10 Best Bruce Springsteen Albums

After 1975’s triumphant Born To Run (more on that, shortly), fans had to wait three years for its successor. After three albums in his first three years as a recording artist, this was seen as an ungodly amount of time. A lesser mortal may have crumbled amidst the expectation levels raised as a result of this layoff, but not Springsteen. By the time Darkness On The Edge Of Town was released in 1978, it was clear to everyone that this record had been worth the wait.

Where do you begin? First of all, coming at the height of the punk explosion, this is the heaviest album of Springsteen’s career. First track Badlands is ferocious and stands to this day as one of the best opener to any Springsteen album. The same can be said of the equally ferocious title track, which again, has to be among his best album closers. While nothing in between is unworthy, ballad Racing In The Street is the obvious standout of an already exceptional record. One of Springsteen’s personal favourites, it has also garnered praise from heavy hitters such as Bob Dylan and Joe Strummer, and ranked fourth in Rolling Stone’s countdown of best Springsteen songs. Badlands actually came second in the same list, which underlines how highly regarded the tracks on this record truly are.

On another day, Darkness On The Edge Of Town could have topped this list. That it hasn’t – and is forced to languish in fourth place, no less – is perhaps the biggest compliment you can bestow on the three albums which have edged ahead of it.