Roll of the Dice: Two Hearts

Let’s establish up front: the definitive version of “Two Hearts” can’t be found on The River. To do justice to one of Bruce’s greatest songwriting accomplishments, we must look to his hometown acoustic performance from 1996, available as an official archive series recording.

Here, at his old high school, in front of a crowd of Freehold locals, accompanied by Soozie on violin and supporting vocals from both Soozie and Patti, “Two Hearts” gets its first public concert outing in over a decade (other than a couple of one-offs at promotional events for Greatest Hits), rearranged and reinvented with the wisdom of age and the tenderness of compassion that is missing in the original recording:

That, right there, is one of my very favorite performances of any Bruce song ever.

(Note: the official archive recording sounds even better. Go buy it, just for this song and an arrangement of “Racing in the Street” that will make you weep.)

Lyrically, “Two Hearts” is a perfect song. I often excerpt and discuss just the essential lyrics when I write these essays, but here, every line, every word is essential to the story. Its message is lean and powerful, emotional and tender.

I went out walking the other day
Seen a little girl crying along the way
She’d been hurt so bad, said she’d never love again
Someday your crying, girl, will end

And you’ll find once again
That two hearts are better than one
That two hearts, girl, get the job done
That two hearts are better than one

Right away, we’ve established the narrator as an older and wiser soul who is observant enough to stop in his tracks when he encounters a heartbroken girl and caring enough to console and counsel her.

He reminisces:

Once I spent my time playing tough guy scenes
But I was living in a world of childish dreams
Someday these childish dreams must end
To become a man and grow up to dream again

I believe in the end
That two hearts are better than one
That two hearts, girl, get the job done
That two hearts are better than one

This is a man who has the self-awareness to recognize that he spent his youth wrapped in bravado, eschewing connection in order to chase his dreams, and the wisdom to realize that embracing adulthood doesn’t mean giving up on your dreams–it means find the power, support, and companionship to chase and achieve new dreams.

Now pay attention to what comes next–the song is about to make a very subtle but significant shift that completely changes the meaning and power of the song:

Sometimes it might seem like it was planned
For you to roam empty-hearted through this land
Though the world turns you hard and cold
There’s one thing, mister, that I know:

That’s if you think your heart is stone
And that you’re rough enough to whip this world alone
Alone, buddy, there ain’t no peace of mind
That’s why I’ll keep searching till I find

My special one
‘Cause two hearts are better than one
‘Cause two hearts, girl, get the job done
‘Cause two hearts are better than one

Did you catch the change from “little girl” to “mister” and “buddy?” That’s clearly not a mistake or carelessness. Bruce is no longer singing to or about the girl he met the other day; now, he’s talking to himself, reassuring himself of his own beliefs.

In other words, the narrator isn’t speaking from experience; he’s speaking from faith. That last line clearly establishes that: “I’ll keep searching ’til I find my special one.”

That revelation completely flips the song on its ear, turning it from a lecture into empathy and shared support.

Go back and listen to that acoustic recording above again–and this time pay attention to Patti’s lyrics. Notice that she makes what appears at first to be a lyrical mistake: where the lyrics call for (and Bruce sings) “if you think your heart is stone,” Patti sings “if you think you’re made of stone.”

At first, that might seem like a simple mistake on a song that she hadn’t sung in a long time, but soon enough the chorus comes, and Patti sings “two hearts, boy, get the job done,” making it clear that she’s not simply providing backing vocals–she’s a fellow traveller, lifting and comforting the song’s narrator while he does the same for the girl he met “on the way.” Planned or not, Patti subtly but powerfully elevates the song, and Soozie’s lovely violin ties a bow on a perfect performance.

What amazes me about “Two Hearts” isn’t just how carefully the lyrics are constructed, but how tight and concise they are. This is a short song, even shorter in its original rock arrangement on The River.

On the album, the song absolutely barrels along for a taut 2:40. It’s a race from Max’s opening gunfire until he brings it to a crashing thud of a halt. But early outtakes reveal that it was originally longer, and that Bruce spent his time paring and pruning rather than expanding the song.

Here’s an early outtake with a mid-song guitar solo (and some additional lyrics) that sound jarring to our ears now:

Bruce eventually tightened “Two Hearts” by removing all of its ornamentation–there’s not a spare note or word to be found in the final version.

In concert, “Two Hearts” was a staple throughout the River Tour, and it made a few appearances on the BITUSA tour before disappearing for a decade. Once it came back in that Freehold performance above, however, it never left again. making frequent appearances in every tour (except for Seeger) since, and always as an ode to friendship and companionship: from the Reunion tour forward, “Two Hearts” became a showcase of and a testament to the fraternal love between Bruce and Steve, performing the song together at the same microphone, and finishing the song with a brief excerpt of “It Takes Two” by Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston.

Here is the song’s triumphant return in 1995, one of my favorite Bruce and Steve moments:

…along with a rare and beautiful acoustic Bruce/Stevie duet from Hollwood, FL, in 2005:

One more–this one solo, but remarkable for how heartfelt it is, and for how you can see the song play out in Bruce’s facial expressions as Thom Zimny steals a trick from the Brilliant Disguise video by slowly zooming in on Bruce as he sings.

Two Hearts
Recorded: 1980
Released: The River (1980), Live in New York City (2001)
First performed: October 6, 1980 (Richfield, OH)
Last performed: September 3, 2023 (East Rutherford, NJ)

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