"Streets of Philadelphia" is a song written and performed by Americanrock musicianBruce Springsteen for the 1993 filmPhiladelphia, starringTom Hanks, an early mainstream film dealing withHIV/AIDS.[4] Released as a single byColumbia Records in February 1994, the song was a hit in many countries, topping the singles charts of Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, and Norway. In the United States, the single peaked at number nine on theBillboardHot 100, becoming Springsteen's 12th and most recent top-10 hit as of 2025. Its music video depicted Springsteen walking along desolate city streets and was directed byJonathan Demme, who directedPhiladelphia, with his nephewTed Demme.
In early 1993,Philadelphia directorJonathan Demme asked Springsteen to write a song for his film, adding "I want it to play in the malls." Springsteen replied, "Well, I'm interested, so I'd like to come up with a song for you. If you give me some time, I'll see, but I can't promise." Springsteen recalled adding, "I'm not very good at scores."
In late August 1993, following the conclusion of his1992-93 world tour, Springsteen recorded a demo of his completed song at Thrill Hill, his home recording studio inBeverly Hills, California, including all the song's instrumentation. He mailed the tape to Demme, who later said, "my wife and I sat down and listened to it, and we were literally weeping by the end".[7] Meanwhile, background vocals were added byTommy Sims, who played bass on Springsteen's 1992-93 tour.
In October 1993, Springsteen recorded the song atA&M Studios inLos Angeles, with Sims,Ornette Coleman on saxophone, and vocals by"Little" Jimmy Scott. It was mixed byBob Clearmountain, included in the soundtrack, and the video was recorded. In mid-December, Springsteen replaced the video with his home demo from August, re-shooting some video scenes to eliminate Scott. The four-man combo version can be heard in a brief scene in the film whenTom Hanks exitsDenzel Washington's office, but it was Springsteen alone playing over the opening credits.
"Streets of Philadelphia" was released on February 11, 1994. It is the firstsingle from the film's original soundtrack, with Springsteen singing and playing all the instruments with Sims on background vocal.
The song became a worldwide chart success.[8] "Streets of Philadelphia" achieved greater popularity in Europe than in the United States. It peaked at number nine on theBillboard Hot 100 chart, but became a number-one single in Germany, France, and Austria. It peaked at number two in the United Kingdom,[3] becoming Springsteen's highest charting hit in the UK. The song reached number four in Australia, and spent five weeks at number one inIreland.
Larry Flick fromBillboard magazine wrote, "Springsteen's empathetic lyrics and performance zoom straight for the heart, traveling atop a slow and sturdy beat and pillowy synths. A powerful song with or without the image of the film to support it."[9] Troy J. Augusto fromCash Box named it Pick of the Week, describing it as an "appropriately somber song," writing, "Written in the first person, this slow-movingballad documents the struggle of a downtrodden and forgotten soul left to wander the dark streets, out of sight of an uncaring society. LikeHanks' character in the film, Springsteen's unfortunate draws on our sympathy, not because he asks for help but because he appears unable to help himself, an important distinction. One of The Boss’ best."[10] Kent Zimmerman from theGavin Report concluded, "Bruce Springsteen's custom-written theme is as scary a portrait ofAIDS as you're likely to hear all year long. Combining the gruesome fears of urban abandonment coupled with the tragedy of a fatal disease in just one song is surely a miracle of subtlety."[11]Robert Hilburn from theLos Angeles Times deemed it "a moving ballad about a man whose body is being destroyed by AIDS", and "a work that shows Springsteen, despite all the questions raised by changes in his life in recent years, can still write purposeful songs that connect on a deeply emotional level." He added, "Springsteen sings in a voice that expresses the helplessness and heartache of someone dying of AIDS as convincingly as Springsteen once conveyed the dreams and aspirations of youth."[12]
In his weekly UK chart commentary,James Masterton said, "However good it may be the brooding ballad is hardly classic Bruce and can be expected to shuttle rapidly out next week".[13] A reviewer fromMusic & Media commented, "The man who used to walk uponE-Street, now roams the Philly lanes. This synth-dominated track from theOST Philadelphia revives the "etherealism" ofTunnel Of Love."[14] Stephen Dalton fromNME wrote, "The Boss fights through eerie ambient mists and prowls in a buried, snaking backbeat as he pleads for human warmth in a freezing world. It's a heartbreaker, surpassing most of Brucie's recent chest-beating in its soulful understatement."[15]Neil Spencer fromThe Observer felt Springsteen's "sombre" "Streets of Philadelphia" "reflects a dark night of the soul as the disease takes hold".[16] Pete Stanton ofSmash Hits gave the song a score of four out of five, writing, "This is far gentler, far lovelier and far nicer than anything he's done for ages. Taken from the excellent film [...], this should see Bruce back in the charts."[17]
The accompanying music video for the song, directed by Jonathan Demme and his nephewTed Demme in December 1993, begins by showing Springsteen walking along desolate city streets, followed by a bustling park and schoolyard, interspersed with footage from the film. After a quick shot ofRittenhouse Square, it ends with Springsteen walking along theDelaware River, with theBenjamin Franklin Bridge in the background.Tom Hanks is also visible as Andrew Beckett, the lead character he plays in the film, looking on as Springsteen begins the final verse. One newspaper review called it "the saddest track cut this decade".[7]
The vocal track for the video was recorded live with a hidden microphone, to a pre-recordedinstrumental track. This technique, appropriate for emotionally intense songs for which conventional video lip-syncing would seem especially false, was used byJohn Mellencamp in parts of the video for his 1985 song "Rain on the Scarecrow", and by Springsteen himself in the video for his 1987 single "Brilliant Disguise", singing the song directly into the camera as he sits on the edge of his chair on aSandy Hook,New Jersey sound stage.[18]
Because of the song's many award nominations, Springsteen played the song live in three high-visibility, prime-time awards show broadcasts: at the66th Academy Awards in March 1994, at theMTV Video Music Awards in September 1994, and at the37th Annual Grammy Awards in March 1995. Between this,Philadelphia's strong box office performance, and the single being a top 10 pop hit, "Streets of Philadelphia" became one of Springsteen's best-known songs to the general music audience.
Springsteen went on to perform the song only sparingly in his concerts. In solo guitar form and missing the song's trademark synthesizers-and-drums feel, it was performed semi-regularly on the solo and starkGhost of Tom Joad Tour between 1995 and 1997. After that, the song was performed only appearing a dozen times on theE Street Band Reunion Tour in 1999 and 2000. As of January 2016, the song has been played only a few times across the nine tours since then.
After the moviePhiladelphia was released, many artists covered it. In 1993, whenRhino Records assembled its box set,Academy Award Winning Songs (1934–1993), the same year, it was unable to license the Springsteen track and instead commissionedRichie Havens to record a cover version.[89]
In 2010, the French string quartetQuatuor Ébène recorded a version on their albumFiction, with drummer Richard Héry, sung by the quartet's violist Mathieu Herzog.
Fat White Family's Saul Adamczewski andChildhood (band)'s Ben Romans-Hopcraft covered the song on their 2018 album,Karaoke for One: Vol 1, under the band name Insecure Men.
^abSandford, Christopher (1999).SPRINGSTEEN Point Blank. New York, NY: Little, Brown and Company. pp. 220–221.Archived from the original on February 8, 2020. RetrievedFebruary 9, 2020.
