Why Did Bruce Springsteen Bury Seven Albums? ‘Tracks II’ Unlocks the Vault

From orchestral ballads to mariachi experiments, Springsteen’s new box set reveals the bold artistic directions he once kept hidden.

What if Bruce Springsteen had followed the haunting, synth-laced “Streets of Philadelphia” with a full album in the same moody style? Or released a crooner-style ballads record instead of 2019’s Western Stars?

With the release of Tracks II: The Lost Albums, fans finally get a window into seven alternate realities of The Boss’s creative universe—projects once abandoned, reworked, or shelved entirely. The massive box set is a trove of unreleased songs, full albums, and genre-bending experiments that show just how far Springsteen was willing to go outside the familiar thunder of the E Street Band.

On a recent episode of Rolling Stone Music Now, Andy Greene joined Brian Hiatt to explore the stories behind the music. Below are some key revelations:

🎸 He Shelved Albums He Couldn't Tour

Some of these albums were left unfinished simply because Springsteen didn’t know how to take them on the road. While 1992’s Human Touch and Lucky Town were built for big stages with rock anthems, the Streets of Philadelphia sessions leaned heavily into subdued, atmospheric sounds—ill-suited for arenas.

Similarly, his Burt Bacharach-style ballads album, Twilight Hours, was another challenge: Could fans accept Bruce in a tux, backed by a full orchestra?

🕊️ “Waiting on the End of the World” Was Likely the First ‘Philadelphia’ Attempt

Springsteen’s unearthed track “Waiting on the End of the World” bears strong lyrical parallels to “Streets of Philadelphia.” It may have been his initial response to director Jonathan Demme’s request for a rock anthem to help connect the film’s message with working-class America.

🤠 A Gospel Western Mystery Solved

One of the most intriguing finds is the Faithless album, originally written for an unmade “spiritual Western” film. For years, fans speculated about the origin of tracks like “Shackled and Drawn” and “Rocky Ground” from Wrecking Ball (2012). Turns out, Springsteen had teased a “gospel film project”—and Faithless is almost certainly that missing piece.

🧠 The 1983 Breakdown Behind ‘L.A. Garage Sessions’

The L.A. Garage Sessions ’83 chronicle a period of deep psychological turmoil for Springsteen. Following the raw emotional depth of Nebraska (1982), Bruce faced a full-on identity crisis as he struggled with the burden of rising stardom. Tracks like “Unsatisfied Heart” and “County Fair” reflect the existential weight of that moment.

📻 Reclaiming His 'Lost' Nineties

Despite once labeling the 1990s a “lost period,” Springsteen now seems to view that decade differently. In a recent promo video, he dismissed the idea entirely—though, ironically, he used the same wording himself in a 2009 Rolling Stone interview.

🎺 A Mariachi Curveball… Timed Perfectly

One of the box set’s most surprising tracks, “The Lost Charro” (from the Inyo sessions), features a full mariachi band. It feels strangely prophetic, aligning with today’s surge in popularity for Mexican regional artists like Peso Pluma.

🗂️ Timelines Get Complicated

The albums aren’t arranged in clean, chronological order. For instance:

• Inyo mainly hails from 1997–98, but a few tracks were recorded during the Western Stars era in the 2010s.
• Somewhere North of Nashville is even more chaotic: mostly cut in 1995, it includes a title track from the 2010s and several re-recorded songs written during the Born in the U.S.A. period.

🎧 Listen to the Full Story

To hear the full discussion and insights straight from Springsteen’s recent interviews, tune into the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your audio fix.