Tunnel Of Love

The followup to the mega-platinum *Born in the U.S.A.*, *Tunnel of Love* is a brilliant, bittersweet meditation on love and life in the shadow of success. Springsteen had spent the previous years touring and basking in the adoration of fans worldwide, only to come home to face his own identity crisis. It begins a cappella with a rockabilly kick in \"Ain\'t Got You.\" From there, the music slowly opens up, minimally arranged, with bandmates brought in as needed. There is none of the furious rock \'n\' roll punch of his most popular work. Instead, keyboards and acoustic guitars usher in somber tones as Springsteen reflects: \"Tougher Than the Rest,\" \"Cautious Man,\" \"Walk Like A Man.\" Each tune is imbued with a foreboding sense that all is not right. The dark clouds surrounding this album alongside Springsteen\'s unflinching and honest insights make this one of his most underrated and rewarding albums.

The seven albums after Bruce Springsteen’s commercial peak tell a story of lost faith and self-doubt. It’s a darker, messier portrait that still includes one of his essential records.

Just as he had followed his 1980 commercial breakthrough The River with the challenging Nebraska, Bruce Springsteen followed the most popular album of his career, Born in the U.S.A., with another low-key, anguished effort, Tunnel of Love.