The Bruce Springsteen B-side that became a hit | CPT PPP Coverage
Cryptopolytech (CPT) Public Press Pass (PPP)
News of the Day COVERAGE
200000048 – World Newser
•| #People |•| #World |•| #Online |•| #Media |•| #Outlet |
View more Headlines & Breaking News here, as covered by cryptopolytech.com
The Bruce Springsteen B-side that became a hit appeared on faroutmagazine.co.uk by Far Out Magazine.
Bruce Springsteen had a bad habit of giving away huge songs. The legendary rocker had plenty of hits to his name by the 1980s, but he hadn’t quite broken through on the mainstream charts. At least, not with his own name. Thanks to some high-profile covers, Springsteen had quite the pedigree on the pop charts.
‘Blinded By the Light’ was Springsteen’s first single, but it failed to chart until Manfred Mann’s Earth Band took it to number one in 1976. When Springsteen failed to develop adequate lyrics for his demo of ‘Because the Night’, the song went over to Patti Smith instead, who took it to 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 (the 1993 acoustic cover by 10,000 Maniacs made it all the way to number 11). ‘Fire’ was originally given to rockabilly singer Robert Gordon, but it was the Pointer Sisters who took the song all the way to number two in 1979.
In contrast, Springsteen’s own highest-charting song by 1979 was ‘Born to Run’, which topped out at number 23. Springsteen’s manager, Jon Landau, was so exacerbated by Springsteen’s habit of giving away songs that he refused to let him do it anymore. When Springsteen wrote a song for the Ramones based specifically on a request by Joey Ramone, Landau vetoed the decision and told Springsteen to record it himself. The song, 1980’s ‘Hungry Heart’, wound up being Springsteen’s first top-ten single.
While Springsteen was recording the initial demos for what would become 1982’s Nebraska, he came up with an old-school rock and roll number titled ‘Pink Cadillac’. A few things were working against the song. For one, Springsteen had already written a song about Cadillacs: ‘Cadillac Ranch’ from 1980’s The River. More importantly, when Nebraska shifted from an electric E Street Band album to a solo acoustic project, ‘Pink Cadillac’ no longer had a place in the album’s sombre tone.
With the E Street Band, Springsteen eventually gave ‘Pink Cadillac’ the official studio treatment. It was in strong contention for inclusion on Born in the U.S.A., but just a few weeks before the album’s release, it was bumped in favour of ‘I’m Goin’ Down’. Instead, ‘Pink Cadillac’ became the B-side to the album’s first single, ‘Dancing in the Dark’.
Springsteen frequently performed ‘Pink Cadillac’ on the Born in the U.S.A. tour, but it didn’t appear on an official Springsteen album until the 1998 compilation 18 Tracks. In the meantime, the public became familiar with ‘Pink Cadillac’ through Natalie Cole’s 1988 cover. Springsteen had previously prevented Bette Midler from recording a version of the song in 1983, but evidently, it was a woman who needed to bring the song to the people. Cole’s version charted at number five on the Billboard Hot 100.
By that point, Springsteen didn’t have to worry about missing out on another hit single. All seven singles from Born in the U.S.A. charted within the top ten, with ‘Dancing in the Dark’ being the biggest winner, topping out at number two. Unfortunately, Springsteen never managed to snag a number one single under his own name. Maybe if he had put out ‘Pink Cadillac’ as its own single, he would have gotten his elusive chart-topper, but who’s to say?
Check out Springsteen’s and Cole’s versions of ‘Pink Cadillac’ down below.
FEATURED ‘News of the Day’, as reported by public domain newswires.
View ALL Headlines & Breaking News here.
Source Information (if available)
This article originally appeared on faroutmagazine.co.uk by Far Out Magazine – sharing via newswires in the public domain, repeatedly. News articles have become eerily similar to manufacturer descriptions.
We will happily entertain any content removal requests, simply reach out to us. In the interim, please perform due diligence and place any content you deem “privileged” behind a subscription and/or paywall.
CPT (CryptoPolyTech) PPP (Public Press Pass) Coverage features stories and headlines you may not otherwise see due to the manipulation of mass media.
First to share? If share image does not populate, please close the share box & re-open or reload page to load the image, Thanks!