| "Springsteen" | ||||
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| Single byEric Church | ||||
| from the albumChief | ||||
| Released | February 21, 2012 (2012-02-21) | |||
| Recorded | 2011 | |||
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| Length |
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| Label | EMI Nashville | |||
| Songwriters |
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| Producer | Jay Joyce | |||
| Eric Church singles chronology | ||||
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"Springsteen" is a song co-written and recorded by the Americancountry music artistEric Church. It was released on February 21, 2012, as the third single from his third albumChief. Church wrote the song with Jeff Hyde and Ryan Tyndell.[1] It was inspired by a memory of a girl and another artist's song, but he chose to center it around an idol of his,Bruce Springsteen, and to tell the story of a teenage romance.
"Springsteen" was received with critical acclaim for its melody and strong lyrics making it one of the top country songs of 2012. The single reached number 19 on theBillboard Hot 100, becoming Church's first song to enter the Top 20 on that chart. The song also topped the USBillboardHot Country Songs. Outside of the United States, the song peaked at 28 on theCanadian Hot 100. "Springsteen" was certified eight-times Platinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The song was nominated for twoGrammy Awards on December 12, 2012, but failed to win any of the awards at the ceremony in2013.[2]
The accompanyingmusic video was directed byPeter Zavadil and premiered on April 13, 2012, onMaxim.com.[3] The video features Eric Church playing instruments in a suburban neighborhood, while a couple is shown going through the ups and downs of a relationship.[4]
"Springsteen" featuresdrums and asynthesizer, along with liveinstrumentation from theguitar andkeyboard.[5] The song notably lacks both thefiddle andsteel guitar, which are staples of country music.[6] Eric Church uses his voice throughout the piece to convey emotion, with his pitch and tone changing from verse to verse.[5] The song is composed of two verses with a chorus that is repeated several times.[5] The song is set in the key ofD major with a main chord pattern of D-G-Bm-A and a vocal range of A3-E5.[7]
Eric Church wrote the song with Jeff Hyde and Ryan Tyndell.[5][8] The basis for the song came from a memory of a girl and involved another artist's song.[5] Church chose to base the song around an idol of his,Bruce Springsteen, whose career he admires.[6][9] During the course of the song, Church makes several allusions to Springsteen; he mentions the Springsteen songs "Born to Run", "Born in the USA", "Glory Days", and "I'm on Fire".[10] While being named after Springsteen and making several references to him, the song however tells the story of a teenage romance.[5][9]Bruce Springsteen later wrote Eric a letter saying how he and his family enjoyed the song and that he hoped that Eric and he would cross paths soon.[11]
"Springsteen" received critical acclaim from manymusic critics. Billy Dukes ofTaste of Country gave the song five stars out of five, calling it "the best song from one of 2011's top country albums."[12] Matt Bjorke ofRoughstock also gave the song five stars of five, writing that "the strong, sing-a-long lyrics and driving, percussive melody brings Eric Church to an accessibility that he's previously never had."[13] Noah Eaton ofCountry Universe gave it an A−, saying that it is "a gorgeous, bittersweet anthem-to-be that will likely leave even some more hardened hearts simultaneously smile and cry listening."[5] Eaton went on further to say that this song would propel Church's career to the next level.[5]American Songwriter chose the song for its Lyric of the Week feature, for the week of June 11, 2012.[14] The song was nominated for twoGrammy Awards –Best Country Solo Performance andBest Country Song – on December 12, 2012, but failed to win any of the awards at the ceremony in2013.[2]
Thom Jerek ofAllMusic said the song had "a clever, if somewhat cloying, tune, but it gets the feeling across in spades."[15]The A.V. Club reviewer Steven Hyden claims that Church "is just as effective on slower, more thoughtful songs like "Springsteen" and that the song "[reflects] reflecting on music’s power to revive forgotten emotions from the past."[16]Bruce Springsteen himself took note of Church's music, specifically the song "Springsteen", and wrote Church a note on the back of a setlist.[6][17] Church received the letter from Springsteen's after a show on August 19, 2012.[17] In the note, Springsteen explained his and his family's love of the song and that he hoped to have their paths cross at some point.[17] Church was surprised when receiving the note and said that "it’s a long note, takes up the entire back page of this setlist for a show that lasted three hours and 47 minutes."[6]
Rolling Stone ranked "Springsteen" at #58 on their list of the 100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time, the fifth highest ranking for a song released in the 21st century behindCarrie Underwood's "Before He Cheats" (#57),Brad Paisley's "Alcohol" (#54),Kacey Musgraves' "Follow Your Arrow" (#39) andTaylor Swift's "Mean" (#24).[18] In a 2024 update, the publication expanded the ranking to the 200 Greatest Country Songs of All Time, with "Springsteen" placing at #58 once again.[19] The magazine also ranked the song #391 on its 2021 list ofThe 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.[20]
The song's accompanying music video was directed byPeter Zavadil and premiered on April 13, 2012, onMaxim.com.[3][21] The video was later made available for purchase throughiTunes on April 20, 2012.[22] The video is set in a suburban neighborhood located inMurfreesboro, TN and work on the video began in early March 2012.[4][23] Church allowed all the neighborhood kids to make cameos in the film.[23] The video was later nominated for Music Video of the Year for 2012 Country Music Awards;[8][24] however, it lost out toToby Keith's "Red Solo Cup" for the award.[25]
The music video begins with a girl talking about what she wants in her next boyfriend while on somebleachers.[24] After her monologue is over, the video cuts between shots of Eric Church and scenes of the girl and a boy during various high points and low points in their relationship.[24] Church is seen throughout the video either playing with his band in a garage, in the middle of the street on apiano, or walking through the streets with anAmerican flag around his shoulders while singing.[23][24] The video ends without showing whether the girl and boy ended up together.[24]
"Springsteen" debuted at number 52 on the USBillboardHot Country Songs chart for the week of February 18, 2012.[26] On June 23, 2012, it later became Eric Church's second number 1 single on the USBillboard Hot Country Songs after "Drink in My Hand" in January 2012.[27] The record reached two million copies sold in January 2013 and has gone on to be certified eight-times Platinum by theRecording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[28] The song has sold 2,783,000 copies in the US as of August 2016.[29]
On theCanadian Hot 100, the single reached a peak of 28 on the charts before falling down the rankings.[30] On September 5, 2012, sales for the song in Canada received Gold and Platinum certifications, and on July 11, 2013, it achieved double Platinum status with over 80,000 records sold.[31]
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