215: THE WILD, THE INNOCENT & THE E STREET SHUFFLE | BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN

The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle is the second studio album by American rock singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. It was recorded by Springsteen with the E Street Band at 914 Sound Studios, Blauvelt, New York, and released on November 5, 1973 by Columbia Records. It includes the song "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)", the band's most-used set-closing song through 1985.

As with Springsteen's first album released earlier in the year, The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle was well-received critically but had little commercial success at the time. However, once Springsteen achieved popularity with Born to Run, several selections from this album became popular FM radio airplay and concert favorites. On November 7, 2009, Springsteen and the E Street Band played the album in its entirety for the first time during a concert at Madison Square Garden.

Recording began on May 14, 1973, with the day spent on "Circus Song", which would be finished on June 28, and re-titled "Wild Billy's Circus Story". Two days later, "The Fever" was recorded in one take, then discarded and not included on the album. Sessions did not resume until June 22, but all backing tracks and most of the album would be recorded by the end of the week. September 23, 1973 was the final day of sessions, with final touches applied to "Kitty's Back", the last verse of "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" overdubbed with new lyrics, "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)" and a brand new song, "Incident On 57th Street", both recorded from scratch and completed. Along with these tracks, the album would be composed of "New York City Serenade", completed August 7, and "The E Street Shuffle", recorded on June 28 in one session. Full article