Is This The Best Bruce Springsteen Song Of All Time?

The “Boss” has released 21 studio albums in his six decades long career. Choosing his best should seem like a daunting task, but for me and lots of music critics it really isn’t.

So, is this Bruce Springsteen’s best song ever? Let me make the case for it

Bruce Springsteen has been releasing albums since 1973's Greetings From Asbury Park. He was only 23 years old and he was creating music that we are still hearing every day.  Songs like, Blinded By The Light, Spirit in The Night and Growin’ Up.

After releasing his first album for Columbia records, he did not become the breakout star that the labels play A&R people thought he would be. His talent was obvious and immense and so was his work ethic.

Bruce Springsteen‘s second album came out later in 1973 entitled the Wild The innocent and The E St. shuffle. It has many memorable songs on it including familiar songs like Rosalita, New York serenade, and of course the East St. Shuffle. None of these songs made it as singles and his frustration must’ve been growing, however his audience and his following started to grow nationwide.

Amazingly, in 1975 both Time and Newsweek magazine’s came out with Bruce Springsteen on the cover. Newsweek titled “The Making of a Rockstar“ and for many people it was the first introduction to this future megastar.

Time magazine cover said Bruce Springsteen “Rock's New Sensation“. This hasn’t happened since the Beatles and probably never again afterwards. You have to wonder what was the compelling reason that both of these national magazines dedicated their covers to a relatively unknown performer

Of course the album that both magazines were smitten with was Born To Run. This was the first time Bruce Springsteen became a household name and not just because of his musical talent but some folks were doubtful because of all the hype. If anyone has ever lived up to the hype, it’s Bruce Springsteen

The album featured incredible songs that are still the heavy weight songs in his catalog. Songs like 10th Ave. Freeze Out, the epic Jungle Land, the anthem Thunder Road, Backstreets and the title track Born To Run.

This of course is the song that Bruce finally made it on to national playlists with and began his run as the number one individual rock star. When you do internet search is about the best song he has ever recorded or released nine out of 10 critics will say born to run is the one. And for good reason, it was so different from anything on the radio at the time. Springsteen‘s voice is genuine and unpolished, the incredible saxophone of the late Clarence Clemons and the guitar work of Steven Van Zandt. The lyrics seem to come from his heart as he was a young man on the run from his mundane life and his overwhelming desire to leave the “Swamps of Jersey”

If you go to a Bruce Springsteen concert during his latest tour, you’ll undoubtedly hear born to run because any Bruce Springsteen concert without it seems incomplete. The song can still be heard by classic rock stations every day around the world. It sounds just as fresh today as it did back in 1975. You may not agree with this ranking, but I’m sure any Springsteen fan will rank it in the top five at the very least

Some, I promise you hear everyday!! Did you know Bruce Springsteen wrote these five songs for other artists? As the E Street Band makes its way to Boston for Monday, we'll take a look at some of the songs Bruce wrote for other artists! But first, how's his tour date goin? With the recent illness running through the band, here's the update:

Columbus March 9 POSTPONED

Uncasville, CT. March 12 POSTPONED

Albany, March 14 POSTPONED

Philadelphia, March 16

Saturday March 18, University Park, PA.

MONDAY March 20, Boston

All eyes are on Philadelphia today and tomorrow to see if the show will be postponed. As of this writing, the show is still on, and that is promising news.

My favorite story is below. One song that Bruce wrote and sometimes sings in concert, DID NOT do as well on the charts, for HIM, as it did for another band that covered it! In one TV interview, he shares that the band even changed a word in HIS song, which could have made the difference on why the song did better for them!

In concert, Bruce also LOVES doing cover songs. Here's a setlist from a recent show. You'll notice his version of the Commodores hit Nightshift off his new album Only The Strong Survive. 

No Surrender

Ghosts

Prove It All Night

Letter To You

The Promised Land

Out In The Street

Candy’s Room

Kitty’s Back

Nightshift

Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)

The E Street Shuffle

Mansion On The Hill

Johnny 99

Last Man Standing

Backstreets

Because The Night

She’s The One

Wrecking Ball

The Rising

Badlands

Encore-

Thunder Road

Ramrod

Born To Run

Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)

Glory Days

Dancing In The Dark

Tenth Avenue Freeze Out

I’ll See You In My Dreams

So, let's take a ride in Bruce's Pink Cadillac! Did you know Springsteen wrote these five songs?

If you remember 45's, this is the B side of 1984's Dancin In The Dark. Not only did Bruce, write and record it, it was recorded by Aretha Franklin, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Bette Midler. The most popular version other than Bruce's maybe from Natalie Cole.

In a twist of fictitious fate, Springsteen originally wrote and recorded the song “Light of Day” for his 1983 album Born in the U.S.A. album but shared it with director Paul Schrader for the 1987 movie soundtrack Light of Day. In the film, the song was performed by the made-up band The Barbusters, consisting of Joan Jett and actor Michael J. Fox, and ended up reaching No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100 with credit to The Barbusters (Joan Jett and the Blackhearts). To this day, Jett still incorporates the song into her live set and even performed it with Fox in 2017 at the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards Gala in Ottawa, Ontario. (According to American Songwriter)

This is sad. Bruce actually wrote this for Elvis. But the King died before the demo arrived. According to American Songwriter:

The story around “Fire” is a sad one since Bruce Springsteen originally wrote the song for Elvis Presley, who passed away before he could even listen to the song. Springsteen wrote the song after seeing Presley perform at the Spectrum in Philadelphia on May 28, 1977. “I sent [Elvis] a demo of it,” said Springsteen, “but he died before it arrived.” Originally recorded and then cut from Darkness on the Edge of Town, The Pointer Sisters covered the song, and it jumped to No. 2 on the charts.

NOT the most famous Springsteen cover from Manfred Mann!!

Bruce himself admitted that Manfred Mann did a BETTER job charting this hit, as Manfred got it to #1! Bruce's version, oddly didn't come close. Add to that, in an interview, Bruce said that Manfred Mann changed a word in the song. He felt the band changed the word DEUCE into DOOSH. Manfred Man said he didn't change the word, but the way he sang it, it came off like he was singing DOOSH.