UAWIL #179: Bruce Springsteen - Born in the USA
Bruce Springsteen struck gold (and 17x platinum) with Born in the USA with 7 top 10 singles and was on top of the world. But how cool could he be if your mom likes him? That's a question two 11 year olds at the time of release contemplate as this classic turns 50!
By 1984, Bruce Springsteen had long been hailed by rock critics as the next great American bard for the working man. His ability to mix heavy lyrics about the struggles of everyday life with catchy pop/rock rhythms had elevated him to rock royalty status before he ever made his 7th album. Released June 4, 1984 as a follow up to the melancholy and personal Nebraska, Born in the USA reunited Bruce with the E. Street Band and The Boss brought 70 songs for the gang to work into what would become the biggest selling album of 1985. The result was a record that sold over 30 million copies worldwide, contained 7 top 10 singles in the US and won Springsteen his first grammy (Dancing in the Dark).
While many of the tracks on the album can boast big sing-along choruses (Working On The Highway, Glory Days, Born in the USA), the subject matter of the song may not always be the kind you shout and pump your fist to. Bruce can take a song about Vietnam veterans not being treated fairly into a stadium anthem or a song about going to jail for getting involved with an underage girl into a rockabilly runner. But the deeper tracks Downbound Train and No Surrender may be among the best songs on the album despite more than half of the record being hits on the charts. While The Wolf and Action Jackson dive into these tracks as they turn 50, can they separate their emotions from hearing these songs as kids, remove the disdain for people who scream along to Born in the USA without understanding the song's meaning and try to be impartial despite the memories of moms loving Bruce as this time? It's a challenge...
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