Bruce Springsteen – Streets of Philadelphia Review

Though the title may have won Bruce Springsteen an Academy Award, the wider Streets of Philadelphia project was a very different experience for The Boss. Gone were the rocking guitars, the misunderstood hits, and the fears of a world gone wrong. The so-called “loops record” begins as a dud with lead single Blind Spot, a track of betrayal, but ultimately a tad short on quality compared to other features of Tracks II: The Lost Album. This was the album which could have severed Springsteen’s ties to The E Street Band even further. It would have planted him as an artist lost on a trip through his own discography, desperately trying to reinvent himself. That is not as bad as it sounds. Streets of Philadelphia is a wild move away from what longtime listeners know and love about Springsteen. Clattering around the studio with a drum machine and tambourine, Streets of Philadelphia is a surprisingly stripped-back effort from The Boss.  

Those loops disappear on Something in the Well, offering Springsteen a chance to open his heart. There is little in it, though, the bulk of his emotion reserved for the title track, not featured on this compilation. Streets of Philadelphia struggles under the weight of self-doubt. Springsteen wonders whether reuniting with The E Street Band for the first time in seven years is worth a shot, and does so, scrapping this album in the process. From the sounds of Maybe I Don’t Know You, there was a chance those loops and drum machine experiments would have worked, but they pale in comparison to those albums released following The E Street Band reformation. As was the case for LA Garage Sessions ‘83, though, Springsteen begins drifting into some earnest spots and comfortable instrumental styles. The Little Things sounds relatively similar to the works preceding and following it. This is no bad thing, a break from the drum machines and contemporary, 1990s sound, to offer a stripped-back moment.  

Straight back to the machinery, though, this is the loop album after all. Where LA Garage Sessions ‘83 was a great link between Nebraska and Born in the U.S.A., Streets of Philadelphia serves as an example of Springsteen needing some studio resistance. His loop album is an interesting listen, but it feels hollow. Between Heaven and Earth sounds similar to Blind Spot, but that is just a limitation of the drum machine as a lead instrument. It is a truly fascinating experience to hear Springsteen without his guitar. Intentionally stripping himself of the classic instruments also clears out the core fanbase. Streets of Philadelphia, had it been released in 1995 as planned, could have torpedoed Springsteen as a recognisable face of quality music.  

Not because Streets of Philadelphia is bad, but because of how different it is. Audiences like consistency. Smarter artists are smuggling new sounds into that familiar territory as a way of conning listeners into experiencing something completely new. Good on them. Streets of Philadelphia does this to an extreme, and it remains an interesting listen. At its best, this unreleased piece of Tracks II: The Lost Albums remains a fascinating “what if” moment. It scratches that itch and showcases Springsteen as an artist interested in trying whatever it takes to further his sound. There are a few misfires along the way, but that is all part of the creative process. That is what you can hear here. Streets of Philadelphia is for the completionists, those who need to scratch the itch of pop-adjacent Springsteen.