EDIT: My sources for any reviews include published works by authors Robert Hilburn and Dave Marsh, along with Backstreets magazine.

Album Review: Born in the USA 5 out of 5 stars

Released June 4, 1984, Born in the USA catapulted Bruce Springsteen to superstardom. It remains the biggest selling album in the history of Columbia Records. More than 15 million units were sold in the United States and the album produced seven Top 10 singles.

Born in the USA is somewhat of a departure for Springsteen in the sense that it was a commercial and radio-friendly collection of songs, with no song longer than five minutes. The album consists of twelve songs recorded between 1982 and 1984, a time in which Bruce sifted through over 60 songs before the final track listing was issued. About half of what would become Born in the USA was written and recorded during the time Springsteen released his previous record, 1982’s Nebraska. These sessions yielded the title track, Working on the Highway, I’m Goin’ Down, Glory Days, and My Hometown. Darlington County was actually written even earlier, dating back to 1978.

Since we have become a compact disc society, it is difficult for some to remember that albums and cassettes had two sides of recordings. Side One of Born in the USA is primarily focused on detailed storytelling and specific characters: the veteran in “Born in the USA,” the protagonist and Wayne in “Darlington County,” and Joe from “Downbound Train.” The man from “Born in the USA” is the same character from “Darkness on the Edge of Town,” someone who has lost everything important in his life and who is having a difficult time adjusting after his return from Vietnam:

I’m ten years burning down the road
Got nowhere to run
I ain’t got nowhere to go

The song “Born in the USA” is probably one of the most misinterpreted songs of the past thirty years. The song has a bombastic drum beat and a repeated chorus of “Born in the USA, ” which lead some listeners to believe it was a feel-good patriotic jingle. Casual listeners disregarded the downtrodden lyrics. In fact, Ronald Reagan even tried to co-opt Springsteen’s support by mentioning Bruce at a 1984 campaign stop:

"America's future rests in a thousand dreams inside your hearts; it rests in the message of hope in songs so many young Americans admire: New Jersey's own Bruce Springsteen. And helping you make those dreams come true is what this job of mine is all about."

Springsteen himself was not as politically vocal at the time as he would become in the future. His only public response was at a 1984 concert in Pittsburgh:

“The President was mentioning my name the other day, and I kinda got to wondering what his favorite album must have been. I don't think it was the Nebraska album. I don't think he's been listening to this one." Bruce tore into “Johnny 99,” a story about an unemployed autoplant worker who commits murder and is sentenced to 99 years in jail.

After “Born in the USA” came three toe-tapping rockers: “Cover Me,” “Darlington County,” and “Working on the Highway.” The closing songs of Side One were quieter in tone, with the beautiful “Downbound Train” and “I’m on Fire,” a song about pent up sexual frustration.

Side Two opens with another one of Springsteen’s anthems: “No Surrender.” “Bobby Jean” was written about the departure of Steve Van Zandt from the E Street Band and the friendship that Bruce & Steve had cultivated since their teenage years. The future Mr. Silvio Dante would reemerge in Bruce’s band in the late 1990s and on the small screen as Tony Soprano’s consigliere.

There is not a bad song on the album, but the stretch of “No Surrender,” “Bobby Jean,” “I’m Goin’ Down,” “Glory Days,” and “Dancing in the Dark” comprise one of the best sides of music on any record.

“Dancing in the Dark” was the last song added to the record, but was the album’s first single and Bruce’s highest charting song, reaching #2 on the charts. It was written after an argument between Bruce and his manager, Jon Landau. The recording sessions had lasted nearly two years and Springsteen was ready to put the record out. But Landau felt it was lacking a “unifying song” that would demonstrate to listeners where Bruce Springsteen was lyrically and musically in 1984. The two had a heated verbal exchange and Springsteen reportedly said, “If you want another one, you write the damn song.”

But Bruce went home that night and picked up his acoustic guitar. He wrote the entire song that evening and recorded it the next day with the band. Landau played it for Columbia Records soon thereafter. One of the record execs asked Landau what the song was called. Landau responded, “it’s called ‘the first single.’”

As great as this record turned out to be, here are some other prominent songs that Springsteen left off of Born in the USA: Pink Cadillac, Stand On It, Murder Inc, Janey Don’t You Lose Heart, This Hard Land, My Love Will Not Let You Down, and Frankie. Some of these songs were later released on other compilations or as B-side singles.

Springsteen sustained his position in rock history after the tidal wave of success that Born in the USA became. He didn’t become a recluse or a continual tabloid posterboy like Michael Jackson, who was going through the peak of his popularity at the same time as Bruce. While Springsteen never again approached the enormous sales again in his career, he remains a top draw in the music business today. His Greatest Hits, Tunnel of Love, Live 1975-85, and The Rising records all debuted at the #1 spot on the album charts. He reunited the E Street Band in 1999 for an enormously successful tour that lasted midway into 2000. Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 20001, Springsteen was the first artist to release an album, The Rising, that responded directly to the events of that day and its aftermath.