Springsteen readies 'River' box set, with documentary

The Boss is back, to shine new light on his past work.

It was announced early Friday that Bruce Springsteen will release a new box set called The Ties That Bind: The River Collection on Dec. 4. The four-CD, three-DVD package will include his 1980 double album, The River, as well as a previously unreleased single-disc version featuring studio outtakes from 1979 and 1980. A fourth CD, The River: Outtakes, spans the sessions from that era, showcasing never-before-released tracks and additional outtakes.

The River Collection will also feature a new, hour-long documentary directed and produced by Thom Zimmy, a longtime Springsteen colleague who also helmed the 2010 album documentary The Promise: The Making of Darkness On the Edge of Town.

Two DVDs feature newly edited, multi-camera footage of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band shot in Tempe, Arizona during a 1980 concert, as well as 20 minutes of band rehearsal footage.