"Spare Parts" is a power ballad by Bruce Springsteen from his 1987 '' Tunnel of Love'' album. It was released as a single in some countries, following "

Brilliant Disguise "Brilliant Disguise" is a song by Bruce Springsteen from his 1987 album '' Tunnel of Love''. It was released as the first single from the album, reaching the No. 5 position on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock char ...

", the title track and "

Tougher Than the Rest "Tougher Than the Rest" is a song by Bruce Springsteen from his 1987 '' Tunnel of Love'' album. It was released as a single in some countries, following " Brilliant Disguise" and the title track, but was not released as a single in the United ...

", but was not released as a single in the United States.

History

Like much of the ''Tunnel of Love'' album, "Spare Parts" was recorded in Springsteen's home studio, called Thrill Hill East, between January and May 1987 with several members of the

E Street Band The E Street Band is an American rock band, and has been musician Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. For the bulk of Springsteen's recording and performing caree ...

. The song has one of the largest backing bands on the album. On this song, Springsteen played several instruments and is backed by

Danny Federici Daniel Paul Federici (January 23, 1950 – April 17, 2008) was an American musician, best known as the organ, glockenspiel, and accordion player and a founding member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. In 2014, Federici was posthumously induct ...

on organ, Max Weinberg on percussion,

Garry Tallent Garry Wayne Tallent (born October 27, 1949), sometimes billed as Garry W. Tallent, is an American musician and record producer, best known for being bass player and founding member of the E Street Band, Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band si ...

on bass and James Wood (a non-E Street Band member) on harmonica. "Spare Parts" is the most flat-out rock song on ''Tunnel of Love'', but lacks the subtlety and understatement that highlights most of the album, although the theme of love as a lie sets up the middle section of the album. Musically, the song features an engaging, blistering guitar part and propulsive drum sound. The themes of the song include alienation and terror in love, the consequences of evading commitment, and the impossibility of living without commitment. Overall, the song is harrowing, bleak, abrasive and tough-minded. The bitter, cold lyrics tell of an unwed mother who is abandoned by her boyfriend, who gives her nothing but empty promises. The opening lines are jarring, establishing the mood: "Bobby said he'd pull out/Bobby stayed in/Janey had a baby/It wasn't any sin/They were set to marry on a summer's day/Bobby got scared and ran away." She tries to support the child on her own, and hears of another young mother who committed infanticide. Although she considers doing the same by drowning her son, she ultimately accepts her responsibility and decides against,

baptizing Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

the boy instead. Unlike the other videos of songs from ''Tunnel of Love'', the video for "Spare Parts" was not directed by Meiert Avis. Rather, the video was directed by Carol Dodds.

Live performance history

"Spare Parts" has been one of the most popular of the ''Tunnel of Love'' songs in live performances. From the

Tunnel of Love Express Tour The Tunnel of Love Express was a concert tour by Bruce Springsteen and featuring The E Street Band along with The Horns of Love that took place in 1988. It was followed by a four and a half months of the release of Springsteen's October 198 ...

that supported the initial release of the album through July 2005, the song received 132 live performances in concert.

Personnel

According to authors Philippe Margotin and Jean-Michel Guesdon: * Bruce Springsteen – vocals, guitars, harmonica, drum machine programming (with

Toby Scott Toby Warren Scott is an American record producer, engineer and sound mixer. In addition to serving as an engineer on 18 Bruce Springsteen albums and numerous live performances, Scott has also recorded artists including Bob Dylan, Natalie Mercha ...

) *

– organ *

– bass * Max Weinberg – percussion *James Wood – harmonica

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1988 singles Bruce Springsteen songs Songs written by Bruce Springsteen Song recordings produced by Jon Landau Columbia Records singles 1987 songs Song recordings produced by Bruce Springsteen Song recordings produced by Chuck Plotkin