Trumpet |
| 36 | Ross Petersen | Mixing Assistant |
| 37 | Chuck Plotkin | Producer |
| 38 | Jeff Porcaro | Drums, Guest Artist |
| 39 | Neal Preston | Photography |
| 40 | Marty Rifkin | Dobro, Pedal Steel |
| 41 | Herb Ritts | Photography |
| 42 | David Rose | Photography |
| 43 | David Sancious | Guest Artist, Keyboards, Organ, Piano |
| 44 | Toby Scott | Engineer, Mixing, Technical Coordinator |
| 45 | Bruce Springsteen | Composer, Guitar, Liner Notes, Primary Artist, Producer, Vocals |
| 46 | Garry Tallent | Bass |
| 47 | Ed Thacker | Mixing |
| 48 | Soozie Tyrell | Violin |
| 49 | Steve VanZandt | Guest Artist |
| 50 | Steven Van Zandt | Guitar, Producer |
| 51 | Jerry Vivino | Sax (Tenor) |
| 52 | Max Weinberg | Drums |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |