Bruce Springsteen: The Openers

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By Anthony “Zute” George

To follow up on my series of what I feel are Bruce Springsteen’s five best albums, I am going to rank my favorite opening tracks by Bruce. If you are a Springsteen fan, you know what a huge event a new album release is. With such fanfare comes a huge microscope from fans and critics alike; some may say they are one and the same.

That microscope comes with a meticulous analysis of the opening track. Aside from the fans, the only person that puts more thought in the first track of a Springsteen is Bruce himself. Selecting the opening track is a mixture of calculation and passion. As a result, the ‘openers’ of a Bruce Springsteen album is an eclectic catalog of great tunes that are designed to be the first thing you hear upon stating a musical journey into the mind of a modern-day Shakespeare.

Such talent comes with multiple layers, and an opening Springsteen track should never be judged just as a stand-alone song, but as a tune strong enough to anchor the titanic. Therefore a song like Ain’t Got You, the opening track of the Tunnel of Love album, is probably not going to be found in many top 20 Bruce Springsteen songs; however, it is one of the most exquisite examples of foreshadowing of not just an album, but of whopping events in Bruce’s real life. Thunder Road serves the same purpose but is also considered one of the best songs Bruce has ever written.

Here is my list of the ten best Springsteen openers. I omitted the ‘outtakes’ albums. Why ten? Well, it leaves out quite a few tracks, so not only is a top ten the standard, but very cumbersome to do:

1. Thunder Road
2. Badlands
3. Nebraska
4. Born In The USA
5. We Take Care of Our Own
6. Human Touch
7. Ain’t Got You
8. Lonesome Day
9. The Ties That Bind
10. Hitch Hikin

With any list, there will be criticisms and questions. Allow me to address some anticipated ones:

Both Devils and Dust and The Ghost of Tom Joad were left off because I do not think those albums are as strong as the ones from my list. Especially the former, TGOTJ has some influential tracks, and the title song is one of the best in the catalog. However, as an album, I feel it is the weakest. Devils and Dust is an album I do enjoy, but something has to be on the lower tier. Think of it like this, even the lowest-ranked UFC fighter is unbelievable.

The one outlier in my top ten is Human Touch because that album is also on the bottom rung for me. However, it is such a great song, and for me really saves the record from being left on the shelf, that it finds its way in the top ten.

Wrecking Ball is an album that just missed the top five for me, and the opening track-We Take Care of Our Own- really sets the wheels in motion of a very underrated album.

As an album, Nebraska is not only an acquired taste, but one of the most gut-wrenching albums ever crafted. The title track gets the album off to an emotional ride that you never get a simple, joyful moment from.

For me, Hitch Hikin does not get enough credit for kick-starting the Western Stars album, and it is also a great piece of songwriting on its own.

The Ties That Bind takes us down The River, and while that album is indeed all over the place, the title track is just the right punch to get you in the mood. Taking you down a bumpy ride of rocking tunes, emotional ballads, and just pure tragedy in a fantastic double album.

The rest of my top ten should be expected, I think. You never know with Bruce fans, as they are typically the sharpest tool in the shed. What are your top ten?

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