Springsteen and title theme

[rexlic]

Hopefully fans of maestro Morricone and/or Bruce Springsteen are enjoying the Boss' take on the title theme, as heard on this year's Morricone tribute CD.  Turns out Bruce's connection to the piece goes back a ways--while supporting The River LP in 1980-81, E Street Band piano player Roy Bittan would introduce the song "Badlands" with a brief reference to the theme.  You can hear it in a concert clip from that time on YouTube; just type in  Badlands and click on the video from Landover '80.

I saw five shows on that tour, but missed the boat completely on the Morricone, since I didn't know the music properly until the original CD issue.  I was subsequently clued into the homage by re-reading Glory Days, the Springsteen bio by Dave Marsh.  Apparently while performing the opening in Nice, France, the crowd spontaneously took up the glorious Edda Dell'Orso vocal.  What better tribute could there be to this music, than it was remembered collectively 13 years after the film came out!