bruce springsteen

Born September 23, 1949

   To his millions of fans he is known as "the Boss."  He is one of the most energetic performers in the history of rock.

     By most accounts Bruce was a loner, but rigidly independent.  Bruce can even point to a single night he made the decision to join the ranks of rock and roll.  After seeing Elvis on the Ed Sullivan show in 1957, he was so excited that he asked his mother for a guitar the next day.  She bought him one and enrolled him in guitar lessons, which he hated so much he put the guitar away.  It wasn't until 1964, when the Beatles arrived on the scene, that he tried the guitar again.  He spent many hours in his room listening to records and learning to play.  This was a constant source of tension between him and his father.  His father thought he should pursue a more practical career.

     Elvis was the single biggest influence in Bruce's musical life.  Elvis, to Bruce, was a symbol or freedom and future.  Elvis' death in some ways made an even stronger impression on Bruce.  If the young Elvis was a compelling symbol for all that was possible, the older Elvis was a sign of the tragedy that could accompany the realization of one's dreams.  Was it possible to avoid the indifference and indulgence that often sabotages the artistic vision?

     Much of Bruce's music is rooted in the streets of industrial New Jersey, the state where he was born and raised.  To his dedicated fans he is the embodiment of the myths he writes about; the working class everyman, the spirit of rock and roll.  To his critics he has a limited musical vocabulary, overly obsessed with cars and darkness.

     Bruce is indisputably one of the most significant figures in rock and roll, and his showmanship is as heartfelt as his songs.