Bruce Springsteen: The Promise – review

Billed as a lost Springsteen album, these 21 songs were left over from the 40 or so he recorded for 1978's Darkness on the Edge of Town , which is re-released this week in the form of a luxurious, multiple-disc box set. Heard here for the first time, they reveal the author working through his influences – Roy Orbison, doo-wop, classic rock 'n' roll – and while a thrill for fans, the truth is he was right first time. Not only do the songs not quite fit Darkness 's tightly edited tales of struggle, they're not quite up to its high standard either. Gareth Grundy