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Wikipedia

Bruce Springsteen

May 14, 2023

"Springsteen" redirects here. For other uses, see Springsteen (disambiguation).

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums during a career spanning six decades, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. He is an originator of heartland rock, a genre combining mainstream rock music with poetic and socially conscious lyrics that tell a narrative about working-class American life. Nicknamed "The Boss",[1] he is known for his lyrics and energetic concerts, with performances that can last more than four hours.[2]

Bruce Springsteen
Springsteen performing in 2012
Born (1949-09-23) September 23, 1949 (age 73)
Long Branch, New Jersey, U.S.
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • musician
Spouses
​
​
(m. 1985; div. 1989)​
​
​
(m. 1991)​
Children3, including Jessica
RelativesPamela Springsteen (sister)
Musical career
Genres
Instrument(s)
  • Vocals
  • guitar
Years active1964–present
LabelsColumbia
Member ofE Street Band
Websitebrucespringsteen.net

Springsteen released his first two albums, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. and The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle, in 1973; neither earned him a large audience. He then changed his style and achieved worldwide popularity with Born to Run (1975). This was followed by Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978) and The River (1980), which topped the Billboard 200 chart. After the solo album Nebraska (1982), he reunited with his E Street Band for Born in the U.S.A. (1984), which became his most commercially successful album and one of the best-selling albums of all time. Seven of its singles reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100, including the title track. Springsteen mostly hired session musicians for the recording of his next three albums, Tunnel of Love (1987), Human Touch (1992), and Lucky Town (1992). He reassembled the E Street Band for Greatest Hits (1995), then recorded the acoustic album The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995) and the EP Blood Brothers (1996).

Seven years after releasing The Ghost of Tom Joad—the longest gap between any of his studio albums—Springsteen released The Rising (2002), which he dedicated to the victims of the 9/11 attacks. He released two more folk albums, Devils & Dust (2005) and We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (2006), followed by two more albums with the E Street Band: Magic (2007) and Working on a Dream (2009). The next two albums, Wrecking Ball (2012) and High Hopes (2014), topped album charts worldwide. From 2017 to 2018, and again in 2021, Springsteen performed the critically acclaimed one-man show Springsteen on Broadway which saw him perform some of his songs and tell stories from his 2016 autobiography; the album version was released in 2018. He then released the solo album Western Stars (2019), the album Letter to You (2020) with the E Street Band, and a solo cover album Only the Strong Survive (2022). Letter to You reached No. 2 in the U.S. and made Springsteen the first artist to score a top five album across six consecutive decades.[3]

Listed among the album era's most prominent acts, Springsteen has sold more than 71 million albums in the U.S. and over 140 million worldwide, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. He has earned numerous awards, including 20 Grammy Awards, two Golden Globes, an Academy Award, and a Special Tony Award. He was inducted into both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2009, named MusiCares person of the year in 2013, awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2016, and awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Joe Biden in 2023. He ranked 23rd on Rolling Stone's list of the Greatest Artists of All Time, which described him as being "the embodiment of rock & roll".[4]

Early life

Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen was born at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch, New Jersey, on September 23, 1949.[5] He is of Dutch, Irish, and Italian descent. He grew up Catholic in Freehold, New Jersey. His mother, Adele Ann (née Zerilli; born 1925), was originally from the Bay Ridge neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York.[6] She worked as a legal secretary and was the main breadwinner in the family.[7] His father, Douglas Frederick "Dutch" Springsteen (1924–1998),[8][9] worked various jobs such as a bus driver.[8] His father had mental health issues throughout his life, which worsened in his later years.[10] Springsteen has two younger sisters named Virginia and Pamela (born c. 1962). The latter had a brief acting career, but left to pursue photography and later took photos for his albums Human Touch, Lucky Town, and The Ghost of Tom Joad.[11]

Springsteen's Italian maternal grandfather was born in Vico Equense and emigrated through Ellis Island.[12] He could not read or write when he arrived. He eventually became a lawyer and impressed the young Springsteen as being "larger than life".[13] The Springsteen surname originates in the Dutch province of Groningen[14] and is topographic, literally translating to "jump stone" and meaning a stepping stone used on unpaved streets or between two houses.[15] The Springsteens were among the early Dutch families who settled in the colony of New Netherland in the 1600s.[16]

Springsteen attended the St. Rose of Lima Catholic school in Freehold, where he was at odds with the nuns and rebelled against the strictures imposed upon him, though some of his later music reflected a Catholic ethos and included Irish-Catholic hymns with a rock music twist.[17] In a 2012 interview, he explained that it was his Catholic upbringing rather than his political ideology that most influenced his music. He said his faith had given him a "very active spiritual life" but joked that this "made it very difficult sexually" and added "once a Catholic, always a Catholic".[10][18] He grew up hearing fellow New Jersey singer Frank Sinatra on the radio, and became interested in being a musician at the age of seven when he saw Elvis Presley's performances on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1956 and 1957. Soon after, his mother rented him a guitar from Mike Diehl's Music in Freehold for $6 a week, but it failed to provide him with the instant gratification he desired.[19]

In ninth grade, Springsteen began attending the public Freehold High School, but did not fit in there either. A former teacher said he was a "loner who wanted nothing more than to play his guitar". He graduated in 1967, but felt so alienated that he skipped his graduation ceremony.[20] He briefly attended Ocean County College, but dropped out.[17] Upon being drafted when he was 19, Springsteen failed the physical examination and avoided service in the Vietnam War because the concussion he had suffered in a motorcycle accident two years prior (and his behavior at induction) reportedly made him unacceptable for service.[21] In 1969, when he was 20 years old, Springsteen's parents and sister Pamela moved to San Mateo, California; he and his sister Virginia, who was married and pregnant, stayed in Freehold.[22][23][24][25]

Career

 
Ordinary life in Jersey Shore beach towns such as Asbury Park are the background to Springsteen's early lyrics.

1964–1972: Early career

This was different, shifted the lay of the land. Four guys, playing and singing, writing their own material. [...] Rock 'n' roll came to my house where there seemed to be no way out [...] and opened up a whole world of possibilities.

—Springsteen on the impact of the Beatles[26]

In 1964, Springsteen saw the Beatles' televised appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show. Inspired, he bought his first guitar for $18.95 at the Western Auto appliance store.[26][27] Thereafter, he started playing for audiences with a band called the Rogues at local venues, including Elks Lodge in Freehold.[28] Later that year, his mother took out a loan to buy him a $60 Kent guitar, an act he later memorialized in his song "The Wish". In 1965, he went to the house of Tex and Marion Vinyard, who sponsored young bands in town. They helped him become the lead guitarist and subsequently one of the lead singers of the Castiles. The band recorded two original songs at a public recording studio in Brick Township and played a variety of venues, including Cafe Wha? in Greenwich Village; Marion Vinyard said that she believed the young Springsteen when he promised he would make it big.[29][30] In the late 1960s, Springsteen performed briefly in a power trio known as Earth, playing in clubs in New Jersey, with one major show at the Hotel Diplomat in New York City.[29]

From 1969 through early 1971, Springsteen performed with the band Child, which later changed its name to Steel Mill and included Danny Federici, Vini Lopez, Vinnie Roslin, and later Steve Van Zandt and Robbin Thompson. During this time, they performed regularly at venues on the Jersey Shore, especially The Stone Pony. They also played in Richmond, Virginia,[31] Nashville, Tennessee, and California,[29] quickly gathering a cult following. A San Francisco Examiner review of their show at The Matrix by music critic Philip Elwood gave Springsteen early credibility. In his glowing assessment of Steel Mill, Elwood wrote that he had "never been so overwhelmed by a totally unknown talent"[32] and called the band "the first big thing that's happened to Asbury Park since the good ship Morro Castle burned to the waterline of that Jersey beach in '34".[33] Elwood went on to praise the band's "cohesive musicality" and, in particular, singled out Springsteen as "a most impressive composer".[34] In San Mateo, Steel Mill recorded three original Springsteen songs at Pacific Recording.[35]

As Springsteen sought to shape a unique and genuine musical and lyrical style, he performed with the bands Dr. Zoom & the Sonic Boom from early-to-mid-1971, the Sundance Blues Band in mid-1971, and the Bruce Springsteen Band from mid-1971 to mid-1972.[36] His prolific songwriting ability included, as his future record label would describe it in early publicity campaigns, "more words in some individual songs than other artists had in whole albums". He brought his skills to the attention of several people who went on to prove influential to his career development, including new managers Mike Appel and Jim Cretecos, who in turn brought him to the attention of Columbia Records talent scout John Hammond. Hammond auditioned Springsteen in May 1972.[37]

In October 1972, Springsteen formed a new band for the recording of his debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. The band eventually became known as the E Street Band, although the name was not used until September 1974.[38][39] Springsteen acquired the nickname "The Boss" during this period, since he took on the task of collecting his band's nightly pay and distributing it amongst his bandmates.[40] The nickname also reportedly sprang from games of Monopoly that Springsteen would play with other Jersey Shore musicians.[41]

1972–1974: Initial struggle

Springsteen was signed to Columbia Records in 1972 by Clive Davis after having piqued the interest of John Hammond, who had signed Bob Dylan to the same label a decade earlier. Despite the expectations of Columbia Records' executives that Springsteen would record an acoustic album, he brought many of his New Jersey-based colleagues into the studio with him, and formed the E Street Band (although the band would not be formally named for several months). His debut album Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., released in January 1973, established him as a critical favorite,[42] though sales were slow.

Because of Springsteen's lyrical poeticism and folk rock-rooted music exemplified on tracks like "Blinded by the Light"[note 1] and "For You", as well as the Columbia and Hammond connections, critics initially compared Springsteen to Dylan. "He sings with a freshness and urgency I haven't heard since I was rocked by 'Like a Rolling Stone'" wrote Crawdaddy magazine editor Peter Knobler in Springsteen's first interview/profile in March 1973. Photographs for that original profile were taken by Ed Gallucci.[43][44] Crawdaddy discovered Springsteen in the rock press and was his earliest champion. Knobler profiled him in Crawdaddy three times, in 1973, 1975 and 1978.[45] (Springsteen and the E Street Band acknowledged the magazine's support by giving a private performance at the Crawdaddy 10th Anniversary Party in New York City in June 1976.)[46] Music critic Lester Bangs wrote in Creem in 1975 that when Springsteen's first album was released "... many of us dismissed it: he wrote like Bob Dylan and Van Morrison, sang like Van Morrison and Robbie Robertson, and led a band that sounded like Van Morrison's".[47]

In September 1973, Springsteen's second album, The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle, was released. Like Greetings from Asbury Park, it was met with critical acclaim but limited commercial success. Springsteen's songs became grander in form and scope with the E Street Band providing a less folksy, more rhythm and blues vibe, and the lyrics often romanticized teenage street life. "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" and "Incident on 57th Street" became fan favorites, and the long, rousing "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)" continues to rank among Springsteen's most beloved concert numbers. "Rosalita" is the ninth most played song in his catalog; as of June 2020, it has been played by Springsteen 809 times.[48]

After seeing Springsteen's performance at the Harvard Square Theater, music critic Jon Landau wrote in the May 22, 1974, issue of Boston's The Real Paper: "I saw rock and roll future, and its name is Bruce Springsteen. And on a night when I needed to feel young, he made me feel like I was hearing music for the very first time."[49] Landau helped to finish the epic new album Born to Run and subsequently became Springsteen's manager and producer. Given an enormous budget in a last-ditch effort at a commercially viable record, Springsteen became bogged down in the recording process while striving for a "Wall of Sound" production. But when his manager, Mike Appel, orchestrated the release of an early mix of "Born to Run" to nearly a dozen radio stations, anticipation built toward the album's release.[50]

The album took more than 14 months to record with six months alone spent on developing the song "Born to Run". During this time, Springsteen battled with anger and frustration over the album, saying he heard "sounds in [his] head" that he could not explain to the others in the studio. It was during a recording session of "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", on July 13, 1975, that Steve Van Zandt was asked by Springsteen and Jon Landau to take charge and instruct the horn players. They both knew he was playing guitar and managing Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, who had the sound they were seeking. Van Zandt "sang each horn player his part, with the lines, the timing and the inflection all perfect. The musicians played their parts, and the horns were recorded. When they finished, Springsteen turned to Mike Appel and said, "Okay. It's time to put the boy on the payroll. I've been meaning to tell you, he's the new guitar player."[51] Van Zandt joined the E Street Band a week later on July 20, the opening night of the Born to Run tour. He also helped Springsteen perfect "Born to Run" by adding its memorable guitar line. In the 2005 documentary Wings for Wheels,[52] Springsteen called his friend's input on the track's main riff "arguably Steve's greatest contribution to my music."[53]

The album was completed on July 25. But at the end of the grueling recording sessions, Springsteen was still unsatisfied. Upon first hearing the finished album, he threw it into the alley; another master was so bad that Springsteen flung it out of his hotel room window and into a river. He was going to scrap half of it, he told Appel, and substitute live recordings for upcoming show dates at The Bottom Line in New York City, a venue where he often played.[54]

1975–1983: Born to Run and breakthrough success

 
Springsteen and the E Street Band, February 1977

On August 13, 1975, Springsteen and the E Street Band began a five-night, 10-show stand at New York's The Bottom Line club. The 10-show stand attracted media attention and was broadcast live on WNEW-FM. Decades later, Rolling Stone magazine named the stand one of the "50 Moments That Changed Rock and Roll".[55]

Born to Run was released on August 25, 1975. It proved to be a breakthrough album[56][57][58] that catapulted Springsteen to worldwide fame.[59] The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and while reception at US top 40 radio outlets for the album's two singles was not overwhelming ("Born to Run" reached a modest No. 23 on the Billboard charts, and "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" peaked at No. 83), almost every track on the album received album-oriented rock airplay, especially "Born to Run", "Thunder Road", "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", and "Jungleland", all of which remain perennial favorites on many classic rock stations.[citation needed] In October 1975, Springsteen appeared on the covers of both Newsweek and Time in the same week.[60][61] So great did the wave of publicity become that he eventually rebelled against it during his first venture overseas, tearing down promotional posters before a concert appearance in London.[62]

A legal battle with former manager Mike Appel kept Springsteen out of the studio for nearly a year, during which time he kept the E Street Band together through extensive touring across the U.S. Despite the optimistic fervor with which he often performed, Springsteen's new songs sounded more somber than much of his previous work. Reaching settlement with Appel in 1977, Springsteen returned to the studio, and the subsequent sessions produced Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978). Musically, this album was a turning point in Springsteen's career. Gone were the raw, rapid-fire lyrics, outsized characters, and long, multi-part musical compositions of the first three albums; the songs were leaner and more carefully drawn and began to reflect Springsteen's growing intellectual and political awareness. The cross-country 1978 tour to promote the album would become legendary for the intensity and length of its shows.[63]

By the late 1970s, Springsteen earned a reputation as a songwriter whose material could provide hits for other bands. Manfred Mann's Earth Band had achieved a U.S. No. 1 pop hit with a heavily rearranged version of Greetings' "Blinded by the Light" in early 1977. Patti Smith reached No. 13 with her version of Springsteen's unreleased "Because the Night" with revised lyrics by Smith in 1978. The Pointer Sisters hit No. 2 in 1979 with Springsteen's then unreleased "Fire". Between 1976 and 1978, Springsteen provided four compositions to Southside Johnny & the Asbury Jukes, including "The Fever" and "Hearts of Stone", and collaborated on four more with Steven Van Zandt, producer of their first three albums.[64]

In September 1979, Springsteen and the E Street Band joined the Musicians United for Safe Energy anti-nuclear power collective at Madison Square Garden for two nights, playing an abbreviated set while premiering two songs from his upcoming album. The subsequent No Nukes live album, as well as the following summer's No Nukes documentary film, represented the first official recordings and footage of Springsteen's fabled live act and Springsteen's first tentative dip into political involvement.[65]

Springsteen continued to focus on working class life with the 20-song double album The River in 1980, which included an intentionally paradoxical range of material from good time party rockers to emotionally intense ballads, and finally yielded his first hit top ten single as a performer, "Hungry Heart".[66] The album sold well, becoming his first No. 1 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart.[67]

The River was released in 1982 followed by the stark solo acoustic Nebraska. According to the Dave Marsh's biographies, Springsteen was depressed when he wrote this material, resulting in a brutal depiction of American life. While Nebraska did not sell as well as Springsteen's three previous albums, it garnered widespread critical praise, including being named "Album of the Year" by Rolling Stone magazine's critics, and influenced later works by other major artists.[citation needed]

1984–1986: Born in the U.S.A. and cultural phenomenon

Springsteen is probably best known for his album Born in the U.S.A. (1984), which sold 15 million copies in the U.S., 30 million worldwide, and became one of the best-selling albums of all time with seven singles hitting the Top 10. The title track was a bitter commentary on the treatment of Vietnam veterans, some of whom were Springsteen's friends. The lyrics in the verses were entirely unambiguous when listened to, but the anthemic music and the title of the song made it hard for many, from politicians to the common person, to get the lyrics—except those in the chorus, which could be read many ways.[68] The song made a huge political impact, as he was advocating for the rights of the common working-class man.[69]

The song was widely misinterpreted as jingoistic, and in connection with the 1984 presidential campaign became the subject of considerable folklore. In 1984, conservative columnist George Will attended a Springsteen concert and then wrote a column praising Springsteen's work ethic. Six days after the column was printed, in a campaign rally in Hammonton, New Jersey, President Ronald Reagan said, "America's future rests in a thousand dreams inside your hearts. It rests in the message of hope in the songs of a man so many young Americans admire—New Jersey's own, Bruce Springsteen." Two nights later, at a concert in Pittsburgh, Springsteen told the crowd, "Well, the president was mentioning my name in his speech the other day and I kind of got to wondering what his favorite album of mine must've been, you know? I don't think it was the Nebraska album. I don't think he's been listening to this one." He then began playing "Johnny 99", with its allusions to closing factories and criminals.[70]

"Dancing in the Dark" was the biggest of seven hit singles from Born in the U.S.A., peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard singles chart. The video for the song showed a young Courteney Cox dancing on stage with Springsteen, which helped start the actress's career. The song "Cover Me" was written by Springsteen for Donna Summer, but his record company persuaded him to keep it for the new album. A big fan of Summer's work, Springsteen wrote another song for her, "Protection". Videos for the album were directed by Brian De Palma and John Sayles. Springsteen played on the "We Are the World" song and album in 1985. His live track "Trapped" from that album received moderate airplay on US Top 40 stations as well as reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart.[71]

The Born in the U.S.A. period represented the height of Springsteen's visibility in popular culture and the broadest audience he would ever reach (aided by the release of Arthur Baker's dance mixes of three of the singles). From June 15 to August 10, 1985, all seven of his albums appeared on the UK Albums Chart: the first time an artist had charted their entire back catalogue simultaneously.[72]

Live/1975–85, a five-record box set (also on three cassettes or three CDs), was released near the end of 1986 and became the first box set to debut at No. 1 on the U.S. album charts. It is one of the most commercially successful live albums of all time, ultimately selling 13 million units in the U.S. During the 1980s, several Springsteen fanzines were launched, including Backstreets magazine.[73]

1987–1991: Tunnel of Love and activism

Springsteen released the much more sedate and contemplative Tunnel of Love album in 1987. The album is a mature reflection on the many faces of love found, lost and squandered, which only selectively used the E Street Band.[74]

 
Springsteen performing on the Tunnel of Love Express Tour at the Radrennbahn Weissensee in East Berlin, July 19, 1988

On July 19, 1988, Springsteen's concert in East Germany attracted 300,000 spectators. Journalist Erik Kirschbaum called the concert "the most important rock concert ever, anywhere" in his 2013 book Rocking the Wall. Bruce Springsteen: The Berlin Concert That Changed the World. The concert had been conceived by the Socialist Unity Party's youth wing in an attempt to placate the youth of East Germany, who were hungry for more freedom and the popular music of the West. However, it is Kirschbaum's opinion that the success of the concert catalyzed opposition to the regime in East Germany, and helped contribute to the fall of the Berlin Wall the following year.[75]

Later in 1988, Springsteen headlined the worldwide Human Rights Now! tour for Amnesty International. In late 1989, he dissolved the E Street Band.[76][77]

1992–1998: Academy award, Greatest Hits, and soundtracks

In 1992, after risking fan accusations of "going Hollywood" by moving to Los Angeles and working with session musicians, Springsteen released two albums at once: Human Touch and Lucky Town.[78]

An electric band appearance on the acoustic MTV Unplugged television program (later released as In Concert/MTV Plugged) was poorly received and cemented fan dissatisfaction.[79] Springsteen seemed to realize this a few years hence when he spoke humorously of his late father during his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame acceptance speech:

I've gotta thank him because—what would I conceivably have written about without him? I mean, you can imagine that if everything had gone great between us, we would have had disaster. I would have written just happy songs—and I tried it in the early '90s and it didn't work; the public didn't like it.[80]

Springsteen won an Academy Award in 1994 for his song "Streets of Philadelphia", which appeared on the soundtrack to the film Philadelphia. The video for the song shows Springsteen's actual vocal performance, recorded using a hidden microphone, to a prerecorded instrumental track. This technique was developed on the "Brilliant Disguise" video.[81]

In 1995, after temporarily re-organizing the E Street Band for a few new songs recorded for his first Greatest Hits album (a recording session that was chronicled in the documentary Blood Brothers), and also one show at Tramps in New York City,[82] he released his second folk album, The Ghost of Tom Joad. The album was inspired by John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath and by Journey to Nowhere: The Saga of the New Underclass, a book by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Dale Maharidge and photographer Michael Williamson. The album was generally less well-received than the similar Nebraska due to the minimal melody, twangy vocals, and political nature of most of the songs; however, some praised it for giving voice to immigrants and others who rarely have one in American culture. The lengthy, worldwide, small-venue solo acoustic Ghost of Tom Joad Tour that followed successfully presented many of his older songs in drastically reshaped acoustic form, although Springsteen had to explicitly remind his audiences to "shut the fuck up" and not to clap during the performances.[83]

Following the tour, Springsteen moved from California back to New Jersey with his family.[84] In 1998, he released the sprawling, four-disc box set of outtakes, Tracks. Later, he would acknowledge that the 1990s were a "lost period" for him: "I didn't do a lot of work. Some people would say I didn't do my best work."[85]

1999–2007: The Rising, Devils & Dust, and other releases

 
The scene outside the Giants Stadium parking lot for banner-marked, record-setting, 10-night stand of The Rising Tour during July 2003.

Springsteen was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 by Bono (the lead singer of U2), a favor he returned in 2005.[86]

In 1999, Springsteen and the E Street Band reunited and began their extensive Reunion Tour, which lasted over a year. Highlights included a record sold-out, 15-show run at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey and a ten-night, sold-out engagement at New York City's Madison Square Garden. A new song, "American Skin (41 Shots)", about the police shooting of Amadou Diallo, which was played at these shows proved controversial.[87]

In 2002, Springsteen released his first studio effort with the full band in 18 years, The Rising, produced by Brendan O'Brien. The album, mostly a reflection on the September 11 attacks, was a critical and popular success. The title track gained airplay in several radio formats, and the record became Springsteen's best-selling album of new material in 15 years. Kicked off by an early-morning Asbury Park appearance on The Today Show, The Rising Tour commenced; the band barnstormed through a series of single-night arena stands in the U.S. and Europe. Springsteen played an unprecedented 10 nights in Giants Stadium in New Jersey.[88] At the 45th Annual Grammy Awards, The Rising won the Grammy for Best Rock Album and was nominated for the Grammy for Album of the Year. In addition, "The Rising" won the Grammy for Best Rock Song and for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance. It was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Song of the Year.[89] Rolling Stone later named "The Rising" the 35th best song of the decade.[90] VH1 placed it 81st on its list of the "100 Greatest Songs of the '00s".[91]

At the Grammy Awards of 2003, Springsteen performed the Clash's "London Calling" along with Elvis Costello, Dave Grohl, and E Street Band member Steven Van Zandt and No Doubt's bassist, Tony Kanal, in tribute to Joe Strummer.[92] In 2004, Springsteen and the E Street Band participated in the Vote for Change tour, along with John Mellencamp, John Fogerty, the Dixie Chicks, Pearl Jam, R.E.M., Bright Eyes, the Dave Matthews Band, Jackson Browne, and other musicians.

 
An acoustic guitar number during the solo Devils & Dust Tour performance at the Festhalle Frankfurt, June 15, 2005.

Devils & Dust was released on April 26, 2005, and was recorded without the E Street Band. It is a low-key, mostly acoustic album, in the same vein as Nebraska and The Ghost of Tom Joad. Some of the material was written almost 10 years earlier during, or shortly after, the Ghost of Tom Joad Tour, with a few having been performed then but not released.[93] The title track concerns an ordinary soldier's feelings and fears during the Iraq War. The album entered the charts at No. 1 in 10 countries. Springsteen began the solo Devils & Dust Tour at the same time as the album's release, playing both small and large venues. Attendance was disappointing in a few regions, and everywhere (other than in Europe) tickets were easier to get than in the past.[94]

 
Springsteen and the Sessions Band performing on their tour at the Fila Forum, Milan, Italy on May 12, 2006.

In April 2006, Springsteen released We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions, an American roots music project focused around a big folk sound treatment of 15 songs popularized by the radical musical activism of Pete Seeger. A tour began the same month, with the 18-strong ensemble of musicians dubbed the Seeger Sessions Band (and later shortened to the Sessions Band). The tour proved very popular in Europe, selling out everywhere and receiving some excellent reviews,[95] but newspapers reported that a number of U.S. shows suffered from sparse attendance.[96][97][98]

Springsteen's next album, entitled Magic, was released on October 2, 2007. Recorded with the E Street Band, it had 10 new Springsteen songs plus "Long Walk Home", performed once with the Sessions band, and a hidden track (the first included on a Springsteen studio release), "Terry's Song", a tribute to Springsteen's long-time assistant Terry Magovern, who died on July 30, 2007.[99] Magic debuted at No. 1 in Ireland and the UK.[100]

It was announced on November 21, 2007, that Springsteen's longtime friend and founding E Street Band member, Danny Federici, would be taking a leave of absence from the Magic Tour to pursue treatment for melanoma. Charles Giordano filled in as Federici's replacement.

2008–2011: Political involvement, Super Bowl XLIII, and Kennedy Center Honors

Springsteen at a Barack Obama campaign rally
 
 
 
Cleveland, Ohio, on November 2, 2008

Federici returned to the stage on March 20, 2008, for a Springsteen and E Street Band performance in Indianapolis. On April 17, 2008, Federici died of cancer.[101][102]

Springsteen supported Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign.[103] He gave solo acoustic performances in support of Obama's campaign throughout 2008,[104] culminating with a November 2 rally at which he debuted the song "Working on a Dream" in a duet with Scialfa.[105] Following Obama's electoral victory on November 4, Springsteen's song "The Rising" was the first song played over the loudspeakers after Obama's victory speech in Chicago's Grant Park. Springsteen was the musical opener for the Obama Inaugural Celebration on January 18, 2009, which was attended by over 400,000 people.[106] He performed "The Rising" with an all-female choir. Later he performed Woody Guthrie's "This Land Is Your Land" with Pete Seeger.

On January 11, 2009, Springsteen won the Golden Globe Award for Best Song for "The Wrestler", from the Darren Aronofsky film by the same name.[107] After receiving a heartfelt letter from lead actor Mickey Rourke, Springsteen supplied the song for the film for free.[108]

 
Super Bowl XLIII halftime show on February 1, 2009

Springsteen performed at the halftime show at Super Bowl XLIII on February 1, 2009,[109] agreeing to perform after having declined on prior occasions.[110] A few days before the game, Springsteen gave a rare press conference at which he promised a "twelve-minute party."[111][112] It has been reported that this press conference was Springsteen's first press conference in more than 25 years.[113] His 12-minute 45-second set, with the E Street Band and the Miami Horns, included abbreviated renditions of "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", "Born to Run", "Working on a Dream", and "Glory Days", the latter complete with football references in place of the original baseball-themed lyrics. The set of appearances and promotional activities led Springsteen to say, "This has probably been the busiest month of my life."[114]

Springsteen's Working on a Dream album, dedicated to the memory of Danny Federici, was released in late January 2009.[111] The supporting Working on a Dream Tour ran from April 2009 until November 2009. The band performed five final shows at Giants Stadium, opening with a new song highlighting the historic stadium, and Springsteen's Jersey roots, named "Wrecking Ball".[115] A DVD from the Working on a Dream Tour entitled London Calling: Live in Hyde Park was released in 2010.

 
Fireworks go off at the conclusion of the "E! Street! Band!" exhortation during the final shows at Giants Stadium.

Springsteen received the Kennedy Center Honors on December 6, 2009. President Obama gave a speech in which he asserted that Springsteen had incorporated the lives of regular Americans into his expansive palette of songs. Obama added that Springsteen's concerts were not just rock-and-roll concerts, but "communions". The event included musical tributes from Melissa Etheridge, Ben Harper, John Mellencamp, Jennifer Nettles, Sting, and Eddie Vedder.[116]

The 2000s ended with Springsteen named one of eight Artists of the Decade by Rolling Stone magazine[117] and with Springsteen's tours ranking him fourth among artists in total concert grosses for the decade.[118]

Clarence Clemons, the E Street Band's saxophonist and founding member, died on June 18, 2011, of complications from a stroke.[119]

2012–2018: Autobiography and Broadway show

 
Springsteen performing with drummer Max Weinberg behind him, on the Magic Tour stop at Veterans Memorial Arena, Jacksonville, Florida, August 15, 2008

Springsteen's 17th studio album, Wrecking Ball, was released on March 6, 2012. The album consists of eleven tracks plus two bonus tracks. Three songs previously only available as live versions—"Wrecking Ball", "Land of Hope and Dreams", and "American Land"—appear on the album.[120] Wrecking Ball became Springsteen's tenth No. 1 album in the United States, tying him with Elvis Presley for third most No. 1 albums of all time. Only the Beatles (19) and Jay Z (12) have more No. 1 albums.[121]

Following the release of the album, Springsteen and the E Street Band announced plans for the Wrecking Ball Tour, which began on March 18, 2012. On July 31, 2012, in Helsinki, Finland, Springsteen performed his longest concert ever at 4 hours and 6 minutes and 33 songs.[122]

Springsteen campaigned for President Barack Obama's re-election in Ohio, Iowa, Virginia, Pittsburgh, and Wisconsin. At the rallies, he briefly spoke to the audience and performed a short acoustic set that included a newly written song titled "Forward".[123][124][125]

At year's end, the Wrecking Ball Tour was named Top Draw for having the top attendance out of any tour by the Billboard Touring Awards. The tour finished second to Roger Waters, who had the top-grossing tour of 2012.[126] Springsteen finished second only to Madonna as the top money maker of 2012 with $33.44 million.[127] The Wrecking Ball album, along with the single "We Take Care of Our Own", was nominated for three Grammy Awards, including Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song for "We Take Care of Our Own" and Best Rock Album.[128][129] Rolling Stone named Wrecking Ball the number one album of 2012 on their Top 50 albums of 2012 list.[130]

In late July 2013, the documentary Springsteen & I, directed by Baillie Walsh and produced by Ridley Scott, was released simultaneously via a worldwide cinema broadcast in over 50 countries and in over 2000 movie theaters.[131]

Springsteen released his eighteenth studio album, High Hopes, on January 14, 2014. The first single and video were of a newly recorded version of the song "High Hopes", which Springsteen had previously recorded in 1995. The album was the first by Springsteen in which all songs are either cover songs, newly recorded outtakes from previous records, or newly recorded versions of songs previously released. The 2014 E Street Band touring lineup, along with deceased E Street Band members Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici, appear on the album.[132] High Hopes became Springsteen's eleventh No. 1 album in the US.[133] It was his tenth No. 1 in the UK, tying him for fifth all-time with the Rolling Stones and U2.[134] Rolling Stone named High Hopes the second best album of the year (behind only U2's Songs of Innocence) on their Top 50 Albums of 2014 list.[135]

Springsteen made his acting debut in the final episode of season three of Van Zandt's show Lilyhammer, which was named "Loose Ends" after a Springsteen song on the Tracks album.[136]

On August 6, 2015, Springsteen performed "Land of Hope and Dreams" and "Born to Run" on the final episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, as Stewart's final 'Moment of Zen'. On October 16, to celebrate the 35th anniversary of The River, Springsteen announced The Ties That Bind: The River Collection box set. Released on December 4, it contains four CDs (including many previously unreleased songs) and three DVDs (or Blu-ray) along with a 148-page coffee table book. In November 2015, "American Skin (41 Shots)" was performed with John Legend at Shining a Light: A Concert for Progress on Race in America.[137] Springsteen made his first appearance on Saturday Night Live since 2002 on December 19, 2015, performing "Meet Me in the City", "The Ties That Bind", and "Santa Claus Is Coming to Town".[138]

The River Tour 2016 began in January 2016 in support of The Ties That Bind: The River Collection box set. All first-leg shows in North America included an in-sequence performance of the entire The River album along with other songs from Springsteen's catalog, and all dates were recorded and made available for purchase.[139] In April 2016, Springsteen was one of the first artists to boycott North Carolina's anti-transgender bathroom bill.[140] More dates were eventually announced expanding the original three-month tour into a seven-month tour with shows in Europe in May 2016 and another North American leg starting in August 2016 and ending the following month.

On September 23, 2016, Chapter and Verse, a compilation from throughout Springsteen's career dating back to 1966, was released. On September 27, 2016, Simon & Schuster published his 500-page autobiography, Born to Run. The book rose quickly to the top of the NY Times Best Sellers List.[141]

 
Springsteen receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House from President Barack Obama in 2016

On September 7, 2016, at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Springsteen performed for 4 hours and 4 minutes. This show, which was part of The River 2016 Tour, stands as his longest-ever show in the United States.[142][143] The River 2016 Tour was the top-grossing worldwide tour of 2016; it pulled in $268.3 million globally and was the highest-grossing tour since 2014 for any artist topping Taylor Swift's 2015 tour which grossed $250.1 million.[144]

Springsteen supported Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign by performing an acoustic set of "Thunder Road", "Long Walk Home" and "Dancing in the Dark" at a rally in Philadelphia on November 7, 2016. On November 22, 2016, Springsteen was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom award by Barack Obama.[145][146] On January 12, 2017, Springsteen and Patti Scialfa performed a special 15-song acoustic set for President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama at the White House's East Room two days before the president gave his farewell address to the nation.[147][148]

Springsteen on Broadway, an eight-week run at the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway in New York City in fall 2017, was announced in June 2017.[149] The show included Springsteen reading excerpts from his 2016 autobiography Born to Run and performing other spoken reminiscences.[150] Originally scheduled to run from October 12 through November 26, the show was extended three times; the last performance occurred on December 15, 2018.[151][152][153] For Springsteen's production of Springsteen on Broadway, he was honored with a Special Tony Award at the 72nd Tony Awards in 2018.[154]

On December 14, 2018, the live album Springsteen on Broadway was released. The album reached the top 10 in more than 10 countries and no. 11 in the United States.[155]

2019–present

Springsteen's nineteenth studio album, Western Stars, was released on June 14, 2019.[156]

It was announced on July 23, 2019, that Springsteen would premiere his film, Western Stars, at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2019. He co-directed the film along with longtime collaborator Thom Zimny. The film features Springsteen and his backing band performing the music from Western Stars to a live audience.[157][158] The film was released in theaters on October 25, 2019, and the film's soundtrack, Western Stars – Songs from the Film, was also released that day.[159]

 
Springsteen (second from right) was among the five recipients of the 2009 Kennedy Center Honors

On May 29, 2020, Springsteen appeared remotely during a livestream, no-audience concert by the Dropkick Murphys at Fenway Park in Boston. Springsteen performed the Dropkick Murphys song "Rose Tattoo" and his song "American Land", sharing co-vocals with Ken Casey on both songs. The event marked the first music performance without an in-person audience at a major U.S. arena, stadium or ballpark during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the livestream, viewers were encouraged to make charitable donations.[160] The livestream attracted over 9 million viewers and raised over $700,000.[161]

On September 10, 2020, Springsteen released the single "Letter to You".[162][163] The single "Ghosts" was released on September 24, 2020.[164] Letter to You, Springsteen's twentieth studio album, was released on October 23, 2020.[162][163] Springsteen also released a documentary entitled Letter to You on October 23.[165][166] The documentary was shot exclusively in black and white and was directed by Thom Zimny.[166] The album Letter to You features 12 songs and runs just under one hour.[167]

On November 16, 2020, Springsteen was featured as a guest singer for Bleachers' newest single, "Chinatown",[168] for their 3rd studio album Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night.[169]

Springsteen and the E Street Band were musical guests on the December 12, 2020, episode of Saturday Night Live, where they performed "Ghosts" and "I'll See You in My Dreams". This marked the band's first performance since 2017 and their first to promote Letter to You. Garry Tallent and Soozie Tyrell opted to remain at home due to COVID-19 concerns; this was the first time Tallent had ever missed a performance with the band, and Jack Daley of the Disciples of Soul filled in for him.[170]

On February 22, 2021, it was announced that Springsteen was releasing an eight-part podcast on Spotify titled Renegades: Born in the USA that would feature himself in conversation with Barack Obama discussing a wide range of topics including family, race, marriage, fatherhood, and the state of the U.S.[171]

On May 16, 2021, John Mellencamp announced that Springsteen would appear on his next album.[172] On September 29, 2021, Mellencamp released the single and music video for "Wasted Days", which features Springsteen on co-lead vocals and guitar.[173]

On June 7, 2021, Springsteen announced that his Springsteen on Broadway shows would return for a limited run at Jujamcyn's St. James Theatre beginning on June 26, 2021.[174] In an interview with E Street Radio's Jim Rotolo on June 10, 2021, Springsteen said that he did not plan on playing any shows in 2021 but was talked into the Broadway shows by a "friend".[175] During the same interview, Springsteen also announced an upcoming collaboration with the Killers.[176] Later that day the Killers' social media announced the title of the song "Dustland" after a series of teases by the band throughout the day.[177][non-primary source needed][better source needed]

On September 11, 2021, Springsteen performed "I'll See You in My Dreams" in tribute to the victims of the September 11 attacks.[178]

On December 13, 2021, Springsteen gave a surprise four song performance at the John Henry's Friends benefit concert for children diagnosed with Autism where he was joined by Steve Earle and the Dukes as his backing band.[179] On December 14, 2021, Max Weinberg indicated that he felt a tour with Springsteen and the E Street Band was very likely in 2022 saying "Until the bus pulls up at my house, figuratively speaking, I'm not quite sure but I'm pretty convinced ... (that) myself, my colleagues and the people who are interested are going to be very pleasantly surprised in 2022. I don't make plans for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band but I feel very good about the next 18, 24 months."[180] On December 16, 2021, Springsteen sold the masters of his entire catalog and the coinciding music publishing rights to Sony Music for $500 million. This topped what Bob Dylan and Taylor Swift received for their catalogs by $200 million.[181] This sale, along with his Broadway shows and projects with Obama, helped him top the Rolling Stone list of the highest-paid musicians of 2021.[182]

 
Bruce Springsteen leading a sing-a-long during a concert in Seattle, Washington, in February 2023

On May 24, 2022, it was announced that he would be launching an international tour with the E Street Band in 2023, the first such since 2017.[183]

On September 26, 2022, it was announced that Springsteen and his wife Patti Scialfa would perform at the inaugural Albie Awards at the New York Public Library on September 29, 2022.[184]

On September 29, 2022, Springsteen announced that his twenty-first studio album, Only the Strong Survive, would be released on November 11, 2022. The album features fifteen covers of classic soul music songs from the 60s and 70s and was preceded by the singles "Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)", "Nightshift", "Don't Play That Song" and "Turn Back the Hands of Time".[185] To promote the album, Springsteen performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on November 14, 15 and 16, 2022, along with a special Thanksgiving episode on November 24, 2022.[186]

Artistry and legacy

I spent most of my life as a musician measuring the distance between the American Dream and American reality.

—Springsteen at a rally for presidential candidate Barack Obama on November 2, 2008[187]

Widely regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time,[188] Springsteen has been called a "rock 'n' roll poet" who "[radiates] working-class authenticity".[189] His work "epitomizes rock's deepest values: desire, the need for freedom and the search to find yourself."[4] Often described as cinematic in their scope, Springsteen's lyrics frequently explore highly personal themes such as individual commitment, dissatisfaction and dismay with life in a context of everyday situations.[190] Springsteen's themes include social and political commentary[191][192] and are rooted in the struggles faced by his own family of origin.[193]

In 2003, Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list included Born to Run (18),[194] Born in the U.S.A. (85),[195] The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle (132),[196] Darkness on the Edge of Town (151),[197] Nebraska (224),[198] The River (250),[199] Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. (379),[200] and Tunnel of Love (475).[201] In 2004, on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list, Rolling Stone included "Born to Run" (21), "Thunder Road" (86),[202] and "Born in the U.S.A." (275).[203] Acclaimed Music ranks him as the fifth most celebrated artist in popular music history.[204]

A shift in Springsteen's lyrical approach began with the album Darkness on the Edge of Town,[205] in which he focused on the emotional struggles of working class life,[206][207] alongside more typical rock and roll themes. Reviewing Born in the U.S.A., Rolling Stone critic Debby Miller noted that "Springsteen ignored the British Invasion and embraced instead the legacy of Phil Spector’s releases, the sort of soul that was coming from Atlantic Records, and especially the garage bands that had anomalous radio hits. He’s always chased the utopian feeling of that music".[208]

Jon Pareles included Springsteen among the "pantheon" of artists of the album era.[209] "Springsteen is the quintessential album-era rock star", writes Ann Powers, who argues that while other acts like the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Marvin Gaye probably made better individual works, "none [had] used the long-player form itself more powerfully over the arc of a career, not only to establish a world through song, but to inhabit an enduring persona". He used it to lyricize "America's slide from industrial-era swagger into service-economy anomie". In her mind, Springsteen needed the "track-by-track architecture of albums to flesh out characters, relate each to the other, extend metaphors and build a palpable, detail-strewn landscape through which they could travel". He simultaneously grew musically "both with his stalwart E Street Band (a metaphor itself for the family connections and community spirit his songs celebrate or lament) and in more minimalist projects."[210]

Concert goers are often confused by the fact that Springsteen appears to be booed by his fans when he appears on stage.[211] In fact his fans are calling his name in an exaggerated way as "Bruuuce", which sounds like boos.

In April 2023, the governor of New Jersey issued a proclamation announcing September 23 as "Bruce Springsteen Day".[212]

Personal life

Relationships

 
Springsteen playing at the Stadium of Light in June 2012

Springsteen dated actress Joyce Hyser for four years in the early 1980s. Previously, he had dated photographer Lynn Goldsmith and model Karen Darvin.[213] In the early 1980s, he met Patti Scialfa at The Stone Pony bar in New Jersey, the evening she was performing alongside his friend Bobby Bandiera, with whom she had written "At Least We Got Shoes" for Southside Johnny. Springsteen liked her voice, and after the performance he introduced himself to her. They soon started spending time together and became friends.[214]

Early in 1984 Springsteen asked Scialfa to join the E Street Band for the upcoming Born in the U.S.A. Tour. According to the book Bruce by Peter Ames Carlin, they seemed about to become a couple through the first leg of the tour;[215] however, Springsteen was introduced to actress Julianne Phillips and married her shortly after midnight on May 13, 1985, at Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Lake Oswego, Oregon.[216][217][218] Opposites in background, the two had an 11-year age difference, and Springsteen's traveling took its toll on their relationship. Many of the songs on Tunnel of Love described the unhappiness he felt in his relationship with Phillips.[219] The Tunnel of Love Express Tour began in late February 1988 and Springsteen convinced Scialfa to rejoin the tour. She expressed reluctance at first because she wanted to start recording her first solo album, but when he told her the tour would be short, she agreed to postpone her own solo record and join the tour.[220] Phillips and Springsteen separated in the spring of 1988, but the separation was not made public.[citation needed] Springsteen and Scialfa fell in love during the Tunnel of Love Express Tour[citation needed] and started living together soon after his separation from Phillips.[221] Citing irreconcilable differences, Phillips filed for divorce in Los Angeles on August 30, 1988,[222] and a settlement was reached in December and finalized on March 1, 1989.[223][224] They had no children.

Springsteen received press criticism for the apparent haste in which he and Scialfa started their relationship. In a 1995 interview with The Advocate, he told Judy Wieder about the negative publicity the couple subsequently received: "It's a strange society that assumes it has the right to tell people whom they should love and whom they shouldn't. But the truth is, I basically ignored the entire thing as much as I could. I said, 'Well, all I know is, this feels real, and maybe I have got a mess going here in some fashion, but that's life.'"[225] Years later, he reflected, "'I didn't protect Juli... some sort of public announcement would have been fair, but I felt overly concerned about my own privacy. I handled it badly, and I still feel badly about it. It was cruel for people to find out the way they did.'"[226]

Springsteen and Scialfa lived in New Jersey before moving to Los Angeles, where they decided to start a family.[227] On July 25, 1990, Scialfa gave birth to the couple's first child, Evan James Springsteen.[227][228] On June 8, 1991, Springsteen and Scialfa married at their Los Angeles home in a private ceremony, only attended by family and close friends.[227][228] Their second child, Jessica Rae Springsteen, was born on December 30, 1991.[227][228] Their third child, Samuel Ryan Springsteen, was born on January 5, 1994.[228][229] In a 1995 interview, Springsteen said, "I went through a divorce, and it was really difficult and painful and I was very frightened about getting married again. So part of me said, 'Hey, what does it matter?' But it does matter. It's very different than just living together. First of all, stepping up publicly—which is what you do: You get your license, you do all the social rituals—is a part of your place in society and in some way part of society's acceptance of you ... Patti and I both found that it did mean something."[225]

When their children reached school age in the 1990s, Springsteen and Scialfa moved back to New Jersey to raise them away from paparazzi. The family owns and lives on a horse farm in Colts Neck Township and has a home in Rumson; they also own homes in Los Angeles and Wellington, Florida.[230] Evan graduated from Boston College; he writes and performs his own songs and won the 2012 Singer/Songwriter Competition held during the Boston College's Arts Festival.[231] Jessica graduated from Duke University and is a nationally ranked champion equestrian.[232] She made her show-jumping debut with the Team USA in August 2014.[233] Sam is a firefighter in Jersey City.[234]

On July 17, 2022, Springsteen and Scialfa became first-time grandparents when their son Sam and his fiancée had a daughter.[235]

Health

Springsteen has avoided hard drugs his entire life.[236] Long-time bandmate Steven Van Zandt said in 2012, "[Springsteen is] the only guy I know—I think the only guy I know at all—who never did drugs."[236] He has spoken about his struggles with depression, which he began to address in his 30s after years of denial.[237] During this time, he also became frustrated with being an underweight "fast food junkie" who had to be helped off the stage after a show due to his poor health, and thus began following a mostly vegetarian diet while running up to six miles on a treadmill and lifting weights three times a week.[236] A 2019 Consequence article celebrating his 70th birthday revealed that he still maintains this routine and diet.[238]

Views

While rejecting religion in his earlier years, Springsteen stated in his 2016 autobiography Born to Run, "I have a personal relationship with Jesus. I believe in his power to save, love [...] but not to damn." In terms of his lapsed Catholicism, he has stated that he "came to ruefully and bemusedly understand that once you're a Catholic you're always a Catholic". He elaborated, "I don't participate in my religion but I know somewhere... deep inside... I'm still on the team."[239]

In a 2017 interview with Tom Hanks, Springsteen admitted that he was a tax evader early in his career, stating that the government did not pay much attention to his taxes until he was put on the cover of Time magazine in 1975.[240] Almost all of his income over the next several years went towards paying back his taxes, resulting in him having only $20,000 left by his 30th birthday despite multiple best-selling records and tours.[240]

Politics

Springsteen supported Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, announcing his endorsement in April 2008.[103] He appeared at several rallies in support of Obama's campaign throughout 2008.[104] At an Ohio rally, Springsteen discussed the importance of "truth, transparency and integrity in government, the right of every American to have a job, a living wage, to be educated in a decent school, and a life filled with the dignity of work, the promise and the sanctity of home".[241] The Topps company marked the support in a commemorative trading card set, in which Springsteen makes an appearance on card #59, "the 'O' Street Band."[242] Despite saying that he would sit out the 2012 presidential election, Springsteen campaigned for Obama's re-election in Ohio, Iowa, Virginia, Pittsburgh, and Wisconsin.[123][124][125]

Springsteen is an activist for LGBT rights and has spoken out many times as a strong supporter of gay marriage. In an April 1996 interview with The Advocate he spoke of the importance of gay marriage: "You get your license, you do all the social rituals. It's part of your place in society, and in some way part of society's acceptance of you."[225] In 2009, he posted the following statement on his website: "I've long believed in and have always spoken out for the rights of same sex couples and fully agree with Governor Corzine when he writes that 'The marriage-equality issue should be recognized for what it truly is—a civil rights issue that must be approved to assure that every citizen is treated equally under the law.'"[243] In 2012, he lent his support to an ad campaign for gay marriage called "The Four 2012". Springsteen noted in the ad, "I couldn't agree more with that statement and urge those who support equal treatment for our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters to let their voices be heard now."[244] In April 2016, Springsteen cancelled a show in Greensboro, North Carolina, days before it was to take place to protest the state's newly passed Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act, also referred to as the "bathroom law", which dictates which restrooms transgender people are permitted to use and prevents LGBT citizens from suing over human rights violations in the workplace. Springsteen released an official statement on his website. The Human Rights Campaign celebrated Springsteen's statement, and he has received much praise and gratitude from the LGBT community.[245]

During a 2017 show in Perth, Springsteen made a statement celebrating the post-inauguration Women's March against the incoming Trump administration in cities worldwide: "We're a long way from home, and our hearts and spirits are with the hundreds of thousands of women and men that marched yesterday in every city in America, and in Melbourne ... [They] rallied against hate and division and in support of tolerance, inclusion, reproductive rights, civil rights, racial justice, LGBTQ rights, the environment, wage equality, gender equality, healthcare, and immigrant rights. We stand with you. We are the new American resistance."[246][247][248]

Springsteen was a staunch critic of Donald Trump throughout his presidency. In October 2019, he said Trump "doesn't have a grasp of the deep meaning of what it means to be an American,"[249] and in June 2020 called him a "threat to our democracy".[250] Springsteen's song "The Rising" was featured prominently in the 2020 Democratic National Convention in support of Joe Biden, accompanied with a new video and campaign slogan, #TheRising.[251] On October 13, 2020, author Don Winslow released a video critical of Trump prior to his campaign event in Pennsylvania. The video features Springsteen's song "Streets of Philadelphia".[252] A few days prior to the 2020 United States presidential election, Springsteen provided narration for a campaign ad that spotlights Biden's upbringing in Scranton, Pennsylvania with "My Hometown" playing throughout the ad.[253] Biden used "We Take Care of Our Own" as one of his theme songs, as Obama had before him in 2012.[254]

Discography

Main article: Bruce Springsteen discography

Studio albums

Concert tours

Springsteen has developed a reputation for energetic and long-lasting live performances.[255][256]

Headlining tours

Co-headlining tours

Achievements, awards, and nominations

See also: List of awards and nominations received by Bruce Springsteen

Springsteen has sold more than 140 million records worldwide and more than 71 million records in the United States, making him one of the world's best-selling artists.[257][258] He has earned numerous awards for his work, including 20 Grammy Awards, two Golden Globes, an Academy Award, and a Special Tony Award (for Springsteen on Broadway). Springsteen was inducted into both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2009, was named MusiCares person of the year in 2013, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2016. In May 2021, Springsteen became the eighth recipient of the Woody Guthrie Prize, a prize that honors an artist who speaks out for social justice and carries on the spirit of the folk singer.[259] In March 2023, Springsteen was awarded the 2021 National Medal of Arts from President Joe Biden at the White House. Springsteen was supposed to receive the award in 2021 but the COVID-19 pandemic postponed the ceremonies.[260]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ "Blinded by the Light" would later be a hit for Manfred Mann's Earth Band and reach No. 1, the only time Springsteen had a No. 1 single as a songwriter.

References

  1. ^ "In a Culture War Over the Military, Bruce Springsteen Stands Alone". Time. from the original on June 20, 2019. Retrieved July 4, 2019.
  2. ^ "Bruce Springsteen Plays Longest U.S. Concert, Over 4 Hours". Billboard. from the original on November 8, 2020. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  3. ^ Lenker, Maureen Lee (November 3, 2020). "Bruce Springsteen reminds us why he's the Boss, becomes first artist with a top 5 album in six decades". EW.com. Retrieved November 14, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ a b "Bruce Springsteen ranked 23rd greatest artist". Rolling Stone. December 3, 2010. from the original on March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 20, 2021.
  5. ^ Cross, Charles R. (1992). Backstreets: Springsteen – the man and his music. Harmony Books. p. 40. ISBN 0-517-58929-X.
  6. ^ Alexander, John (October 31, 2019). . Brooklyn Reporter. Archived from the original on July 27, 2020.
  7. ^ . National Italian American Foundation. Archived from the original on May 20, 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2013.
  8. ^ a b "Douglas Springsteen, father of rock star, Belmont, Calif". Asbury Park Press. Asbury Park, New Jersey. May 3, 1998. p. 36. from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 27, 2020 – via Newspapers.com. Douglas F. Springsteen, father of rock star Bruce Springsteen, died April 26 at home. He was 73. Mr. Springsteen was a former bus driver at San Francisco Airport and an Army veteran of World War II. He was a former communicant of St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church, Freehold, and graduated from its school in 1939. Born in Freehold, he lived there for most of his life before moving to California in 1969.
  9. ^ Flynn, Fiona (May 27, 2016). "9 things you may not have known about Bruce Springsteen". Entertainment.ie. from the original on February 7, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  10. ^ a b Green, Andy (September 27, 2016). . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 16, 2018.
  11. ^ "Pamela Springsteen | Credits". AllMusic. from the original on July 27, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  12. ^ King, Carol (June 5, 2013). "Bruce Springsteen Falls In Love With Chocolate Guitar From Sicily". ITALY Magazine. from the original on January 11, 2019. Retrieved January 11, 2019.
  13. ^ Bruce Springsteen accepts Ellis Island award with mother and aunts May 19, 2021, at the Wayback Machine. Video. Published July 16, 2014. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
  14. ^ "Doris Day and Bruce Springsteen's Groningen Roots". The Northern Times. October 4, 2020. from the original on September 26, 2020. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
  15. ^ . Archived from the original on March 9, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
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  17. ^ a b Marsh, Dave (1987). Glory Days: Bruce Springsteen in the 1980s. pp. 88–89.
  18. ^ Editors, "Boss Talk," The Tablet, February 25, 2012.
  19. ^ Statham, Craig (2013). Springsteen: Saint in the City: 1949–1974. Soundcheck Books. pp. 8–9. ISBN 978-0957144231.
  20. ^ Springsteen. Robert Hilburn, 1985, p. 28.
  21. ^ Loder, Kurt (December 6, 1984). . Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 21, 2009. Retrieved March 21, 2010.
  22. ^ "The Backstreet Phantom of Rock". Time. October 27, 1975. from the original on October 30, 2020. Retrieved October 27, 2020.
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Sources

  • Alterman, Eric. It Ain't No Sin To Be Glad You're Alive: The Promise of Bruce Springsteen. Little Brown, 1999. ISBN 0-316-03885-7.
  • Coles, Robert. Bruce Springsteen's America: The People Listening, a Poet Singing. Random House, 2005. ISBN 0-375-50559-8.
  • Cullen, Jim. Born in the U.S.A.: Bruce Springsteen and the American Tradition. 1997; Middletown, Connecticut: Wesleyan University Press, 2005. New edition of 1997 study book places Springsteen's work in the broader context of American history and culture. ISBN 0-8195-6761-2
  • Eliot, Marc with Appel, Mike. Down Thunder Road. Simon & Schuster, 1992. ISBN 0-671-86898-5.
  • Graff, Gary. The Ties That Bind: Bruce Springsteen A to E to Z. Visible Ink, 2005. ISBN 1-57859-151-1.
  • Guterman, Jimmy. Runaway American Dream: Listening to Bruce Springsteen. Da Capo, 2005. ISBN 0-306-81397-1.
  • Guesdon, Jean-Michel; Margotin, Phillipe (October 6, 2020). Bruce Springsteen: All the Songs: The Story Behind Every Track. Great Britain: Cassell. ISBN 978-1784726492.
  • Hilburn, Robert. Springsteen. Rolling Stone Press, 1985. ISBN 0-684-18456-7.
  • Knobler, Peter with special assistance from Greg Mitchell. "Who Is Bruce Springsteen and Why Are We Saying All These Wonderful Things About Him?", Crawdaddy, March 1973.
  • Marsh, Dave. Bruce Springsteen: Two Hearts: The Definitive Biography, 1972–2003 July 27, 2020, at the Wayback Machine. Routledge, 2003. ISBN 0-415-96928-X. (Consolidation of two previous Marsh biographies, Born to Run (1981) and Glory Days (1987).)
  • Wolff, Daniel. July 4, Asbury Park: A History of the Promised Land. Bloomsbury, 2005. ISBN 1-58234-509-0

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bruce Springsteen.
 
Wikiquote has quotations related to Bruce Springsteen.
  • Official website
  • Bruce Springsteen Archives
  • Bruce Springsteen at IMDb

May 14, 2023
bruce, springsteen, springsteen, redirects, here, other, uses, springsteen, disambiguation, bruce, frederick, joseph, springsteen, born, september, 1949, american, singer, songwriter, released, studio, albums, during, career, spanning, decades, most, which, fe. Springsteen redirects here For other uses see Springsteen disambiguation Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen born September 23 1949 is an American singer and songwriter He has released 21 studio albums during a career spanning six decades most of which feature his backing band the E Street Band He is an originator of heartland rock a genre combining mainstream rock music with poetic and socially conscious lyrics that tell a narrative about working class American life Nicknamed The Boss 1 he is known for his lyrics and energetic concerts with performances that can last more than four hours 2 Bruce SpringsteenSpringsteen performing in 2012Born 1949 09 23 September 23 1949 age 73 Long Branch New Jersey U S OccupationsSinger songwriter musicianSpousesJulianne Phillips m 1985 div 1989 wbr Patti Scialfa m 1991 wbr Children3 including JessicaRelativesPamela Springsteen sister Musical careerGenresRock Americana heartland rockInstrument s Vocals guitarYears active1964 presentLabelsColumbiaMember ofE Street BandWebsitebrucespringsteen wbr netSpringsteen released his first two albums Greetings from Asbury Park N J and The Wild the Innocent amp the E Street Shuffle in 1973 neither earned him a large audience He then changed his style and achieved worldwide popularity with Born to Run 1975 This was followed by Darkness on the Edge of Town 1978 and The River 1980 which topped the Billboard 200 chart After the solo album Nebraska 1982 he reunited with his E Street Band for Born in the U S A 1984 which became his most commercially successful album and one of the best selling albums of all time Seven of its singles reached the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 including the title track Springsteen mostly hired session musicians for the recording of his next three albums Tunnel of Love 1987 Human Touch 1992 and Lucky Town 1992 He reassembled the E Street Band for Greatest Hits 1995 then recorded the acoustic album The Ghost of Tom Joad 1995 and the EP Blood Brothers 1996 Seven years after releasing The Ghost of Tom Joad the longest gap between any of his studio albums Springsteen released The Rising 2002 which he dedicated to the victims of the 9 11 attacks He released two more folk albums Devils amp Dust 2005 and We Shall Overcome The Seeger Sessions 2006 followed by two more albums with the E Street Band Magic 2007 and Working on a Dream 2009 The next two albums Wrecking Ball 2012 and High Hopes 2014 topped album charts worldwide From 2017 to 2018 and again in 2021 Springsteen performed the critically acclaimed one man show Springsteen on Broadway which saw him perform some of his songs and tell stories from his 2016 autobiography the album version was released in 2018 He then released the solo album Western Stars 2019 the album Letter to You 2020 with the E Street Band and a solo cover album Only the Strong Survive 2022 Letter to You reached No 2 in the U S and made Springsteen the first artist to score a top five album across six consecutive decades 3 Listed among the album era s most prominent acts Springsteen has sold more than 71 million albums in the U S and over 140 million worldwide making him one of the best selling music artists of all time He has earned numerous awards including 20 Grammy Awards two Golden Globes an Academy Award and a Special Tony Award He was inducted into both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2009 named MusiCares person of the year in 2013 awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2016 and awarded the National Medal of Arts by President Joe Biden in 2023 He ranked 23rd on Rolling Stone s list of the Greatest Artists of All Time which described him as being the embodiment of rock amp roll 4 Contents 1 Early life 2 Career 2 1 1964 1972 Early career 2 2 1972 1974 Initial struggle 2 3 1975 1983 Born to Run and breakthrough success 2 4 1984 1986 Born in the U S A and cultural phenomenon 2 5 1987 1991 Tunnel of Love and activism 2 6 1992 1998 Academy award Greatest Hits and soundtracks 2 7 1999 2007 The Rising Devils amp Dust and other releases 2 8 2008 2011 Political involvement Super Bowl XLIII and Kennedy Center Honors 2 9 2012 2018 Autobiography and Broadway show 2 10 2019 present 3 Artistry and legacy 4 Personal life 4 1 Relationships 4 2 Health 4 3 Views 5 Politics 6 Discography 7 Concert tours 7 1 Headlining tours 7 2 Co headlining tours 8 Achievements awards and nominations 9 See also 10 Notes 11 References 11 1 Sources 12 External linksEarly life EditBruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen was born at Monmouth Medical Center in Long Branch New Jersey on September 23 1949 5 He is of Dutch Irish and Italian descent He grew up Catholic in Freehold New Jersey His mother Adele Ann nee Zerilli born 1925 was originally from the Bay Ridge neighborhood of Brooklyn New York 6 She worked as a legal secretary and was the main breadwinner in the family 7 His father Douglas Frederick Dutch Springsteen 1924 1998 8 9 worked various jobs such as a bus driver 8 His father had mental health issues throughout his life which worsened in his later years 10 Springsteen has two younger sisters named Virginia and Pamela born c 1962 The latter had a brief acting career but left to pursue photography and later took photos for his albums Human Touch Lucky Town and The Ghost of Tom Joad 11 Springsteen s Italian maternal grandfather was born in Vico Equense and emigrated through Ellis Island 12 He could not read or write when he arrived He eventually became a lawyer and impressed the young Springsteen as being larger than life 13 The Springsteen surname originates in the Dutch province of Groningen 14 and is topographic literally translating to jump stone and meaning a stepping stone used on unpaved streets or between two houses 15 The Springsteens were among the early Dutch families who settled in the colony of New Netherland in the 1600s 16 Springsteen attended the St Rose of Lima Catholic school in Freehold where he was at odds with the nuns and rebelled against the strictures imposed upon him though some of his later music reflected a Catholic ethos and included Irish Catholic hymns with a rock music twist 17 In a 2012 interview he explained that it was his Catholic upbringing rather than his political ideology that most influenced his music He said his faith had given him a very active spiritual life but joked that this made it very difficult sexually and added once a Catholic always a Catholic 10 18 He grew up hearing fellow New Jersey singer Frank Sinatra on the radio and became interested in being a musician at the age of seven when he saw Elvis Presley s performances on The Ed Sullivan Show in 1956 and 1957 Soon after his mother rented him a guitar from Mike Diehl s Music in Freehold for 6 a week but it failed to provide him with the instant gratification he desired 19 In ninth grade Springsteen began attending the public Freehold High School but did not fit in there either A former teacher said he was a loner who wanted nothing more than to play his guitar He graduated in 1967 but felt so alienated that he skipped his graduation ceremony 20 He briefly attended Ocean County College but dropped out 17 Upon being drafted when he was 19 Springsteen failed the physical examination and avoided service in the Vietnam War because the concussion he had suffered in a motorcycle accident two years prior and his behavior at induction reportedly made him unacceptable for service 21 In 1969 when he was 20 years old Springsteen s parents and sister Pamela moved to San Mateo California he and his sister Virginia who was married and pregnant stayed in Freehold 22 23 24 25 Career Edit Ordinary life in Jersey Shore beach towns such as Asbury Park are the background to Springsteen s early lyrics 1964 1972 Early career Edit This was different shifted the lay of the land Four guys playing and singing writing their own material Rock n roll came to my house where there seemed to be no way out and opened up a whole world of possibilities Springsteen on the impact of the Beatles 26 In 1964 Springsteen saw the Beatles televised appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show Inspired he bought his first guitar for 18 95 at the Western Auto appliance store 26 27 Thereafter he started playing for audiences with a band called the Rogues at local venues including Elks Lodge in Freehold 28 Later that year his mother took out a loan to buy him a 60 Kent guitar an act he later memorialized in his song The Wish In 1965 he went to the house of Tex and Marion Vinyard who sponsored young bands in town They helped him become the lead guitarist and subsequently one of the lead singers of the Castiles The band recorded two original songs at a public recording studio in Brick Township and played a variety of venues including Cafe Wha in Greenwich Village Marion Vinyard said that she believed the young Springsteen when he promised he would make it big 29 30 In the late 1960s Springsteen performed briefly in a power trio known as Earth playing in clubs in New Jersey with one major show at the Hotel Diplomat in New York City 29 From 1969 through early 1971 Springsteen performed with the band Child which later changed its name to Steel Mill and included Danny Federici Vini Lopez Vinnie Roslin and later Steve Van Zandt and Robbin Thompson During this time they performed regularly at venues on the Jersey Shore especially The Stone Pony They also played in Richmond Virginia 31 Nashville Tennessee and California 29 quickly gathering a cult following A San Francisco Examiner review of their show at The Matrix by music critic Philip Elwood gave Springsteen early credibility In his glowing assessment of Steel Mill Elwood wrote that he had never been so overwhelmed by a totally unknown talent 32 and called the band the first big thing that s happened to Asbury Park since the good ship Morro Castle burned to the waterline of that Jersey beach in 34 33 Elwood went on to praise the band s cohesive musicality and in particular singled out Springsteen as a most impressive composer 34 In San Mateo Steel Mill recorded three original Springsteen songs at Pacific Recording 35 As Springsteen sought to shape a unique and genuine musical and lyrical style he performed with the bands Dr Zoom amp the Sonic Boom from early to mid 1971 the Sundance Blues Band in mid 1971 and the Bruce Springsteen Band from mid 1971 to mid 1972 36 His prolific songwriting ability included as his future record label would describe it in early publicity campaigns more words in some individual songs than other artists had in whole albums He brought his skills to the attention of several people who went on to prove influential to his career development including new managers Mike Appel and Jim Cretecos who in turn brought him to the attention of Columbia Records talent scout John Hammond Hammond auditioned Springsteen in May 1972 37 In October 1972 Springsteen formed a new band for the recording of his debut album Greetings from Asbury Park N J The band eventually became known as the E Street Band although the name was not used until September 1974 38 39 Springsteen acquired the nickname The Boss during this period since he took on the task of collecting his band s nightly pay and distributing it amongst his bandmates 40 The nickname also reportedly sprang from games of Monopoly that Springsteen would play with other Jersey Shore musicians 41 1972 1974 Initial struggle Edit Springsteen was signed to Columbia Records in 1972 by Clive Davis after having piqued the interest of John Hammond who had signed Bob Dylan to the same label a decade earlier Despite the expectations of Columbia Records executives that Springsteen would record an acoustic album he brought many of his New Jersey based colleagues into the studio with him and formed the E Street Band although the band would not be formally named for several months His debut album Greetings from Asbury Park N J released in January 1973 established him as a critical favorite 42 though sales were slow Because of Springsteen s lyrical poeticism and folk rock rooted music exemplified on tracks like Blinded by the Light note 1 and For You as well as the Columbia and Hammond connections critics initially compared Springsteen to Dylan He sings with a freshness and urgency I haven t heard since I was rocked by Like a Rolling Stone wrote Crawdaddy magazine editor Peter Knobler in Springsteen s first interview profile in March 1973 Photographs for that original profile were taken by Ed Gallucci 43 44 Crawdaddy discovered Springsteen in the rock press and was his earliest champion Knobler profiled him in Crawdaddy three times in 1973 1975 and 1978 45 Springsteen and the E Street Band acknowledged the magazine s support by giving a private performance at the Crawdaddy 10th Anniversary Party in New York City in June 1976 46 Music critic Lester Bangs wrote in Creem in 1975 that when Springsteen s first album was released many of us dismissed it he wrote like Bob Dylan and Van Morrison sang like Van Morrison and Robbie Robertson and led a band that sounded like Van Morrison s 47 In September 1973 Springsteen s second album The Wild the Innocent amp the E Street Shuffle was released Like Greetings from Asbury Park it was met with critical acclaim but limited commercial success Springsteen s songs became grander in form and scope with the E Street Band providing a less folksy more rhythm and blues vibe and the lyrics often romanticized teenage street life 4th of July Asbury Park Sandy and Incident on 57th Street became fan favorites and the long rousing Rosalita Come Out Tonight continues to rank among Springsteen s most beloved concert numbers Rosalita is the ninth most played song in his catalog as of June 2020 it has been played by Springsteen 809 times 48 After seeing Springsteen s performance at the Harvard Square Theater music critic Jon Landau wrote in the May 22 1974 issue of Boston s The Real Paper I saw rock and roll future and its name is Bruce Springsteen And on a night when I needed to feel young he made me feel like I was hearing music for the very first time 49 Landau helped to finish the epic new album Born to Run and subsequently became Springsteen s manager and producer Given an enormous budget in a last ditch effort at a commercially viable record Springsteen became bogged down in the recording process while striving for a Wall of Sound production But when his manager Mike Appel orchestrated the release of an early mix of Born to Run to nearly a dozen radio stations anticipation built toward the album s release 50 The album took more than 14 months to record with six months alone spent on developing the song Born to Run During this time Springsteen battled with anger and frustration over the album saying he heard sounds in his head that he could not explain to the others in the studio It was during a recording session of Tenth Avenue Freeze Out on July 13 1975 that Steve Van Zandt was asked by Springsteen and Jon Landau to take charge and instruct the horn players They both knew he was playing guitar and managing Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes who had the sound they were seeking Van Zandt sang each horn player his part with the lines the timing and the inflection all perfect The musicians played their parts and the horns were recorded When they finished Springsteen turned to Mike Appel and said Okay It s time to put the boy on the payroll I ve been meaning to tell you he s the new guitar player 51 Van Zandt joined the E Street Band a week later on July 20 the opening night of the Born to Run tour He also helped Springsteen perfect Born to Run by adding its memorable guitar line In the 2005 documentary Wings for Wheels 52 Springsteen called his friend s input on the track s main riff arguably Steve s greatest contribution to my music 53 The album was completed on July 25 But at the end of the grueling recording sessions Springsteen was still unsatisfied Upon first hearing the finished album he threw it into the alley another master was so bad that Springsteen flung it out of his hotel room window and into a river He was going to scrap half of it he told Appel and substitute live recordings for upcoming show dates at The Bottom Line in New York City a venue where he often played 54 1975 1983 Born to Run and breakthrough success Edit Springsteen and the E Street Band February 1977 On August 13 1975 Springsteen and the E Street Band began a five night 10 show stand at New York s The Bottom Line club The 10 show stand attracted media attention and was broadcast live on WNEW FM Decades later Rolling Stone magazine named the stand one of the 50 Moments That Changed Rock and Roll 55 Born to Run was released on August 25 1975 It proved to be a breakthrough album 56 57 58 that catapulted Springsteen to worldwide fame 59 The album peaked at No 3 on the Billboard 200 and while reception at US top 40 radio outlets for the album s two singles was not overwhelming Born to Run reached a modest No 23 on the Billboard charts and Tenth Avenue Freeze Out peaked at No 83 almost every track on the album received album oriented rock airplay especially Born to Run Thunder Road Tenth Avenue Freeze Out and Jungleland all of which remain perennial favorites on many classic rock stations citation needed In October 1975 Springsteen appeared on the covers of both Newsweek and Time in the same week 60 61 So great did the wave of publicity become that he eventually rebelled against it during his first venture overseas tearing down promotional posters before a concert appearance in London 62 A legal battle with former manager Mike Appel kept Springsteen out of the studio for nearly a year during which time he kept the E Street Band together through extensive touring across the U S Despite the optimistic fervor with which he often performed Springsteen s new songs sounded more somber than much of his previous work Reaching settlement with Appel in 1977 Springsteen returned to the studio and the subsequent sessions produced Darkness on the Edge of Town 1978 Musically this album was a turning point in Springsteen s career Gone were the raw rapid fire lyrics outsized characters and long multi part musical compositions of the first three albums the songs were leaner and more carefully drawn and began to reflect Springsteen s growing intellectual and political awareness The cross country 1978 tour to promote the album would become legendary for the intensity and length of its shows 63 By the late 1970s Springsteen earned a reputation as a songwriter whose material could provide hits for other bands Manfred Mann s Earth Band had achieved a U S No 1 pop hit with a heavily rearranged version of Greetings Blinded by the Light in early 1977 Patti Smith reached No 13 with her version of Springsteen s unreleased Because the Night with revised lyrics by Smith in 1978 The Pointer Sisters hit No 2 in 1979 with Springsteen s then unreleased Fire Between 1976 and 1978 Springsteen provided four compositions to Southside Johnny amp the Asbury Jukes including The Fever and Hearts of Stone and collaborated on four more with Steven Van Zandt producer of their first three albums 64 In September 1979 Springsteen and the E Street Band joined the Musicians United for Safe Energy anti nuclear power collective at Madison Square Garden for two nights playing an abbreviated set while premiering two songs from his upcoming album The subsequent No Nukes live album as well as the following summer s No Nukes documentary film represented the first official recordings and footage of Springsteen s fabled live act and Springsteen s first tentative dip into political involvement 65 Springsteen continued to focus on working class life with the 20 song double album The River in 1980 which included an intentionally paradoxical range of material from good time party rockers to emotionally intense ballads and finally yielded his first hit top ten single as a performer Hungry Heart 66 The album sold well becoming his first No 1 on the Billboard Pop Albums chart 67 The River was released in 1982 followed by the stark solo acoustic Nebraska According to the Dave Marsh s biographies Springsteen was depressed when he wrote this material resulting in a brutal depiction of American life While Nebraska did not sell as well as Springsteen s three previous albums it garnered widespread critical praise including being named Album of the Year by Rolling Stone magazine s critics and influenced later works by other major artists citation needed 1984 1986 Born in the U S A and cultural phenomenon Edit Springsteen is probably best known for his album Born in the U S A 1984 which sold 15 million copies in the U S 30 million worldwide and became one of the best selling albums of all time with seven singles hitting the Top 10 The title track was a bitter commentary on the treatment of Vietnam veterans some of whom were Springsteen s friends The lyrics in the verses were entirely unambiguous when listened to but the anthemic music and the title of the song made it hard for many from politicians to the common person to get the lyrics except those in the chorus which could be read many ways 68 The song made a huge political impact as he was advocating for the rights of the common working class man 69 The song was widely misinterpreted as jingoistic and in connection with the 1984 presidential campaign became the subject of considerable folklore In 1984 conservative columnist George Will attended a Springsteen concert and then wrote a column praising Springsteen s work ethic Six days after the column was printed in a campaign rally in Hammonton New Jersey President Ronald Reagan said America s future rests in a thousand dreams inside your hearts It rests in the message of hope in the songs of a man so many young Americans admire New Jersey s own Bruce Springsteen Two nights later at a concert in Pittsburgh Springsteen told the crowd Well the president was mentioning my name in his speech the other day and I kind of got to wondering what his favorite album of mine must ve been you know I don t think it was the Nebraska album I don t think he s been listening to this one He then began playing Johnny 99 with its allusions to closing factories and criminals 70 Dancing in the Dark was the biggest of seven hit singles from Born in the U S A peaking at No 2 on the Billboard singles chart The video for the song showed a young Courteney Cox dancing on stage with Springsteen which helped start the actress s career The song Cover Me was written by Springsteen for Donna Summer but his record company persuaded him to keep it for the new album A big fan of Summer s work Springsteen wrote another song for her Protection Videos for the album were directed by Brian De Palma and John Sayles Springsteen played on the We Are the World song and album in 1985 His live track Trapped from that album received moderate airplay on US Top 40 stations as well as reaching No 1 on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart 71 Springsteen at Felix Houphouet Boigny International Airport in Cote d Ivoire during Amnesty International s 1988 Human Rights Now Tour The Born in the U S A period represented the height of Springsteen s visibility in popular culture and the broadest audience he would ever reach aided by the release of Arthur Baker s dance mixes of three of the singles From June 15 to August 10 1985 all seven of his albums appeared on the UK Albums Chart the first time an artist had charted their entire back catalogue simultaneously 72 Live 1975 85 a five record box set also on three cassettes or three CDs was released near the end of 1986 and became the first box set to debut at No 1 on the U S album charts It is one of the most commercially successful live albums of all time ultimately selling 13 million units in the U S During the 1980s several Springsteen fanzines were launched including Backstreets magazine 73 1987 1991 Tunnel of Love and activism Edit Springsteen released the much more sedate and contemplative Tunnel of Love album in 1987 The album is a mature reflection on the many faces of love found lost and squandered which only selectively used the E Street Band 74 Springsteen performing on the Tunnel of Love Express Tour at the Radrennbahn Weissensee in East Berlin July 19 1988 On July 19 1988 Springsteen s concert in East Germany attracted 300 000 spectators Journalist Erik Kirschbaum called the concert the most important rock concert ever anywhere in his 2013 book Rocking the Wall Bruce Springsteen The Berlin Concert That Changed the World The concert had been conceived by the Socialist Unity Party s youth wing in an attempt to placate the youth of East Germany who were hungry for more freedom and the popular music of the West However it is Kirschbaum s opinion that the success of the concert catalyzed opposition to the regime in East Germany and helped contribute to the fall of the Berlin Wall the following year 75 Later in 1988 Springsteen headlined the worldwide Human Rights Now tour for Amnesty International In late 1989 he dissolved the E Street Band 76 77 1992 1998 Academy award Greatest Hits and soundtracks Edit In 1992 after risking fan accusations of going Hollywood by moving to Los Angeles and working with session musicians Springsteen released two albums at once Human Touch and Lucky Town 78 An electric band appearance on the acoustic MTV Unplugged television program later released as In Concert MTV Plugged was poorly received and cemented fan dissatisfaction 79 Springsteen seemed to realize this a few years hence when he spoke humorously of his late father during his Rock and Roll Hall of Fame acceptance speech I ve gotta thank him because what would I conceivably have written about without him I mean you can imagine that if everything had gone great between us we would have had disaster I would have written just happy songs and I tried it in the early 90s and it didn t work the public didn t like it 80 Springsteen won an Academy Award in 1994 for his song Streets of Philadelphia which appeared on the soundtrack to the film Philadelphia The video for the song shows Springsteen s actual vocal performance recorded using a hidden microphone to a prerecorded instrumental track This technique was developed on the Brilliant Disguise video 81 In 1995 after temporarily re organizing the E Street Band for a few new songs recorded for his first Greatest Hits album a recording session that was chronicled in the documentary Blood Brothers and also one show at Tramps in New York City 82 he released his second folk album The Ghost of Tom Joad The album was inspired by John Steinbeck s The Grapes of Wrath and by Journey to Nowhere The Saga of the New Underclass a book by Pulitzer Prize winning author Dale Maharidge and photographer Michael Williamson The album was generally less well received than the similar Nebraska due to the minimal melody twangy vocals and political nature of most of the songs however some praised it for giving voice to immigrants and others who rarely have one in American culture The lengthy worldwide small venue solo acoustic Ghost of Tom Joad Tour that followed successfully presented many of his older songs in drastically reshaped acoustic form although Springsteen had to explicitly remind his audiences to shut the fuck up and not to clap during the performances 83 Following the tour Springsteen moved from California back to New Jersey with his family 84 In 1998 he released the sprawling four disc box set of outtakes Tracks Later he would acknowledge that the 1990s were a lost period for him I didn t do a lot of work Some people would say I didn t do my best work 85 1999 2007 The Rising Devils amp Dust and other releases Edit The scene outside the Giants Stadium parking lot for banner marked record setting 10 night stand of The Rising Tour during July 2003 Springsteen was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 by Bono the lead singer of U2 a favor he returned in 2005 86 In 1999 Springsteen and the E Street Band reunited and began their extensive Reunion Tour which lasted over a year Highlights included a record sold out 15 show run at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford New Jersey and a ten night sold out engagement at New York City s Madison Square Garden A new song American Skin 41 Shots about the police shooting of Amadou Diallo which was played at these shows proved controversial 87 In 2002 Springsteen released his first studio effort with the full band in 18 years The Rising produced by Brendan O Brien The album mostly a reflection on the September 11 attacks was a critical and popular success The title track gained airplay in several radio formats and the record became Springsteen s best selling album of new material in 15 years Kicked off by an early morning Asbury Park appearance on The Today Show The Rising Tour commenced the band barnstormed through a series of single night arena stands in the U S and Europe Springsteen played an unprecedented 10 nights in Giants Stadium in New Jersey 88 At the 45th Annual Grammy Awards The Rising won the Grammy for Best Rock Album and was nominated for the Grammy for Album of the Year In addition The Rising won the Grammy for Best Rock Song and for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance It was also nominated for the Grammy Award for Song of the Year 89 Rolling Stone later named The Rising the 35th best song of the decade 90 VH1 placed it 81st on its list of the 100 Greatest Songs of the 00s 91 At the Grammy Awards of 2003 Springsteen performed the Clash s London Calling along with Elvis Costello Dave Grohl and E Street Band member Steven Van Zandt and No Doubt s bassist Tony Kanal in tribute to Joe Strummer 92 In 2004 Springsteen and the E Street Band participated in the Vote for Change tour along with John Mellencamp John Fogerty the Dixie Chicks Pearl Jam R E M Bright Eyes the Dave Matthews Band Jackson Browne and other musicians An acoustic guitar number during the solo Devils amp Dust Tour performance at the Festhalle Frankfurt June 15 2005 Devils amp Dust was released on April 26 2005 and was recorded without the E Street Band It is a low key mostly acoustic album in the same vein as Nebraska and The Ghost of Tom Joad Some of the material was written almost 10 years earlier during or shortly after the Ghost of Tom Joad Tour with a few having been performed then but not released 93 The title track concerns an ordinary soldier s feelings and fears during the Iraq War The album entered the charts at No 1 in 10 countries Springsteen began the solo Devils amp Dust Tour at the same time as the album s release playing both small and large venues Attendance was disappointing in a few regions and everywhere other than in Europe tickets were easier to get than in the past 94 Springsteen and the Sessions Band performing on their tour at the Fila Forum Milan Italy on May 12 2006 In April 2006 Springsteen released We Shall Overcome The Seeger Sessions an American roots music project focused around a big folk sound treatment of 15 songs popularized by the radical musical activism of Pete Seeger A tour began the same month with the 18 strong ensemble of musicians dubbed the Seeger Sessions Band and later shortened to the Sessions Band The tour proved very popular in Europe selling out everywhere and receiving some excellent reviews 95 but newspapers reported that a number of U S shows suffered from sparse attendance 96 97 98 Springsteen s next album entitled Magic was released on October 2 2007 Recorded with the E Street Band it had 10 new Springsteen songs plus Long Walk Home performed once with the Sessions band and a hidden track the first included on a Springsteen studio release Terry s Song a tribute to Springsteen s long time assistant Terry Magovern who died on July 30 2007 99 Magic debuted at No 1 in Ireland and the UK 100 It was announced on November 21 2007 that Springsteen s longtime friend and founding E Street Band member Danny Federici would be taking a leave of absence from the Magic Tour to pursue treatment for melanoma Charles Giordano filled in as Federici s replacement 2008 2011 Political involvement Super Bowl XLIII and Kennedy Center Honors Edit Springsteen at a Barack Obama campaign rally Cleveland Ohio on November 2 2008 Federici returned to the stage on March 20 2008 for a Springsteen and E Street Band performance in Indianapolis On April 17 2008 Federici died of cancer 101 102 Springsteen supported Barack Obama s 2008 presidential campaign 103 He gave solo acoustic performances in support of Obama s campaign throughout 2008 104 culminating with a November 2 rally at which he debuted the song Working on a Dream in a duet with Scialfa 105 Following Obama s electoral victory on November 4 Springsteen s song The Rising was the first song played over the loudspeakers after Obama s victory speech in Chicago s Grant Park Springsteen was the musical opener for the Obama Inaugural Celebration on January 18 2009 which was attended by over 400 000 people 106 He performed The Rising with an all female choir Later he performed Woody Guthrie s This Land Is Your Land with Pete Seeger On January 11 2009 Springsteen won the Golden Globe Award for Best Song for The Wrestler from the Darren Aronofsky film by the same name 107 After receiving a heartfelt letter from lead actor Mickey Rourke Springsteen supplied the song for the film for free 108 Super Bowl XLIII halftime show on February 1 2009 Springsteen performed at the halftime show at Super Bowl XLIII on February 1 2009 109 agreeing to perform after having declined on prior occasions 110 A few days before the game Springsteen gave a rare press conference at which he promised a twelve minute party 111 112 It has been reported that this press conference was Springsteen s first press conference in more than 25 years 113 His 12 minute 45 second set with the E Street Band and the Miami Horns included abbreviated renditions of Tenth Avenue Freeze Out Born to Run Working on a Dream and Glory Days the latter complete with football references in place of the original baseball themed lyrics The set of appearances and promotional activities led Springsteen to say This has probably been the busiest month of my life 114 Springsteen s Working on a Dream album dedicated to the memory of Danny Federici was released in late January 2009 111 The supporting Working on a Dream Tour ran from April 2009 until November 2009 The band performed five final shows at Giants Stadium opening with a new song highlighting the historic stadium and Springsteen s Jersey roots named Wrecking Ball 115 A DVD from the Working on a Dream Tour entitled London Calling Live in Hyde Park was released in 2010 Fireworks go off at the conclusion of the E Street Band exhortation during the final shows at Giants Stadium Springsteen received the Kennedy Center Honors on December 6 2009 President Obama gave a speech in which he asserted that Springsteen had incorporated the lives of regular Americans into his expansive palette of songs Obama added that Springsteen s concerts were not just rock and roll concerts but communions The event included musical tributes from Melissa Etheridge Ben Harper John Mellencamp Jennifer Nettles Sting and Eddie Vedder 116 The 2000s ended with Springsteen named one of eight Artists of the Decade by Rolling Stone magazine 117 and with Springsteen s tours ranking him fourth among artists in total concert grosses for the decade 118 Clarence Clemons the E Street Band s saxophonist and founding member died on June 18 2011 of complications from a stroke 119 2012 2018 Autobiography and Broadway show Edit Springsteen performing with drummer Max Weinberg behind him on the Magic Tour stop at Veterans Memorial Arena Jacksonville Florida August 15 2008 Springsteen s 17th studio album Wrecking Ball was released on March 6 2012 The album consists of eleven tracks plus two bonus tracks Three songs previously only available as live versions Wrecking Ball Land of Hope and Dreams and American Land appear on the album 120 Wrecking Ball became Springsteen s tenth No 1 album in the United States tying him with Elvis Presley for third most No 1 albums of all time Only the Beatles 19 and Jay Z 12 have more No 1 albums 121 Following the release of the album Springsteen and the E Street Band announced plans for the Wrecking Ball Tour which began on March 18 2012 On July 31 2012 in Helsinki Finland Springsteen performed his longest concert ever at 4 hours and 6 minutes and 33 songs 122 Springsteen campaigned for President Barack Obama s re election in Ohio Iowa Virginia Pittsburgh and Wisconsin At the rallies he briefly spoke to the audience and performed a short acoustic set that included a newly written song titled Forward 123 124 125 At year s end the Wrecking Ball Tour was named Top Draw for having the top attendance out of any tour by the Billboard Touring Awards The tour finished second to Roger Waters who had the top grossing tour of 2012 126 Springsteen finished second only to Madonna as the top money maker of 2012 with 33 44 million 127 The Wrecking Ball album along with the single We Take Care of Our Own was nominated for three Grammy Awards including Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song for We Take Care of Our Own and Best Rock Album 128 129 Rolling Stone named Wrecking Ball the number one album of 2012 on their Top 50 albums of 2012 list 130 In late July 2013 the documentary Springsteen amp I directed by Baillie Walsh and produced by Ridley Scott was released simultaneously via a worldwide cinema broadcast in over 50 countries and in over 2000 movie theaters 131 Springsteen released his eighteenth studio album High Hopes on January 14 2014 The first single and video were of a newly recorded version of the song High Hopes which Springsteen had previously recorded in 1995 The album was the first by Springsteen in which all songs are either cover songs newly recorded outtakes from previous records or newly recorded versions of songs previously released The 2014 E Street Band touring lineup along with deceased E Street Band members Clarence Clemons and Danny Federici appear on the album 132 High Hopes became Springsteen s eleventh No 1 album in the US 133 It was his tenth No 1 in the UK tying him for fifth all time with the Rolling Stones and U2 134 Rolling Stone named High Hopes the second best album of the year behind only U2 s Songs of Innocence on their Top 50 Albums of 2014 list 135 Springsteen made his acting debut in the final episode of season three of Van Zandt s show Lilyhammer which was named Loose Ends after a Springsteen song on the Tracks album 136 On August 6 2015 Springsteen performed Land of Hope and Dreams and Born to Run on the final episode of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as Stewart s final Moment of Zen On October 16 to celebrate the 35th anniversary of The River Springsteen announced The Ties That Bind The River Collection box set Released on December 4 it contains four CDs including many previously unreleased songs and three DVDs or Blu ray along with a 148 page coffee table book In November 2015 American Skin 41 Shots was performed with John Legend at Shining a Light A Concert for Progress on Race in America 137 Springsteen made his first appearance on Saturday Night Live since 2002 on December 19 2015 performing Meet Me in the City The Ties That Bind and Santa Claus Is Coming to Town 138 The River Tour 2016 began in January 2016 in support of The Ties That Bind The River Collection box set All first leg shows in North America included an in sequence performance of the entire The River album along with other songs from Springsteen s catalog and all dates were recorded and made available for purchase 139 In April 2016 Springsteen was one of the first artists to boycott North Carolina s anti transgender bathroom bill 140 More dates were eventually announced expanding the original three month tour into a seven month tour with shows in Europe in May 2016 and another North American leg starting in August 2016 and ending the following month On September 23 2016 Chapter and Verse a compilation from throughout Springsteen s career dating back to 1966 was released On September 27 2016 Simon amp Schuster published his 500 page autobiography Born to Run The book rose quickly to the top of the NY Times Best Sellers List 141 Springsteen receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom at the White House from President Barack Obama in 2016 On September 7 2016 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia Pennsylvania Springsteen performed for 4 hours and 4 minutes This show which was part of The River 2016 Tour stands as his longest ever show in the United States 142 143 The River 2016 Tour was the top grossing worldwide tour of 2016 it pulled in 268 3 million globally and was the highest grossing tour since 2014 for any artist topping Taylor Swift s 2015 tour which grossed 250 1 million 144 Springsteen supported Hillary Clinton s 2016 presidential campaign by performing an acoustic set of Thunder Road Long Walk Home and Dancing in the Dark at a rally in Philadelphia on November 7 2016 On November 22 2016 Springsteen was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom award by Barack Obama 145 146 On January 12 2017 Springsteen and Patti Scialfa performed a special 15 song acoustic set for President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama at the White House s East Room two days before the president gave his farewell address to the nation 147 148 Springsteen on Broadway an eight week run at the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway in New York City in fall 2017 was announced in June 2017 149 The show included Springsteen reading excerpts from his 2016 autobiography Born to Run and performing other spoken reminiscences 150 Originally scheduled to run from October 12 through November 26 the show was extended three times the last performance occurred on December 15 2018 151 152 153 For Springsteen s production of Springsteen on Broadway he was honored with a Special Tony Award at the 72nd Tony Awards in 2018 154 On December 14 2018 the live album Springsteen on Broadway was released The album reached the top 10 in more than 10 countries and no 11 in the United States 155 2019 present Edit Springsteen s nineteenth studio album Western Stars was released on June 14 2019 156 It was announced on July 23 2019 that Springsteen would premiere his film Western Stars at the Toronto Film Festival in September 2019 He co directed the film along with longtime collaborator Thom Zimny The film features Springsteen and his backing band performing the music from Western Stars to a live audience 157 158 The film was released in theaters on October 25 2019 and the film s soundtrack Western Stars Songs from the Film was also released that day 159 Springsteen second from right was among the five recipients of the 2009 Kennedy Center Honors On May 29 2020 Springsteen appeared remotely during a livestream no audience concert by the Dropkick Murphys at Fenway Park in Boston Springsteen performed the Dropkick Murphys song Rose Tattoo and his song American Land sharing co vocals with Ken Casey on both songs The event marked the first music performance without an in person audience at a major U S arena stadium or ballpark during the COVID 19 pandemic During the livestream viewers were encouraged to make charitable donations 160 The livestream attracted over 9 million viewers and raised over 700 000 161 On September 10 2020 Springsteen released the single Letter to You 162 163 The single Ghosts was released on September 24 2020 164 Letter to You Springsteen s twentieth studio album was released on October 23 2020 162 163 Springsteen also released a documentary entitled Letter to You on October 23 165 166 The documentary was shot exclusively in black and white and was directed by Thom Zimny 166 The album Letter to You features 12 songs and runs just under one hour 167 On November 16 2020 Springsteen was featured as a guest singer for Bleachers newest single Chinatown 168 for their 3rd studio album Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night 169 Springsteen and the E Street Band were musical guests on the December 12 2020 episode of Saturday Night Live where they performed Ghosts and I ll See You in My Dreams This marked the band s first performance since 2017 and their first to promote Letter to You Garry Tallent and Soozie Tyrell opted to remain at home due to COVID 19 concerns this was the first time Tallent had ever missed a performance with the band and Jack Daley of the Disciples of Soul filled in for him 170 On February 22 2021 it was announced that Springsteen was releasing an eight part podcast on Spotify titled Renegades Born in the USA that would feature himself in conversation with Barack Obama discussing a wide range of topics including family race marriage fatherhood and the state of the U S 171 On May 16 2021 John Mellencamp announced that Springsteen would appear on his next album 172 On September 29 2021 Mellencamp released the single and music video for Wasted Days which features Springsteen on co lead vocals and guitar 173 On June 7 2021 Springsteen announced that his Springsteen on Broadway shows would return for a limited run at Jujamcyn s St James Theatre beginning on June 26 2021 174 In an interview with E Street Radio s Jim Rotolo on June 10 2021 Springsteen said that he did not plan on playing any shows in 2021 but was talked into the Broadway shows by a friend 175 During the same interview Springsteen also announced an upcoming collaboration with the Killers 176 Later that day the Killers social media announced the title of the song Dustland after a series of teases by the band throughout the day 177 non primary source needed better source needed On September 11 2021 Springsteen performed I ll See You in My Dreams in tribute to the victims of the September 11 attacks 178 On December 13 2021 Springsteen gave a surprise four song performance at the John Henry s Friends benefit concert for children diagnosed with Autism where he was joined by Steve Earle and the Dukes as his backing band 179 On December 14 2021 Max Weinberg indicated that he felt a tour with Springsteen and the E Street Band was very likely in 2022 saying Until the bus pulls up at my house figuratively speaking I m not quite sure but I m pretty convinced that myself my colleagues and the people who are interested are going to be very pleasantly surprised in 2022 I don t make plans for Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band but I feel very good about the next 18 24 months 180 On December 16 2021 Springsteen sold the masters of his entire catalog and the coinciding music publishing rights to Sony Music for 500 million This topped what Bob Dylan and Taylor Swift received for their catalogs by 200 million 181 This sale along with his Broadway shows and projects with Obama helped him top the Rolling Stone list of the highest paid musicians of 2021 182 Bruce Springsteen leading a sing a long during a concert in Seattle Washington in February 2023On May 24 2022 it was announced that he would be launching an international tour with the E Street Band in 2023 the first such since 2017 183 On September 26 2022 it was announced that Springsteen and his wife Patti Scialfa would perform at the inaugural Albie Awards at the New York Public Library on September 29 2022 184 On September 29 2022 Springsteen announced that his twenty first studio album Only the Strong Survive would be released on November 11 2022 The album features fifteen covers of classic soul music songs from the 60s and 70s and was preceded by the singles Do I Love You Indeed I Do Nightshift Don t Play That Song and Turn Back the Hands of Time 185 To promote the album Springsteen performed on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon on November 14 15 and 16 2022 along with a special Thanksgiving episode on November 24 2022 186 Artistry and legacy EditI spent most of my life as a musician measuring the distance between the American Dream and American reality Springsteen at a rally for presidential candidate Barack Obama on November 2 2008 187 Widely regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time 188 Springsteen has been called a rock n roll poet who radiates working class authenticity 189 His work epitomizes rock s deepest values desire the need for freedom and the search to find yourself 4 Often described as cinematic in their scope Springsteen s lyrics frequently explore highly personal themes such as individual commitment dissatisfaction and dismay with life in a context of everyday situations 190 Springsteen s themes include social and political commentary 191 192 and are rooted in the struggles faced by his own family of origin 193 In 2003 Rolling Stone s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list included Born to Run 18 194 Born in the U S A 85 195 The Wild the Innocent amp the E Street Shuffle 132 196 Darkness on the Edge of Town 151 197 Nebraska 224 198 The River 250 199 Greetings from Asbury Park N J 379 200 and Tunnel of Love 475 201 In 2004 on their 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list Rolling Stone included Born to Run 21 Thunder Road 86 202 and Born in the U S A 275 203 Acclaimed Music ranks him as the fifth most celebrated artist in popular music history 204 A shift in Springsteen s lyrical approach began with the album Darkness on the Edge of Town 205 in which he focused on the emotional struggles of working class life 206 207 alongside more typical rock and roll themes Reviewing Born in the U S A Rolling Stone critic Debby Miller noted that Springsteen ignored the British Invasion and embraced instead the legacy of Phil Spector s releases the sort of soul that was coming from Atlantic Records and especially the garage bands that had anomalous radio hits He s always chased the utopian feeling of that music 208 Jon Pareles included Springsteen among the pantheon of artists of the album era 209 Springsteen is the quintessential album era rock star writes Ann Powers who argues that while other acts like the Beatles the Rolling Stones and Marvin Gaye probably made better individual works none had used the long player form itself more powerfully over the arc of a career not only to establish a world through song but to inhabit an enduring persona He used it to lyricize America s slide from industrial era swagger into service economy anomie In her mind Springsteen needed the track by track architecture of albums to flesh out characters relate each to the other extend metaphors and build a palpable detail strewn landscape through which they could travel He simultaneously grew musically both with his stalwart E Street Band a metaphor itself for the family connections and community spirit his songs celebrate or lament and in more minimalist projects 210 Concert goers are often confused by the fact that Springsteen appears to be booed by his fans when he appears on stage 211 In fact his fans are calling his name in an exaggerated way as Bruuuce which sounds like boos In April 2023 the governor of New Jersey issued a proclamation announcing September 23 as Bruce Springsteen Day 212 Personal life EditRelationships Edit Springsteen playing at the Stadium of Light in June 2012 Springsteen dated actress Joyce Hyser for four years in the early 1980s Previously he had dated photographer Lynn Goldsmith and model Karen Darvin 213 In the early 1980s he met Patti Scialfa at The Stone Pony bar in New Jersey the evening she was performing alongside his friend Bobby Bandiera with whom she had written At Least We Got Shoes for Southside Johnny Springsteen liked her voice and after the performance he introduced himself to her They soon started spending time together and became friends 214 Early in 1984 Springsteen asked Scialfa to join the E Street Band for the upcoming Born in the U S A Tour According to the book Bruce by Peter Ames Carlin they seemed about to become a couple through the first leg of the tour 215 however Springsteen was introduced to actress Julianne Phillips and married her shortly after midnight on May 13 1985 at Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Lake Oswego Oregon 216 217 218 Opposites in background the two had an 11 year age difference and Springsteen s traveling took its toll on their relationship Many of the songs on Tunnel of Love described the unhappiness he felt in his relationship with Phillips 219 The Tunnel of Love Express Tour began in late February 1988 and Springsteen convinced Scialfa to rejoin the tour She expressed reluctance at first because she wanted to start recording her first solo album but when he told her the tour would be short she agreed to postpone her own solo record and join the tour 220 Phillips and Springsteen separated in the spring of 1988 but the separation was not made public citation needed Springsteen and Scialfa fell in love during the Tunnel of Love Express Tour citation needed and started living together soon after his separation from Phillips 221 Citing irreconcilable differences Phillips filed for divorce in Los Angeles on August 30 1988 222 and a settlement was reached in December and finalized on March 1 1989 223 224 They had no children Springsteen received press criticism for the apparent haste in which he and Scialfa started their relationship In a 1995 interview with The Advocate he told Judy Wieder about the negative publicity the couple subsequently received It s a strange society that assumes it has the right to tell people whom they should love and whom they shouldn t But the truth is I basically ignored the entire thing as much as I could I said Well all I know is this feels real and maybe I have got a mess going here in some fashion but that s life 225 Years later he reflected I didn t protect Juli some sort of public announcement would have been fair but I felt overly concerned about my own privacy I handled it badly and I still feel badly about it It was cruel for people to find out the way they did 226 Springsteen and Scialfa lived in New Jersey before moving to Los Angeles where they decided to start a family 227 On July 25 1990 Scialfa gave birth to the couple s first child Evan James Springsteen 227 228 On June 8 1991 Springsteen and Scialfa married at their Los Angeles home in a private ceremony only attended by family and close friends 227 228 Their second child Jessica Rae Springsteen was born on December 30 1991 227 228 Their third child Samuel Ryan Springsteen was born on January 5 1994 228 229 In a 1995 interview Springsteen said I went through a divorce and it was really difficult and painful and I was very frightened about getting married again So part of me said Hey what does it matter But it does matter It s very different than just living together First of all stepping up publicly which is what you do You get your license you do all the social rituals is a part of your place in society and in some way part of society s acceptance of you Patti and I both found that it did mean something 225 When their children reached school age in the 1990s Springsteen and Scialfa moved back to New Jersey to raise them away from paparazzi The family owns and lives on a horse farm in Colts Neck Township and has a home in Rumson they also own homes in Los Angeles and Wellington Florida 230 Evan graduated from Boston College he writes and performs his own songs and won the 2012 Singer Songwriter Competition held during the Boston College s Arts Festival 231 Jessica graduated from Duke University and is a nationally ranked champion equestrian 232 She made her show jumping debut with the Team USA in August 2014 233 Sam is a firefighter in Jersey City 234 On July 17 2022 Springsteen and Scialfa became first time grandparents when their son Sam and his fiancee had a daughter 235 Health Edit Springsteen has avoided hard drugs his entire life 236 Long time bandmate Steven Van Zandt said in 2012 Springsteen is the only guy I know I think the only guy I know at all who never did drugs 236 He has spoken about his struggles with depression which he began to address in his 30s after years of denial 237 During this time he also became frustrated with being an underweight fast food junkie who had to be helped off the stage after a show due to his poor health and thus began following a mostly vegetarian diet while running up to six miles on a treadmill and lifting weights three times a week 236 A 2019 Consequence article celebrating his 70th birthday revealed that he still maintains this routine and diet 238 Views Edit While rejecting religion in his earlier years Springsteen stated in his 2016 autobiography Born to Run I have a personal relationship with Jesus I believe in his power to save love but not to damn In terms of his lapsed Catholicism he has stated that he came to ruefully and bemusedly understand that once you re a Catholic you re always a Catholic He elaborated I don t participate in my religion but I know somewhere deep inside I m still on the team 239 In a 2017 interview with Tom Hanks Springsteen admitted that he was a tax evader early in his career stating that the government did not pay much attention to his taxes until he was put on the cover of Time magazine in 1975 240 Almost all of his income over the next several years went towards paying back his taxes resulting in him having only 20 000 left by his 30th birthday despite multiple best selling records and tours 240 Politics EditSpringsteen supported Barack Obama s 2008 presidential campaign announcing his endorsement in April 2008 103 He appeared at several rallies in support of Obama s campaign throughout 2008 104 At an Ohio rally Springsteen discussed the importance of truth transparency and integrity in government the right of every American to have a job a living wage to be educated in a decent school and a life filled with the dignity of work the promise and the sanctity of home 241 The Topps company marked the support in a commemorative trading card set in which Springsteen makes an appearance on card 59 the O Street Band 242 Despite saying that he would sit out the 2012 presidential election Springsteen campaigned for Obama s re election in Ohio Iowa Virginia Pittsburgh and Wisconsin 123 124 125 Springsteen is an activist for LGBT rights and has spoken out many times as a strong supporter of gay marriage In an April 1996 interview with The Advocate he spoke of the importance of gay marriage You get your license you do all the social rituals It s part of your place in society and in some way part of society s acceptance of you 225 In 2009 he posted the following statement on his website I ve long believed in and have always spoken out for the rights of same sex couples and fully agree with Governor Corzine when he writes that The marriage equality issue should be recognized for what it truly is a civil rights issue that must be approved to assure that every citizen is treated equally under the law 243 In 2012 he lent his support to an ad campaign for gay marriage called The Four 2012 Springsteen noted in the ad I couldn t agree more with that statement and urge those who support equal treatment for our gay and lesbian brothers and sisters to let their voices be heard now 244 In April 2016 Springsteen cancelled a show in Greensboro North Carolina days before it was to take place to protest the state s newly passed Public Facilities Privacy amp Security Act also referred to as the bathroom law which dictates which restrooms transgender people are permitted to use and prevents LGBT citizens from suing over human rights violations in the workplace Springsteen released an official statement on his website The Human Rights Campaign celebrated Springsteen s statement and he has received much praise and gratitude from the LGBT community 245 During a 2017 show in Perth Springsteen made a statement celebrating the post inauguration Women s March against the incoming Trump administration in cities worldwide We re a long way from home and our hearts and spirits are with the hundreds of thousands of women and men that marched yesterday in every city in America and in Melbourne They rallied against hate and division and in support of tolerance inclusion reproductive rights civil rights racial justice LGBTQ rights the environment wage equality gender equality healthcare and immigrant rights We stand with you We are the new American resistance 246 247 248 Springsteen was a staunch critic of Donald Trump throughout his presidency In October 2019 he said Trump doesn t have a grasp of the deep meaning of what it means to be an American 249 and in June 2020 called him a threat to our democracy 250 Springsteen s song The Rising was featured prominently in the 2020 Democratic National Convention in support of Joe Biden accompanied with a new video and campaign slogan TheRising 251 On October 13 2020 author Don Winslow released a video critical of Trump prior to his campaign event in Pennsylvania The video features Springsteen s song Streets of Philadelphia 252 A few days prior to the 2020 United States presidential election Springsteen provided narration for a campaign ad that spotlights Biden s upbringing in Scranton Pennsylvania with My Hometown playing throughout the ad 253 Biden used We Take Care of Our Own as one of his theme songs as Obama had before him in 2012 254 Discography EditMain article Bruce Springsteen discography Studio albums Greetings from Asbury Park N J 1973 The Wild the Innocent amp the E Street Shuffle 1973 Born to Run 1975 Darkness on the Edge of Town 1978 The River 1980 Nebraska 1982 Born in the U S A 1984 Tunnel of Love 1987 Human Touch 1992 Lucky Town 1992 The Ghost of Tom Joad 1995 The Rising 2002 Devils amp Dust 2005 We Shall Overcome The Seeger Sessions 2006 Magic 2007 Working on a Dream 2009 Wrecking Ball 2012 High Hopes 2014 Western Stars 2019 Letter to You 2020 Only the Strong Survive 2022 Concert tours EditSpringsteen has developed a reputation for energetic and long lasting live performances 255 256 Headlining tours Edit Born to Run tours 1974 1977 Darkness Tour 1978 1979 The River Tour 1980 1981 Born in the U S A Tour 1984 1985 Tunnel of Love Express Tour 1988 Bruce Springsteen 1992 1993 World Tour 1992 1993 Ghost of Tom Joad Tour 1995 1997 Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Reunion Tour 1999 2000 The Rising Tour 2002 2003 Devils amp Dust Tour 2005 Bruce Springsteen with the Seeger Sessions Band Tour 2006 Magic Tour 2007 2008 Working on a Dream Tour 2009 Wrecking Ball World Tour 2012 2013 High Hopes Tour 2014 The River Tour 2016 2017 Springsteen on Broadway 2017 2018 2021 2023 Tour 2023 Co headlining tours Edit Human Rights Now 1988 Vote for Change 2004 Achievements awards and nominations EditSee also List of awards and nominations received by Bruce Springsteen Springsteen has sold more than 140 million records worldwide and more than 71 million records in the United States making him one of the world s best selling artists 257 258 He has earned numerous awards for his work including 20 Grammy Awards two Golden Globes an Academy Award and a Special Tony Award for Springsteen on Broadway Springsteen was inducted into both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2009 was named MusiCares person of the year in 2013 and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2016 In May 2021 Springsteen became the eighth recipient of the Woody Guthrie Prize a prize that honors an artist who speaks out for social justice and carries on the spirit of the folk singer 259 In March 2023 Springsteen was awarded the 2021 National Medal of Arts from President Joe Biden at the White House Springsteen was supposed to receive the award in 2021 but the COVID 19 pandemic postponed the ceremonies 260 See also EditForbes list of highest earning musicians Honorific nicknames in popular music List of artists who reached number one on the U S Mainstream Rock chart List of highest grossing live music artists Music of New JerseyNotes Edit Blinded by the Light would later be a hit for Manfred Mann s Earth Band and reach No 1 the only time Springsteen had a No 1 single as a songwriter References Edit In a Culture War Over the Military Bruce Springsteen Stands Alone Time Archived from the original on June 20 2019 Retrieved July 4 2019 Bruce Springsteen Plays Longest U S Concert Over 4 Hours Billboard Archived from the original on November 8 2020 Retrieved October 29 2020 Lenker Maureen Lee November 3 2020 Bruce Springsteen reminds us why he s the Boss becomes first artist with a top 5 album in six decades EW com Retrieved November 14 2022 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link a b Bruce Springsteen ranked 23rd greatest artist Rolling Stone December 3 2010 Archived from the original on March 8 2021 Retrieved March 20 2021 Cross Charles R 1992 Backstreets Springsteen the man and his music Harmony Books p 40 ISBN 0 517 58929 X Alexander John October 31 2019 Bruce Springsteen s mother was born to run in Brooklyn Brooklyn Reporter Archived from the original on July 27 2020 Italian American Contributions National Italian American Foundation Archived from the original on May 20 2013 Retrieved June 21 2013 a b Douglas Springsteen father of rock star Belmont Calif Asbury Park Press Asbury Park New Jersey May 3 1998 p 36 Archived from the original on October 30 2020 Retrieved October 27 2020 via Newspapers com Douglas F Springsteen father of rock star Bruce Springsteen died April 26 at home He was 73 Mr Springsteen was a former bus driver at San Francisco Airport and an Army veteran of World War II He was a former communicant of St Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church Freehold and graduated from its school in 1939 Born in Freehold he lived there for most of his life before moving to California in 1969 Flynn Fiona May 27 2016 9 things you may not have known about Bruce Springsteen Entertainment ie Archived from the original on February 7 2019 Retrieved February 6 2019 a b Green Andy September 27 2016 Bruce Springsteen s Enthralling New Memoir 10 Things We Learned Rolling Stone Archived from the original on September 16 2018 Pamela Springsteen Credits AllMusic Archived from the original on July 27 2020 Retrieved March 8 2020 King Carol June 5 2013 Bruce Springsteen Falls In Love With Chocolate Guitar From Sicily ITALY Magazine Archived from the original on January 11 2019 Retrieved January 11 2019 Bruce Springsteen accepts Ellis Island award with mother and aunts Archived May 19 2021 at the Wayback Machine Video Published July 16 2014 Retrieved May 1 2019 Doris Day and Bruce Springsteen s Groningen Roots The Northern Times October 4 2020 Archived from the original on September 26 2020 Retrieved October 4 2020 Celebrity Baby Names Paul Stanley Family Education Archived from the original on March 9 2016 Retrieved January 13 2019 Luongo Michael November 21 2019 My Hometown exploring Bruce Springsteen s New Jersey roots The Guardian Archived from the original on March 7 2020 Retrieved March 8 2020 a b Marsh Dave 1987 Glory Days Bruce Springsteen in the 1980s pp 88 89 Editors Boss Talk The Tablet February 25 2012 Statham Craig 2013 Springsteen Saint in the City 1949 1974 Soundcheck Books pp 8 9 ISBN 978 0957144231 Springsteen Robert Hilburn 1985 p 28 Loder Kurt December 6 1984 The Rolling Stone Interview Bruce Springsteen Rolling Stone Archived from the original on April 21 2009 Retrieved March 21 2010 The Backstreet Phantom of Rock Time October 27 1975 Archived from the original on October 30 2020 Retrieved October 27 2020 Johnson Gary October 6 2018 Springsteen Pt 1 Freehold Days Michigan Rock and Roll Legends Retrieved October 27 2020 dead link Wire Reports May 2 1998 Douglas Springsteen Father of Famed Singer Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on October 30 2020 Retrieved October 27 2020 Jordan Chris October 21 2019 Bruce Springsteen talks personal trilogy John Wayne and Western Stars The transcript Asbury Park Press Archived from the original on October 24 2019 Retrieved October 27 2020 a b Crandall Bill February 6 2014 10 musicians who saw the Beatles standing there CBS News Archived from the original on April 20 2020 Retrieved April 16 2020 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint bot original URL status unknown link Statham Craig 2013 Springsteen Saint In The City 1949 1974 Soundcheck Books pp 12 13 ISBN 978 0957144231 Carlin Peter Ames October 30 2012 Bruce Simon and Schuster p 26 ISBN 9781439191828 via Internet Archive springsteen rogues elks club freehold a b c Statham Craig 2013 Springsteen Saint In The City 1949 1974 Soundcheck Books ISBN 978 0957144231 Musicians best friends to be honored in Freehold News Transcript New Jersey April 17 2002 Archived from the original on February 23 2009 Retrieved June 9 2012 The Boss Growing Up in Richmond The Commonwealth Times April 29 1986 Archived from the original on April 2 2015 Retrieved January 13 2019 Comaratta Len March 3 2012 Dusting Em Off Bruce Springsteen with Steel Mill Live at the Matrix San Francisco 1 13 70 Archived from the original on October 16 2020 Retrieved October 14 2020 Springsteen Saint In The City 1949 1974 by Craig Statham Soundcheck Books 2013 ISBN 978 0957144231 Elwood Philip January 14 1970 A Memorable Wet Night with the Steel Mill San Francisco Examiner Archived from the original on October 14 2020 Retrieved October 14 2020 Kingdom of Days February 22 E Street Shuffle February 22 2020 Archived from the original on November 1 2020 Retrieved October 27 2020 He s Guilty Goin Back to Georgia and The Train Song This is only Bruce s second time in a recording studio Santelli R Greetings from E Street book Lifton Dave Revisiting Bruce Springsteen s Columbia Records Audition Ultimate Classic Rock Archived from the original on May 7 2019 Retrieved August 6 2019 Fricke David January 21 2009 The Band on Bruce Their Springsteen Rolling Stone Archived from the original on April 1 2009 Retrieved February 7 2009 Bruce Springsteen Bands from Rogues to E Street Band passing from Castiles and Steel Mill brucespringsteen it Archived from the original on March 3 2016 Brett Oliver January 15 2009 What s in a nickname BBC News Archived from the original on January 18 2009 Retrieved January 21 2009 Marchand Francois November 29 2012 Review Bruce Springsteen rocks like a boss in Vancouver The Vancouver Sun Archived from the original on August 30 2017 Retrieved September 7 2014 Bangs Lester July 5 1973 Greetings From Asbury Park NJ Rolling Stone Archived from the original on September 19 2008 Retrieved March 21 2010 Ed Gallucci Photography Ed Gallucci Photography Archived from the original on January 11 2014 Retrieved March 17 2014 Glory Days A Bruce Springsteen Symposium Monmouth University Usi edu Archived from the original on April 2 2015 Retrieved March 17 2014 History of Crawdaddy crawdaddy com August 2 2009 Archived from the original on August 5 2009 Retrieved March 21 2010 Rockwell John May 9 1976 Crawdaddy Party Mirrors Magazine The New York Times Archived from the original on November 2 2012 Retrieved March 21 2010 Bangs Lester November 1975 Hot Rod Rumble in the Promised Land Creem Archived from the original on August 4 2002 Retrieved March 21 2010 Lifton Dave June 4 2020 Which Songs Has Bruce Springsteen Played The Most In Concert UltimateClassicRock com Archived from the original on January 12 2021 Retrieved January 8 2021 Landau Jon May 22 1974 Growing Young With Rock and Roll The Real Paper Archived from the original on January 16 2010 Retrieved March 21 2010 Masur Louis P August 31 2010 Runaway Dream Born to Run and Bruce Springsteen s American Vision Bloomsbury Publishing USA p 48 ISBN 9781608191017 Retrieved November 8 2016 1975 born to run anticipation Marsh Dave 2004 Bruce Springsteen Two Hearts The Definitive Biography 1972 2003 United States Routledge p 94 ISBN 0 203 49470 9 Wings For Wheels 2005 Sony Archived from the original on September 8 2019 Retrieved June 22 2019 via YouTube Perry Kevin EG May 23 2019 Steven Van Zandt Is BFFs with Springsteen But a Star in His Own Right Vice Archived from the original on January 11 2021 Retrieved January 8 2021 Marsh Dave 2003 Bruce Springsteen Two Hearts The Definitive Biography 1972 2003 Routledge pp 14 203 etc ISBN 0 415 96928 X The Moments Rolling Stone June 24 2004 Archived from the original on December 4 2007 How Bruce Springsteen Made Born To Run an American Masterpiece The New York Observer August 25 2015 Archived from the original on July 4 2019 Retrieved July 4 2019 Kahn Ashley November 10 2005 Springsteen Looks Back On Born to Run The Wall Street Journal Archived from the original on July 4 2019 Retrieved July 4 2019 Bruce Springsteen looks for mercy and deliverance in new album Western Stars America Magazine June 20 2019 Archived from the original on July 4 2019 Retrieved July 4 2019 Hiatt Brian November 17 2005 Bruce Springsteen s Born to Run Turns 30 Rolling Stone Archived from the original on September 25 2019 Retrieved July 4 2019 Greene Andy October 27 2015 See Rare Bruce Springsteen Photos From Born to Run Era Rolling Stone Archived from the original on August 6 2019 Retrieved August 6 2019 Lifton Dave Revisiting Bruce Springsteen s Time and Newsweek Covers Ultimate Classic Rock Archived from the original on June 17 2019 Retrieved August 6 2019 Gittins Ian June 1 2008 Bruce Springsteen Emirates Stadium London The Guardian Archived from the original on August 6 2019 Retrieved August 6 2019 Metcalf Stephen May 2 2005 Faux Americana Why I still love Bruce Springsteen Slate Archived from the original on November 1 2013 Retrieved October 30 2013 Carlin Peter 2012 Bruce New York Simon amp Schuster Archived from the original on May 19 2021 Retrieved August 20 2019 Kreps Daniel December 26 2018 Bruce Springsteen Releases Complete No Nukes 1979 Concert Rolling Stone Archived from the original on January 16 2021 Retrieved January 8 2021 Bruce Springsteen reveals he wrote Hungry Heart for the Ramones Entertainment Weekly Archived from the original on August 6 2019 Retrieved August 6 2019 Bruce Springsteen Squeaks By Adele Earns Tenth No 1 Album Billboard Archived from the original on May 30 2013 Retrieved October 23 2019 Guterman Jimmy 2005 Runaway American Dream Cambridge Massachusetts Da Capo Press p 153 How Ronald Reagan Changed Bruce Springsteen s Politics Politico Archived from the original on December 20 2015 Retrieved December 14 2015 Dolan Marc April 6 2014 How Ronald Reagan Changed Bruce Springsteen s Politics Politico Archived from the original on August 9 2014 Retrieved July 28 2014 Billboard May 11 1985 Archived from the original on July 27 2020 Retrieved August 21 2011 Roberts David The Guinness Book of British Hit Albums p 444 Guinness Publishing Ltd 7th edition 1996 ISBN 0 85112 619 7 Backstreets backstreets com Archived from the original on January 8 2021 Retrieved January 7 2021 Guesdon amp Margotin 2020 pp 264 300 Crossland David June 19 2013 Chimes of Freedom How Springsteen Helped Tear Down the Wall Der Spiegel Archived from the original on June 20 2013 Retrieved June 20 2013 Luerssen John D September 1 2012 Bruce Springsteen FAQ All That s Left to Know About the Boss Rowman amp Littlefield ISBN 978 1 61713 460 9 Archived from the original on April 14 2021 Retrieved October 30 2020 Carlin Peter Ames November 8 2012 Bruce Springsteen biography extract The day the Boss shut down the band The Daily Telegraph ISSN 0307 1235 Archived from the original on October 24 2020 Retrieved May 1 2020 Guesdon amp Margotin 2020 p 304 Hyden Steven 2018 Twilight of the Gods Harper Collins p 109 ISBN 978 0062657138 Bruce Springsteen s Speech After Being Inducted into the Rock n Roll Hall of Fame Archived from the original on March 3 2016 Guesdon amp Margotin 2020 p 288 Guesdon amp Margotin 2020 p 354 Masciotra David September 16 2017 Bruce Springsteen s The Ghost of Tom Joad then and now Salon Archived from the original on January 4 2021 Retrieved January 7 2021 Tyrangiel Josh Carcaterra Kate August 5 2002 Bruce Rising Time pp 2 of 6 Archived from the original on December 24 2007 Retrieved March 23 2008 Fricke David February 5 2009 Bringing It All Back Home PDF Rolling Stone Archived from the original PDF on March 25 2009 Retrieved May 3 2009 Mar Alex February 25 2005 Springsteen to Induct U2 into Hall of Fame Rolling Stone Archived from the original on April 3 2015 Retrieved March 18 2015 Guesdon amp Margotin 2020 pp 609 610 Wiederhorn Jon September 16 2003 Springsteen Is Box Office Boss With Projected 120M Gross MTV Archived from the original on March 5 2010 Bruce Springsteen National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences June 4 2019 Archived from the original on April 6 2019 Retrieved March 27 2018 100 Best Songs of the Decade Rolling Stone December 9 2009 Archived from the original on December 13 2009 Retrieved December 19 2009 Anderson Kyle September 29 2011 U2 Rihanna Amy Winehouse Foo Fighters fill out VH1 s 100 Greatest Songs of the 00s Entertainment Weekly Archived from the original on March 19 2013 Retrieved June 24 2012 Runtagh Jordan Bienstock Richard February 11 2016 15 Great Grammy Tribute Performances Rolling Stone Archived from the original on February 26 2021 Retrieved January 8 2021 McShane Larry February 16 2005 New Springsteen Album Due in April ABC News Associated Press Archived from the original on April 11 2005 Springsteen Does Seeger On First Covers Album Billboard March 2 2006 Archived from the original on January 12 2021 Retrieved January 8 2021 Manzoor Sarfraz May 14 2006 A runaway American dream The Guardian London Archived from the original on January 26 2008 Retrieved April 27 2010 Bruce Springsteen and the Seeger Sessions Band PopMatters Concert Review PopMatters Archived from the original on May 25 2011 Retrieved August 27 2010 Tianen Dave June 15 2006 Born to strum Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Archived from the original on November 18 2006 Chicago Tribune Retrieved August 27 2010 dead link Terry Magovern Rest in Peace Archived February 8 2009 at the Wayback Machine Backstreets com August 1 2007 Retrieved August 28 2007 Guesdon amp Margotin 2020 p 503 Springsteen Bandmate on Hiatus for Health Reasons Reuters November 22 2007 Archived from the original on December 17 2007 Retrieved March 22 2008 Piccoli Sean April 17 2008 Springsteen concert postponed over bandmate s death South Florida Sun Sentinel Retrieved April 17 2008 permanent dead link a b Springsteen endorses Obama for president USA Today Associated Press April 16 2008 Archived from the original on April 17 2008 Retrieved April 16 2008 a b Bruce Springsteen Adds Acoustic Obama Shows Pitchfork October 3 2008 Archived from the original on April 9 2009 Retrieved August 27 2010 Springsteen plays new Working on a Dream tune at Obama rally in Cleveland The Plain Dealer November 2 2008 Archived from the original on March 3 2016 Hendrix Steve Mummolo Jonathan January 18 2009 Jamming on the Mall for Obama The Washington Post Springsteen Rahman Snag Musical Golden Globes Billboard September 14 2009 Archived from the original on April 25 2014 Retrieved August 27 2010 Archived from the original on January 5 2011 Bardsley Garth January 12 2009 How Mickey Rourke Got Bruce Springsteen s Wrestler Song For Free MTV Movie News MTV Archived from the original on July 29 2011 Retrieved December 7 2011 Report The Boss to play Super Bowl halftime show Seattle Post Intelligencer August 11 2008 Archived from the original on December 31 2008 Pareles Jon February 1 2009 The Rock Laureate The New York Times Archived from the original on June 9 2011 Retrieved January 29 2009 a b Bruce Springsteen s Working on a Dream Set For January 27 Release on Columbia Records Press release Shore Fire Media November 17 2008 Archived from the original on July 16 2011 Retrieved November 18 2008 Lapointe Joe January 30 2009 Springsteen Promises 12 Minute Party at Halftime The New York Times Archived from the original on April 17 2009 Retrieved April 27 2010 Carpenter Les January 29 2009 No Cheering in the Press Box Except When It Comes to the Boss The Washington Post Archived from the original on November 12 2012 Retrieved July 23 2011 Wallace Lindsay February 10 2009 Bruce Springsteen Exclusive I Didn t Even Know I Was Up For A Grammy MTV News Archived from the original on March 17 2009 Retrieved March 7 2009 Pareles Jon October 11 2009 For Springsteen and Giants Stadium a Last Dance The New York Times Archived from the original on July 8 2012 Retrieved October 14 2009 Obama honours Bruce Springsteen BBC News December 7 2009 Archived from the original on January 5 2010 Retrieved April 27 2010 The Voices Artists of the Decade Rolling Stone Archived from the original on December 13 2009 Retrieved December 19 2009 Top Touring Artists of the Decade Billboard December 11 2009 Archived from the original on March 16 2013 Retrieved December 19 2009 Clarence Clemons dies of complications from stroke The Wall Street Journal June 19 2011 Archived from the original on November 21 2011 Retrieved November 20 2011 Bruce Springsteen Announces New Album Wrecking Ball Pitchfork January 18 2012 Archived from the original on March 21 2012 Retrieved March 19 2012 Bruce Springsteen Squeaks By Adele Earns Tenth No 1 Album Billboard September 14 2009 Archived from the original on May 30 2013 Retrieved March 19 2012 From the road Helsinki Brucespringsteen net July 31 2012 Archived from the original on October 2 2012 Retrieved October 12 2012 a b Knickerbocker Brad October 13 2012 Bruce Springsteen rocks out for Barack Obama The Christian Science Monitor Archived from the original on March 3 2016 a b Orel Matt November 5 2012 Bruce joins President Obama and Jay Z in Ohio Brucespringsteen net Archived from the original on November 9 2012 Retrieved November 6 2012 a b Sweet Lynn November 6 2012 Obama makes last pitch with Boss Jay Z in Ohio Chicago Sun Times Archived from the original on November 9 2012 Retrieved November 6 2012 Roger Waters and Bruce Springsteen win big at Billboard Touring Awards Wxyz com November 10 2012 Archived from the original on May 22 2013 Retrieved November 13 2012 Madonna Edges Out Springsteen As Music s Top Money Maker Starpulse com February 23 2013 Archived from the original on February 2 2014 Retrieved February 25 2013 Bruce Springsteen Nabs Three GRAMMY Nominations Springsteen Gets Two More CBS New York December 6 2012 Archived from the original on June 7 2013 Retrieved December 15 2012 Bruce Springsteen Added To GRAMMY Performance Lineup Press release National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences February 2 2012 Archived from the 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setlist September 8 2016 Archived from the original on September 8 2016 Retrieved September 8 2016 Springsteen breaks his record for longest US show MSN Archived from the original on August 27 2016 Retrieved November 22 2019 Bruce Springsteen Beyonce post top grossing tours of 2016 Los Angeles Times December 30 2016 Archived from the original on December 30 2016 Retrieved December 30 2016 The Presidential Medal of Freedom White House Archived from the original on January 20 2017 Retrieved November 25 2016 via National Archives Company Rolling Stone Bruce Springsteen Robert De Niro Lorne Michaels Awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom Archived from the original on November 17 2016 Backstreets com 2017 Setlists Backstreets com Archived from the original on January 20 2017 Retrieved January 19 2017 Bruce Springsteen plays farewell gig for Barack Obama at the White House The Guardian January 19 2017 ISSN 0261 3077 Archived from the original on January 19 2017 Retrieved January 19 2017 Bruce Springsteen heads to Broadway this fall New York Post June 16 2017 Archived from the original on June 16 2017 Bruce Springsteen Is Bringing His Music and His Memories to Broadway The New York Times August 9 2017 Archived from the original on May 2 2019 Retrieved August 9 2017 Ticketmaster August 30 2017 SpringsteenBroadway has been Extended More information coming today There will NOT be any additional codes released for today s onsale Tweet via Twitter Springsteen on Broadway Extends Through June Playbill Playbill November 27 2017 Archived from the original on April 1 2019 Retrieved January 18 2018 Paulson Michael March 21 2018 Bruce Springsteen Signs Up for More Time on Broadway The New York Times Archived from the original on December 16 2018 Retrieved January 13 2019 Bruce Springsteen on Broadway What comes after the Tony Award USA Today Archived from the original on May 3 2018 Retrieved May 3 2018 Fear David December 1 2018 Trailers of the Week Springsteen on Broadway I Am the Night Artemis Fowl Rolling Stone Archived from the original on December 2 2018 Retrieved December 2 2018 Bruce Springsteen s Western Stars Grows More Satisfying with Repeated Exposure PopMatters June 3 2019 Retrieved December 31 2019 Bruce Springsteen to Debut Western Stars Film at Toronto Film Festival Rolling Stone July 23 2019 Archived from the original on July 23 2019 Retrieved July 23 2019 Bruce Springsteen Turns Director for Inventive Concert Film Western Stars IndieWire July 23 2019 Archived from the original on July 23 2019 Retrieved July 23 2019 Bruce Springsteen reveals new Western Stars film soundtrack Stream Yahoo October 25 2019 Archived from the original on November 7 2019 Retrieved November 7 2019 Dropkick Murphys to Play Audience Less Concert From Fenway Park With Bruce Springsteen Dconsequenceofsound net May 18 2020 Archived from the original on May 24 2020 Retrieved May 18 2020 Dropkick Murphys and Bruce Springsteen s Fenway Park Show Raises a Ton of Money For Boston Charities Billboard May 3 2020 Archived from the original on June 4 2020 Retrieved May 6 2020 a b Bruce Springsteen Drops New Song Letter to You Album Due Next Month Listen Variety September 10 2020 Archived from the original on September 10 2020 Retrieved September 10 2020 a b The Earliest Bird Top Release October 23rd 2020 Bruce Springsteen s Letter To You Reviewed Rock NYC October 23 2020 Springsteen Bruce springsteen September 23 2020 Count the band in then kick into overdrive By the end of the set we leave no one alive Ghosts runnin through the night Our spirits filled with light Ghosts out tomorrow t co 2c86E5tUlY Tweet Retrieved December 31 2020 via Twitter Murphy Chris October 23 2020 Bruce Springsteen Writes a Letter to You Releases New Album and Apple TV Doc Vulture a b Hiatt Brian October 5 2020 Bruce Springsteen Announces Letter to You Documentary Release Date Rolling Stone Archived from the original on January 18 2021 Retrieved April 25 2021 Bruce Springsteen Letter to You Pitchfork Archived from the original on March 1 2021 Retrieved April 25 2021 Martoccio Angie November 16 2020 Bleachers Return With Chinatown Featuring Bruce Springsteen Rolling Stone Archived from the original on December 5 2020 Retrieved December 10 2020 Daly Rhian July 30 2021 Bleachers Take The Sadness Out Of Saturday Night review riotous and reflective third album NME Archived from the original on August 2 2021 Retrieved August 2 2021 Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Dua Lipa Morgan Wallen to Perform on SNL Spin November 25 2020 Archived from the original on November 25 2020 Retrieved November 25 2020 Inside new podcast featuring Bruce Springsteen in conversation with Barack Obama ABC News February 22 2021 Archived from the original on February 23 2021 Retrieved February 23 2021 9 Memorable Moments From Clive Davis Grammy Museum Benefit With Elton John H E R amp More Billboard May 16 2021 Retrieved May 20 2021 Bruce Springsteen Joins John Mellencamp on Contemplative Wasted Days MSN Retrieved September 29 2021 Springsteen on Broadway to Return to Broadway for Limited Run Beginning June 26 Broadway World Retrieved June 7 2021 Bruce Springsteen on Broadway and beyond E Street Band tour new music coming MSN Retrieved June 10 2021 Bruce Springsteen Talks Broadway Return New Music with Killers and John Mellencamp and 2022 tour Variety June 10 2021 Retrieved June 10 2021 The Killers Dustland Tweet Retrieved June 10 2021 non primary source needed Kreps Daniel September 11 2021 See Bruce Springsteen Perform I ll See You in My Dreams at 9 11 20th Anniversary Memorial Rolling Stone Retrieved September 11 2021 Bruce Springsteen plugs in goes gray at Steve Earle autism benefit in New York City Yahoo December 13 2021 Retrieved December 16 2021 Max Weinberg talks about upcoming Jukebox shows Springsteen tour and holiday magic MSN December 14 2021 Retrieved December 16 2021 Bruce Springsteen Sells His Masters Publishing Catalog to Sony for 500 Million Pitchfork December 16 2021 Retrieved December 16 2021 Greenburg Zack O Malley January 14 2022 Nine of the 10 Highest Paid Musicians of 2021 Were Men Rolling Stone Archived from the original on January 14 2022 Retrieved January 16 2022 Greene Andy May 24 2022 Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band Announce 2023 World Tour Rolling Stone Retrieved May 24 2022 Grein Paul September 26 2022 Bruce Springsteen amp Patti Scialfa to Perform at Inaugural Albie Awards Billboard Retrieved September 27 2022 Aswad Jem September 29 2022 Bruce Springsteen to Release Only the Strong Survive New Album of Classic Soul Covers MSN Retrieved September 30 2022 Heching Dan November 9 2022 Bruce Springsteen to take over The Tonight Show hosted by his best impersonator Jimmy Fallon MSN Retrieved November 10 2022 Hagen Mark January 18 2009 Meet the new boss The Guardian London Archived from the original on September 30 2013 Retrieved September 18 2010 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time Rolling Stone Archived from the original on 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Springsteen and the E Street Band Los Angeles Times Archived from the original on January 25 2021 Retrieved March 2 2021 Bilderbeck Poppy June 26 2022 Glastonbury Viewers Hilariously Ask Why Bruce Springsteen Was Booed During Surprise Performance Retrieved November 13 2022 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link Bruce Springsteen gets state day in NJ misses American Music Honors event due to COVID Asbury Park Press Retrieved April 16 2023 Springsteen Keeps Love Life in Dark Daily News New York September 4 1985 Archived from the original on May 14 2019 Retrieved May 14 2019 Interview with Patti Scialfa Red Headed Woman pp 42 44 Q magazine 1993 Carlin Peter Ames 2012 Bruce New York City Simon amp Schuster p 343 ISBN 978 1439191835 Springsteen model married this morning The Bulletin Bend Oregon United Press International May 13 1985 p A1 Archived from the original on April 14 2021 Retrieved September 19 2020 Bruce actress fool fans with early wedding Spokane Chronicle May 13 1985 p B2 Archived from the original on April 14 2021 Retrieved September 19 2020 Springsteen marries in secret ceremony Eugene Register Guard Associated Press May 14 1985 p 1A Archived from the original on April 14 2021 Retrieved September 19 2020 Carlin Peter Ames 2012 Bruce Simon amp Schuster pp 345 346 ISBN 978 1439191835 Katz Larry September 15 2004 E Street detour Patti Scialfa leaves hubby Bruce Springsteen at home during road trip Boston Herald Angelfire com Archived from the original on September 27 2013 Retrieved October 13 2013 How Bruce Springsteen s Wife Supported Him Through His Battle With Depression MSN Archived from the original on August 6 2019 Retrieved August 6 2019 Springsteen s wife seeks divorce Eugene Register Guard Oregon news services August 31 1988 p 3A Archived from the original on April 14 2021 Retrieved September 19 2020 Springsteen wife divorced fair settlement kept secret Eugene Register Guard Oregon news services December 16 1988 p 2A Archived from the original on April 14 2021 Retrieved September 19 2020 Rocker Springsteen wife reach divorce agreement United Press International December 15 1988 Archived from the original on September 27 2018 Retrieved May 22 2018 a b c Wieder Judy 1995 Bruce Springsteen The Advocate Interview The Advocate Archived from the original doc on March 13 2012 Retrieved June 9 2012 via brucespringsteen hu Carlin Peter Ames Bruce Springsteen book excerpt From a Tunnel of Love with Julianne Phillips to Dancing in the Dark with Patti Scialfa Daily News New York Archived from the original on August 6 2019 Retrieved August 6 2019 a b c d Kirkpatrick Rob 2007 The Words And Music of Bruce Springsteen Westport Connecticut Greenwood Publishing Group p 120 ISBN 978 0275989385 a b c d Sawyers June Skinner 2004 Racing in the Street The Bruce Springsteen Reader Penguin Books ISBN 0142003549 Kirkpatrick Rob 2007 The Words And Music of Bruce Springsteen Greenwood Publishing Group p 149 ISBN 978 0275989385 David Mark March 19 2010 The Boss Buys and Sells at a Loss in Flahreeduh Variety Archived from the original on November 9 2019 Retrieved November 9 2019 Festival Highlights Boston College Archived from the original on July 29 2013 Retrieved September 24 2012 Jaffer Nancy October 9 2009 Jessica Springsteen finishes second at Talent Search Finals East deciding whether to pursue equitation The Star Ledger Archived from the original on March 4 2016 Anderson Nicola Bruce Springsteen attends Dublin Horse Show to cheer on daughter Jess Irish Independent Archived from the original on September 25 2015 Retrieved August 10 2014 Hochron Adam January 17 2014 Monmouth County Fire Academy Graduates 42 New Members Police amp Fire Marlboro ColtsNeck NJ Patch Marlboro coltsneck patch com Archived from the original on January 24 2014 Retrieved January 21 2014 Bruce Springsteen is a grandfather See Lily Harper Springsteen his son Sam s new baby broadwayworld com July 17 2022 Retrieved July 22 2022 a b c Hall Landon December 6 2012 Springsteen s fitness Reason to believe Orange County Register Archived from the original on July 27 2020 Retrieved May 1 2020 Bruce Springsteen says years of depression left him crushed The Guardian September 7 2016 Archived from the original on December 18 2016 Retrieved December 18 2016 Bruce Springsteen works out at 9 99 a month New Jersey gym September 24 2019 Archived from the original on December 7 2019 Retrieved December 4 2019 Deigan Tom March 22 2021 Proud Irish American Bruce Springsteen says deep down he s still Catholic IrishCentral Archived from the original on March 16 2017 Retrieved February 18 2017 a b Melas Chloe April 29 2017 Bruce Springsteen explains why he used to not pay taxes CNN Archived from the original on June 8 2017 Retrieved June 24 2017 Bruce Springsteen News Recording Artists Eleventh Hour Campaigns Mostly for Obama idiomag November 3 2008 Archived from the original on December 24 2008 Retrieved November 3 2008 Backstreets com Springsteen News Archive Jan 2009 backstreets com Archived from the original on April 14 2021 Retrieved March 26 2021 Rocker Bruce Springsteen endorses N J gay marriage bill The Star Ledger Archived from the original on October 22 2013 Retrieved December 8 2009 Wong Curtis October 2 2012 Bruce Springsteen Stars in Gay Marriage Social Media Campaign HuffPost Archived from the original on October 3 2012 Retrieved October 2 2012 McCormick Joseph Patrick April 8 2016 Bruce Springsteen dumps North Carolina over bigoted anti LGBT law PinkNews Archived from the original on April 9 2016 Retrieved April 9 2016 Kreps Daniel January 22 2017 Bruce Springsteen on Women s March The New American Resistance Rolling Stone Archived from the original on January 23 2017 Retrieved September 20 2018 Bruce Springsteen January 22 2017 Bruce Springsteen in Perth January 22 2017 archived from the original on April 13 2018 retrieved September 20 2018 euronews in English January 23 2017 Bruce Springsteen joins new resistance against demagogue Trump archived from the original on February 2 2019 retrieved September 20 2018 Henderson Cydney Bruce Springsteen President Trump doesn t understand what it means to be American USA Today Archived from the original on August 27 2020 Retrieved August 18 2020 Bruce Springsteen Calls President Trump a Threat to Our Democracy Billboard June 24 2020 Archived from the original on August 18 2020 Retrieved August 18 2020 Bruce Springsteen debuts new The Rising video during Democratic National Convention NME August 18 2020 Archived from the original on August 18 2020 Retrieved August 18 2020 Bruce Springsteen amp Don Winslow Team On Video Just In Time For President Trump s Pennsylvania Rally WATCH Deadline Hollywood October 13 2020 Archived from the original on October 13 2020 Retrieved October 14 2020 Kreps Daniel October 31 2020 Bruce Springsteen Narrates Joe Biden s Hometown Scranton Ad Rolling Stone Archived from the original on November 6 2020 Retrieved November 5 2020 Scinto Maria November 7 2020 Joe Biden s Victory Speech Walkout Song Explained TheList com Archived from the original on January 21 2021 Retrieved April 29 2021 Bruce Springsteen delivers historic marathon at the Key The Seattle Times March 24 2016 Archived from the original on July 4 2019 Retrieved July 4 2019 Bruce Springsteen Can his shows be too long The Star August 24 2012 Archived from the original on July 4 2019 Retrieved July 4 2019 Top Selling Artists December 04 2013 Record Industry Association of America Archived from the original on December 9 2013 Retrieved December 4 2013 Glatter Hayley May 10 2018 Throwback Thursday Bruce Springsteen Plays in Cambridge Boston Archived from the original on May 10 2018 Retrieved May 10 2018 Bruce Springsteen wins 2021 Woody Guthrie Prize Billboard May 4 2021 Archived from the original on May 5 2021 Retrieved May 5 2021 Bruce Springsteen to get National Medal of Arts from Biden CBS News March 21 2023 Retrieved March 21 2023 Sources Edit Alterman Eric It Ain t No Sin To Be Glad You re Alive The Promise of Bruce Springsteen Little Brown 1999 ISBN 0 316 03885 7 Coles Robert Bruce Springsteen s America The People Listening a Poet Singing Random House 2005 ISBN 0 375 50559 8 Cullen Jim Born in the U S A Bruce Springsteen and the American Tradition 1997 Middletown Connecticut Wesleyan University Press 2005 New edition of 1997 study book places Springsteen s work in the broader context of American history and culture ISBN 0 8195 6761 2 Eliot Marc with Appel Mike Down Thunder Road Simon amp Schuster 1992 ISBN 0 671 86898 5 Graff Gary The Ties That Bind Bruce Springsteen A to E to Z Visible Ink 2005 ISBN 1 57859 151 1 Guterman Jimmy Runaway American Dream Listening to Bruce Springsteen Da Capo 2005 ISBN 0 306 81397 1 Guesdon Jean Michel Margotin Phillipe October 6 2020 Bruce Springsteen All the Songs The Story Behind Every Track Great Britain Cassell ISBN 978 1784726492 Hilburn Robert Springsteen Rolling Stone Press 1985 ISBN 0 684 18456 7 Knobler Peter with special assistance from Greg Mitchell Who Is Bruce Springsteen and Why Are We Saying All These Wonderful Things About Him Crawdaddy March 1973 Marsh Dave Bruce Springsteen Two Hearts The Definitive Biography 1972 2003 Archived July 27 2020 at the Wayback Machine Routledge 2003 ISBN 0 415 96928 X Consolidation of two previous Marsh biographies Born to Run 1981 and Glory Days 1987 Wolff Daniel July 4 Asbury Park A History of the Promised Land Bloomsbury 2005 ISBN 1 58234 509 0External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bruce Springsteen Wikiquote has quotations related to Bruce Springsteen Official website Bruce Springsteen Archives Bruce Springsteen at IMDb Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Bruce Springsteen amp oldid 1154703808, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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