Bruce Springsteen is the greatest singer to emerge from New Jersey since Frank Sinatra. In his legendary, multi-decade career, he has done absolutely everything, including nab an Academy Award, two Golden Globes, 20 Grammys, and sell more than 140 million albums internationally, Springsteen was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But there is one significant milestone that, unbelievably, at 75, he has not accomplished to date - have a no. 1 single land on the Billboard Hot 100. However, a popular cover of one of Springsteen's songs did make it all the way to the top spot on the charts.
Videos by Wide Open Country
'Blinded By The Light' Was On Bruce Springsteen's First Album In 1973
Manfred Mann's Earth Band Covered It In 1978
Per VH1's Storytellers per Far Out Magazine via Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Springsteen explained his take on why the cover version was so popular. "This song is my only number one song. I've never had another number one song. Except this one wasn't done by me, it was done by Manfred Mann, which I appreciate. But, they changed this line. My line says, 'cut loose like a deuce,' and theirs said, 'cut loose like a douche.'"
Hmmm....
Springsteen continued, "I have a feeling that is why the song skyrocketed to number one, but it worked y'know. Deuce was like Little Deuce Coupe, as in a two-seater hot rod, and a douche is a feminine hygienic procedure. So they are different. What can I say? The public spoke, and they were right, you know."
Manfred Mann Gave His Thoughts On How That Line Got Changed
He Says It Was More Of A Technical Issue Than An Intentional Tweak
According to Record Collector via Showbiz Cheat Sheet, "I don't think Springsteen liked our 'Blinded By The Light,' 'cos we sang 'wrapped up like a douche', and it wasn't written like that and I screwed it up completely. It sounded like 'douche' instead of 'deuce', 'cos of the technical process - a faulty azimuth due to tape-head angles, and it meant we couldn't remix it."
Mann went on, "We just said, 'If it's not a hit, it's not.' But in the end, it was No. 1 in America, and so many people came up to us after and said, 'You know why it made No. 1? ... Everyone was talking about whether it was deuce or douche.' Apparently, Springsteen thought we'd done it deliberately, which we hadn't, so if I ever saw him I'd avoid him and cringe away like a frightened little boy."
Springsteen Didn't Obsess About Not Having A No. 1 Song
He Wisely Understood The Myriad Pitfalls Of Fame
As he wrote in Born To Run via Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Springsteen expressed ambivalence about being hugely famous. "I was always of two minds about big records and the chance involved in engaging a mass audience. You should be. There's risk. Was the effort of seeking that audience worth the exposure, the discomfort of the spotlight, and the amount of life that'd be handed over? What was the danger of dilution of your core message, your purpose, the reduction of your best intentions to empty symbolism or worse?"
A great question that each artist must search their soul about and answer for themselves.
