Bruce Springsteen > Backstage

Born in New Jersey, Bruce Springsteen aimed at a folk career in New York City, but returned to Asbury Park, redefined his style, and found a place fronting the E Street Band on his way to a contract with Columbia Records in 1972. 1973 saw the release...more

Born in New Jersey, Bruce Springsteen aimed at a folk career in New York City, but returned to Asbury Park, redefined his style, and found a place fronting the E Street Band on his way to a contract with Columbia Records in 1972. 1973 saw the release of his debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., and established Springsteen as a songwriter as fine as the untouchable Dylan, but with working-class, identifiable roots that spoke of everyday heroes and man's universal throes. A dispute with his manager silenced Springsteen for three years after 1975's hugely successful Born to Run, and the issue released a logjam of creativity upon its resolution. With the E Street Band, he released Darkness on the Edge of Town in 1978, The River in '80, and the brooding and beautiful Nebraska in '82. "Hungry Heart" from The River, cemented Springsteen's status as an international star. His abandonment of introverted lyrics for the exuberant sounds of Born in the U.S.A. in 1984 let him to embark on a two-year, highly successful—and hugely publicized—tour. Springsteen's career has been characterized by its versatility and longevity, swinging from soulful introspection to plugged-in arena rock, group to solo efforts, and widespread touring to intense periods of writing. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, Springsteen reunited with the E Street Band to go on tour. The shattering events of 9/11 sent the Boss back into the recording studio and led to The Rising, an eloquently honest message of hope wrapped in rock 'n' roll rhythms which earned multiple Grammy awards in 2003. Magic, released in 2007, also garnered rave reviews from critics and fans, and further cemented Springsteen's reputation as one of the finest and most accessible songwriters ever to grace the hallowed halls of rock 'n' roll. Read more about Bruce Springsteen in Crawdaddy!: "Was Bob Dylan the Previous Bruce Springsteen?" "God Bless Bruce Springsteen" "Dear Bruce, It's Not You, It's Me" "Bruce Springsteen: Magic" "The Wild, the Innocent, and the Craig Finn Shuffle"...less