Good morning. It's Saturday, Aug. 23, and we're bringing you the latest Society & Culture newsletter. Every week, we provide fascinating deep dives into the worlds of art, music, literature, film, food, sports, entertainment, and more.
This week, we're covering Bruce Springsteen, the legendary singer-songwriter. Springsteen's "Born to Run," considered by many critics to be one of rock's greatest albums, turns 50 Monday. We knew it was the perfect time to explain how a working-class Jersey kid became the Boss.
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—Kevin Kearney, 1440 Society & Culture Section Editor |
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Background
Bruce Springsteen is an American singer and songwriter from New Jersey who is renowned for his lyrical storytelling, eclectic discography, and over-the-top, marathon live performances. He’s often affectionately called “the Boss,” a nickname that began as a joke but eventually stuck.
Springsteen has sold over 150 million albums, won 20 Grammy Awards, and is considered one of the most important rock ‘n’ roll musicians of all time. (See a list of his best songs.)
Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ
Springsteen grew up in Freehold, New Jersey, a working-class enclave about 50 miles south of New York. Inspired by seeing Elvis Presley’s infamous 1956 performance on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” he began obsessively playing a cheap guitar his mother rented for him.
At 16, he joined local garage rock band The Castiles. He eventually moved to Asbury Park, the center of the Jersey Shore music scene, where Springsteen cycled through several other bands—including a short-lived jam band featuring one member who played the board game Monopoly onstage—and began developing his voice as a songwriter. (See an early solo performance.)
Rock 'n' Roll Future
Springsteen signed with Columbia Records in 1972 and released two albums the following year. Both garnered effusive critical praise, including comparisons to Bob Dylan. Jon Landau, a writer for a Boston newspaper, saw Springsteen and his recently named E Street Band perform in 1974 and wrote, “I saw rock and roll future, and its name is Bruce Springsteen.”
Despite the positive review, Springsteen’s early records were commercial flops, leading Columbia to offer the songwriter an ultimatum: He would deliver a hit single or be dropped by the label.
Springsteen brought Landau on as a coproducer and spent six months recording that single, a dramatic anthem of small-town defiance indebted to Phil Spector’s “Wall of Sound” called “Born to Run.” The accompanying album of the same name would sell over 7 million copies, saving Springsteen’s career and turning him into a superstar.
Glory Days
Touring on the success of “Born to Run,” Springsteen and the E Street Band established themselves as a must-see live act, famous for their high-powered concerts. (See a list of Springsteen’s greatest performances.)
Springsteen’s songwriting turned darker on subsequent albums “Darkness on the Edge of Town” and “The River,” as he began exploring the harsher realities of adulthood and working-class life. The 1982 album “Nebraska” was his most gothic, both lyrically and sonically. Inspired by the abrasive post-punk duo Suicide, the album featured haunted stories of desperate murderers and was recorded alone at home on a basic 4-track recorder, a rarity at the time for such a high-profile artist.
If “Nebraska” was a left turn, “Born in the USA” was yet another. The album was Springsteen’s most pop-focused, with blaring synths and a pumping backbeat. It was a sensation, with five singles that reached the top 10, several iconic music videos, a massive arena tour, and a public disagreement with President Ronald Reagan. The record would eventually become one of the bestselling albums of all time.
Reason to Believe
Springsteen continued evolving through the next few decades, taking time away from the E Street Band to pursue more subdued records, including the single “Streets of Philadelphia,” which earned an Academy Award in 1994. In 2018, Springsteen won a Tony Award, making him one Emmy away from the illustrious EGOT.
In 1999, Springsteen was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In 2014, he inducted the E Street Band.
Although he’s six decades into his career, Springsteen remains both popular and influential, which some suggest is due to his unique, story-centered songwriting. |
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Explore Bruce Springsteen |
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Watch Springsteen rip through ‘Because the Night’ backed by the Roots |
The song may have been made famous by Patti Smith, but Springsteen wrote it, and it's since become a staple of his live shows. This 2010 performance on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” features some help from legendary hip-hop band the Roots, who push the song to a new level. Watch it here. |
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The song Springsteen wrote for the Ramones |
After seeing the groundbreaking punk band in Asbury Park, Springsteen went home to write them a song. When Jon Landau heard “Hungry Heart,” he told Springsteen he couldn’t give it away, especially after seeing the success of “Because the Night,” another Springsteen composition that became a massive hit for Patti Smith. Read about it here. |
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Watch Springsteen open a somber 9/11 tribute |
“America: A Tribute to Heroes” was a fundraising telethon on Sept. 21, 2001, and simulcast across the four major networks. Springsteen opened the program with “My City of Ruins,” a song originally written about Asbury Park that took on new significance after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Watch it here. |
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Flannery O'Connor's impact on Springsteen |
Springsteen became obsessed with the “Southern gothic” writer when he began working on the songs for “Nebraska,” inspired by O’Connor’s tragic characters and grotesque imagery. Biographer Warren Zanes unpacks how that influence seeped into Springsteen’s most haunted album. Read about it here. |
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Watch Springsteen's iconic European debut |
The Nov. 18, 1975, show at London’s Hammersmith Odeon was part of a much-hyped promotional campaign around “Born to Run.” Springsteen and the E Street Band delivered, producing a show that superfans consider among the best in the Boss’ legendary career. Watch it here. |
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How Springsteen's relationship with his father informed his art |
Springsteen’s father didn’t understand why his son was interested in pursuing a music career, leading to a tense relationship that was often exacerbated by his father’s struggles with mental illness. This conversation for the “WTF” podcast unpacks how that history has informed his songwriting. Listen here. |
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Beyond our weekly deep dives, we love finding great takes on the culture currently shaping our lives. Here are some of the best reactions, profiles, and think pieces we encountered this week.
> The Science of Why Humans Are Obsessed With Stadium Concerts
Time | Lindsay A. Fleming. In honor of the 60th anniversary of the Beatles at Shea Stadium, Fleming, a cognitive scientist, explores why we continue flocking to arena shows, despite poor acoustics and expensive tickets. It's an interesting look at the way sound affects our brains and builds community. (Read)
> A Famed Director Tried to Build a Fan Base for His Movie. It Was Awkward.
The Atlantic | Shirley Li. Francis Ford Coppola's 2024 film "Megalopolis" was a commercial and critical flop. Now Coppola is attempting to turn it into a cult classic by taking it on tour. Li attends one of the dates, hoping to figure out what the film legend hopes to accomplish. (Read)
> When Mealtime Was Epic
Eater | Jaya Saxena. Epic Meal Time was one of the earliest monetized YouTube channels, churning out viral, absurd food videos through the early 2010s. This retrospective unpacks how the company built a template for much of the internet's food-related content, for better or worse. (Read)
> How We Got the Internet All Wrong
Substack | Yascha Mounk. At the start of the century, the internet was seen as a utopian playground for social connection. Mounk, a professor at Johns Hopkins, argues that recent data suggests the web's evolution has instead led to alienation and a tattered cultural fabric. (Read)
> They're Losing Their Vision. They Still Love Playing Tennis.
NY Times | John Leland. Leland profiles Sound of Tennis, a New York program that teaches blind and vision-impaired people how to enjoy the sport. For many, it's an opportunity to test the limits of their abilities and challenge their own expectations. (Read) |
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In partnership with EnergyX |
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How General Motors Is Securing Lithium Supply |
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The world will need to produce 3.8 million tons of lithium per year by 2035 to meet the demand for electric vehicles. GM is turning to a startup to unlock a US-based lithium supply: EnergyX.
EnergyX’s patented LiTAS® technology can extract up to 300% more lithium than traditional methods. GM led a $50 million funding round in EnergyX earlier this year, and EnergyX is now opening up the opportunity to join them to all investors. Don’t miss out: Become an EnergyX shareholder today.* |
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Please support our sponsors! |
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New in 1440 Society & Culture |
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“[Springsteen is] like a cross between Chuck Berry, early Bob Dylan, and Marlon Brando. Every gesture, every syllable adds something to his ultimate goal—to liberate our spirit while he liberates his by baring his soul through his music.” |
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Why 1440? The printing press was invented around the year 1440, spreading knowledge to the masses and changing the course of history. More facts: In every day, there are 1,440 minutes. We’re here to make each one count. |
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*Disclosure: This is a paid advertisement for EnergyX's Regulation A+ Offering. Please read the offering circular at invest.energyx.com/. |
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