I admit it: I’m reaching with this one.
Technically, “Faster and Louder” qualifies for a Meeting Across the River blog entry, since Bruce does indeed make an appearance with The Dictators on the lead-off track to their 1978 album Bloodbrothers.
Bruce was a big fan of the influential punk band’s first two albums–in fact, he once wore a Dictators tee shirt on stage and dedicated “Born to Run” to them.
So when it turned out the band was recording their third album in the same building where Bruce was mixing Darkness on the Edge of Town, Bruce stopped by for a visit and ended up on vinyl.
Blink and you’ll miss it, but at about the 2:10 mark, listen closely and you’ll hear Bruce count the band back in for the final chorus.
So yeah, it’s fleeting, but it’s a cool moment in the only collaboration between Bruce Springsteen and The Dictators.
I remembered hearing this but always thought it was the first counting the band in not the later count. It does sound like Bruce especially the “4” when he does that little Bruce scream.