Bruce Springsteen/East Germany 1988

“Can music change the world?”…This is a proposition that has been repeated many times since the birth of rock. The answer has yet to be decided, but if it is “YES,” then this is the only concert that comes closest to it. A pro shot of such a historic event is now available for release. This work contains “July 19, 1988: East Berlin performance.” It is an outdoor concert where a large crowd of 160,000 to 300,000 people gathered. This show was broadcast in East Germany and watched by millions. It was one of the largest music events in East German history. Many existing copies were born from television broadcasts because of such a large event, but this work is not such an existing copy. It is the 2nd Gene Master that was recently announced by overseas core enthusiasts as the “best”. The beauty of the image is certainly the best ever. To the eyes of today’s digital world, it is a little sweet and cannot be called “official class,” but it is the highest grade for an air check from about 30 years ago. It is also of amazing quality when you consider that the original is East German broadcasting in the former communist bloc. The show depicted in such beautiful images cannot be discussed without a bit of history. The Free German Youth (Freie Deutsche Jugend) planned this concert in the first place. It was a huge organization with over 75% of East Germans between the ages of 14 and 25 as members, and the FDJ planned youth culture events such as sports, discos, and concerts, and held them with the permission of the government authorities. However, in the mid-1980s, some events that the authorities could not approve appeared, and when they were banned, they developed into riots. This concert was planned as a way to let off some steam. The East German authorities approved Bruce Springsteen as a “working class fighting injustice.” However, the authorities were also afraid of trouble. At the time, East Berliners enjoyed concerts by the West (Michael Jackson, Phil Collins, David Bowie, PINK FLOYD, etc.) held along the Berlin Wall, and cheered through the wall. So the authorities set up Springsteen’s venue in Weissensee, away from the border. The TV broadcast was delayed by two minutes so that any trouble could be dealt with immediately, and even past live footage was prepared as a replacement. Although no trouble that required replacement actually occurred, censorship was still required. Before playing Bob Dylan’s “Chimes Of Freedom,” he said in German, “I have something to say. I’m not here for any government or against them. I’m playing rock and roll for the people of East Berlin. I hope that one day all the walls (barriers) will disappear.” But it was cut out (the footage skips unnaturally in this film). What emerges from this film is Springsteen’s passion and the breath of young people who were about to change the times. The young people of East Germany deliver rock with all their might in front of the packed crowd, and respond to that passion with dazzling smiles. The audience is also shown, but it is overflowing with the joy of meeting the “real rock” that they have felt through the wall and over the airwaves. And then, the huge crowd of East Berlin, numbering six figures, shouts “born in the U.S.A.!!” in unison. Even in recent years, journalists and historians have analyzed the concert as a signal event for a peaceful revolution, that the concert and speech had a major impact on the collapse of the wall, and that the atmosphere and emotions in East Germany changed after the concert. The truth is more eloquent than anything else, as seen in Springsteen’s sweat and the expressions of the audience in this work. The month after this work, the “MOSCOW MUSIC PEACE FESTIVAL” was held in Russia, the main base of the communist bloc, by Ozzy Osbourne, MOTOLEY CRUE, BON JOVI, and others. And in November of the following year, 1989, the Berlin Wall finally collapsed. It has been about 30 years since this work. At this very moment, the world is in turmoil, and tensions are once again running between Russia and the United States over Syria. It is precisely because of this that this concert is so touching. Of course, we love music, regardless of political views. However, it is because we love it that we want to know the “power of music”. We want to believe in it. Why not try to feel “Can music change the world?” once again with this work by the finest master? Live at Weissensee Cycling Track, East Berlin, East Germany 19th July 1988 PRO-SHOT 1. Badlands 2. Out In The Street 3. Boom Boom 4. The River 5. The Promised Land 6. Spare Parts 7. War 8. Born In The U.S.A. 9. Chimes Of Freedom 10. Paradise By The C 11. I’m A Coward 12. I’m On Fire 13. In The Dark 14. Light Of Day 15. Born To Run 16. Hungry Heart 17. Interview with Bruce 18. Glory Days 19. I Can’t Help Falling In Love 20. Bobby Jean 21. Cadillac Ranch 22. Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out 23. Sweet Soul Music 24. Twist And Shout PRO-SHOT COLOUR NTSC Approx.132min.