Born To Run

bruce sings like he has marbles in his mouth. this sucks. the piano sucks. lame. saxophone is lame. rock and roll for geriatrics

“The screen door slams/Mary’s dress waves” This will always be a magic album for me. The way everything builds to the climax of Born to Run and then the denouement that follows is perfectly sequenced and a testament to Springsteen’s talent as a storyteller. It’s hard to pick a favourite, but this time around, “Backstreets” was the one that grabbed me the most.

More expansive and cinematic than I was expecting, and I'm pretty familiar with the singles off this album. The saxophone is arguably the lead instrument here, and there are some jazzy moments where it and the keyboardist can really shine. Bruce's lyrics are excellent and invoke a "working class" urgency: inspirational-via-the-gallows, a bleak sort of joy.

Where to begin..... I'm not insightful or smart enough to explain the deeper meanings of the album and why it resonates. My best attempt is to say that it manages to convey most, if not all, of the elements that get buzz my mind: the difficult marriage between hope & despair, the desire to belong to something and finding beauty in the ordinary. Favourite track: Jungleland

Always been pretty indifferent about Springsteen. Never hated his music nor really got into his stuff either. I'd heard the hits from this album, but the stand out tracks for me were "Meeting Across the River" and "Jungleland." I feel like The Boss and the E-Street band aren't really exploring any new musical ideas composition wise, other than some bomb-ass sax. Its Springsteen's writing and storytelling that has made him such an American staple, and I felt those two tracks really let his writing shine. Being aligned so strongly with 'MURICA is kind of what kept me from getting into him, but his songs are very much proletariat anthems. I guess that's what you get for saying USA a bunch of times in a song. Overall a pretty enjoyable listen, but there's nothing calling me back.

Anyone who does not vote 5 stars on this masterpiece is a Communist and needs to be dealt with accordingly.

I love this album's big sound. It's simply one of the most passionate albums I've ever heard. I would say it was raw passion except that you can tell the album was very carefully crafted - channeling that passion into a thing of beauty - striking a near perfect balance. Springsteen displays more authentic passion on this album than many artists seem to be able to muster in their entire careers. I have tried, but can't seem to get into, Springsteen's first two albums, and I think alot of it has to do with the lyrics. On this album, while going for a bigger sound musically, he chose to go in a more refined direction lyrically, foregoing his more cryptic Dylanesque approach of the first two albums for something more direct and heartfelt than intellectual, and it makes all the difference. Though you definitely can hear the Dylan influence throughout, especially in songs like Jungleland, I think this is where Springsteen really comes into his own and becomes "The Boss." This is one for the ages. Coincidentally, I just listened to this on vinyl the other day with the family. It's in pretty regular rotation in our house and everyone enjoys it.

Sounded like Meatloaf. Not as good.

A lot of people, whose opinions I respect, love Bruce Springsteen in general and this album in particular. It really resonates for them, but it doesn't for me. I understand that it is meaningful and moving etc, but it leaves me a little 'meh'. I think it is, for me, a bit overworked, production wise. Springsteen is successful in his emulation of Phil Spector, but you can hear how hard they worked at it (and they did work hard). Maybe I need more grit and spontaneity for it to ring true as convincing rock and roll? I need a bit more. I listened through, but, honestly, it washes over me every time and I am unmoved. The saxophone solo at the end of Jungleland is highly regarded by many, but it is just so cheesy! I get that people need cheese. People want music that wears its heart on its sleeve, full of big emotions that they can relate to. There are plenty of records like that that I truly love. But the key to unlocking that love is that you to make a personal connection to the music, and I don't have that with Springsteen. It doesn't have a place in my personal history, despite Born the USA being massive when I was a teenager. I've never been an unemployed steel worker in a dead-end town, ground down by the American dream, looking for a way out of my hometown in a fast car and my girl by my side, the romance of escape, etc etc. And neither has Bruce. As he himself admits, "I'm Mr Born To Run. I currently live ten minutes from my home town." (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M1xDzgob1JI) He is singing his _father's_ life, and does so powerfully. Watching his Broadway show on Netflix suggests that he is highly aware of the irony of who he is and what he does, and approaches those contradictions thoughtfully and sensitively. And his fan base certainly feel the honesty in his performance. But _I_ feel like I am buying into some form of rock snob working-class roleplay when I listen to Springsteen. _I_ feel inauthentic when I listen to it. I don't know why I don't connect with it, I just don't. That's probably more on me than him. That said, you can always trust a man with a Telecaster.

Gotta hand it to the boss for being cool. This is a fun album but it does seem a bit long even at 40min, just cause every song is almost identical. It's a good song though. 3/5.

The obvious, boring choice for my favorite album of his, but I can’t lie to myself. I don’t want to say it’s not close, because I do love Darkness and Wild Innocent, but I simply don’t have a remotely negative thing to say about Born to Run. I think it’s a perfect album. 5 of its 8 songs are some of my favorite Springsteen songs ever, and the other 3 are no slouches, either. Front to back, it is a masterclass of killer songwriting, and exuberant performances. And, I think similarly to the album before it, a bit of a singular work in Bruce’s catalog. You’ve basically got the classic E Street lineup in place now (Stevie Van Zandt isn’t fully in the fold yet, but he contributes a couple vocal parts and helps with the horn arrangement on “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out”), but it kind of exists in this world halfway in between the straightforward heartland rock that they’ll become known for and the jazzier arrangements of the first two albums, and Bruce’s songwriting exists in that in between as well. And for me, that’s the ultimate sweet spot. I love Bruce, and I love what he was tapping into on his first couple of records, and I love a lot of what he’s done over the last 45 years, but Born to Run is quite easily the pinnacle for me. He was so hungry to succeed; he is the quintessential “I don’t have any other options” kind of musician, he had to make sure this worked out for him, and you hear that hunger in every single song. I don’t think his voice has ever sounded more passionate than it does on Born to Run. That voice really drives every song; regardless of what tempo these songs are, they always feel like they’re propulsing forward. There’s such an incredible movement to this record. And as desperate as you can tell he is, he still takes the time to basically write a love letter to the music that speaks to him the most. You can hear shades of Orbison in his voice, you get the Bo Diddley and Buddy Holly influences in “She’s the One”, the Stax-style horns on “Tenth-Avenue Freeze Out”, obviously the shades of Dylan and Van Morrison in the lyrics. He throws it all into this blender and it still comes out sounding like nothing that came before it. I think it sounds so original, and still so fresh today. Overflowing with creativity and emotion and power. A total masterpiece in my book, an easy 5 stars, and my favorite Bruce Springsteen album. 5/5

Sometimes an artist is so fully flooded with inspiration that everything they touch turns to gold. Bob had it with Blonde on Blonde, Van with Astral Weeks, the Boss has it here.

Very chill, good bboomer vibes, listen to again

- Thunder Road - greatest song of all time by a considerable distance - Tenth Avenue Freeze Out - an absolute bop - Night - one of the more forgettable tracks but would be the standout on most other records on this list - Backstreets - Up there with Thunder Road and Born To Run. 3rd best track on the album. Bruce at his very best. Born To Run - Lovely stuff She's The One - was never that arsed about this before but it's fucking class Meeting Across The River - skippable Jungleland - The bollocks

I definitely get why it’s popular, but it honestly just doesn’t I much for me.

Not a big Springsteen fan, but I remember when this came out. I checked it out from the library and listened on repeat--especially the first side. Thunder Road is genius even if it does have that awful line "you ain't a beauty but hey you're alright." You gotta give it to anyone who inspires a cocktail, in this case Screen Door Slam, a bourbon-based aperol concoction.

Is it possible to both acknowledge something as a classic and also not like it? The big production sound and overwrought singing are not for me. I generally I prefer my rock n roll with too much guitar and not enough piano but this LP is very much the other way around. And whoever is playing piano should have been asked to record all of their tracks with a closed fist. Their constant arpeggios are distracting and irritating. Feels like this record might have inspired Meatloaf's sound. Born to run into the bat out of Hell. Anyway, I would rather hear Patti Smith or even Manfred Mann do this material.

Nr. 42/1001 Thunder Road 4/5 Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out 5/5 Night 4/5 Backstreets 5/5 Born to Run 5/5 She's the One 4/5 Meeting Across the River 5/5 Jungleland 5/5 Average: 4,5 Just a great rock album. Awesome song-building and use of classical instruments. This is now my best rated album and my first five star album taking over from 2112 - Rush (4,25)

Never been a big follower of the boss, and I’m shocked never to have listened to this album end to end. He’s got a lot to say and does it well. Extremely good album across all tracks. Gonna buy this one on vinyl.

Where's the option for 6 stars?

Sounds like America

The Boss- his breakthrough commercially with this one. Once I get over the cheesy'ness of the saxophone (*note- not this album's fault, the saxophone just got done to death in the 80's) and the "Meat Loaf" similarities (I don't like Meat Loaf) this is a fine album, a lot of it didn't grab me but I've never been a steel worker and I've never chased the American dream . But I am giving the Boss an extra point for being a massive Trump hater.

So saxy I mistook it for Meatloaf.

He isn't bad but to me was never the icon everyone considered him. A reliable rocker but never really had that swing. Could probably have profited from listening to Mink DeVille back in the day.

Alright, here we have the first album from The Boss to achieve mainstream success. I gather that it was a rather lengthy process to perfect his sound during the recording sessions. Hell, six months were spent working on just the title track. Suffice it to say, all that hard work paid off in dividends. Born to Run contains some high-caliber piano-driven rock tunes, where Bruce was able to capture the essence of working class people trying to find their escape. Credit is due to him and the E Street Band for crafting and producing some true bangers on this album, and not just the singles. Even deep cuts like “Backstreets”, “She’s the One” and the 9-minute closer “Jungleland” prove to be exceptionally constructed with a sound that’s timeless. If you haven’t already, give Born to Run a chance. I get not everyone’s fond of Springsteen’s music, but if there was at least one that deserves its place on this list, it would be this one.

Although, at times, Springsteen flirts with histrionic and melodramatic motifs in his music via a maximalist sound which risks drowning out any subtlety and poetry in the lyrics (and there is poetry here, but it's almost as if the smart kid in class has to hide it for fear of being laughed at) this is an American classic, chrome wheeled and fuel injected by a great band of talented musicians and Bruce's musings on growing up poor and hard in the city. The Great American Novel in musical form, Springsteen conjures up romantic images of highways, motorbikes, picking up your sweetheart to a Wall of Sound in homage to The Ronette's Be My Baby and the Shangri La's Leader of the Pack ('Look out! Look out! Look out! Look out!').

🖤 Favourite Song: Thunder Road 🖤

Quite simply one of the greatest albums of all-time with some of Springsteen's most evocative lyrics. Best track: Thunder Road

Show a little faith there's magic in the night You ain't a beauty but hey you're alright Oh and that's alright with me. What a classic

Bruce Springsteen is a bit like Bob Dylan for me, in that I think other artists’ covers of his songs are sometimes better than the originals. Specifically, on this record, Thunder Road. There’s a fantastic cover by Tortoise and Bonnie “Prince” Billy from their 2006 covers record, The Brave and the Bold. It takes the original, slows it down and adds a sense of haunting menace that I think suits the lyrics a bit better than the jittery, uptempo original found here. I’m from New Jersey, so I am well aware of how heretical it is to even think that, never mind express it “in public”, but it is a really, really great cover. It takes the song in a new direction while remaining true to the original. By giving the song a little space to breathe, the impact of the lyrics is a little greater and the outro of the song in that version, just…wow. It’s one of my favorite covers ever and I recommend you check it out when you’re done with this record. (Since it appears to only be available on YouTube, here’s the link: https://youtu.be/c5Yyo4zGKiA?si=4QEAEVYVDSLtJRZw ) I know this is “the” Bruce album for most people and it’s really great, but as I’ve gone through this list, I’ve found “Darkness at the Edge of Town” and “Nebraska” to be his most enjoyable and would consider them to be high-water marks.

ROOOLL DOWN THE WINDOW AND LET THE WIND BLOW BACK YOUR HAIIRRRR THE NIGHTS BUSTING OPEN THESE TWO LANES WILL TAKE US AAAANYWHEEERE WE GOT ONE LAST CHANCE TO MAKE IT REAL, TO TRADE IN THESE WINGS ON SOME WHEELLLSS

I wondered when we'd get this album, so the wait is over. I've never been a huge Springsteen fan (of his music, that is, as I really respect his career and perspectives), but it's hard to ignore how iconic this album has been for him. It's also remarkable how familiar so many songs on this album are--I think the only ones I didn't recognize were "Backstreets" and "Meeting across the river" (although the familiar-sounding-ness could also be because he doesn't have the biggest range). It's also interesting to read that Springsteen agonized over the production of this album, requiring many many (many) takes to get everything to sound just right, given that he's a notorious lyric mumbler and it appears *nobody* really knows whether Mary's dress sways or waves.... I kind of wish I didn't have 4 more Springsteen ahead of me in this collection, but it's hard to fault the inclusion of this one.

The lyrics are okay, and yeah, he's got good rocky energy.

6/10 1st up, I hate sax. 2nd, the songs are so earnest, so pained, so overwrought. It's exhausting. At times they are like they are from a musical, where everything has to accommodate the lyrics, and be damned the tune and the song structure. But it is obviously still a great album, with some brilliant songs.

I don't hate the Boss. He usually has a few stone classics his albums, but I can't really think of him in terms of "albums", only songs I dearly love. And this has a few. With the stone classics, you get a real sense of rock n roll without bullshit, and lyrics that are among the best ever laid down. With the rest, you get a real sense of bullshit rock n roll, with lyrics Bon Jovi could have shit out. In all cases, the album cuts are poor stand-ins for the live performances. Even the shitty ones become epic. This begs the question: why not just put out live albums. The Live at the Hammersmith 75 set is a much better representation of this songs. That reading of "Thunder Road" almost makes the rest of the show unnecessary--unit the rest of the show, of course. Bruce does look hunky cute on the cover though.

Solid album with the title track being a standout. Very anthemic at points with moments of gentle introspection. Springsteen is a master of championing the ‘everyday’ man. An enjoyable listen.

I really can’t get over his voice which is wild cause it’s never this big an issue for me. Dude sounds like he’s taking the hardest shit of his life like 80% of the time. Otherwise the band and lyrics are solid (2.5/5)

There is some tunefulness but the vocals are like a roaring punch of constipation and when they cease, the sax comes in and sounds even more like it needs a shite. I don't get it.

there is a reason that there are only about 5 bruce songs that everyone knows - its because the rest of them are shit.

Amazing. Ci sono un paio di canzoni di cui non mi frega nulla ma ha momenti così alti che non posso dare altro voto

My introduction to this record, and to Springsteen generally, was Frankie Goes To Hollywood’s cover of the title track which I still think packs a lot of punch. I love the meandering tunes and the stories, characters and places on this record. It’s all very cinematic - an album you can lose yourself in, especially if you have the lyrics in front of you. And that full band sound is just perfect. Hard to believe this record is fifty years old, it certainly doesn’t sound it.

Thunder Road is probably my favorite Bruce Springsteen. The storytelling is brilliant. "The screen door slams, Mary's dress sways" is perfectly written. "Your graduation gown lies in rags at their feet," so many memorable lines.What a magnificent album. So much nostalgia. Work of art. Five stars

BRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Everything Bruce does is imbued with so much heart and emotion and feeling, it makes for such a special listening experience Jungleland 🤌🏻🤌🏻🤌🏻🤌🏻

Born to Run by The Boss is easily the simplest review I’ve written for this challenge—because I listen to it weekly. It’s perfect. This album has everything: it builds with purpose and power, the sound is bold and sweeping, and the lyrics are heartfelt, poetic, and full of love. There’s truly nothing I’d change—Born to Run is as close to flawless as an album gets. Favourite song: “Thunder Road” – the greatest song ever written. Least favourite: Honestly, none. Every track is brilliant. There isn't a single 4/5 here—it's all 5-star material. Album artwork: An iconic cover, made even better on vinyl when you open it up and see The Big Man standing tall.

Thunder Road… enough said. 5*

Having obviously listened to Born To Run (song) without listening to Born To Run (album) more times than I care to admit, I can honestly say listening to this record front to back was a real joy. Springsteen is a genius.

It's a hands-down five-star album. Period. So anywayyyyy.... Here are my predictions for the new Springsteen biopic: - Scenes of a difficult childhood and parents who disapprove of his musical pursuit. - Overwrought dialogue along the lines of "Why do you want this so bad, Bruce?". "Because they said I couldn't have it!" - "Aha" moment while riding a motorcycle (on Highway 9, of course) that leads to writing the song "Born to Run." - Actor portraying "Little Steven" Van Zandt watched too much "Sopranos". Plays him as more Jersey gangster than guitarist. - The contribution of WMMS DJ Kid Leo (and Cleveland Rock radio in general) to Springsteen's success is completely overlooked. WMMS played "Born to Run" at 5pm every single Friday for many decades, don't forget. - The movie gets Best Picture, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Actor in a Leading Role nominations at the Academy Awards. Subtract one star for each prediction I get right.

4.5

The 70's were my favorite era of Springsteen and this was one of his best alongside Darkness on the Edge of Town. His neck was on the line with his label and he needed to deliver on this album and deliver he did! This album has such a huge sound and so many great moments with Clarence Clemons' Jungleland solo being one of my favorites. It's a legendary album and an easy 5-star rating.

Worth five stars on the power of Thunder Road and Tenth Avenue Freeze Out.

I can't believe how much piano there is throughout this album, I never realized his music was so piano-heavy. I really liked this album, and see why it was so influential and important when it came out.

Listening to Born to Run (the song) and crying about how this same guy was responsible for The Rising, damn I know 9/11 really buck broke the people of the US but these two are really night and day. Bruce gets a lot of flack for his 7-beers deep tone of singing while he tries to capture the deeper vocal stylings of Roy Orbison but I think it fits the bands

True confessions: For a long time, maybe my teenage years, even into my 20's I didn't like Bruce Springsteen. It was not because of the music. It was because I felt he was too pessimistic about life, especially American working class life. Yet as I got older I came to see what he meant more and more, to relate more and more and now... Now with the working class, immigrants, LGBTQ, anyone who "dares" not be a white, conservative, christian, straight, and RICH person living in USA is a huge target, all our worlds on fire and nobody is putting it out... Bruce Springsteen, contrary to my youthful ignorance, stands out as a pillar of truth, of what matters, how to push forward through the hate and rage and misery. Find someone to love, do the best you can. Care for your neighbors and your neighborhood... Damn if this is not more important and relevant today then when it came out!

So glad this was Springsteen's breakthrough. 10/10

****** BRUCE!!!

This album could just be Born to Run, and 7 other tracks consisting of Bruce farting straight into the microphone, and it would still be a 5 because the title track is just that good. Luckily, there are plenty of other good songs here.

Classic after classic after classic. Thunder Road, Backstreets, Born to Run and Jungleland are some of the best songs of the 70s. 5

Simply one of the best rock albums of all time - has never gotten old for me - lyrically, musically, emotionally

There's a huge nostalgia factor with me for this album. It was the one album that all my siblings had and played regularly and it was the soundtrack for so many childhood vacation trips. My mother heard the words to "Tenth Avenue Freezeout" as "The Devil in the Freezer" so that was a recurring joke. This album has achieved mythic status for me. And, hearing it again, it hasn't lost any of its grandeur through all these years. Roy Bittan's piano is such an essential element of it, it really is the backbone of the album. There's also a real sadness that comes through that I didn't hear when I was growing up. And to think that now we have 7 unreleased albums from him to listen to. Was there ever a better run for a artist than from "Born to Run" through "Born in the USA?"

Probably my fourth or fifth favorite Springsteen album, and an easy five stars. Title track and 10th Avenue Freezeout are two of the best rock songs ever. Also feels like the most cohesive Bruce record as a full unit, the keys and Clarence Clemons sax shine throughout the whole thing

NOW THIS IS AN ALBUM! I haven't really been excited for an album in some time. It's been like a week and a half or something, but that lack of excitement ended when I saw Born to Run pop up on this website. I mean, this is THE most acclaimed album from one of the most beloved musicians alive! Of course I was looking forward to this. Additionally, with this only being my second Springsteen album, I have yet to become burnt out on his music, so that's good. To be honest, I'm not sure I ever will. I liked The Rising well enough, but Born to Run is a masterpiece. Is anyone really surprised to hear me say that? Why would you be? There really isn't anything wrong with this album. Springsteen's singing and the album's vibes at large are extravagant yet down-to-earth. It's amazing. The songwriting? Excellent. The Boss is a storyteller through and through and it shows here. The album has no bad songs. From the endlessly enticing "Thunder Road" at the start to the outstanding title track near the middle to the final 10-minute tour de force that is "Jungleland," Born to Run serves as a showing of a true musical genius at the top of his game. And of course, I could never forget about the E Street Band! Those guys killed it on this album! I mean, you've got multiple saxophone solos that all work wonders in the album. That's just awesome! I can't say I'm surprised to love this album. Oh yeah, I forgot to add. Bruce Springsteen is just a great guy. It kind of feels like an obligation in some ways, but I also know deep down in my heart that this is the right call. What am I talking about? Well, it's the 5/5 that I'm giving this album of course! Fantastic stuff here.

Springsteen is one of those artists that is always hit or miss for me; thankfully this album is chock full of hits. Zero wasted space on a romping Americana album that really makes you feel like you were born to run at every turn. Great all-around listen. Top tracks: Thunder Road, Born to Run, Jungleland

Yes, this lives up to its stature as one of all time greats.

Arguably his best

Great

Every single song on here was magnificent. Except maybe 'Meeting Across the River'. That one put me to sleep twice. Still a five though.

Still goes hard 50 years later. The Boss's first masterpiece. An incredible ode to being young and wild in New Jersey. Title track has to be one of the best rock songs ever recorded. Standout tracks: Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out, Born to Run, She's the One, Jungleland

Great American music by a person that hates America.

Sometimes you wanna hear a guy leave it all on the table - just step into a recording booth and unleash his soul. This album really showcases how much people have (lovingly) ripped off his sound in the decades since this came out; very cool to hear the blueprint for some of my favorite music. Plus: the instruments! Love the sax and piano, which create some really interesting melodies behind Bruce's explosive vocals. Honestly, before I started this project, I didn't think I liked Springsteen. This is the last of his albums on this list for me, and I'm a total convert. I'm afraid The Boss rules.

Goated album

In 2025, the Boss' words resonate more than ever.

Perfect album.

Groovy stuff. Really makes slaving away in the cubicle much more enjoyable

Way back way, the second album my 1001 Albums group had ever gotten was Bruce Springsteen's DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN. In the 35 word review I wrote for it, I made a point to mention that I preferred BORN TO RUN to it — which was actually a typo. Later on, I clarified in my review/babble of BORN IN THE U.S.A. that I actually preferred, well, BORN IN THE U.S.A.to DARKNESS, and that I'd simply gotten my "borns" backwards. To that point, I hadn't even **heard** BORN TO RUN yet! I'd like to make one more amendment. It turns out I was right the first time: I actually **do** prefer BORN TO RUN to DARKNESS ON THE EDGE OF TOWN. In fact, I prefer it to BORN IN THE U.S.A., because this... Oh, this. Where do I even begin with this? This is the greatest album Bruce Spriungsteen's ever made. Let me be just absolutely clear and blunt about it. And, yeah, sure, I've still yet to hear everything he'd ever put out. I've never even taken a trip to NEBRASKA. But if you had heard what I'd just heard, you'd be making that confident-ass assessment, too. I don't even know where to begin with specifics. I almost wanna go over this album track by track, gushing about each and every one, and it's only because another member of my group has already done it that I'm refraining. (Wanna keep my take unique among the lot, y'know?) But that's just how good this album is; that every song included, even the closest thing to a dud ("She's The One"), is worth individual consideration. I haven't felt like doing that with an album since David Bowie's HUNKY DORY. In the absence of a song-by-song analysis, then, let me say this: this is the platonic idea of Bruce Springsteen. "Classical Bruce Springsteen," even. Everything you'd expect him to sound like is on this album, and it's the best version of all those sounds. No frills, no fluffs — just the primest cuts. I mean, goodness, even BORN IN THE U.S.A. still had those 80's cheese synths all over them, y'know? And I love those synths, but seriously — **seriously**. The album's composed of all these back-to-back-to-back, larger than life epics of songs, and none more so than "Jungleland". I'll go out on a limb about this, too: best song in Springsteen's career, probably. This is a nine minute song that's just as big as it needs to be to justify a runtime like that, and keep in mind that pretty much a whole third of the track is dedicated to a rippin' sax solo. I'm just floored, honestly. I'm nearly speechless and only barely keeping what gushing I can push out to some kind of structure. It's just... This is the kind of album legends are made from. It might not have been the one to make him a worldwide star, but this, right here, far as I can tell, is where The Boss became The Boss. And if there's any Springsteen albums on this list... Well, dang, I'm gonna have a hard time saying I prefer any of them to this.

The album that made The Boss into a sensation. 4.5 bumped up to 5.

I’m at a 10. It's probably higher, honestly. Listen, I can understand why “Born in the U.S.A.” is the more heralded Bruce Springsteen record – he already had bigger name recognition, the songs were genuinely perfect for the time, and as a whole, that title & cover art just invokes an explosion of patriotic fervor brought on by the illusions of the Reagan years, even if the music itself was made for a crowd who recognized that not all was sunshine & rainbows in the land of the free. I get it. For my money’s worth, though, this is the best Bruce Springsteen album we’ve gotten so far. Going in, I was hoping for something that carried the gravitas of the two other albums we’ve gotten from him, since I figured it wouldn’t be as polished. Obviously, I knew “Born to Run” would be here, but I’ve never heard anything else from the album, and even in terms of that title track, I had only heard the cover version on “Welcome to the Pleasuredome” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood. It’s a great cover, but it’s incomparable to the original. Born to Run is very obviously the climax of this album, but the entire buildup to get there is unbelievable in its own right. This might have the most explosive 5-track start to an album I’ve heard in a while, and as an entire package, I can only really say it has a partial stumble on “She’s the One”, but that’s just because it has the unenviable task of following an all-timer. It is as close to a perfect 39 minutes as you can get. “Thunder Road” is electric – just a perfectly written track, with a great vocal performance to boot, acting as a constantly layered 6-minute piece, building up the intensity of the instrumental, in a way that constantly keeps itself entertaining. It sets an incredibly high bar for the rest of the album to follow. “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” has the sort of “throwback” production that Phil Collins would so effectively use on his cover of “You Can’t Hurry Love” – just a wonderfully done blend of 60s doo-wop sensibilities with 70s rock & roll, all done in a way that feels timeless to this day. “Night” has great lyricism & vocals, but it’s also just a set piece for the band to go nuts on, and they knock it out of the park – it’s truly criminal that it only has 8 million plays on Spotify, because it sounds like a Red Bull. “Backstreets” is a dazzling 6 minute piece, with great (& positively ambiguous) storytelling, arguably even better layering than “Thunder Road”, and an unbelievably captivating bridge, capped off by one of the grittiest vocal performances I’ve heard from Bruce Springsteen ever. “Born to Run” is… well, it’s “Born to Run”. You just have to listen to it. It is exactly where this album hits its climax, and it really is worth all the acclaim. I knew I would like Bruce’s version, but I wasn’t expecting to feel THAT much more captivated by the grit in his voice, and the little tinges of folksy, Bob Dylan-esque production still present in the original like this. “She’s the One” is that tiny, tiny misstep – still a good track, if a bit platitudinal (& a little overly descriptive) for the lovey dovey lyrics. The Phil Spector influence is the big one here – it’s just a little too strong on the wall of sound, and overall, it’s just a noticeable step down from the high of “Born to Run”. Honestly, the album might’ve been paced even better if you swapped it with “Meeting Across the River”. “Meeting Across the River” is a really thematic noir track, with the sort of context-driven storytelling that I’m a sucker for on tracks like this. It helps that it’s got more of a lo-fi instrumental mood to it, underlining a calm sense of dread that’s present throughout the story of this poor guy who’s gonna absolutely get whacked in a job gone wrong (& knows it, too). It’s the most unique track on the album in terms of a departure from the rock / Americana stuff, and if it had come after “Born to Run”, I think the shift would’ve been just crazy enough to work. “Jungleland” is unbelievably good – it’s the longest track on the album, but it’s arguably the most passionately performed, with Bruce using his penmanship to craft an incredibly vivid view of New Jersey at this time, underlined by a spectacular performance from the band, especially on that fucking 3-minute saxophone solo. It’s paced perfectly, and Bruce knows when to give the lyricism their gravitas, most prevalent on the spoken-word exasperation present in the final verse. Once that piano explodes afterward, it’s just a cinematic sort of bliss that feels like the perfect way to end the album on. I’m out of adjectives, but I wouldn’t write a paragraph about every single track here if I didn’t enjoy this THAT much. It’s a stunner of an album, and one of the best of 1975, if not all time. It’s very obviously a 10, and certainly within the top 10 (if not higher) of all the albums we’ve gotten so far, at least for me. P.S.: Frankly, it’s unbelievable to get this and “Horses” by Patti Smith back to back. Two 8-track rock & roll albums with captivating black & white cover art, both highly influential in their own right, with the critical acclaim to match it. Two sides of a very similar coin, yet existing in their own spaces & representing two different parts of the same scene. Just a treat to get properly introduced to both of them in a 48-hour span, and one of the highlights of this experience so far, even some 518 albums in.

Great times thx?

If this doesn’t make you feel like a hot blooded American with a bald eagle tugging out your heart strings with red white and blue tears in its eyes, I don’t know what to tell you.

In my top 10. Not a weak song on here.

Starts with Thunder Road. 6 stars! Fun Fact: Bruce traced his Irish ancestry to a small village called Rathangan. It's where I went to school. During his last tour he visited the area, drank a Guinness in our local bar and sang a tune. What a man.

I was the guy that never understood everyone’s obsession with this guy. Now I get it. I was totally wrong.

Great

Listened to the style of Springsteen in the first track and knew I’d enjoy it. I was thinking initially a 4 and had settled on it until the flourishing finale which made me want to listen to the album again. Listening to this made me recall Billy Joel’s ‘The Stranger’ when I was in Salford, now it’s Springsteen’s ‘Born to Run’ which I hope to remember Fitzroy by. Fantastic album!

I got this album when I was on a road trip through south Jersey. Guess what. 5 stars

THE voice of America. He always has been.

Imagine being in high school or college in 1974 and listening to this on your record player for the first time. Then imagine realizing the guy who wrote this album wasn’t that much older than you. You might just give it all up. This has to be one of the top 5 rock and roll albums by anyone at anytime. 50 plus years later it’s still fantastic.

Ok yeah a million stars. I actually only started listening to Springsteen a few years ago. Perhaps it’s due to me not being American, I kinda assumed it’s some silly super patriot American songs. Oh how wrong was I. It’s hard to write about somebody like Springsteen since he’s so big. But you can listen to this without thinking about the boss. This album starts so powerful out of the gate with Thunder Road and then gives us such a range from party songs to ballads through Springsteen’s famous anthems. Bruce has such a singing range, rocking on tenth avenue freeze out, crooning on night, belting out on thunder road and the title track. Lyrics about life and the mundane and the itching desire to escape it. This is an all time classic. Five stars.

The Boss

Didn’t think I’d love this album but I do great listen :)

4/5

Amazing

This is awesome. Top to bottom.

This album defined the Boss. Every song is well placed on the album. Great cover to cover.

Superb album. Amazing and conscious songwriting coupled with Springsteen's emotion-heavy vocals and the explosions on tracks like Born to Run and Jungleland are incredible. Only flaw I could point out is that the instrumentation is sometimes not the most interesting . 4.5/5, rounded to a 5/5.

Epic

Classic Boss

bruce is the fuckin man baby

oowee

Easy peasy.