Bruce Springsteen

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Badlands…gee I remember Melb 2017 when that came on and the Pit went wild

It’s one of those songs I’ve got off his website for various Live shows across his career and the most recent incarnations live bring a full band sound that I simply love

I’m worried that a lot of the songs you have mentioned are probably in my top 10 so I’m keen to see what the remaining list will be !😊
 
The Wild the Innocent is another album that grows with you, when I first heard it in my teens it was about the possibilities of youth, I wanted to hang with Rosie and Spanish Johnny and Puerto Rican Jane, smoke weed on the beach with Sandy. I managed my own version of that and now I put that album on and relax with my own memories.
 
Gasometer said:
Badlands…gee I remember Melb 2017 when that came on and the Pit went wild

It’s one of those songs I’ve got off his website for various Live shows across his career and the most recent incarnations live bring a full band sound that I simply love

I’m worried that a lot of the songs you have mentioned are probably in my top 10 so I’m keen to see what the remaining list will be !😊
Click to expand...
That's the beauty of music - all subjective. What you love, I may not and vice versa.

What's your 10 anyway?
 

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14) I’m Goin’ Down (Born In The USA)

But when we kiss I can feel a doubt

Much like Dancing In The Dark, I’m Goin’ Down’s upbeat arrangement and melody hides its darker meaning.

I feel like I’m Goin’ Down is the forgotten track off Born In The USA, the others get heaps of coverage, and this feels like it’s not as frequent as the others, which is a shame, because it’s so much fun.

Highlighting the deterioration of a relationship, it may as well have the final nail in its coffin. The good times are gone, and whatever the guy in the song does, he cannot win.

What I love most about the track is the intro with just the guitar and the vocal. The guitar has some grunt and attitude to it.

While the lyrics may be simple, the imagery is clear and plain to see.

I’m Goin Down may be not as complex as other songs, but it doesn’t need to be. Less is definitely more in this case. The track is an absolute blast to listen to and hear it a show.

This version below is much longer than the standard live takes. It was done on a sweltering night in Sevilla, there is a breakdown, and Steve plays a reasonably long sizzling solo that takes the track to nearly six minutes long.



13) New York City Serenade (The Wild, The Innocent and The E-Street Shuffle)

Hey vibes man, hey jazz man, oh play me your serenade

Without fail, every single time, New York City Serenade floors me with its stunning beauty.

How this was written before he turned 25 is completely unfathomable. Something so grandiose, so ambitious, so exceptional is something I struggle to fully understand. To compose something like this at that age is remarkable.

From the very beginning, it’s clear we’re in for a spectacle. Roy’s work is nothing short of exceptional. It’s breathtaking to both watch and listen to as the piano takes us on a journey that twists and turns, twirls and dips before finally plateauing and leading the way for the remainder of the track. It’s perfect at what it does as it creates the melody after the impressive, dramatic, jazzy introduction. David Sancious was told in the studio to “do what you want as long as you want”, pretty incredible stuff considering what came out of it.

When the acoustic guitar joins it, it only adds to the charm of track. It begins to set the scene, beginning to lead us on the journey for what’s to follow. The vocal is beautifully tender and expertly controlled, and is perfect accompaniment to the already stunning arrangement.

The introduction of the strings is executed to absolute perfection. Their addition effortlessly helps the song ascend into another dimension that it’s almost ethereal. They soar so gracefully and effortlessly while whisking you away. Close your eyes, New York City is so close you can almost smell it.

With everything else to focus on, it’s hard to notice the bass. But when you hone in on it, you can feel it floating by at points, standing back at others, or up front when asked to be. Bass may not be appreciated by some people, but the role it has in a song like this shows how essential it is – especially when you can hear it at the front of the mix with the strings. Like the strings, it is elegant in appearance.

The saxophone is wonderful, at times taking centre stage, but taking nothing away from all the other instruments. Hearing it fly in the last few minutes is great after only minor flurries earlier on. It isn’t often the sax isn’t the hero of the track, but this time, the glory belongs to those glorious strings.

The song is an excellent example of how finely tuned The E-Street Band is, and is perfection in every sense of the word.

I walked down 5th Avenue in NYC in the snow listening to this song. It is one of the greatest moments of my life.

There are only a handful songs which I attach the word masterpiece to. This is one of them.



12) Ghosts (Letter To You)

By the end of the set we leave no one alive

Ghosts grabbed me as soon as I heard it the very first time. My ears pricked up immediately and I was hooked from those opening bars. Those thumping drums, and then Bruce roaring that opening line at me, I was hooked, and have been ever since.

I love everything about Ghosts. Its themes, the power and force behind it, the lyrics, the imagery, all of it resonates so deep inside me.

The guitars are full of power, the sax is jubilant, the piano and organ both sound cheerful, and the E-Street Band are doing what they do best, and that is act in cohesion.

With how incredible live shows are, I love how Bruce has channelled the feeling we all feel at shows. The stage is home, the stage is a safe place, and Bruce playing to us, at a show is the exact same feeling.

I’m alive…



11) Thunder Road (Born To Run)

Well I got this guitar and I learned how to make it talk

Is there a better introduction to an album than Thunder Road? Hint: The answer is no. To begin an album with an opening like that is genius. It isn’t pretentious, it’s not judgmental, it’s not intrusive, it’s warm, it’s friendly, it’s freeing.

Thunder Road takes you on a ride that makes you feel anything is possible. It makes you believe that you can reach the unthinkable, do the impossible, reach for the stars and conquer the difficult things in life. It gives you unfounded belief you didn’t know you had. It exudes everything that a fan feels not only hearing this song, but being at a show. It makes you feel alive.

That harmonica just screams liberation, freedom and escape all wrapped into one. It shines so brightly in tandem with the piano guiding it along. The sound of youth, the sounds of freedom and innocence all come to greet you so welcomingly, and you’re grateful for the introduction.

The images are so innocent and warming. If you’ve never pictured Mary dancing across your porch have you even lived? The image is so stark and stands at the centre of my mind, completely unobstructed.

The guitar has a real drive to it, even though it is not as prominent as it is in other tracks. The vocal is full of youthful exuberance.

The last verse rises above everything that’s come so far, the vocal is passionately raised, and the music matches the conviction in both the lyric and vocals. The thumping of the drums going blow for blow with the vocal so determinedly. It’s a joy to behold.

That final sax break is a thing of beauty. It’s playing as the characters are pulling out of that town to win, driving off into the sunset. The hope is riding in that car with them, with whatever their future awaits.

Turn it up, and let that wind blow back your hair. Because that my friends is what Thunder Road so vehemently demands. And it’s nothing less than it deserves.

 
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10) The Ties That Bind (The River)

It’s a long dark highway on a thin white line, connecting baby your hear to mine

I cannot get enough of Ties. It’s so damn uplifting, its energy is contagious, its passion electric. I can play it over and over and over and not tire of it. Spoiler: it’s my favourite song on The River, and obviously I hold it in very high stead, because there aren’t many songs that can top it for me. I think the hook, combined with the energy the track gives off is what does it.

Whether it be an album opener on The River or a show opener, The Ties That Bind is excellent at both. With its crashing snare drums and energetic guitar riff, the scene is set for what is to follow.

It’s a high octane track that really only lets up in the bridge and it brims with unnerving energy. The organs that soar in the background are stunning, the twangy guitar is by your side the whole way, and you’ll be hard pressed to find a better hook than the ties that bai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ai-ind. And Max’s work behind the kit is full of zest and

The sax break is so jubilant and uplifting and is an excellent link to the last verse. It lifts the whole track onto another level, it’s that good. The bass and organs are also worth paying attention to here too.

The vocal conviction in this track is almost unmatched. Hearing the exclamation of “you can’t break the ties that bind!” at the end of the final verse is incredibly powerful and equally stirring. I particularly love Max’s work on this track, those regular drum rolls fill me with hope, joy, and promise.

You can’t break the ties that bind.



9) Night (Born To Run)

You work nine to five and somehow you survive til the night

There is only one way to listen to Night. And it’s very, very loud. Turn it up as loud as you can, you will not regret it. I urge you to.

Night comes flying at you a million miles an hour. It is virtually unstoppable in its high voltage head first charge at you. It’s like a shot of adrenaline locked on to you like a homing missile. It’s inescapable and you can’t help but let it take control of you.

Night will forever be one of my favourite Bruce Springsteen songs. It’s easy to forget about it, though. Born To Run has so many great songs, and so many of those songs are considered among the best he’s written, but Night – I feel – is often forgotten, among all that. There is so much to love about this track.

You’re assaulted with a barrage of instruments. The guitars whack you with their real grunt and grab you by the scruff of the neck with their sheer power. The saxophone blows you 10 feet back and the drums, piano and bass all hit you collectively, leaving you unaware what to focus on after being knocked out into a musical daze.

We’ve all connected with the more obvious themes in Night at one point or another in our lives. Working that job, hanging for the weekend, wanting something better out of our lives than that shitty, dead-end, 9-5 job, with a boss you absolutely loathe. You’re hanging out for the night, to bust out of there and feel alive.

It’s one of the all time great Springsteen driving songs. It’s filled with references of being on the road, most likely on a motorbike and it’s incredibly difficult not to be swept away with its references. I mean if the lines

And sit at the light, as it changes to green
With your faith in your machine off you scream into the night

If that doesn’t make you want to floor it, then are you even alive?

Underneath the onslaught of sound that is Night, there is a beautiful romanticism tucked away. And that folks, is that.



8) Something In The Night (Darkness On The Edge Of Town)

Well you can ride this road til dawn without another human being in sight

One take. That’s all it took to record to this. That is incredible.

The haunting melody on the piano is excellent, and the rumbling of the toms – along with the driving piano – amplifies the tension with each passing bar during the introduction of Something In The Night. It sends a shiver up my spine nearly every time. You can really feel the hurt and pain behind those wails before the band crash in to really symbolise it.

The imagery is so powerful on the dark ride it takes you on, through Kingsley. Our character is alone behind the wheel, in the black of the night, hurtling towards the unknown. I imagine the surroundings to be so bare, and desolate. The only light around is from that of the dashboard. He’s surrounded by the woods, and there is nobody out there for miles.

The drums and piano work so perfect in unison, and are such a potent tool in this track as the song is driven on by them. Max’s work on this track is flawless. He nails it.

The breakdown is brilliant where it’s just the vocal, kick drum and the tom – which was completely unplanned in the recording – Bruce threw his arms up and Max instinctively knew to stop – before a wail breaks everything and in come crashing drums and guitars to highlight the pain once again. When the guitar comes back the sheer sound of force is fantastic. It would have to be one of my favourite pieces of his entire catalogue.

The highlight of this track for me is the arrangement and composition. It’s one of the best, if not the best, dark track in his entire catalogue. Perfection.

If there was ever a clip to represent this song, this is it. A song I love to listen to when it’s raining.



7) Born To Run (Born To Run)

We’re gonna get to that place where we really wanna go

There are not many songs which start off as exhilarating as Born To Run. It makes your heart race, and it fills you with euphoria from the very beginning. Your heart rate increases and there is an enormous grin plastered across your face that nobody can get rid of. It’s spine tingling.

From that opening drum roll on the snare, the horns, glockenspiel, the guitar – in all its grunting might –, bass and piano, the wall of sound envelops you with sheer force and unrelenting pressure, and you can't help but to be soaked up in it all. It’s hard to work out what to focus on and where to listen, all of it is so good.

The first verse takes us back to the familiar lives of blue collar workers, and these guys want to get out of their town, it’s ripping the bones from their back. They don’t want to be there still when they’re old. They want to get out while they’re young.

It’s so alike to Thunder Road – for me – where it makes you believe anything is possible. It spurs you on, it’s the sound of freedom and liberation. The passion in the vocal is exhilarating and inspiring, and I feel this only adds to the feelings produced while listening to this.

I love the hope and innocence in the words of the second verse “I want to know if love is wild, I want to know if love is real”. We’ve all been there, but there is a sweet innocence to them, and I think it’s because when it was written he was still so young, and perhaps discovering who he was as a person.

The sax solo brims with hope, courage, and fearlessness before we hit the bridge. I love the image of girls combing their hair in the rearview mirrors. I picture it every time in my mind without fail. The guitar break with the sax really drives things forward at the end of this verse. It’s echoing the characters conviction in the song, pushing them to go for it.

The last verse is sheer ecstasy. The whole song builds up to that point, and once you hit that final verse everything erupts and you reach the summit with joy pouring out of every pore. There is jubilation, triumph and accomplishment. Him and Wendy have made it, they’ve got out. They’ve left the town that rips the bones from their back, If you feel anything less than on top of the world at that point, you are simply not human.

Born To Run is a four and half minute exhilarating rock and roll power ride that you don't want to end. Born To Run IS Bruce Springsteen.



6) Incident on 57th Street (The Wild, The Innocent And The E-Street Shuffle)

Upstairs a band was playing and the singer was singing something about going home

It is simply astonishing that a song with a bar set so high was written so early not just in his career, but in his life. It makes you sit there and scratch your head how someone so young could pen an absolute masterpiece (arguably at least his third by this point in his career). The track is outstanding with its cinematic story telling. I feel as if I am there, witnessing right before my very eyes, the story told in this song.

Incident On 57th Street starts on a high and it never drops from there. The piano is so delicate and draws you in, using the organ in support, while the guitar blows you away with its quick uppercut of power.

"Spanish Johnny drove in from the underworld last night."

What an opening line; up there with the very best in his songbook. We meet Spanish Johnny – and for me, the greatest named Springsteen character in all of his songs. Johnny is a street fighter, and he loves it. He’s offered his feelings to street workers, but they’re not interested. The pimps accusing of being both a cheater and liar. But he soon meets Puerto Rican Jane – another excellently named character – who he seems to be falling for. He wants to take her away from this dark side of town, the underworld.

I absolutely love beginning of the second verse, the phrasing, delivery and structure is perfect and I cannot put in words enough how much I love it.

Well, like a cool Romeo he made his moves, oh, she looked so fine
Like a late Juliet, she knew she'd never be true but then, she really didn't mind
Upstairs a band was playin' and the singer was singin' something about going home

He plays Romeo, to her Juliet. But as much as he loves this girl, the allure of street fighting is too hard to resist.

It’s quite sad that Johnny has found Jane, but she just can’t give him enough fulfilment. The verse where Jane wakes up to see Johnny putting his clothes in is incredibly powerful and vivid. It’s like a movie, and you’re witnessing all this, and you’re shouting at your television in vain at Johnny to not do what he’s going to do – leave Jane.

The breakdown – also in the aforementioned section – with the bass is wonderful. It is like it’s the ticking of the clock, you’re just watching time pass and in this instance, the bass is the time as each note ticks on in the story. It’s also worth paying attention to the organ too throughout the track. It’s magnificent.

The instrumental after the story has been wrapped up is phenomenal. The solo is freakin’ outstanding. It goes for about two and half minutes and I never want it to stop when it does. Not the song needed any more elevation, but this lifts it even higher than humanly possible. You can hear the wails of Jane, and notes tinged with regret of Johnny’s actions. It rises and rises before plateauing and eventually wavering out, to leave the piano to confirm our worst fears. Johnny’s gone and he ain’t coming back.

 

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