Hold on tight: Bruce Springsteen’s “Night” is three minutes of pure rock and roll adrenaline, but I’ll try to break it down inside.
Month: October 2019
An obscure Springsteen song, a beautiful acoustic arrangement, and toddlers on a slide. That’s a pretty tough combo to beat.
Sadly more relevant today than when it was written, “Matamoros Banks” remains one of Bruce’s most heart-breakingly beautiful songs, better enjoyed on album than in concert.
Here’s a light and lovely new acoustic cover of “Hungry Heart” by Finnish duo The Lovematches, perfect for a weekend morning.
Perhaps the most surprising and effective re-interpretation of “Thunder Road” ever, Tortoise and Bonnie “Prince” Billy transform Bruce’s classic song of escape into a dark, sinister temptation.
“Brothers Under the Bridges” is a Born in the U.S.A. outtake bristling with youth and yearning–but it foreshadows Bruce’s twelve-years-later sequel.
The very definition of an overlooked gem, “Tomorrow Never Knows” reflects an artist truly coming to terms with his mortality and establishes a throughline to Western Stars.
What can possibly be more powerful than Bettye LaVette’s 2007 cover of “Streets of Philadelphia?” A live performance from a decade later. Both are required listening.
Patiently romantic or cruelly manipulative? Read my take on Bruce’s one and only single from Tracks inside.
Is “Angel’s Blues” the missing link in “Thunder Road’s” lineage? You decide, but one thing’s for certain: this mysterious Springsteen original disappeared as soon as it debuted.