We don't know if you've heard, but there's a new Bruce Springsteen biopic.
Springsteen: Deliver Me From Nowhere sees Jeremy Allen White, of The Bear fame, swapping the chef's whites and depressed scowl for a guitar and boot cut jeans, before grappling with the Boss's growing stardom while recording his 1982 album, Nebraska.
Naturally, we'd be limiting the scope of our Springsteen love-in if we recommended tunes solely taken from the aforementioned Nebraska, so we've gone for a blend of classic Bruce and a few lesser known gems to get your system pumping its metaphorical fist. USA flags at the ready for our eight of the best from the Boss...
Highway Patrolman (Nebraska, 1982)
Highway Patrolman is one of the most complex tracks, both narratively and in its composition, from Springsteen’s stark album, Nebraska.
Telling the story of two brothers as they struggle through life, the track exemplifies why Nebraska is often considered Springsteen’s bleakest, darkest take on life in America.
There’s no booming rhythm section or bellowed anthems to be found, instead Springsteen recorded it with a bare-bones arrangement that makes it stand apart from his earlier work.
The song’s quiet acoustic guitar intermingles with Springsteen’s vocals and harmonica as he chronicles the two brothers' fraught relationship, detailing the younger sibling’s fall from grace as his older sibling, the highway patrolman, watches powerlessly. The end result is a gloomy, haunting song that will stay with you long after the final note is plucked.
The subtle, low, muted tone of the song also makes it a fantastic gauge of any system’s dynamics. Just make sure to be prepared for a severe case of ennui when you do.
Words by Alastair Stevenson
Atlantic City (Nebraska, 1982)
Springsteen famously said people don’t like him when he’s happy, and if you’re the sort of fan that agrees that his music is best when it is at its bleakest, then you’ll love Atlantic City.
The second track on his first solo album tells the tragic story of a couple’s escape to Atlantic City as they try to follow the American Dream, before slowly falling into organised crime.
Featuring a bare-bones acoustic guitar part, the tragic song oozes emotion from start to finish, with Springsteen’s vocals, intermittent harmonica and plucked lead guitar parts creating a subtle, textured composition that merits repeat listening.
Whether it’s the haunting vocals lamenting the couple’s demise, or the intermittent spark of hope he adds at the end of each verse like a mantra, Atlantic City is one of Springsteen’s finest and most tragic songs.
It’s rare to hear live in its acoustic glory, with Springsteen preferring to play an electric version with a full backing band, which only makes the Nebraska album cut all the more special.
Words by Alastair Stevenson
Born to Run (Born to Run, 1975)
It’s rare for a song to make you feel like a cheetah racing through boundless grassy savannah, but here we are.
Springsteen’s Born to Run captures the yearning to escape the pressures of life, carried by his emotive vocals and impactful lyrics summed up by the recurring line, “We gotta' get out while we’re young / ‘Cause tramps like us, baby, we were born to run”.
Your sound system will get a run for its money with the addition of subtle tinkling high frequencies that must be balanced against the lively guitar part, as well as the driving drum beat which is sure to get anyone up and boogieing.
Then there’s the excellent saxophone solo, adding to the painful joy of wanting to be free. If you want to challenge your speaker set-up while being unable to stop your foot tapping, this is the Springsteen track for you.
Words by Robyn Quick
Born in the U.S.A. (Born in the U.S.A., 1984)
Born in the U.S.A. might be one of the catchiest songs of all time, but it's also one of the most misunderstood.
While the iconic chorus and stomp-worthy synths might evoke the flag-waving jingoism of a Michael Bay movie, the oft-overlooked lyrics reveal a disillusioned and undervalued Vietnam veteran and the deep emotional scars they endure upon returning home.
The song might be best known for being played at national events across the pond, but it remains an expert critique of the USA in the late 20th Century.
As one of Springsteen’s more unsubtle tunes, it’s also a great choice to test your hi-fi setup. It may be relatively simplistic, but on a good system you’ll be able to pick up every unrelenting whack on the snare drum, while hearing that backing synth blasted on high volume should evoke a wave of sonic joy.
The electrifying recording of Born in the U.S.A. is a key scene in Deliver Me From Nowhere, but there’s no reason you can’t get in the mood early by playing what is still the Boss’s biggest hit. Just try not to sing along.
Words by Daniel Furn
Thunder Road (Born to Run, 1975)
Alongside Born to Run, Thunder Road feels like quintessential Springsteen, like the distilled essence of Bruce's soul poured into a single tune.
We're back in small town America, yearning for something more, with Thunder Road showcasing that earnest heartland sound that went on to influence the likes of Bryan Adams, Sam Fender and The Killers.
Like Bruce's best work, it's the layer beneath the all-American bravado that elevates Thunder Road from generic horizon-gazing to something far richer and earnest.
There's a melancholy lurking in the lyrics and the feel of the melodies that hints at some unfulfilled yearning, and of the possibility that Bruce's, and therefore our, dreams might not fully be realised.
It's that particular feeling that comes through on truly insightful systems.
Words by Harry McKerrell
The Ghost of Tom Joad (The Ghost of Tom Joad, 1995)
If you're not into your 20th Century American literature, you might not be aware that the titular track from Bruce's eleventh studio album draws heavy inspiration from John Steinbeck's punishing opus The Grapes of Wrath, as well as Woody Guthrie's subsequent musical spin on the novel, in the shape of The Ballad of Tom Joad.
Springsteen's original recording has all of the downtrodden, rust-laden melancholy you'd expect – Steinbeck's novel was perfect fodder for Bruce's small-town, working class sensibilities – melding quiet desperation with undercurrents of simmering rage.
Speaking of rage, if you want the definitive rendition, check out the live version of the track performed in 2008, complete with Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello providing twin vocals and, in his signature style, shredding his axe with righteous fury. Goosebumps.
Words by Harry McKerrell
The River (The River, 1980)
The River was the first song of Springsteen’s that really hit me and made me view him as a social commentator and poet as much as he is a chart-topping hit machine.
Based heavily on the life of his brother-in-law and sister, the song tells a deeply personal narrative detailing the struggles of working-class Americans.
Featuring a haunting chorus, the song expertly merges the hopeless odds facing the couple and their noble refusal to give up as they struggle, and keep returning to their special place: The River.
Though it doesn’t have the bombastic, energetic tone of Springsteen’s more famous ballads, the layered, emotional composition, from the sombre acoustic guitar and weeping harmonica intro, up to its desperate peak, makes it a song that expertly plucks at your heart strings.
Words by Alastair Stevenson
Jungleland (Born to Run, 1975)
Jungleland is the final track in Springsteen’s iconic 1975 masterpiece Born to Run, and one of his most interesting.
For one, it’s one of his longest tracks, with the album version clocking in at over nine minutes. And within that timeframe it showcases all the major reasons Springsteen’s work clicks with so many people – hi-fi fans included.
The song is a mini opera, detailing young people struggling to survive in a city that’s stopped caring about them. Delivered with an impassioned, emotively ranged performance by Springsteen and the E Street band from start to finish it’s a flowing, powerful song that still resonates today.
Whether it's the pleading piano and violin intro, Springsteen’s booming wails at its peak or the iconic saxophone solo by Clarence Clemons, Jungleland is one of Springsteen’s most complex and inspiring tracks. Thanks to the interlinked composition and recording, which gives every part room to breathe and shine, it’s also one of the best he’s made for testing hi-fi.
While his more mainstream tracks may get more attention, Jungleland remains one of my favourite and most played songs from the Boss’ multi-decade discography.
Words by Alastair Stevenson
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