The Boss sprung a free download Monday on iTunes, part of a buildup towards a January album release.
The track, “Working on a Dream,” was also available on brucespringsteen.net, though the gratis giveaway ended Monday evening at midnight. Outside of an optional email address request, the download was offered as a no-strings-attached proposition on the artist page, and the file was a similarly no-strings-attached MP3.
On the iTunes Store, the story shifted a bit. Instead of an MP3, fans were given a protected file, an inconvenience for those wanting to step outside the iPod+iPhone+iTunes ecosystem. Whether Apple will eventually negotiate DRM-free licenses remains a hot topic of speculation, but for now, protection is the word. The song will be available on iTunes exclusively until December 9th.
The song gained some considerable exposure during a recent, Sunday Night Football game on ESPN. The album carries the same name as the lead single, and hits retailers January 27th.
