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Page 1: REVISED Musical Heritage Report

  Libs  1  

Musical  Heritage  Report  

Professor  Schwanda  

Andrew  Libs  

24  April  2013  

Bruce  Springsteen  

  Any  story  about  a  teenager  ripping  on  the  guitar  at  the  once  famous  Asbury  

Park,  located  in  New  Jersey,  would  most  likely  be  an  entertaining  read.  What  if  I  told  

you  that  same  teenager,  the  one  whose  mother  took  out  a  sixty-­‐dollar  loan  to  pay  for  

his  guitar,  is  now  worth  hundreds  of  millions  of  dollars?  That’s  right,  the  world  

famous  Bruce  Springsteen  surely  didn’t  come  from  money.  In  fact  there  was  one  

point  in  his  life  when  his  family  moved  into  live  with  his  grandparents  because  of  

their  unstable  financial  situation.  For  those  of  you  thinking  this  is  a  classic  case  of  a  

‘rags  to  riches’  story  let  me  put  those  impressions  and  judgments  to  rest  right  away.  

The  story  and  life  of  Bruce  Springsteen  extends  far  beyond  the  superficial  surface  of  

money  and  power.  The  reason  he  has  become  so  distinguished  and  such  a  legend  is  

a  result  of  his  blue-­‐collar  work  ethic  that  emanates  deep  within  him  and  his  ability  

to  convey  emotion  and  passion  through  his  music  into  the  hearts  of  his  many  

followers.    

  Bruce  Fredrick  Springsteen  was  welcomed  into  the  world  by  his  parents  and  

grandparents  on  September  23,  1943  at  Long  Branch  Hospital  in  Freehold,  New  

Jersey.  The  chemistry  that  surrounded  the  Springsteen  household  was,  however,  set  

in  place  long  before  Bruce  was  actually  born.  It  is  widely  known  that  Bruce’s  

relationship  with  his  father  never  really  flourished,  Peter  Ames  Carlin  quotes  Bruce  

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by  writing  “the  drinking  was  a  problem.  On  a  nightly  basis,  every  single  day,  an  

entire  six-­‐pack  is  not  insignificant”  (Carlin  2012).  Additionally,  in  an  article  written  

by  A&E,  Bruce  mentioned  that  “growing  up  there  were  two  unpopular  things  in  my  

house,  me  and  my  guitar”  (Biography  Channel  2013).  The  notion  of  having  a  father  

who  is  physically  present  in  a  child’s  life,  but  not  emotional  available  doesn’t  

resonate  with  my  upbringing.    Then  again  I  didn’t  have  an  upbringing  anything  like  

Bruce  and  I  am  sure  my  father’s  upbringing  wasn’t  anything  like  Doug’s,  Bruce’s  

father.  In  April  of  1927  Doug’s  sister  Virginia,  a  five  year  old,  was  hit  by  a  truck  

while  crossing  the  street  on  her  tricycle.    This  had  such  a  crippling  effect  on  Doug’s  

mother,  Alice  that  Doug  was  actually  sent  to  live  with  Alice’s  sisters  and  was  not  

reunited  with  his  parents  for  several  years.    

It  is  easy  to  see  how  this  sort  of  abandonment  could  lead  to  strained  

relationships  in  the  future.  An  even  more  interesting  dynamic  was  presented  when  

Bruce’s  parents,  Adele  and  Doug,  gave  birth  to  Bruce’s  sister  Ginny.  Realizing  that  

their  apartment  was  not  large  enough  for  a  family  of  four  they  decided  to  move  in  

with  Doug’s  parents.    Bruce’s  grandparents  found  him  to  be  a  replacement  for  their  

long  lost  daughter  while  Ginny  was  typically  forgotten.  He  was  elevated  to  a  

completely  different  standard  than  both  of  his  sisters,  which  made  for  several  

unorthodox  dynamics.  It  is  normal,  especially  for  a  child,  to  form  a  tighter  bond  and  

associate  with  those  who  are  around  more  frequently  than  with  those  who  are  not.  

Consequently  there  existed  several  clashes  of  confusion  in  Bruce’s  mind  growing  up.  

Carlin  writes,  “Bruce  assumed  that  they  (his  grandparents),  and  not  his  parents,  

were  his  primary  caregivers…and  a  lot  of  parental  roles  got  crossed”  (Carlin  2012).    

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Throughout  my  childhood  I  was  fortunate  enough  to  have  parents  that  were  present  

for  almost  all  of  the  important  events  in  my  life.  Contrasting  with  Bruce’s  childhood  

my  parents  were  a  bit  older  when  they  started  having  children,  as  were  my  father’s  

parents.  Unfortunately  I  do  not  have  many  memories  with  my  father’s  parents,  but  I  

do  have  more  memories  with  my  mother’s  parents.  I  am  happy  to  say  that  my  

grandmother  will  be  joining  us  for  my  graduation  this  week,  and  am  even  more  

thankful  for  the  support  system  that  I  have  developed  throughout  my  life.    

With  an  unusual  home  life  one  might  wonder  how  a  small  town  kid  from  

Freehold,  New  Jersey  becomes  one  of  rock  and  rolls  most  iconic  figures.    One  night  

Bruce  sat  down  with  his  mother,  who  was  a  regular  viewer  of  The  Ed  Sullivan  Show,  

and  Elvis  Presley  came  on  the  television.    Bruce  recalled,  “It  looked  like  he  was  

playing,  like  a  child  is  drawn  to  play.  It  looked  like  so  much  fun.  Imagine  throwing  

out  all  consciousness  that’s  sort  of  like  a  blanket  over…It  was  an  enormous  key  that  

unlocked  your  imagination  and  your  heart  and  soul”  (Carlin  2012).  Sometime  later  

Bruce  got  his  hands  on  a  black  and  gold  Kent  guitar,  through  the  generosity  of  his  

mother.  He  fell  completely  in  love  with  his  instrument,  so  much  so  that  he  didn’t  pay  

much  attention  to  the  rest  of  his  academics.  Bruce  attended  St.  Rose  of  Lima  Catholic  

School  where  he  was  a  quite  student  who  didn’t  garnish  much  respect  from  his  

teachers.  Actually,  it  is  rumored  that  one  nun  forced  him  to  sit  in  a  garbage  can  and  

told  him  that’s  where  he  belonged.    

Continuing  on  with  his  teenage  years  Bruce  proceeded  on  the  same  academic  

path  with  most  subjects  in  school,  but  his  musical  pedagogy  began  to  flourish.  In  

1965  he,  along  with  a  few  of  his  friends,  formed  a  band  called  The  Castilles.  

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Unfortunately  Bruce  and  his  friends,  who  were  eighteen  at  the  time,  became  

subjects  of  the  Vietnam  War.  While  Bruce  never  served  in  Vietnam,  one  of  The  

Castilles’s  members  was  killed  which  led  to  a  split  in  the  band.  Good,  bad,  or  

indifferent  Bruce  gathered  himself  and  quickly  began  to  realize  that  the  only  way  he  

had  a  shot  to  break  out  of  the  monotony  of  dead-­‐end  jobs  that  Freehold  had  to  offer  

was  to  venture  to  Asbury  Park.  Perhaps  not  as  well  known  by  the  youth  of  today,  

Asbury  Park  was  once  accustomed  to  many  notable  bands  such  as  The  Rolling  

Stones,  The  Doors,  The  Who,  and  The  Beatles.  Bruce  soon  began  to  draw  attention  at  

The  Upstage,  one  of  Asbury  Park’s  more  famous  nightclubs,  sometimes  considered  

one  of  the  birthplaces  of  Rock  and  Roll.  Persuaded  by  words  of  Danny  Federici  and  

Vini  Lopez  Bruce  joined  a  band  call  Steel  Mill  in  the  late  1960s,  but  only  served  a  

short  stint  until  1971.  Timing  couldn’t  have  been  better  for  Bruce  since  shortly  after  

his  departure  with  Steel  Mill  Asbury  Park  went  up  in  flames  as  a  consequence  of  the  

burning  tension  involving  the  race  riots.  Facing  another  fork  in  the  road  Bruce  

decided  to  pick  up  and  move  to  New  York.    

Forming  personal  relationships  with  several  musicians  and  managers  in  

Asbury  Park  came  in  handy  when  Bruce  moved  to  New  York.  Shortly  after  his  move  

he  came  into  contact  with  a  manager  named  Mike  Appel.  Appel  kick  started  Bruce’s  

career  in  New  York  gaining  him  an  audition  with  John  Hammond  who  signed  Bruce  

to  Columbia  Records.  Perhaps  one  of  the  most  critical  occurrences  during  this  time  

was  formation  of  the  E-­‐street  Band,  which  was  composed  primarily  of  people  he  had  

met  while  in  Asbury  Park.  Ironically  1973  marked  the  year  of  Bruce  Springsteen’s  

first  album  release,  Greetings  From  Asbury  Park.  A  short  while  later  the  band  put  out  

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a  second  album  titled  The  Wild,  The  Innocent,  and  The  E-­Street  Shuffle.  Interestingly  

enough  contrasting  viewpoints  arose  between  critics,  who  acclaimed  their  work,  

and  the  public,  who  disregard  their  work.  The  band  toured  tirelessly  over  the  course  

of  months  attempting  to  promote  their  music,  however  were  plagued  largely  by  

slow  sales  and  indifferent  audiences.  Most  artists  know  your  life  typically  hinges  

upon  your  third  album;  Bruce  was  finally  at  the  turning  point  in  his  career.    

Bruce’s  initial  struggle  for  success  was  met  by  John  Landau  who  wrote,  “I  saw  

Rock  and  Rolls  future  tonight,  and  its  name  is  Bruce  Springsteen”  (Willman  2007).  

The  dynamic  duo  set  out  on  a  journey  together  that  eventually  led  to  one  of  the  

greatest  rock  albums  of  all  time,  Born  To  Run.  Landau,  who  eventually  became  

Bruce’s  new  manager,  had  a  tremendous  understanding  surrounding  the  

importance  of  public  radio.  Bruce  became  known  amongst  many  college  towns  

along  the  east  coast  for  his  incredible  live  performances.  The  biggest  problem,  

however,  with  “the  future  of  rock  and  roll”  was  that  most  of  his  songs  were  much  

better  live  than  they  were  on  the  radio,  that  is,  until  Born  To  Run  was  created.  

Perhaps  one  of  the  greatest  characteristics  of  this  album  was  the  appeal  and  tribute  

it  had  to  working  class  Americans.  In  this  album  we  really  start  to  see  what  kind  of  

person  Bruce  Springsteen  actually  is,  and  in  his  next  three  albums  Bruce  gives  the  

world  a  glimpse  into  his  personal  life.    Subsequent  to  his  more  personal  albums  and  

what  many  esteem  to  be  pure  music,  Bruce  and  the  E-­‐street  band  released  another  

album  of  lyrically  genius  that  stayed  atop  the  charts  for  a  record  setting  eighty-­‐five  

weeks.  

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One  of  the  greatest  characteristics  that  Bruce  carried  with  him  throughout  

his  life  was  that  he  never  forgot  where  he  came  from.  To  give  some  additional  

insight  into  what  kind  of  person  Bruce  is  you  don’t  have  to  look  any  farther  than  the  

cover  of  his  record  setting  Born  In  The  USA  album.  I  was  never  really  able  to  figure  

out  why  there  was  a  hat  in  Bruce’s  back  pocket  on  the  cover  of  his  album,  and  it  

puzzled  me  for  a  long  time  until  just  recently.  One  day  Bruce  traveled  back  to  New  

Jersey  to  meet  one  of  his  close  friends  Lance  Larson,  whose  father  had  just  passed  

away.  In  an  interview  with  Lance  he  mentioned  that  Bruce  took  a  liking  to  the  hat  he  

was  wearing  that  day.  Without  hesitation  Lance  handing  the  hat  over  to  his  good  

friend  and  received  a  response  that  would  lend  a  glimpse  of  hope  to  any  troubled  

friend;  Bruce  said,  “Lance,  when  you  see  this  hat  think  of  your  father”  (Biography  

Channel  2013).  Bruce  took  that  simple  red  hat  from  his  struggling  friend  and  made  

it  the  most  famous  red  hat  in  the  world.  Bruce  did  an  excellent  job  at  keeping  his  

friends  close,  but  he  did  an  even  more  impressive  job  at  keeping  his  personal  life  

private.  

While  on  the  Born  In  The  USA  tour  Bruce  met  an  actress  named  Julianne  

Phillips,  whom  he  married  in  a  secret  wedding.  His  marriage  to  Julianne  was  short  

lived  after  an  affair  between  him  and  back  up  singer,  Patti  Sciafla,  broke  out.  

Turmoil  seemed  to  surround  Bruce  during  the  latter  part  of  the  1980s  after  his  

divorce  with  Julianne  and  the  break  up  of  the  E-­‐Street  Band.  Although  many  of  

Bruce’s  followers  began  to  scoff  at  his  highly  questionable  moral  compass  I  think  

Bruce  exemplified  tremendous  willpower  after  the  birth  of  his  first  child.  During  this  

point  in  his  life  Bruce  took  a  break  from  playing  his  guitar  and  shifted  his  focus  on  

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raising  a  family  rather  than  on  his  music.  It’s  difficult  to  understand  how  impressive  

and  challenging  this  was  unless  you  have  been  completely  invested  in  a  job  or  a  

hobby  yourself.  To  be  able  to  walk  away  from  something  that  is  one  of  the  most  

important  things  in  your  life  is  incredibly  powerful,  though,  for  Bruce,  he  was  not  

done  for  good.    

After  the  birth  of  his  second  child  he  found  himself,  once  again,  back  in  New  

Jersey  writing  music.  In  1999  Bruce  brought  the  E-­‐Street  Band  back  together  and  at  

the  same  time  recorded  one  of  his  better-­‐known  award  winning  songs,  “The  Streets  

of  Philadelphia.”  The  effect  that  Bruce  Springsteen  had  on  working  class  American  

families  was  so  powerful  and  profound  that  people  actually  turned  to  him  after  the  

September  11th  attacks  on  the  world  trade  center.  Bruce  recollects  a  man  shouting  

out  to  him  a  few  days  after  the  attack,  “We  need  you,  man!”  (Carlin  2012).  In  a  

tragedy  such  as  this  people  who  are  old  enough  will  never  forget  where  they  were  

when  9/11  happened,  as  for  me,  I  was  in  the  sixth  grade  sitting  down  on  the  right  

side  of  our  school  church.  Bruce  responded  by  doing  was  Bruce  does  best,  by  

making  music.  In  an  effort  to  reach  out  to  the  American  people  Bruce  and  the  band  

created  an  album  called  The  Rising.  This  album  had  a  tremendous  and  powerful  

message  for  the  citizens  of  the  United  States,  especially  those  in  New  York.  

Whatever  fan  base  Bruce  lost  during  his  hiatus  in  the  90s  he  seemed  to  rekindle  

after  the  production  of  The  Rising.    

Bruce’s  hiatus  in  the  90s  isn’t  the  only  reason  his  fan  base  has  shifted  over  

the  years.  Bruce  became  a  huge  supporter  of  Barack  Obama  during  his  2008  

campaign,  this  gained  him  great  notoriety  with  an  increasing  liberal  support  system,  

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however,  and  many  of  his  former  conservative  fans  began  to  see  their  loyalty  fad.  

After  President  Obama  won  the  election  Bruce  was  the  main  attraction  at  the  

inaugural  celebration  ceremony.  Fittingly  enough  he  opened  with  a  number  of  songs  

that  were  very  familiar  to  the  American  people,  those  songs  were  from  The  Rising  

album.  An  interesting  quote  that  I  found  throughout  my  research  came  from  

President  Obama  in  2009  saying,  “I  may  be  the  President,  but  he  is  ‘The  Boss’’  (BBC  

News  2009).  Bruce  had  been  given  the  nickname  of  ‘The  Boss’  during  his  reign  at  

Asbury  Park.  In  the  beginning  this  nickname  was  reserved  for  those  who  knew  him  

on  a  personal  level,  his  band  and  close  followers.  In  1974,  when  Bruce  started  to  

become  an  American  icon,  he  also  developed  a  large  following  in  the  media.  Not  too  

long  after  this  point  journalists  caught  wind  of  his  nickname  and  it  continued  with  

him  for  the  rest  of  his  career.  After  reading  Carlin’s  book  it’s  evident  that  Bruce  

doesn’t  like  it  when  people  call  him  ‘The  Boss’.  To  make  his  feelings  known  Bruce  

revised  the  lyrics  to  a  song  called  Rosalita  on  one  of  his  earlier  albums  The  Wild,  The  

Innocent,  and  The  E-­Street  Shuffle  to  “You  don’t  have  to  call  me  lieutenant,  Rosie/Just  

don’t  ever  call  me  Boss!”  (Carlin  2012).  Whether  or  not  you  agree  with  some  of  

Bruce’s  personal  decisions  over  the  course  of  his  life,  we  should  all  be  able  to  agree  

that  his  music  is  incredible.  Over  the  course  of  his  life  Bruce  has  won  twenty  

Grammy  Awards,  two  Golden  Globe  Awards,  one  Academy  and  Emmy  Awards.  He  

has  been  inducted  into  the  Rock  and  Roll  Hall  of  Fame,  the  Songwriters  Hall  of  Fame,  

and  the  New  Jersey  Hall  of  Fame.  He  has  spent  several  weeks  on  top  of  multiple  

music  charts  and  has  even  performed  at  the  Super  Bowl.    

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The  music  of  Bruce  Springsteen  has  had  a  profound  impact  on  the  way  I  

listen  to  music  currently,  but  it  wasn’t  always  that  way.  Growing  up  I  was  exposed  to  

a  variety  of  classical  compositions  since  my  mother  is  a  professional  musician.  I  

became  so  familiar  with  certain  pieces,  such  as  the  arutunian  trumpet  concerto,  that  

I  would  often  find  myself  humming  the  tune  while  doing  homework  at  a  young  age.  

For  some  reason  classical  music  never  seems  to  win  over  the  hearts  of  youth  nor  

does  it  gather  the  respect  it  deserves  until  later  in  life.  Unfortunately  I  fell  victim  to  

this  pattern  even  with  a  mother  who  was  a  musician.  As  a  kid  and  a  teenager  you  do  

everything  you  can  to  fit  in  with  friends  and  groups  of  people  that  you  think  are  

your  friends.  Early  on  in  life  I  just  listened  to  what  was  popular  on  the  radio  and  

what  songs  had  catchy  beats.    As  I  grew  older  I  noticed  myself  listening  to  more  of  

the  same  music  that  my  father  listened  to  and  less  of  the  ‘here  and  now’  songs.    

Being  raised  in  the  Roman  Catholic  faith  and  attending  a  catholic  school  from  

kindergarten  through  twelfth  grade  exposed  me  to  a  genre  of  music  that  I  may  never  

have  been  in  tune  with  had  I  not  had  those  experiences.  Moreover,  I  think  being  

raised  in  that  kind  of  an  environment  helped  shape  my  morals  in  such  a  way  that  it  

kind  of  steered  me  away  from  the  life  of  rap  and  hip-­‐hop.  People  that  I  hung  out  with  

in  high  school  and  those  that  I  looked  up  to  definitely  had  an  impact  on  the  music  

that  I  listen  to  today.  In  high  school  I  fell  in  love  with  distance  running  just  like  

Bruce  fell  in  love  with  his  guitar.  I  became  aware  of  great  American  distance  runners  

and  what  sort  of  music  they  listened  to  which  was  oddly  similar  too  much  of  the  

music  my  father  listened  to.    

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I  have  learned  an  extreme  amount  about  myself  and  about  life  in  general  

throughout  my  running  career.  Everyone  has  their  own  way  of  creating  something  

special  and  by  doing  so  perhaps  creating  special  moments  for  others  along  the  way  

too.  Steve  Prefontaine,  a  former  American  distance  runner,  once  said,  “some  people  

create  with  words  of  with  music  or  with  a  brush  and  paints.  I  like  to  make  

something  beautiful  when  I  run.  I  like  to  make  people  stop  and  say,  I’ve  never  seen  

anyone  run  like  that  before.  It’s  more  than  just  a  race,  it’s  a  style.  It’s  doing  

something  better  than  anyone  else.  It’s  being  creative”  (Jordan  1997).  

Understanding  what’s  important  to  me  and  paying  attention  to  the  little  things  in  

life  have  made  me  the  listener  I  am  today.    

In  a  movie  called  Mr.  Holland’s  Opus  there  is  a  scene  where  Mr.  Holland,  the  

high  school  music  teacher,  is  helping  one  of  his  struggling  students.  He  tells  her,  

“playing  music  is  supposed  to  be  fun…it’s  not  about  notes  on  a  page.”  Bruce  has  

opened  my  eyes  to  going  beyond  the  catchy  beats  of  over  played  radio  pop  songs  

and  has  taught  me  what  it  means  to  be  passionate  about  music.  Many  people  spend  

their  time  humming  tunes  while  not  paying  attention  to  the  lyrics  at  all  which  is  a  

huge  shame  because,  for  me,  the  lyrics  are  really  what  draw  me  into  his  music.  

Sometimes  in  life  you  have  to  look  beyond  the  notes  on  a  page.  There  will  be  a  time  

when  things  don’t  add  up  how  they  should  on  paper  and  that’s  what  makes  life  so  

special  and  personal.  What  is  most  important  thing  is  finding  what  you  are  

passionate  about  and  executing  that  to  the  best  of  your  ability.  As  Bruce  always  said,  

“It  ain’t  no  sin  to  be  glad  you’re  alive”  (Carlin  2012).      

 

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References  

BBC  News  [Internet].  2009.  Barack  Obama  honours  Bruce  Springsteen  at  White  

House  

Bruce  Springsteen  [Internet].  The  Biography  Channel  website;  2013  [cited  2013  Apr  

24]  Available  from:  http://www.biography.com/people/bruce-­‐springsteen-­‐

9491214.  

Carlin,  P.  2012.  Bruce.    

Jordan,  T.  1997.  Pre:  The  Story  of  America's  Greatest  Running  Legend,  Steve  

Prefontaine.    

Willman,  T.  2007.  Jon  Landau:  Inside  the  ‘Magic’.