The River was released on October 17, 1980, by Columbia Records. The album did not have a number 1 hit. The album’s songs did hold other spots on the Billboard Hot 100, Hungry Heart peaked at #5 and Fade Away at #20. The River didn’t have many Billboard hits but the album itself peaked at #1 and stayed there for 4 weeks, which was Bruce Springsteen’s first ever #1 hit album. The album has an overall good sound and is very enjoyable to listen to. Below I will be ranking the album from 20th (worst) to the 1st (best) and just as a reminder this is solely my opinion and it is okay to disagree with me.
20th – Ramrod
Overall the song isn’t bad, it just isn’t my favorite. I couldn’t get into the song, I tried and tried but it just didn’t work. The song has a good beat and Springsteen does a good job at presenting the song, but like I said earlier I just couldn’t get into it.
19th – Wreck on the Highway
Again this song isn’t my favorite. I listen to it quite frequently actually but once again I couldn’t get into it. Bruce does a great job telling a story through his song like he does in a lot of other songs he has. I enjoy the way he tells the story but thats about it with this song.
18th – The Price You Pay
I like this song. It is catchy and you just want to sing to it. I just don’t think it is as good some of the other songs on this record but I strongly suggest you check it out. I am ranking it low but that just shows you how good this album is if I like the 18th song on the list.
17th – Drive All Night
This song is a whole 8 minutes and 27 seconds long but it is a great 8 minutes and 27 seconds. You can really hear the sincerity of Bruce’s voice and also Clarence has a GREAT saxophone part in this song which really proves he is one of the best. After the saxophone part, to me, it feels like a whole new song.
16th – Point Blank
Point Blank is a good but sad song. You just have to check it out to know what I’m talking about so DO IT!
15th – Jackson Cage
Jackson Cage is another good song. It is catchy and upbeat, and really a great listen if you want to sing along or if you want to have a song stuck in your head the rest of the day.
14th – I’m a Rocker
This is one of those songs that you just want to jump around and scream out the lyrics of the songs. The title fits perfectly to how I described it.
13th – Two Hearts
Two Hearts and indeed better than one. This song is very very very catchy and repetitive, which means you should be able to pick up on the lyrics pretty quickly just like I did and is very fun to listen and sing along to.
12th – Hungry Heart
I love this song but… not this version. The version on The River just doesn’t sound like Bruce Springsteen. When I heard the live version on the Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band Live 1975-1985 Box Set, I immediately fell in love with this song but then I heard the original version and well… just didn’t like it. I still ranked it close to the middle because the song is just so good, and just because I don’t like the version of the song I can’t rank it too low because it is honestly great.
11th – Cadillac Ranch
Cadillac Ranch is a good song. Bruce uses his deeper raspy voice to make it kind of sound like a country song to me. Overall it is a great song that is also very catchy.
10th – The Ties That Bind
The Ties That Bind is the first song on the album and is a good song to open up with. It is a good song and Bruce does a good way of using his voice in this song, once you listen to the song you will understand what I mean (The ties that bi-ii-ii-ii-ii-ii-ii-nd)
9th – You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)
The song is upbeat and makes you want to start singing to it immediately. You really just want to dance to a song like this.
8th – Crush On You
Ooh, Ooh, I gotta crush on you, I really like this song but I had to put it at number eight because I feel the other songs are a little better than this one.
7th- I Wanna Marry You
I absolutely love this song. It is so catchy and I’m pretty sure I knew the words of the song after the second or third listen.
6th – Out In the Street
I am at the point where it is getting hard to put these last 6 songs in a ranking order because I like them so much, but I had to put Out in the Street at number 6 even though it is a really really good song. One of Bruce Springsteen’s best songs.
5th – Fade Away
Fade Away is a song that I looked over initially. It is toward the end of the album and I listened to the first 10 songs more. I recently found how great this song was when I decided to do this review and I listened to the songs more in depth but this is really a great song. I can see why it did so well on the Billboard Hot 100 even though spot 20 isn’t doing it justice, it should be much higher.
4th – Stolen Car
I thought about putting this song at the number 3 spot but decided not to. I really really really like this song. It is a lot different than some other Bruce Springsteen songs which are fast paced and a more sing/yell way to sing along. Whereas this song is slow and you can really hear Springsteen’s voice and really realize how good of a singer he actually is.
3rd – Independence Day
Independence Day used to be my all time favorite Bruce Springsteen song but that was when I only knew a few songs. I don’t know what it was but whenever the song came on I just got excited and wanted to sing along. This was one of the first songs my dad (a HUGE, and when I say HUGE I mean HUGE, Bruce Springsteen fan) introduced to me and I liked it a lot and I still do.
2nd – Sherry Darling
I just discovered this Bruce Springsteen hidden gem about a month ago and all I can say is wow… It is such an excellent song. I would listen to it on repeat all day long. This was one of the hardest decisions I had to make on this review, between the number 1 and number 2 spot. I went with my gut, even though I love both of the songs I had to put Sherry Darling at the number 2 spot
1st – The River
And finally at number 1, I have The River. Another one of those songs that tells a story and it’s a great story. Also a little bit on the slower side like the song Stolen Car but this also being the title of the album I also think it deserves the number 1 spot. It is a really great song and possibly my favorite Bruce Springsteen song at the moment. The song also holds one of my favorite lyrics of all time “Is a dream a lie if it doesn’t come true or is it something worse.” It is such a great line by Bruce.
The River is one of the albums that I wish I could have been alive for the release. I really like the album as a whole and I even picked up a copy of it on vinyl for myself. I recommend this album to anyone that has never heard any of Bruce Springsteen’s work or would just like to hear a bit more of him. The album showcases a little bit of all the attributes that Springsteen has in making music. If you would like to check out the album for yourself the links will be below: