After "Born in the USA" (sold to date more than 30 million units) and 156 concerts (exception stadiums, arenas and halls with room for 10,000+ spectators) unspannenden world tour from June 1984 to October 1985, to Springsteen was in exactly this situation. A luxury problem, sure, and yet must be tremendously the pressure.
Springsteen initially took his time and then, in October 1987, "Tunnel of Love" an album, which was in stark contrast to its predecessor. Whether he did it deliberately or docked it was so intuitive, is irrelevant, it was ultimately the best possible way out of the shadow of an oversized success to have come out something original. A "Born in the USA 2" would have certainly been shipwrecked, no matter how good it would have been substantial.
"Tunnel of Love" is hesitant, in the sense of cautious, careful, thoughtful, than any previous Springsteen albums (except the songwriter acoustic album "Nebraska"). The members of his E-Street Band dip here and there individually as a supporter on, the majority of the board played a Springsteen alone. Track by track he put together the songs and created an album, what acts and clarified resting in itself. By no means are all the songs on "Tunnel of Love" ballads but is rocked in any of the twelve songs.
Even the more dynamic pieces like "Brilliant Disguise", the title song "Tunnel of Love" or "All that heaven will allow" act prudently, thoughtfully and turned inward. Only for "Spare parts" has a bit the impression as if artificially been held that the really good rock number as part of the album remains the handbrake. The song will forward will drive, will the rocker pose and the leash is also left here a little longer, freewheel got it but only during the tour.
If you emphasize now that the basic character of the panel is dominated by synthesizers and you have the year 1987 in mind, a false impression could arise. Because even though this is so, the album does not look like a typical sound-misfortune of 80's-Pop. Springsteen has worked with very pleasant surfaces and the entire album as a basis a soft carpet, which joins the ballads and up-tempo songs to form a homogeneous unit.
And just below the ballads with the heavy "Tougher than the rest" and the melancholic, pensive "One Step Up" two songs for eternity on this last studio work of the 80s. The former opens the album actually only really. Track 1 will fall out with "Is not Got You" from the basic sound of the album and is therefore probably preceded him as an on-tape. Springsteen grooves here in the Zweiminüter acoustically, the loosest song of the vintage, it is quiet and with Track 2 rolls difficult album to. An incredible atmosphere "Tougher than the rest" generated. You can almost see a tortured guy going through a barren landscape - but upright, unbowed, slow but steady, forceful step, keep going straight. One of my eternal Top10 Springsteen songs.
And "One Step up (and Two Steps Back)"?
Why write sadness, turmoil, the realization of failure almost always the most beautiful songs? Why not lucky?
In the long line of regular studio albums so far (apart from concept albums) is "Tunnel of Love" undoubtedly the most unusual, the most silent. But it is just as gripping as Springsteen's typical straight rock songs, but just in a different sense of the word.
