‘No Surrender’: Bruce Springsteen’s greatest opening line
Bruce Springsteen is called The Boss because, back when he and his band were playing small venues, owners looking to settle up would be told by the band, “Go to him; he’s the boss”. It’s a fun origin for a nickname, though people often misinterpret it, assuming it comes from the fact that he’s simply one of the greatest songwriters to ever walk the Earth.
This is no accident. While Springsteen has a number of songwriters that he obsessed over, one of his all-time favourites, who he credits for his lyrical direction, is Bob Dylan, who showed Springsteen how much could be both melodic and fun to listen to but also be honest and opinionated. Springsteen admitted after listening to Dylan that he wanted people to come away from his music with the same feeling that he came away from Dylan’s music with.
“I want people to get the same experience from listening to one of my records as I had when I listened to Highway 61 Revisited,” he explained, “The idea that something was revealed to them that was fundamentally true and essential and gave you a view of your world, your country, your town, your neighbours, your family.”
So, when you have an artist who wants to search for truth and meaning within their music, how do you go about picking their greatest opening line? Whatever Bruce Springsteen song you listen to, those first few words are always moving and put together in a way that aims to draw you in and give you an idea of what the song is about.
When presented with this headline, the classics start running through your head straight away. Who could ever hear the words “The screen door slams, Mary’s dress sways” and not immediately get excited? The same goes for opening lines in tracks like ‘Born To Run’, ‘I’ll See You In My Dreams’ and ‘Dancing In The Dark’. However, when it comes to picking an opening line that both sounds great and exemplifies everything that Springsteen stands for, there is nowhere else to turn other than ‘No Surrender’.
Given this is a man who wanted his music to be honest, motivational and laced with revelation. Equally, given so much of what Springsteen holds close to his heart has come to him through music, what opening line could ever be considered best other than, “We busted out of class, had to get away from those fools, we learned more in a three-minute record baby than we ever learned in school.”
It seems to epitomise everything that Springsteen is inspired by and that he keeps close to his heart when he writes. As such, it seems like the only correct answer when discussing his greatest opening line.
