The first track on nearly all of Bruce Springsteen's albums grabs the listener by the throat and gets their attention. Setting the needle down on a Springsteen album for the first time has been a thrill for 30-odd years: You go in ready to listen.
Perhaps the most distressing element on his new album "Working on a Dream" is "Outlaw Pete," the eight minute tune that kicks off the disc. It is the worst album opener in Springsteen's career.
The song is a mess. The story meanders and makes little sense, several of the rhymes are childlike, the strings and lonesome harmonica sound come out of nowhere and the chorus of "Can you hear me" seems like a piece of a different song. The reviews are starting to come in and they’re running the gamut from pan to rave. Paste magazine’s blog deemed it “Springsteen going through the motions”…. “his worst album by far, a surprisingly inept blemish on what has been a consistently great career.” Rolling Stone, so far, has been the only periodical to wax enthusiastic about the disc, saying it’s “the richest of the three great rock albums Springsteen has made this decade with the E Street Band.” (They're flat out wrong).
The Washington Post is most in line with my take: “Full of lyrical missteps and half-realized ideas. The album doesn't go nearly as deep as you'd expect from one of rock's preeminent poets; Springsteen's lyrics tend to be overshadowed by the album's generally bright melodies and lush textures and sounds.”
Not enough is being made of how out-of-sync “Outlaw Pete” is with his career. As a fan, I set out to list the Boss' album openers - side one, track one on vinyl - in order of importance; I'd say the top five get five stars each and even the bottom five deserve three. (I left out the live albums and compilations).

15. Old Dan Tucker("Seeger Sessions")
Lots of yelping and mumbling, Pete Seeger's version on "American Favorite Ballads" contains more vitality and honesty, not to mention a more clear articulation of this party boy's story.
14. Radio Nowhere ("Magic")
OK as a single, the problem here is that it does not connect with the rest of the disc in a coherent fashion. It's a lot like "Dancing in the Dark," the weakest song on "Born in the USA" and its lead-off single. Fortunately it was tucked away in a bank of far superior songs.
13. Blinded by the Light ("Greetings From Asbury Park")
First song first album. He writes it with a rhyming dictionary in one hand and guitar in the other.
12. Better Days ("Better Days")
A ho-hum melody but I always enjoyed the end of the first verse: “I'm tired of waitin' for tomorrow to come/Or that train to come roarin' 'round the bend/I got a new suit of clothes a pretty red rose/And a woman I can call my friend.”
11. The E Street Shuffle ("The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle")
The congas, the brass, the false ending - they're all cool, but there might not be a Springsteen song that sounds more out of character than this one. It energized me in my youth so I feel bad putting it so low, but in terms of songwriting craft it has been surpassed.
10. Devils & Dust ("Devils & Dust")
One of the three best songs on his most recent all-downer disc. Descriptive, compact and well performed.
9. Nebraska ("Nebraska")
The opposite of "Devils." One of my favorite albums, but the title track is just a warmup for the brilliant songwriting that follows. For anyone wondering the difference between effective use of the harmonica to evoke a feeling of loneliness and superfluous use, compare the "Nebraska" to "Outlaw Pete."
8. The Ghost of Tom Joad("The Ghost of Tom Joad")
Time has been kind to this song, a tune that looks backward and yet proves prescient. My guess is it will continue to climb higher in the Springsteen canon as the years pass.
7. Born in the USA ("Born in the USA")
Probably the hardest tune to judge on the list as it carries so much baggage. Misinterpreted despite the directness of the lyric and rearranged for live performances to expose its biting nature, "Born" is now trapped by its dated arrangement.
6. Human Touch ("Human Touch")
That craving for connection is a subject he has expounded on ever since the collapse of his first marriage and “Human Touch” was filled with tales of a recovering romantic. As an album, “Human Touch” is one of those minor works pepper with strong songs, this being one of them.
5. Lonesome Day ("The Rising")
Bruce to the rescue. Concert performances of this tune have elevated its status over time and made it feel like an important part of his oeuvre. Of songs on “The Rising,” I’d place it in the middle of the pack, but in this list it goes pretty close to the top.
4. Badlands ("Darkness on the Edge of Town")
I’ll always prefer live versions to this recording but it still comes from a place of power. Emerging as it did from a lengthy period of silence, it had a visceral energy that demonstrated he could make a live record in the studio and have it be successful.
3. The Ties That Bind ("The River")
Tough Springsteen tells some woman she will not be as tough as he is and that their lives are permanently intertwined. Great melody, great playing by Roy Bittan and Max Weinberg.
2. Ain't Got You ("Tunnel of Love")
Structured like an old soul song - man has everything he could possibly want - riches, looks, possessions - but the girl remains elusive. He delivers it like a cross between Bo Diddley and an early rockabilly artist. It's short and to the point, a fine set-up for a collection of songs about the problems of romance.
1. Thunder Road ("Born to Run")
Escape and adventure with a brilliant production and arrangement. And when Springsteen would open his shows in '75 with just the piano and keep it at its ballad pace, it demonstrated how expertly crafted it was of a set of lyrics and how an artist can make two clear and concise statements with a single song, the studio version and the live version. A perfect single.