Maps of Music

Tunnel of Love (1987)

Where the lyrics of Tunnel of Love take you, and where it was really made.

Springsteen played most of the parts on this album himself, and it is not officially regarded as an E Street Band album, even though the band's members appear on some tracks.

Key places

Recorded at A&M Studios (1987)

Recording site A&M Recording Studios — Tunnel of Love was recorded at A&M Studios in Los Angeles. Springsteen played most parts himself, and some E Street Band members added parts on certain tracks. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at The Hit Factory (1987)

Recording site The Hit Factory — Tunnel of Love was recorded at The Hit Factory in New York City. The album was also mixed at this studio, according to the candidate data for the same venue. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Recorded at Kren, Hollywood (1987)

Recording site The Music Grinder (Hollywood) — The album was recorded at Kren in Hollywood. The point uses the Hollywood city center, so the exact studio building is not confirmed here. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Tunnel of Love: eighth studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen
• Released on October 9, 1987
• Members of the E Street Band occasionally performed on the album
• Springsteen recorded most of the parts himself, often with drum machines and synthesizers
• Not officially regarded as an E Street Band album
• The Rising (2002) was marketed as his first studio album with the E Street Band since Born in the U.S.A. (1984)

Background

• The New York Times writer Jon Pareles said Springsteen "turned inward" on this album
• The songs wrote about love gone wrong, in response to changes in his personal life
• A key change was his crumbling marriage to Julianne Phillips
• Pareles said most songs dealt with the difficulty of mature love rather than the earlier arena rock anthems to the working man
• The songs were described as midtempo ballads or pop-rock hymns
• "Brilliant Disguise" has been called a heart-wrenching song about never being really able to know someone
• The 1988 Springsteen and E Street Band Tunnel of Love Express Tour showcased the album's songs, sometimes in arrangements courtesy of the Miami Horns

Recording

• Springsteen played most parts himself, often with drum machines and synthesizers
• Roy Bittan played acoustic piano on "Brilliant Disguise" and synthesizers on the title track
• Danny Federici played Hammond organ on "Tougher Than the Rest", "Spare Parts", and "Brilliant Disguise"
• Max Weinberg played drums on "All That Heaven Will Allow", "Two Faces", and "When You're Alone"
• Toby Scott handled engineering, Bob Clearmountain mixing, and Bob Ludwig mastering

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Born September 23, 1949 in Long Branch, New Jersey; grew up in Freehold, New Jersey.
• Inspired by Elvis Presley and the Beatles, began playing with local bands in the 1960s, including the Castiles, Steel Mill and the Bruce Springsteen Band.
• Formed the band that became the E Street Band in October 1972; the name came into use in September 1974.
• Signed to Columbia Records in 1972 by John Hammond; debut album Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. released January 1973.

Members

• Performs solo and with the E Street Band, his backing band since 1972.
• Long-time members include Clarence Clemons, Danny Federici, Steven Van Zandt, Roy Bittan, Max Weinberg and Patti Scialfa.
• Clemons died June 18, 2011; Federici died in 2008.

Career

• Born to Run (1975) brought worldwide fame; Born in the U.S.A. (1984) became one of the best-selling albums of all time.
• Won an Academy Award in 1994 for "Streets of Philadelphia"; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999.
• Has sold more than 140 million records worldwide; holds 20 Grammy Awards and a Special Tony Award.
• The 2023–2025 tour with the E Street Band was among the highest-grossing tours in history.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Robert Christgau wrote in a contemporary review for Playboy that apart from the humorous opening track and the clichéd track that follows, the album is convincing and original
• Christgau said the album zeroes in on fear of commitment as a pathology
• In his The Village Voice consumer guide, Christgau praised the introspective second half for showing Springsteen's decency and ability for self-examination
• Rolling Stone magazine's Steve Pond said that Tunnel of Love is a varied, modestly scaled, modern-sounding pop album rather than a rock and roll album
• Pond compared its unromantic tales of love to Springsteen's socially conscious work about broken promises and dreams in America

Reappraisal

• Steven Hyden said in a 2014 Grantland article that the album remained Springsteen's most underrated record among fans
• In Hyden's own opinion, it was Springsteen's best record lyrically
• Andrew Greeley argued in America Magazine that the album exemplifies the American Catholic imagination
• Q magazine readers voted it the 91st greatest album of all time in 1998

Records

• Triple Platinum in the US on April 19, 1988
• Brilliant Disguise peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100, Tunnel of Love at No. 9, and One Step Up at No. 13
• Won Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo at the 1988 Grammy Awards
• Ranked No. 25 on Rolling Stone's 100 Best Albums of the Eighties in 1989
• Ranked No. 467 on Rolling Stone's 500 greatest albums of all time in 2012
• Finished second in the Village Voice Pazz & Jop poll for best album of the year

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The album's Tunnel of Love single sleeve used amusement park tunnel of love memorabilia provided by the National Amusement Park Historical Association
• A cover of "All That Heaven Will Allow" was a minor hit single for country band the Mavericks in 1995
• "Lucky Man" and "Two for the Road" were released as B-sides, and "Part Man, Part Monkey" was played live on the Tunnel of Love Express Tour
• Only 19 songs are known to have been recorded for this album, with 12 making the final cut
• "Walking Through Midnight" was co-written by Southside Johnny, who recorded it for his own album, 1988's Slow Dance

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

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