Beviglia Jim - Counting down Bruce Springsteen: his 100 finest songs

ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD

Lanham Boulder New York Toronto Plymouth, UK

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Beviglia, Jim.

Counting down Bruce Springsteen : his 100 finest songs / Jim Beviglia.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-4422-3065-1 (cloth) ISBN 978-1-4422-3066-8 (electronic)

1. Springsteen, BruceCriticism and interpretation. 2. Rock musicUnited StatesHistory and criticism. I. Title.

ML420.S77B44 2014

782.42166092dc23

2014000692

TM The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

To Daniele

May the rising sun caress and bless your soul
for all your life

As someone who considers himself a fan, first and foremost, the fact that Ive had the opportunity now to write books about two artistsBob Dylan and Bruce Springsteenwho have changed my life with their music is beyond comprehension. No thanks I could ever give to the people who have helped to make this happen could ever be enough, but Ill give it my best try anyway.

Bennett Graff is my editor at Scarecrow Press, the guy who had enough confidence in this Springsteen project to give it a green light even before he knew how people would take to my Dylan book. If youre reading this book and you take notice of how well the writing flows and how there is no excess flab weighing down the prose, its a pretty safe bet youre noticing Bennetts steady editing hand and excellent instincts taming my sometimes long-winded ranting. In addition, his coworkers at Scarecrow Press have been a great help to me every step of the way.

Springsteen fans know there are oodles of great books about his life on the market, yet Ive only listed two in the bibliography. Thats because those two books, and the men responsible for them, provided close to everything I needed to embark on this particular project. Early on I made the decision that since Springsteen has always been such an excellent dissector of his own songs, I would be using quotes from him to buffer my own analyses. In that respect, SpringsteenOnSpringsteen:Interviews,Speeches,andEncounters, edited by Jeff Burger, has been my main source for those quotes. Mr. Burgers book depends on a lot of different interviewers, so I thank them indirectly for their fine work and Mr. Burger personally for doing such an outstanding job of presenting and contextualizing them. Since I used many quotes from the book, I included the corresponding page numbers of the book next to those quotes as a shorthand way of citing this excellent work, while the specific information pertaining to each quote such as interviewer and publication can be found in the end notes.

As far as the facts about Springsteens life and work, most of those I learned many years ago by reading Dave Marshs definitive biography, Two Hearts: The Definitive Bruce Springsteen Biography. Ive had the privilege of meeting Dave, appearing on his radio show, and keeping in contact with him for the last several years. For those who want an account of the life of Springsteen and how he came to be such a musical legend, start with Dave Marsh and youll likely spare yourself the need to read anything else.

In terms of facts about the songs, the website springsteenlyrics.com was of invaluable assistance, especially when it came to tracking certain songs through their various incarnations. The site is run by Eddy Wehbe of Lebanon, and its a great resource for anybody who really wants to get in-depth Springsteen knowledge. As a Springsteen nerd myself, I highly recommend it.

I have to thank my friends at AmericanSongwriter, who continue to give me the chance to write for their wonderful magazine and website. My editor there, Evan Schlansky, has been a great friend to my writing and to me. The first assignment he gave me was to review WreckingBall, so maybe he had some foresight about my future involvement with Springsteens work.

The idea for a Springsteen countdown first was indulged by Douglas Newman, who put it on a website that is sadly no longer with us but looms large in terms of its impact on my career. That list, in much truncated form from whats in this book, was spread even further by the folks at Culture Map, a website based in Houston. I also gave the list a twirl on my Countdown Kid blog, and the readers of that blog have been crucial in giving me the confidence to pursue publishing avenues for my online work.

On a personal level, there are far too many friends and family who have offered love and support over the years to possibly mention them all at once. That includes my various teachers and professors at Old Forge Elementary, Scranton Prep, and Syracuse University; with apologies to Bruce, they gave three-minute records a real run for their money in terms of my education. My immediate family, which includes my brothers Bob and Rich; my sisters-in-law and nieces; my amazing mom, without whom I would doubtless be in some gutter; my daughter Daniele, who easily beats out Springsteen, Dylan, and all the rest in terms of being my favorite musician; and Marie, the love of my life forever, always, and beyondwell, theyre the reason I do anything.

Bruce Springsteens music is the reason this book even exists, so he obviously needs acknowledgement. Its always nice when the artists you admire are genuinely good people. Ive never met Bruce, but the way he has conducted himself over the years in terms of his interaction with his fans, his thoughtfulness in interviews, and his genuine concern for his fellow man that hes demonstrated not only in his songs but also in his support for humanitarian causes makes me appreciate the man as much as I love the music. I dont know if hell ever read this book, but if he does, I hope he gleans that much.

Finally, Id like to thank my dad, Robert Beviglia Sr., who passed away when I was ten but remains as much a part of my life now as ever. It was my dad who encouraged me to read as many books as possible and set an example by doing it himself, so the notion that somewhere hes getting a kick out of having a kid whos written a few is the biggest reward I could ever get out of my writing.