Album Vs Album: Springsteen Edition

The Boss. We rag on him every year around here, but it's hard to deny the stature Bruce Springsteen enjoys in the pantheon of American rock music. Few artists are as enduring as Springsteen; for his longevity, for his marathon concerts, and for his both popular and critical acclaim. Whether you like the guy and his music or not, it's hard to have avoided him altogether.

Like just about any legacy artist, there is one album that stands out above all others when we talk about his career; "Born To Run". His breakthrough hit record has spent over forty years as a cultural touchstone, as a soundtrack to the youth and now middle-age of his fans, and as one of the greatest albums of all time, if you listen to the critical consensus. But is it? Let's investigate.

"Born To Run": It's easy to see why this album is held up as the gold standard of Springsteen's vision of America, and why it remains beloved. Opening with "Thunder Road", the piano figure and Springsteen's voice full of 'character', was opening the world up to a new vision of cinematic rock n roll. He painted stories with his lyrics, telling the tales of the struggling middle class trying to get by in a world designed to crush them. In a song without a chorus, Springsteen kept every second as important as the next, even giving fans a mystery over what Mary's dress was doing that kept people engaged for decades. The title track emerged as one of the most enduring classic rock anthems of all time, where lyrics that talked of "suicide machines" and called the characters "tramps" became a rallying cry of optimism for a generation looking to escape the Vietnam/Nixon malaise. Then there is "Jungleland", one of the first mainstream rock epics, which may have single-handedly made the saxophone an integral part of the rock pantheon. Taken as a whole, the album expanded the possibilities of rock n roll, painting with both broad strokes and realistic detail. It was a swing for the fences, and it connected.

"Darkness On The Edge Of Town": Following up the epic statement of hope, Springsteen turned his focus inward, and concentrated on the shadows that crept in from all corners, threatening to choke that optimism. This record kept the bright and lively production choices, but tore into society for all its shortcomings. From the opening of "Badlands", through the closing title track, there are few moments of happiness to be found. Even when he sings of believing in "The Promised Land", it comes in the form of the kind of belief necessary to endure the hardships of life. In the world of this album, the streets are on fire, the town is dark, and the wasteland sits at the city limits. Even Adam is taken to task, for his son being the world's first murderer, and questioning if parenting ruined humanity from the very start.

Putting the albums side-by-side, we get a yin-and-yang. One is the sun shining bright in the sky, while the other is the moon reflecting a silvery and mildewed facsimile of that light. Which is the more important album in rock history is undeniable. Which is the better record is real question, and I don't think it's much of a competition.

"Darkness On The Edge Of Town" is the record that should be Bruce Springsteen's legacy, and the record we should be celebrating. Stacked up song-for-song, it's a stronger, more compelling record in every sense. "Thunder Road" is a beautiful song, but "Badlands" is every bit the cinematic opening song, but with more passion and a more satisfying compositional structure. "Born To Run" is the most classic of anthems, but "The Promised Land" not only has the stronger and more satisfying hook for a communal experience at a concert, but it is a song about resilience and the power of the human spirit, rather than the power of an engine as a weak metaphor. It's a healthier way of dealing with our flaws and faults. "Born To Run" almost comes across childish in this context.

There is more to consider than just that, however. "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" is a repetitive rocker, as is "Adam Raised A Cain", but it never seethes with the same kind of venom to show the cyclical form is akin to a repeated stabbing, to overkill. Despite being the brighter album, "Born To Run" is less energetic, and simply less fun. "She's The One" and "Meeting Across The River" are inconsequential filler meant to bridge (pun intended) from one epic tent-pole to the next. They feel that way too. "Prove It All Night", on the other hand, is also a flimsy song intended to bide our time until we get to our destination, but it has some spark, and it doesn't drag along like a songwriter allergic to having a little bit of fun. Even the most morose moments, like "Racing In The Street", are melancholy with a melody, letting the sadness echo in our heads in a way we can't escape. That is far more haunting than any memory I've ever had of "Born To Run".

My verdict is clear, and resolute. "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" is far and away the better record, doing everything "Born To Run" was aiming for, but with more sustained success and excellence. "Born To Run" is remembered more fondly because it had the hit single, and the crowd favorite, but it doesn't have the same depth, either in the track listing or in the themes and lyrics. To use the American pastime as our final metaphor, "Born To Run" is a singles hitter that gets on base in front of the big bats, while "Darkness On The Edge Of Town" is the clean-up hitter bringing everyone home.

Winner: "Darkness On The Edge Of Town"