Better Days (Southside Johnny & The Asbury Jukes album)

Better Days is an album by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, released in 1991. It yielded minor hits "It's Been a Long Time" and "I've Been Workin' Too Hard". The song "It's Been a Long Time" features shared lead vocals by Southside Johnny, Steve Van Zandt, and Bruce Springsteen and is a reflection back on their early years together in the music business. "I've Been Working Too Hard" features a duet with Jon Bon Jovi. Eight of the eleven songs were written by Van Zandt, harkening back to the Jukes' first three albums which also featured Van Zandt writing, playing guitar, and singing harmony and sometimes duet vocals. One track, "All the Way Home", was written by Bruce Springsteen who later recorded his own version of it for his 2005 solo album Devils and Dust.[1]

Better Days
Studio album by
Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes
ReleasedOct 1991
Recorded1991
GenreRock
Length56:30
LabelImpact
ProducerSteven Van Zandt
Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes chronology
Slow Dance
(1988)		 Better Days
(1991)		 Messin' With the Blues
(2000)

Reception

The Allmusic review by Kit Kiefer awarded the album 4 stars and stated, "A comeback album that by all rights shouldn't be this good, Better Days reunites Southside Johnny with his old cohorts Springsteen and Van Zandt and some special guests (Jon Bon Jovi, Flo and Eddie) for 11 bittersweet originals capped by the gorgeous soul ballad "It's Been a Long Time." ".[2]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]

Track listing

All tracks written by Steven Van Zandt except where noted.

  1. "Coming Back" – 3:59
  2. "All I Needed Was You" – 5:06
  3. "It's Been a Long Time" – 5:31
  4. "Soul's On Fire (Intro)" (John Lyon, Van Zandt) – 1:04
  5. "Soul's On Fire" (Lyon, Van Zandt) – 6:55
  6. "Better Days (Intro)" – 0:58
  7. "Better Days" – 5:04
  8. "I've Been Working Too Hard" – 5:06
  9. "Ride The Night Away" (Steve Jordan, Van Zandt) – 5:12
  10. "Right To Walk Away" (Dennis Locorriere, Lyon, Leroy Preston) – 4:45
  11. "All Night Long (Intro)" (Bobby Bandiera, Lyon) – 0:19
  12. "All Night Long" (Bandiera, Lyon) – 5:25
  13. "All the Way Home" (Bruce Springsteen) – 3:54
  14. "Shake 'Em Down" – 3:12

Personnel
  • Bobby Bandiera – guitar ("Ride The Night Away," "I've Been Working Too Hard," "All Night Long," "Shake 'Em Down," "The Right To Walk Away," "All The Way Home"), backing vocals ("All Night Long")
  • Jon Bon Jovi – vocals (duet on "I've Been Working Too Hard"), backing vocals ("Soul's On Fire")
  • Rusty Cloud – organ, hammond organ, piano
  • Barry Danielian – trumpet ("All Night Long," "Ride The Night Away")
  • Charley Drayton – backing vocals ("It's Been A Long Time")
  • Frank Elmo – baritone saxophone ("Right To Walk Away," "Soul's On Fire," "I've Been Working Too Hard")
  • Flo – backing vocals ("Ride The Night Away")
  • Frenchy Gauthier – art direction
  • Rick Gazda – trumpet (all songs except where noted)
  • Eddie – backing vocals ("Ride The Night Away")
  • Steve Jordan – backing vocals ("It's Been A Long Time")
  • Richie "La Bamba" Rosenberg – trombone (all songs except where noted), additional backing vocals, horn charts
  • Jeff Lancaster – design
  • Dan Levine – trombone ("I've Been Working Too Hard")
  • Little Steven – guitar ("Coming Back," "It's Been A Long Time," "All I Needed Was You," "Better Days," "Soul's On Fire), vocals (shared lead on "It's Been a Long Time"), backing vocals ("Coming Back," "All I Needed Was You," "Better Days," "Ride The Night Away," "Right To Walk Away," "Shake 'Em Down," "I've Been Working Too Hard"), horn arrangements, producer
  • Bob Ludwig – mastering
  • Jill Lyon – production coordination
  • Ed Manion – baritone saxophone (all songs except where noted)
  • Dave McNair – associate producer, engineer, mixing
  • Benjamin Newberry – photography
  • Frank Ockenfels – photography
  • Mark Pender – trumpet (all songs except where noted), additional backing vocals
  • Michael Scalcione – assistant engineer
  • Mick Seeley – additional backing vocals
  • Southside Johnny – arranger, harmonica, vocals
  • Bruce Springsteen – vocals (shared lead on "It's Been a Long Time"), backing vocals ("All The Way Home"), keyboards ("All The Way Home")
  • Joey Stann – tenor saxophone (all songs except where noted), additional backing vocals
  • Garry Tallent – bass
  • Jerry Vivino, Jr. – tenor saxophone ("Right To Walk Away")
  • Max Weinberg – drums
  • Carol Whaley – photography
  • Zoe Yanakis – maracas, photography, production coordination, tambourine
gollark: You can totally compare it! We're making comparisons now!
gollark: Elections: people are broadly unsatisfied with the results somehowFreedom of citizens: constitution is blatantly ignored half the timeRight to bear arms: kind of decreasing over timeRight to free speech: in practice, probably notRight to assemble: right now, you don't have that, which I feel is justified, but stillRight to privacy: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHAAGHASHFHASGFAHsf
gollark: The right to privacy isn't a constitutional thing. I think it's important, though.
gollark: I mean, those things aren't quite as meaningful as one would hope nowadays, but it's more than North Korea.
gollark: Much more freedom of information going in/out, too.

References
  1. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2011-07-23. Retrieved 2011-07-24.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. Kiefer, K. Allmusic Review accessed December 31, 2010
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