Bruce Springsteen, affectionately known as The Boss, has had a genuinely storied career ever since he hit big in 1975 with Born to Run. Back then, he was also on the cover of Newsweek and Time magazines. (Has it really been that long? Wow!) Now 75 and a billionaire by Forbes' estimation (although he denies that, per Fortune), Springsteen's accomplishments are staggering. Per Britannica, he has a Presidential Medal of Freedom, multiple Grammys, an Academy Award, a Kennedy Center Honor...well, you get the drift. He has also written hits for other singers, some of which I was amazed by.
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Did you know that Springsteen penned "Fire," which the Pointer Sisters sang spectacularly? How about "Blinded by the Light," which Manfred Mann's Earth Band ran with? Yep, those were Bruce Springsteen's. I was really shocked to learn that he was responsible for those and other famed tunes recorded by other artists.
'Blinded by the Light' (1976)
Sung by Manfred Mann's Earth Band
It's fascinating to me how many hit songs initially left their singers or bands cold. That was reportedly the case with Bruce Springsteen's song, "Blinded by the Light," which was on his 1973 album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. Per Louder, Mann had a number 1 smash with it in 1976. "I made a list of three or four songs that I thought could make singles, and Blinded... was at the bottom," Mann admits. "Even when I got round to it I didn't really see it." The listening public definitely saw it, though. "Blinded" rose to number 6 on the charts in the United Kingdom, along with its undeniable success stateside.
'Fire' (1977)
Sung by the Pointer Sisters
The Pointer Sisters had a huge hit with "Fire" in 1978. Bruce Springsteen wrote it, but evidently not for originally for them. It was intended for Elvis Presley, reported wror.com via American Songwriter. Elvis passed away in 1977 before he heard "Fire." Can you imagine Elvis doing this torrid song clad in black leather the way he was for his comeback TV special in 1968? That would have been something. Nevertheless, the Pointer Sisters' sublime cover of it sizzled its way to the number 2 spot on Billboard's Hot 100 chart.
'Pink Cadillac' (1982)
Sung by Natalie Cole
I love this song. Natalie Cole does it with such flair and pizzazz. It appears on her album, Everlasting, which was recorded in 1987. She had a few qualms at first about doing the song, however. Her hesitation turned out to be gloriously unfounded.
As American Songwriter reported, "In Angel On My Shoulder: An Autobiography by Natalie Cole with Digby Diehl, Cole said, 'I thought to myself, 'I'm too old to be doing this kind of stuff.' I couldn't imagine myself onstage rockin' to the music like Tina Turner. But 'Pink Cadillac' turned out to be a big song, and it took us all over the place...The song became very big in Europe...I never got a chance to talk to Bruce Springsteen, but word got back that he was blown away by it. He thought it was very cool that a woman could do this, and it would come out so great."
'Protection' (1982)
Sung by Donna Summer
Disco queen Donna Summer seems like an unlikely candidate to sing a Bruce Springsteen tune. But as Far Out Magazine reported, "Springsteen's manager, Jon Landau, was approached by Geffen Records head David Geffen to see if Springsteen would be interested in providing Summer with a new song. Geffen was trying to steer Summer in a more rock-friendly direction, and saw Springsteen as the ideal songwriter to help complete that transition." Summer recorded the song in 1983, with Springsteen pitching in on backing vocals and guitar.
