Published on Apr 18, 2005
Name me one person who thought that Bruce Springsteen, after the
bare, acidic album that was
Nebraska, would follow it up with an album that would spawn
seven Top 10 singles and become his biggest selling work of all
time. Bet you couldn’t, because who could have seen this
coming?
Sure,
Born To Run had established Springsteen as one of the big
names in rock. However it wasn’t until
Born In The USA that The Boss became a certified superstar.
The album would spawn a two-year, world-wide tour, and as a result
Born In The USA gained its status as one the eighties’
premier albums. However, does the music live up the hype?
There are certainly moments during
Born In The USA that belong up there with Springsteen’s
greatest efforts. “Born In The USA” has to be one of the greatest
opening tracks to any album, with Springsteen delivering some
kick-ass, anger-filled vocals, and Max Weinberg laying down a
massive beat. Many took this song to be an anthem for America,
while it was quite the contrary. “Dancing In The Dark” is a song
completely unique up to this point in Springsteen’s career, with
the very prominent synthesizers and danceable beat.
The main problem that I have with
Born In The USA is that while the Springsteen sound is
there, it’s different. The album sounds dated, something I believe
works like
Nebraska, and
Born To Run don’t, which is a true testament to their
greatness. Some of the songs on
Born In The USA make up for this new sound simply because
they are that good. “Working On the Highway” for example is one of
the better tracks because it’s simple. Drums, vocals, and guitars
come together to form a retro, ’50s style number. Shades of
Springsteen’s earlier work also can be found on “Glory Days.”
“I’m on Fire” tries to stir up some sultry feelings, but to me
Springsteen just sounds tired. In fact, “No Surrender” and “Bobby
Jean” both suffer from the same problem. Bruce seems to really want
to recapture that
Born To Run magic, but this time around he can’t catch that
lightning in a bottle. It all comes down to the simple fact that
Born To Run had a unique sound to it,
Born In The USA tries too hard to sound just like it, and
even adds some unnecessary flourishes.
Much of the material for
Born In The USA was written for the
Nebraska album, so fragments remain of the pessimism from
the previous album. However, their impact isn’t as great because
instead of the bare bones these tracks would have gotten on
Nebraska they are up-tempo, genuine rock numbers. I
mentioned “Born In The USA” earlier — the acoustic
18 Tracks version sends a chill down your spine, while the
actual recorded version makes you want to roll down the window and
wave a flag. However, some tracks manage to convey the seriousness
of Springsteen’s words. “Downbound Train” starts off with a
terrific bass riff, and slowly builds more and more energy, while
The Boss sings of a lover long gone. This is the kind of number
that Springsteen has done so well throughout his career, and this
is no exception.
Born In The USA is not Springsteen’s best album, not by a
long shot. However, it is an enjoyable album, despite its two-faced
nature. Try as he might, The Boss rarely turns out poor music, and
Born In The USA is continuing proof of that.