Tunnel of Love by Bruce Springsteen

Tunnel of Love, Bruce Springsteen's eighth studio album, came out on Columbia on October 9, 1987, and it's the sound of the Boss stepping away from the stadium roar of Born in the U.S.A. Instead of a full E Street Band blowout, Springsteen played most of the parts himself, leaning on drum machines and synthesizers, with E Street members dropping in only here and there. Jon Landau produced.

The result is hushed, close and a little unnerving: heartland rock with the volume knob turned down, a soft-rock sheen laid over songs that feel like they were finished after midnight. Five singles came off it, "Brilliant Disguise", the title track, "One Step Up", "Tougher Than the Rest" and "Spare Parts", and "Tunnel of Love" took the Grammy for Best Rock Vocal Performance, Solo in 1988. It opened a stretch of three albums made largely with session players, and it has never officially counted as an E Street record.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.