While by now it has become apparent that, if you're a collector of Springsteen, the late-2002 shows and 2003 shows of the Rising tour give you more bang for your buck, setlist-wise; most of the shows early on were all short enough to fit onto two CDs, and that's the case here. But if we're talking "bang," the big bang here is the sound quality: drop-dead gorgeous, a "10" audience recording if there ever was one, considering of course the size of the venue, the massive Tacoma Dome. The show got heavily traded on the tape/CD-R fan network early on it was so good, and it comes as no surprise that other labels have copied it as well; the Audio Publisher label actually beat Crystal Cat to the punch by releasing Rising In The USA first - although comparing the two reveals a subtle "hotter" sound on the C.Cat release, and of course CC always has top-notch artwork and complete booklets (here, an 8-pager that includes a review of the show) as well. Make the CC edition your pr! iority in that regard, although pretty much any release of this show, assuming it ultimately is sourced back to the same tape, will do, sound-wise. CRYSTAL CAT # 653/654 (2002) |
