40 Years 40 Songs
40. “Human Touch”
There are four producers attached to this song, which includes Springsteen, and it sounds like it. Slick, glossy, and drenched in ’90s overtones, “Human Touch” doesn’t top too many lists, and that’s unfortunate. It’s more or less the “love anthem” between Bruce and Patti Scialfa, and when they sing it onstage together nowadays, it’s a solid moment. Plus, we all love Max Weinberg, but Toto’s Jeff Porcaro pounds the hell out of the drums here. -Michael Roffman
39. “Bobby Jean”
Who is Bobby Jean to Bruce Springsteen? A former girlfriend? His former self? Steven Van Zandt? The Boss has never given any answers, and he doesn’t have to. Whatever the identity of the song’s titular character, it’s someone who shares an unbreakable bond with the narrator and hopefully with the listener. Replace the name with whoever you’d like, and you’ll find yourself both loving that person and wishing you saw each other more. Even if you last spoke on bad terms, and even if they’re sitting hundreds of miles away in a hotel room, Clarence Clemons’ bombastic sax coda will bridge the distance between you. -Dan Caffrey
38. “4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)”
While The Boss wouldn’t completely define his sound until Born to Run, The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle most accurately captures his Jersey Shore stomping grounds. The boardwalk of “4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)” swirls with Danny Federici’s accordion, Suki Lahav’s heavenly choir vocals, and waves of beach imagery, emitting the aroma of saltwater from the speakers every time it plays. -Dan Caffrey
37. “Two Hearts”
This poppy cut off The River has always been a concert staple and fan favorite but no surprise there. It’s an all around “feel good” anthem with one of Springsteen’s catchiest choruses. When Springsteen yearns “to become a man and grow up to dream again,” he’s pretty much screaming his own mission statement. -Michael Roffman
36. “Candy’s Room”
“Candy’s Room” starts quietly with a cymbal hiss from Max Weinberg that, besides driving the rest of the cut with galloping momentum, is one of the most easily recognizable openings in rock ‘n’ roll history. Lifter Puller even stole the track’s title for one of their tunes simply because it had the same beginning, despite possessing completely different lyrics and music. In Springsteen’s version, the ceaseless percussion gives the song an urgency that echoes the narrator’s pounding heart, which beats for a troubled girl that will most likely never feel the same way. Not that it matters. In the world of Darkness on the Edge of Town, the characters only know how to love one way: obsessively. -Dan Caffrey
35. “Valentine’s Day”
Tunnel of Love saw Springsteen turn his songwriting inward for an album about the uncomfortable complexities of relationships, specifically his quickly dissolving marriage with Julianne Phillips. Even when the characters take a stab at romance, it’s with reservations that come with age, a far cry from the uninhibited kids of The Boss’s early work. By the time we get to album closer “Valentine’s Day”, the narrator has been through the romantic ringer, longing for his ex as he drives down a highway surrounded by the lull of acoustic strumming and mournful synthesizer. He describes admiring his friend’s joy at being a father, going as far as connecting it to the overwhelming beauty of nature, but he also recognizes it as a simple emotion that he’s afraid he’ll never experience again. -Dan Caffrey
34. “Youngstown”
Chronicling the rise and decay of American industry in times of war, “Youngstown”‘ fits The Ghost of Tom Joad‘s bleak outlook to a tee. The chorus’s “Sweet Jenny” was actually a blast furnace in the real Youngstown, OH, lit at the end of WWI and put out at the end of ‘Nam. Two years after Tom Joad was released, the furnace was demolished, a poignant parable to the song itself. -Ben Kay
33. “Girls in Their Summer Clothes”
Springsteen has a knack for channeling Roy Orbison, and on this diamond track off 2007′s Magic, he goes full Orbison. With sunny acoustics and sweeping, lush instrumentation, The Boss watches the years escape him, looking for that timeless someone, as he laments, “Hello beautiful thing, maybe you could save my life.” Who can’t relate to that? -Michael Roffman
32. “The Ghost of Tom Joad”
It’s a lonely boxcar ballad that leaps out of the sleepy anti-establishment album of the same name. Drawing largely from Tom Joad’s famous “Wherever there’s a…” speech from The Grapes of Wrath, the song’s timeless feel evokes the injustices of Steinbeck’s Dust Bowl, the politics of a Guthrie protest song, and whatever bummer socio-political headline you read just this morning. -Jeremy Larson
31. “Night”
“Night” is the first in a long line of Springsteen songs about a narrator elated to get off work to see his lady. But unlike the similarly themed “Out in the Street”, the woman in Born to Run‘s third track doesn’t actually exist. Our hero spends the entire evening driving around town looking for her. We know he’ll never find his love, but the breakneck speed, bellowing backing vocals, and constant glockenspiel alleviate the fatalistic outcome, creating a sonic juxtaposition that characterizes The Boss’s best work. -Dan Caffrey
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