Pretty much every double album in history sparks the discussion, what if it had been one disc? To my mind there are fourteen absolutely essential songs here. Ties that Bind still gets me going. Sherry Darling is classic, as are Out in the Street, Hungry Heart, Ramrod, Cadillac Ranch.... The low-fi, lyric-driven classics are Stolen Car, Point Blank, Drive All Night and the closer Wreck on the Highway, and of course the title track. This was the first album that made me realize music could have meaning. It still reminds me of that.

A few good songs with the best: The River.

2012 live version of drive all night on youtube is amazing. So
beautiful

This IS the Springsteen Americana album. No album encapsulates the struggle and hope of ordinary folk. The epitome of the Boss.

Do they even make rock and roll records like this anymore?

The best track river is incredible

Best Tracks: The River, Hungry heart.

Overlong, overweening and yet, still underrated.

Nobody has been able to capture the aspirational spirit, fears and dreams of ordinary blue-collar white Americans in quite the way Springsteen did. His eloquent declarations combine populist demagogy, patriotic passion and a prophetic vision in a way that although quintessentially American, is nevertheless universal in its utopian appeal.

so many great songs...a couple of throw aways...rated it higher than "darkness" for sheer volume...the rockers are fun...the ballads true...all working class hero goodness !!!