The River - Springsteen, Bruce (CD 1987)

I think Bruce is cool. (me: just bought this CD, talking to a friend)
That s what Bruce does. He s being cool. (my friend: one year older than I 23)




Is it just me or do you also feel that Bruce and his band shouldn t have parted ways after Born in the USA tour? Rock and roll sure seems to have missed a lot over the 20 years between their 1983 smash and 2001 s comeback wonder The Rising. Oh but whatever, besides, if there s anything the Boss seems to have taught us with his music it must be that nothing stays the same. Born to run, he probably felt like leaving in search of something new again. What he left behind, however, weren t just some of the best albums in the history of rock n roll. It was one of the most brilliant acts in the history of rock, known as THE E STREET BAND.






E Street Shuffle, 1980: Being cool


The River is everything the E Street Band should be, and everything they unfortunately failed to become on Born in the USA. Granted, there is no other Thunder road, Born to run or Jungleland here (five years had passed since 1975). That being said, what is here is very close and sometimes as good.


I assume most of you (at least those around 35, and then just about everyone as fortunate as they) have this album. Well, take it off the shelf today dust it off and take another look at the pictures inside the booklet. There they are, looking incredibly cool, standing with their backs against New York City of the late 70s: Roy Bittan (piano), Clarence Clemons (saxophone), Danny Federici (organ), Garry Tallent (bass), Steve van Zandt (guitar), Max Weinberg (drums), and the Boss himself (third from the right on both pics) the Band of America, 1980. More than any previous E Street Band record (and definitely more so than Born in the USA which would follow in 1983), The River is an album about America, life in America, and people struggling to see some light shine through, in small towns and big cities alike all over the Land of Hope and Dreams.


We'll run through some of the songs.







Point blank: Everybody s got a hungry heart


The River may seem a rather sad record, and in a way it is. Youthful romance of The Wild, the Innocent is nowhere to be found here, and escapology of Born to Run equally doesn t look so charming anymore. Instead Bruce focuses his attention on relationship and marriage, and what he sees often leads to him to messages bitter as few uttered ever before or after this album.


Sherry Darling
Given an atmosphere of a live performance in a small town bar, along with the opener The ties that bind Sherry Darling finds the E Street Band in a top-notch form. Roy Bittan rocks the piano, Clarence sweeps over halfway through with another of his trademark saxophone solos, flowing into a country-ish guitar solo by the boys The sound is absolutely upbeat, yet the lyrics cry out with sadness filling the heart of a man who didn t count on the package deal that Sherry has become, holding him down now.


You can tell her there s a hot sun beating on the black top
She keeps talking she ll be walking that last block
She can take a subway back to the ghetto tonight
Well I got some beer and the highway s free
And I got you, and baby you ve got me
Hey hey, what you say, Sherry Darlin ?



Independence day
Bruce s childhood wounds are no longer covered in this slow-paced and sad song about a son saying goodbye to his father. Written two years prior to the album s release, it quickly became a live favorite, and probably as a result of that was included here. There s a beautiful sax solo by Clemons after the second chorus, sticking an unmistakably E Street-ish stamp on this particular envelope.


Now I don t know what it always was with us
We chose the words, and yeah, we drew the lines
There was just no way this house could hold the two of us
I guess that we were just too much of the same kind



Hungry heart
Arguably one of Bruce s finest songs ever, Hungry heart is an absolutely upbeat pop number inevitably evoking a lasting silly smile on your face. Clarence shines on the horn, helping create the groove pretty much like he did with Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out , whereas Danny Federici does a superb organ solo after the second chorus. Mr. soon-to-be-professor Roy Bittan remains in the background all of the time, stepping to the fore after each chorus with one of his most renowned piano patterns. The result (but you know it) is one of all-time most unforgettable pop songs, and a well-earned Nr.1 on the charts back in 1980. The lyrics are nothing closely as upbeat though


I met her down in a Kingstown bar
We fell in love I knew it had to end
We took what we had and we ripped it apart
Now here I am down in Kingstown again



Point blank
A small six minute epic, Point blank tells one of Bruce s most moving stories yet: of a man who remembers the girl he once loved when he suddenly meets her down on the avenue many years since. The band s play is very subdued, you can hear the bass very well on this one, the same is true of Roy s piano yet it s all in the background, mostly creating the mood and only growing louder for the emotional chorus sections what matters here is the story the narrator is telling. The last piano chords Roy closes the song with are genuinely heartbreaking a beautiful sad final touch.


We were standing at the bar it was hard to hear
The band was playing loud and you were shouting something in my ear
You pulled my jacket off and as the drummer counted four
You grabbed my hand and pulled me out on the floor

You just stood there and held me, then you started dancing slow
And as I pulled you tighter I swore I d never let you go

Point blank they caught you in their sights
Point blank did you forget how to love girl, did you forget how to fight
Point blank they must have shot you in the head
Cause point blank bang bang baby you re dead







Still wild, albeit not so innocent: I m a rocker, baby


The River, a double album with 20 songs on it, endows Bruce with more than enough space to say what he feels like saying. The rest of it one third of the album is pure fun, and boy do these guys feel like having it. And you know that when they do, you ve no particular choice either.


Out in the street
Undeniably a highlight, the song features yet another of Roy Bittan s finest piano patterns, as well as another of Clemons s best saxophone solos. Suddenly the blues have all but faded a hard-earned week is through, and Friday night they meet out in the street.


I work five days a week girl
Loading down crates on the dock
I take my hard earned money
And meet my girl down on the block

When I m out in the street
I walk the way I wanna walk



I m a rocker
Now who would have thought a song called (can you think of anything more daft?) I m a rocker can actually_be_cool ? It is, and let me tell you, it makes Born in the USA sound like a luckless rip-off. Guitars do what the song s title suggests they should, Roy s piano beats any percussion instrument in terms of creating the rhythm, Clarence s horn hums like a maybug in the background, Bruce s funny lyrics once again compliment an upbeat tune wonderfully the result is another classic on our hands.


So you fell for some jerk who was tall, dark and handsome
Then he kidnapped your heart and now he s holding it for ransom
Well, like a mission impossible I m gonna go and get it back
You know I woulda taken better care of it baby, than that







The river of life: Two hearts are better than one


As we have seen, The River can be sometimes sad, sometimes fun. It can also be something else. It s actually sort of a concept album. One about life and, four LPs down the road, Bruce seems to have finally found the reason to live and to believe here. In one word: it s Her.


The ties that bind
The opener couldn t possibly have provided a starker contrast to Thunder road and Born to run . The narrator, whoever he is, seems to be through with running, as he has finally found the reason to walk tough . It s in the person he has decided to share his life with. The song is upbeat, yet not joyfully upbeat it s more of a good friend s advice. Or, better, good friends advice Clemens s sax solo almost beats that of the last album s opener Badlands .


You packed your bags and all alone you wanna ride
You don t want nothing, don t need no one by your side
You re walking tough baby, but you re walking blind

to the ties that bind

Now you can t break the ties that bind



Two hearts
Now this is my favorite Bruce Springsteen song and my personal anthem. The way the guitars carry it I can t compare to anything else. I only wish it was longer 2.42!! What can I say? Everyone needs to hear this song.


Though the world turns you hard and cold
There s one thing mister that I know
That s if you think your heart is stone
And that you re rough enough to whip this world alone

Alone buddy there ain t no peace of mind
That s why I ll keep searching till I find my special one

Cause two hearts are better than one
Two hearts girl get the job done



I wanna marry you
It could be country. It is, actually. Well, I m not a huge fan of country but this time I don t care. Here Bruce sings to a girl who lives alone raising two kids. And, really, I dare you to find a verse more beautiful than this.


There s something happy and there s something sad
Bout wanting somebody oh so bad
I wear my love darling without shame
I d be proud if you would wear my name



The river
This one takes a rather subdued approach, opened by the lonesome sound of Bruce s harmonica. The song is about two people who met when still kids, she became pregnant, he married her. He d work for a construction company then he lost his job. As time drifted by the fire between them grew cold as well. Now memories are all they have. The song is perhaps the centerpiece of the album, as it suggests that dreams (see Born to run ) actually lead to nothing.


Is a dream a lie if it don t come true
Or is it something worse
That sends me down to the river
Though I know the river is dry



Drive all night
Though it actually isn t one, the song feels like the album s closer (at its 8 minutes, followed by the short appendix of Wreck on the highway). Well, Bruce has always had great epic closers, fitting each album s mood wonderfully, and this one s no exception. Driven by Garry Talent s bass, the ballad starts off very quietly, yet already from the opening lines Bruce s voice is absolutely naked and burns with passion. Soon Roy will join in on the piano, halfway through Clarence will do a slow sax solo, hands down his best on The River . The song just always builds, growing louder and more moving as emotions begin to spill over the brim only to let go in the end and let a gentle backing vocal in. Oh, you re asking what it s about? Well. It s a love song. For the ties that bind.


Cause you ve got, you ve got, you ve got my love
Girl you ve got my love
Through the wind, through the rain, the snow, the wind, the rain
You ve got, you ve got my, you ve got my love

My heart and soul







Final thoughts


You must be tired. Hey, thanks for reading!! And, mark you, I haven t said a word about such highlights as Crush on you, Cadillac ranch, Stolen car and The price you pay. What I still want to say before I wind up however is just one more thing: if I haven t managed to show it with this review, well, then you ll merely have to take it on trust: The River is one of the best albums ever. Few double albums, heck, few whatsoever albums flow as gracefully and get as rewarding upon each subsequent listen as this. You owe it to yourself to take something from this well of wisdom. This music can be about you and for you.


Enjoy.