"Wrecking Ball" is a song written and performed by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

singer-songwriter A singer-songwriter is a musician who writes, composes, and performs their own musical material, including lyrics and melodies. In the United States, the category is built on the folk- acoustic tradition with a guitar, although this role has ...

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American Rock music, rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Nicknamed "the Boss", Springsteen has released 21 studio albums spanning six decades; most of his albums feature th ...

. It is the title track of ''Wrecking Ball'', his 17th studio album. It was first released as a live single in 2009, and it charted at number three on the

Hot Singles Sales The Hot Singles Sales, also known as the Hot 100 Singles Sales and the POS chart, was a music chart released weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine listing each week's best-selling physical singles in the United States, such as CD singles, vinyl single ...

chart.

History

The song had been written some years before the album for the concerts with the E Street Band at the Giants Stadium in Rutherford, New Jersey in 2009, before the stadium was demolished. A live version of the song from these concerts was released in 2009 as a single. "Wrecking Ball" was listed at number 43 in ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' list of Bruce Springsteen's 100 best songs. His guitarist

Steve Van Zandt Steven Van Zandt (né Lento; born November 22, 1950), also known as Little Steven or Miami Steve, is an American musician and actor. He is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandolin. He has appeared in ...

said about the song: "I think it's a great example of how good craft becomes art. I really believe that is how most of it happens. It's rare that someone sets out to do something that is great art and actually succeeds at it. Most of the time that's not the thought. Bruce certainly does that more than most."

References

{{reflist Bruce Springsteen songs 2012 songs Songs written by Bruce Springsteen