First of all, if you're new to Springsteen, forgive the hilarity of the album cover artwork. Even cropped to show just the title doesn't hide the fact that it's insanely cheesy, but that's exactly what pretty much every album Springsteen produced in the 80s was. On to the real issue, and 1987's Tunnel Of Love represented a strange time in Springsteen's career, following the breakdown of his marriage as well as a desire to use the E Street Band more sparingly. Barely any of his bandmates are used prominently here, and the themes of the songs are written on the topic of love in several forms. Whether it's unrequited, burning desire or despair at its loss, this album fused the synth-driven music of the 80s with Springsteen's trademark story-telling style of writing. Strangely enough, the songs from this album are scarcely performed in the live shows, so if you want to hear them, the record itself really is the best chance you're going to get. It's an understated masterpiece, and definitely one of Springsteen's best efforts of the 80s.
