Born To Run

Perfect story telling, love his voice, it may be a bit cheeseball dad rock but I’ll love Bruce for ever

i didn't live my life as a boss head until I married a boss head - he only has a couple 5s, but this is probably one of them

Never hated or loved Bruce. May need to give him another chance.

Masterpiece

Can't say whether I've listened to this or Greetings from Asbury Park more. Either way I was here for it and I'm lucky I was.

I won’t say that Born to Run is where Bruce Springsteen hit his peak, because he wrote plenty of great albums after this one, but it’s an album where he fully hit his stride and depicts a mythologized America at the margins. His band is lean and tight, and the songs are unfailingly great musically and lyrically. Unquestionably a five star album.

This is one of the most confident and self assured albums I've listened too. They know exactly the sound they want and hit it perfectly throughout. The mixture of instruments is outstanding and the production it spot on. It stands on its own, even if it skirts close to the rock opera winds at time. A great album, that grows with repeat listens.

8 songs, 39 minutes, balls to the wall energy that he still has 50+ years later. Thunder Road is one of the best all time opening tracks on an album. He's the boss of all of us.

Every song is an emotional tour de force. Granted there's the big hitters, but every track can stand for itself. Opening with Thunder Road is a genius move.

I’ve heard this before. Last time I listened to it was about 20 years ago when one of my friends told me Bruce Springsteen changed his life, prior to that was in college when I had a generally awful roommate who listened to a lot of bad music and also Bruce Springsteen, and I couldn’t shake the stink off from that. That stink has expired now. I have never been a fan of his voice, but it’s not grating or anything and I can look past that. I like that Born To Run has glockenspiel in it on the main opening riff. Rock needs more glockenspiel in heavier songs and not relegate it to ballads. Rockenspiel. So Bruce Springsteen did not change my life but did change my mind. This is a great album.

Deserving of its legacy

Te aml brucee

Not my favourite Springsteen but pretty up there. I somehow love when he goes cheesy pop but this is probably the apex of his quality. Very few dips in quality here with Jungleland being an incredible closer.

Springsteen is an almost perfect artist encapsulate America. He has written like a dozen albums about being the everyman and the various ways that the system abuses the average person, sends them to their wits ends and forces them into ever more desperate situation. He is a gifted storyteller and the yarns he weaves are remarkable in their ability to make highly specific details service narratives that feel universal. Springsteen is also perfectly American in that with all that understanding of the injustices the system can perpetrate, his diagnosis never really calls for upheaval. His politics are generally liberal, but general vibe and demeanor are constantly being hijacked by all sorts of right wingers in no small part becuase it's all so American. That maybe all seems like a silly set of things to talk about in relation to this album, but the themes, the images, the motifs, they run through this album as thoroughly as any other in his discography. One more thing that is perfectly American about Springsteen is that he's spent basically the entirety of his career playing the same variety of rock that is neither revolutionary nor derivative. There's a signature way springsteen stuff sounds and it's always obvious when someone is trying to key into that. But this isn't an imitator, this is the real thing. And it's nearly perfect, even with all it's Americaness.

Bruce sei the boss for real, è pura libertà sotto forma di album.

Poco da dire. Questa è musica universale. Impossibile non essere trascinati da questo album.

5*

The boss! I love this album, cinematic music, it tells you full rounded stories and feeds you the emotions. Songs that take left turns but drag you along with them. It’s a no skipper for me, it’s gonna be a 5 5.0/5.0 Best Song: Born To Run/Thunder Road

Massive keys, massive sax, massive everything tbf. Could be his best songwriting. It's such a fun punchy album. It's so fucking cool. Best Track: Thunder Road or Jungleland

Favourite album so far

Unbelievable album, from one of the greats.

What an album. I love the tales the Bruce tells here. A masterclass in songwriting. Beautiful. 5/5

Super good

YAYYY LIKED ITT

Way better than I remember. Has me questioning whether this is the best Bruce album. There’s just so much life to these songs. First half stronger than the second but the whole thing is great. This is The Boss in his prime.

Yay

What an iconic piece of American music! Crank it up and let your youthful rebellious soul free! Listening to this album took me back to place and time when I thought what a great time to be alive. The Boss’s voice is driving the lyrics, Little Steven guitar gives the music life and band makes it ROCK! Another great album that earned a place at the table that feeds my soul.

Bruce is the Boss!

A timeless classic from a rock legend

A flawless masterpiece. The worst track is better than you remember and it contains 3 or 4 classics. So good Bruce could have released mediocrities for 50 years and he’d still be The Boss.

Brucen paras levy ja yksi omista suosikeistani. Tekstit ovat elämänmakuisia ja soundit muhkeat.

One of the greatest records of all time. The album that got me into the Boss, and changed my life entirely. 10/10, no flaws.

Quintessential album by probably the most iconic American solo artist this side of Bob Dylan. The title track is an absolute powerhouse - when the key change hits you just take off with him. The buildup to it is a masterclass in album songwriting too - imagine flipping that record over for the first time and dropping the needle. Crazy to think these guys were 3 years into being a band at this point. 51 years later, still here. The Boss deserves the praise and this is the record that put him in the history books.

One of my favorite albums ever. Thunder Road is a top 5 song for me. Has tunes that are both restrained and then some completely bombastic ones

Although it might be cliche to say this is your favorite Springsteen album (maybe Born in the USA would like a word as well) ...it's my favorite Springsteen album, probably by a long shot. Something about the blue-collar Jersey romanticism that others might call maudlin just speaks to me, and the music is just great. As many times as I've heard the title track in my life it's always thrilling, a perfect song. Piano and sax abound, and I'm here for it.

5 Stars for the Boss Best Song: Born to Run Rating: 9.5/10 Stars: 5

Classic rock at its finest. Makes me want to crush a hot dog and punch through a wall.

Fuck you, Pete

Every song is great. The cherry on top was it was the exact length as my drive to work which is satisfyingly

Not much to say ... a perfect album.

Fabulous album, part of my teens

Been a while since I listened to this, but wow does this album hold up. Full of great songs, and the rock guitars plus saxophone and piano all blend perfectly here.

It’s magic.

This is one of my favorite musical throwbacks out there to an era of American idealism, spirit and bonds that seems to be truly long gone.

E Street & the Boss at their peak

A banger of an album - not a wasted minute. Favourite track: there’s no bad choice for this album, but it’s got to be Born to Run.

I always laugh when I get an album I'm ultra-familiar with on this site. This isn't even Bruce's finest hour for me and yet I still think it's worth 5 stars. Even with the two albums preceding this being as great as they are, Born to Run is where Bruce became The Boss. It's a seismic shift, a complete tone-setter and a career-definer, and the ultimate example of an "essential" Bruce record. It's not as flashy as Born In The USA, it's not as uninviting as Nebraska and it's not as overwrought as The River. It's right where it needs to be, decadent with restraint and enrichingly human, with some fantasy involved.

Better than I expected it to be

passion

8 tracks, 39 minutes of Bruce almighty. No fillers or dull moments. It's a solid 4.5/5.

Dikke slay

This is the album that made me a true believer. I got on that Bruce Springsteen train and have remained a fan through today. It’s been a bit since Bruce has offered a real masterpiece for his fans, and at this point in his career, he may never again. It has though been a great journey!

Might be my favorite album of all time. So fucking good, start to finish I love this album.

9.5/10

Så mye energi! En lykkepille med saksofon. Kommer garantert til å høre denne når jeg vasker kåken. Vippet mellom 4 og 5 her.

Perhaps 4.5, but we will round up given its influential status. Although some songs feel like filler, the highlights (Backstreets, Born to Run, Jungleland) perfectly capture American yearning and striving.

I've somehow never listened to this before. Hooooooly shiiiiiiiiiiiit. The band is blasting it the whole album. It sounds like they bad so much fun recording this. She's The One is a love ballad with a fucking Bo Diddley beat. Amazing. Jim Steinman straight ripped off Thunder Road, Night, and Born To Run for Bat Out Of Hell, huh?

Oh Thunder Road. It’s absolutely my favorite song, and Born To Run is absolutely my favorite album. Part of why I connect with this song so much is that I feel like Bruce is singing about my dad. My dad didn’t have a Mary, or a guitar. But in 1964 he had a graduation gown at his feet, a dirty hood, two lanes, and an urgent need to leave behind a town full of losers.

peak white boy

The storytelling, the humanity, but above all the musical concoction of styles and instruments all add up to an ensuring picture of the American dream in all its promise and failures

Great album. Deep lyrics. Strong sounds

Ah hell yeah, Bruce. Such a great album. Happy to get something I'm quite familiar with after three days of doing this, because I was started to feel inadequate as a self-styled well rounded music lover smh Thunder Road - Love this song. Just such a wonderful and evocative sound. The saxophone-led outro is just everything I love in a rock song. Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out - Hell yeah, getting some piano blues up in here. Love this song. Night - Coming out swinging with the saxophones immediately on this one. And then Bruce doubling down on the Bruce vocals. Perfection. Backstreets - The composition of this song is top notch. Verse melody is so tense and delicious until the chorus erupts in the resolution. And if that wasn't good enough, you have the last two minutes. Born to Run - Absolutely classic and highly influential. This sound is the sound of some of my favorite songs. Love love love this one. She's the One - His songwriting ability is so strong. I'm in bafflement of these little pop motifs that he builds rock songs around seemingly effortlessly. This one always reminds me of something Billy Joel would write but better. Meeting Across the River - Splendid little ballad. Perfect way to calm us down from the last couple of bangers and prime us for Jungleland. Jungleland - Feels like there's not much I can say on this song in a text format like this. This is the one. The kind of song that you have to turn on again as soon as it ends and I for sure did this time. Future me, I know you know what I mean, but if you've somehow forgotten, just listen to this one again. Feels like I haven't said much of substance on this record in comparison to others, but what really can I say? There's not really anything experimental going on here, unless you count a complete genius mastery of genre and form as experimental. So so so so good. One of the greats for sure.

They simply don’t get much better than this. Thunder Road is perhaps the greatest song of all time.

What an epic, cinematic album. I really like Bruce Springsteen and I love this album. Big, dramatic, universal, timeless, catchy, and chock full of all the feels. Special shout-out for my all-time favorite Springsteen song, Jungleland. - Heard before? I own this album. - Will I listen again? Definitely. - Does it inspire me to listen to more of this artist? Yeah, but more importantly it just inspires me to listen to this album again.

Good

A huge blindspot for me, I love the expansive sound and general propulsion of this album. Looking forward to revisiting.

Great, great album.

Still a classic. Remember listening to my dad blasting Bruce from his garage while I was a kid on the nearby swing set. This album, like dad, is aging well

It's fitting that my introduction to Springsteen is the album that introduced him to the world. -- wait I forgot I listened to "The Rising" haha

Easiest 5 star review yet

This is a brilliant album. Springsteen grows exponentially as a story teller here. He's found a persona that works for him and with the E Street band behind him magic flows.

I still believe that "Nebraska" is Bruce's best, but this and "Darkness on the Edge of Town" are excellent too and would be the best works of artists who I also think are great.

Fuck yeah!

The best album

Giving this a 5 in honor of the 2009 Suffield Academy Men's Cross Country Team.

p343. 1975. 5 stars. The best of the 60's recycled to give something new for the mid 70s. Great songs, great lyrics, great production, there isn't a weak track on this. One of the few albums where 6+ minute tracks are acceptable.

235/1001 Bruce Springsteen - Born to Run Heard before? ✅ Revisit? ✅ Perfect. No notes.

YES! My favorite, and his best IMHO, LP from The Boss. Not a weak spot on here.

Great album, loved it; his raw voice and honest lyrics always leave a mark. The River has easily become one of those songs that would remain in my playlist forever 💯

I fucking love Bruce That is all…..

Do I even need to rate this one? I'm not a big Springsteen person, but this is lightning in a bottle.

I once went to karaoke and heard a drunk middle aged couple do a duet of Born to Run, and it was honestly kinda beautiful. Like that was the way the song was truly meant to be sung. It's hard to explain why. Anyway yeah this is my favorite Springsteen album. No skips. 5/5.

A perfect album.

Great album!

Trace it back to the beginning and rock and roll is all about trying to escape something. The old time blues artists actually had it bad and Bruce here really does the American tradition proud. I’m a bit too drunk to express how much this album means to me but it transcends time and even if your dad’s dad loves it, it’s still excellent. It is hopeful and wonderfully orchestrated and he sure looked good in that 70s hat he wore

Springsteen fandom has always felt the most religious of a lot of the classic rock and roll artists. There aren't any Deadhead pilgrimages but fans of Bruce have probably asked you if he is your personal savior or if you've been Born to Run again. As a card-carrying member of the Church of Bruce I just feel bad for the people that have never experienced a proper Bruce tent revival and shouted Thunder Road or Badlands until their voices went hoarse and they all got migraines. Yes, the songs are pretty much all the same. Yes, I sound like a crazy person.

The desperation he faced while making this album is palatable in the words that he's speaking. I love the grand mix of genres throughout the album that makes it feel like he's truly telling a story from lots of different points in one person's life. The way he carried the desperation of the words in his tone and sonically was beautiful. I can see why he's an American classic.

Something about this album just makes me feel like I'm coming home. Some outstanding tracks, but every track is solid.

duh doy I have albums I like more as a cohesive product, but Thunder Road/Born To Run/Jungleland are perfect, and it paints such a perfect picture of young adult desperation to get out of this place, with such beautiful piano and saxaphone parts, that you can excuse the tonal similarities. or at least I can.

I mean Justin is going to have a meltdown if I don't give this a 5. Anyhow, this album has Thunder Road, Jungleland, and of course Born to Run on it. Tenth Avenue Freezeout and Backstreets are good too, and I have a fondness for the doomed gut-punch of Meeting Across the River. This album was so good, everyone started calling Springsteen the saviour of rock and roll and Todd Rundgren was forced to produce Bat Out of Hell as a parody.

Surprisingly really like this

Amazing album from start to finish.

Interplay of Bittan piano and Clemons on sax elevates this - his first classic

People seem to either love him or hate him. I'm in the former camp, but have to admit I haven't really listened to anything after Born in the USA. Not crazy about that album because it was on the radio so much as a kid. Love the first 4 albums though, with Darkness my fave.

Thunder Road once saved my life. Literally. I was in a bad place. As bad as it gets and ready to put an end to everything. I knew how I'd do it. And then Thunder Road came on the shuffle I'd got going on one of those big old iPods. And, heck, "there's a town full of losers/and I'm pulling out of here to win". Or something like that. It was probably a slower, acoustic version of Thunder Road, possibly a live one. But, yeh, Thunder Road made me see that there's a way out of a mess. That there's hope. Which, until you get to Jungleland at least, has always struck me as the message of this album. C'mon Wendy, this is the way of Never-never land. There are lots of reasons to love this album: the wall of sound; the role that Roy Bittan's piano (and other instruments) plays pretty much throughout; the hope and joy of Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out. It's probably not better than Darkness on the Edge of Town in pure album terms, but, you know, it's close and this is a very, very good album indeed. And it's balanced. Each side is glorious in itself. I've always had a soft spot for Meeting Across the River – that trumpet work by Randy Brecker is glorious and it's exactly what the album needs at this point. And the storytelling is at its best here – and Springsteen can write stories. But I'm not sure it ever gets any better – in pure storytelling terms – as Meeting Across the River. And then Jungleland. Oh, Jungleland. A glorious ending. That coda after the sax solo is sheer perfection. And "the poets down here don't write nothing at all/they just stand back and let it all be"? What a way to lead in to the hopelessness of Darkness on the Edge of Town. The hope dies with the Magic Rat, and before you know it we're at Racing in the Streets. Its too long since I last listened to this as a whole album. I must do so more often. Damned close to perfect. I'm sorry if you don't like the voice or are too young to get the importance of this. It's one of my favourite albums. And, yeah, Thunder Road is kinda important to me.

Never actually listened to this album as a whole before, despite knowing and loving songs like Thunder Road, Born, 10th Avenue Freeze Out and Jungleland. I've been missing out, an 8 song album at about 40 minutes which is absolutely top notch from start to finish. 5 out of 5 for me.

Very good.

This is so goated I literally love Bruce Springsteen I've been meaning to listen to this full album. I watched the movie a few months back with Jeremy Allen White it was so good. It's so short yippee!! I love a good short album. It's a rare occasion that I wish an album's longer than it is. The way some people are about hating long chapters and wishing there were more short chapters I am about albums. Over an hour is pushing it two hours is just obscene. His voice is so unique it sounds kinda painful when he sings I love it. It gives it so much emotion. And the way he enunciates then mumbles makes them sound so interesting. This is not just boring 70s rock he's actually doing something. This is such summer convertible music. Bruce Springsteen feels like he was a teenage girl in another life tbh like I'm On Fire and Born to Run are emotions best felt during a teenage crisis. Once went on an hour long drive just listening to I'm On Fire on repeat I could've crashed the car. He's kinda getting jiggy with it. This doesn't feel like rock it's so 70s sitcom lowkey I like it. I feel like Springsteen is one of those rare cases where his most popular songs are his best. Or at least from the songs I've heard I appreciate his hits the most. I may just be woefully uneducated in the ways of Bruce. I didn't know he was kinda... when he was younger. Scream Bruce Springsteen scream. Backstreets is so good I am hiding speak on it. And Born to Run I mean it's a classic for a reason of course. This town is ripping the bones from my back, it is a death trap, is is a suicide rap, I do need to get out while I'm still young, I am a tramp, and I am born to run. See it's sooooo teenage girl trust. Who is Wendy?? Ohhhh Peter Pan??? This is so deep what it's about refusing to grow up?? Hmmm I have unlocked something in this song... Backstreets is homo?? Oh Bruce you're cooking. Favourite: yk it's Born to Run/actually Backstreets is kinda really good Least favourite:

I mean, you know it from the opening harmonica notes in Thunder Road, the propulsive title track, the bopping of 10th avenue freezeout, the beautiful balladry of backstreets. The epic piano parts on the back half of the record in meeting across the river and she's the one. The epic jungleland closer this is just a rock classic.

One of my favorites of all time. It’s a cinematic experience, engaging and thoroughly rewarding.

wow. this album was so good holy shit!!! i listened to another one straight after ooooh jam jam

Saved me from the drudgery of disco.

Fantastic album of classic rock songs

BRUUUUUUUUUUUCE

YES. The only song on this album I even _consider_ skipping is "Meeting Across the River." The rest are all killers.

Legendary

OK, what can I say about this album, that hasn't already been said. It was most say a turning point in Bruce's career. There are many hidden gems on this album but so many stand out songs. Jungleland is beyond awesome, but Across the River is one of my favorites.

Best Song: Born to Run Another great album from the Boss. Perhaps this is the quintessential Springsteen album, it's hard to tell. Personally, I liked Nebraska better but this was also great. I guess it all depends if you like your Boss rocking or your Boss folk. 5/5.

This album has been listened to every three months at least for 25 plus years. All time great imo

Love a bit of Bruce

Solid 5

Hell yeah! Great energy!

Yep. Oh yeah. This does it. Mhm. Godless Communist here to say: yup.

Before: Another great one that I already know I will enjoy listening to. In fact, I have it ranked as my favorite album of 1975 with 8 of 8 tracks appearing in my 1975 playlist, which BTW is a relatively modest list containing only 60 tracks. My brother was a huge fan and had this album so I heard the whole thing many, many times when we were in HS in the late 70's. Actually, I myself and most of my friends were huge fans and this album was the background music of countless road trips to our secret sliding rock across the border, up in the mountains, and hours long games of Quarters. I guess it's going to get 5 stars which will be my first such rating so far. After: Yep, pretty much what I thought, 5 stars. I don't normally listen to this album anymore, but it's still great.

I’m proud to be one of his employees!

extremely goated. so good

Legendary. One of those unmitigated classics that lives up to its billing. Every song is special. It’s not my favorite Bruce album, but it’d still be impossible to improve upon. “Jungletown” alone would make this a 5. It’s a soaring rock achievement.

Absolute classic, cannot recommend it enough. Lush sounding, with drive and stunning lyrics. A meticulously crafted masterpiece.

Perfect record. I mean come on.

I had a great time with this album, 39 minutes went by in no time and showed me to a bunch of new songs by an artist I’ve been meaning to listen to more of. 5 Stars 3rd of January day but listened to fully on the 4th of January

I already know this easy 5 stars classic album It was top class

He could have never put out another album and coasted on "greatest hits" tours based solely on this one for the rest of his career. Isn't it a wonderful world that that's not what happened?

It's Bruce. Classic, 1975 Bruce. Bruce and the E Street Shuffle making music together - with their backs against the wall trying to find the magic after their first two albums didn't quite reach the expected level of success. Musicians in the band were changed out. Struggles with the label. And then Born to Run is created and starts to take off.

mi segundo fav de bruce, pero objetivamente lo mejor de su carrera

yoooooo ive never heard this one 6000 times before

Great album

Easily one of the best albums of the decad

I’d initially given this album a 4/5, which was still surprising, considering that I expected it to be a 2 or 3 stars. However, re-listening to a lot of the songs, this is simply a 5 star album. Its dramatic rock is just simply awesome to listen to, and the instruments in the background are just an amazing touch that takes this album to the next level. I think I especially liked these instruments because it reminds me of my favorite band since I was 2, a Japanese band named Mr.Children.

This was one of the first albums I’ve listened to, and it took a while to grow on me at first, but it's risen to be one of my favorite albums of all time. I think most of this comes down to the production style: by emulating Phil Spector's whole "Wall of Sound thing, it really differentiates this album from a lot of similar works. During this listen especially, I really realized how orchestral it makes it sound, like a symphony almost. I heard at one point that Springsteen wanted this album to sound like "Roy Orbison singing Bob Dylan lyrics, with Phil Spector producing". While his lyrics aren't quite as good as Dylan's, and his singing is certainly not near the level of Orbison, I think that this production exceeds Spector's in a lot of ways. I'd even go as far to say that this is one of the best-produced albums of all time, although I'm not sure how much of that is just due to how good the E-Street Band is. In terms of songwriting, I like the contrast between the more energetic and fun songs like Thunder Road and Born to Run with the slower, more epic ones like Backstreets and Jungleland. This listen, I also really appreciated Meeting Across the River more than usual, but a lot of that has to do with the trumpeter on that track. Favorite Track: Jungleland

It still sounds huge, and every song except Across the River is great. Five fucking stars.

Specter’s Wall of Sound meets Orbison’s voice meets Dylan’s lyricism— all a little bit hyperbolic but still a great capsule summary for this RnR masterpiece.

4.5 stars This is probably a 5 star album based on its historical significance and relevance at the time that it came out. There are just other albums that I prefer more in the Springsteen discography. Not his best work, lyrically, but sonically, it's fantastic.

Still not my favourite Bruce album, but damn it is so good. I think Thunder Road/Jungleland is probably my favourite album opener/combo of all time. Every song is a classic on here.

Classic Springsteen stuff, but also some excellent harmonies and background work on slower songs. I was surprised.

This is one of my favorite albums ever, and mostly because while there are a lot of great songs, it’s an almost perfect example of what an LP album should be - both record sides’ sequence, dynamics and story arc fit with the physical experience and limitations of a vinyl record. Not to mention Thunder Road being this amazing crescendoing pop song that does so without even verses or a chorus and it seems to do so effortlessly. I could go on - just the turns of phrase used, the imagery, the concept and delivery is so beautifully executed.

One of my favourite Springsteen albums. Ballads, straight rock, epics…what’s not to love. Have this one in my collection.

Oh, a porch and a glass of contemplative whiskey. A cigar, perhaps. Your wife sitting beside you, both of you in your late forties. The land is flat, the sun is setting in oranges and pinks and you are happy. 10/10 - Never expected to enjoy Springsteen to this degree, but maybe that's my youth speaking. Will listen again.

A classic

Did not expect this. This goes crazy

Quintessential Springsteen. Don’t think I’ve ever listened to the album straight through and it was definitely worth it. Thunder Road and Jungleland made me look up piano tutorials to see if I could tackle them. Probably not.

one of the best of all time

that's what i'm talking about that's why he's the mvp that's why he's the goat Favorite track: Thunder Road/Jungleland

In my early twenties I went out one summer night to a semi-popular bar in Hampton Bays. Bar was packed, jumping, with a live band. Moments into being there, they went into “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out.” This moment stays with me thirty years later because it epitomizes some of what makes The Boss and his Band so timeless: they created a party you are always invited to. Anyway, the iconic status of Springsteen and this album doesn’t need defending. It’s musical storytelling, maybe the best there is, but the brilliance of it is that the music itself always matches the mood. It’s like rock Broadway without the need for a stage. This album, the peak of his artistic power, is one of the best albums ever made.

This album is a gem. A museum piece of Americana. Stories of youth, love, desperation and hope. Superb musicianship and storytelling, this should be in your top 100.

I watched Springsteen at the old Wembley Stadium on Saturday 6th July 1985. No support group, they played both halves, about 4 hours, I was pretty impressed at the value for money. I have listened to this album so many time over the decades, its always been a favourite. Each track stands alone, combined is just beautiful. My favourite tracks, Thunder Road, Meeting Across the River, and the last track Jungleland, all are story telling in themselves. Will often just play the last two tracks. This is in my top ten tracks of all time. GW

Springsteen has earned his place in the rock pantheon. Born to run will day in your ears for days, Jungleland will burrow into your soul... can you make it through the whole song without tears? Then, you're stronger than me.

Bruuuuuuuuuuce 👍

yes

The Boss. G D right.

The Boss! Great album!

Peak Bruce. Magnificent

Sure

A classic, funky and sometimes jazzy album. Love it, can turn it on anytime.

So fresh. The lyrics, the songs, the performances. Shout out to Jungleland for being awesome.

Bara titelspåret gör det till en klassiker. Ståpäls varje gång. På topp tio listan över låtar i historien. Men det finns många fler fina spår. Femma

Like this review to instantly be transported to the Jersey Shore

This album doesn't grip me as much as Born in the USA, but the saxophone and piano on here are so crisp and the storytelling is so on point. I haven't appreciated this album enough before. Really good shit.

10/10

Another classic Springsteen album. The arena-rockers are all here, but there's really something to be said for songs like Meeting Across the River. Hard for me to add anything else; this is a rock classic in my household.

Absolute peak

Amazing, such good piano

Always in the conversation for Bruce’s best. Total classic

Back when there were musicians and song writers.

In my top 25 best albums of all time!

Not much to say about this one. What an accomplishment

Simply a masterpiece. Not my personal favorite Springsteen album but an amazing piece of art. The sound the achieved here is absolutely humongous and it’s often hard for me to tell which instrument is doing which part. Thunder road, tenth avenue freeze out, jungle land, backstreets, and born to run on the same album? My God. Easy 5.

Nostalgia is probably playing a factor here as Bruce and this album in particular were played a lot in my house growing up but this was the first time for me actually sitting down and listening to it all the way through.

Masterpiece. Not my favorite Springsteen album but undeniably great. 5*

Springsteen is an incredible lyricist. The E Street band is so good and has so many members, that it sounds orchestral. The quality of the songs is great and they are all sung with characteristically Springsteeny vocal lines that make The Boss unique. A great experience, 5/5

what can you say about this. even the cover is iconic. in m.h.o one of the best ever albums. every track a classic.

It’s funny the stories you tell yourself, I saw this was today’s album and thought sarcastically oh great, Springsteen, never been a big fan. Then halfway through track one I’m 100% in! Note to self, remember Springsteen in THE BOSS!

4.5

5.0

Springsteen's sweeping, cinematic, and somewhat melodramatic masterpiece. An incredible leap in ambition from his prior album, and never again would he pepper a single record with so many anthemic statements. The title track, "Backstreets", "Jungleland", "Thunder Road" - all of them here. It's not my favorite Springsteen, but a strong argument can be made its his best - and its definitely a worthy add to this list.

- Hat den Morgen ein wenig besser gemacht - Schöner Rock mit vielen tollen Instrumenten und passendem Gesang - Der erste Song hat mich gleich gepackt und der Rest des Albums hat nicht nachgelassen Topsong: Thunder Road

Cinematic, alive, joyous. It feels like the best of being human. Boss was COOKING with this one.

Glock + piano = banger Idk I feel like it's all self evident, this genre of music (jazz rock?) is fantastic and it takes a fair amount of skill to compose it all without being overbearing

I had no idea I liked The Boss. My knowledge of "The Boss" an hour ago consisted of the one line everyone knows from each of two songs: "Born in the USA" and "Born to Run", and a vague understanding that people from New Jersey love this guy. I'm not American, nor of the target age group for this but I understand that he's beloved there in a way that doesn't have much bearing on me as a 30 year old from down under. This album is fantastic! It's more piano and saxophone heavy than I thought it was going to be (which I really like) and really cohesive as an album (which I also really like). It took me a few tracks to see where it was leading, but once I got to the high point of the title track and began the journey back down the other side it all just seemed to click. There is such strong, "wall of sound" production, lyrics that beautifully straddle cryptic depth and raw heart-on-sleeve emotion, and a musical consistency and through-line that feels connected but not repetitive. This embodies so much of what I love in an album, and whilst initially I felt that this was going to be a 3 or 4 star review, the back half of the album has retroactively sold me on this deserving a 5. Everything just comes together so nicely by the end and now that I've finished it I just want to go back and listen to the first few songs again with a new appreciation for what they're building to... and I'm sure I will! This is definitely one I'll listen to again.

Love it.

5 Stars. Maximalist band, hi-fi wall of sound with fairy tale lyrics. Strongly rooted to a mythical time and place. This is the centre of the Springsteen-verse, everything else can be related to this album.

Mega biased here, but legitimately no skips. Insane this is <40 mins

It's fuckin Born to Run, what can I possibly say that hasn't already been said? I'm not even a diehard Bruce fan, but this is an easy five stars. After seeing Bruce live in DC with the E Street Band last year, I'd give this one a 6 if I could. This man puts his blood, sweat, and tears into every song he performs and records - a fact which is fully evidenced in this gritty, landmark album.

10th ave six but the rest is so good

The perfect album

Lowkey soaring.

Could listen to this one over and over.

Classic

Honestly, it is so good that I am struggling to write a coherent review. I knew most of these songs as singles, and from some extraordinary live recordings, but I can't recall having listened to the whole album before. These songs should resonate with anyone who has ever felt the drudgery of day to day life slowly grinding them down. Not all of us can escape for a life of rock and roll, so The Boss has to do it for us and give us a little taste. These are songs of people yearning to break free. The massive sound of the instrumentation and production lends an upbeat air to what actually feels like a rather melancholic statement. These characters are looking to escape into an American dream that was never really attainable for the vast majority. It's a fantasy and Bruce knows it. The strong flavour of Americana feels as though it would have been anachronistic by the early seventies, post Vietnam and Watergate, with the summer of love already vanishing in the rearview mirror. It is as though he is looking at America's (then) present through the lens of its past. Every song is excellent, but I found the opening and closing tracks were my favourites. I would also like to point out that while everyone brings up the piano and the sax, it was really ballsy to put this much Glockenspiel on a straight ahead rock album. Bravo!

¿Qué decir que no se haya dicho ya de “Born To Run”? Pues seguramente nada original. Uno de los álbumes clave del siglo XX. El puñetazo en la mesa del Boss. Incontestable su trancendencia. Y ahora, “unpopular opinion”: me cansa un poco tanta épica. Creo que Bruce se dio cuenta de que menos es más en “Darkness On The Edge Of Town” y le salió un disco para mí más redondo. Eso no quita que “Thunder Road” me emocione cada vez que la escucho y que “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” me provoque no quedarme quieto y moverme al ritmo de su “groove”. Un merecido 10.

tonite in Jun Gle LAAAAAAAAAAAND 🎹🎹🎻🎹🎹🎹🎹🎻🎹 HUUUUUUUHHHH 🎹🎹🎻🎹🎹🎹🎹🎻🎹 🪄🎻🎹🎹🎹🎆 🎇🎹 🎹🎉🎹🎻🎹🎻🎹 💥🎇 🪄💥🎹 🪄🎻🎹🎹🎆🎇🎉🎹 💥🎇🎆🎹 HUUUUUUUUUHHHH 🎹🪄💥🎇 🪄💥🎹🎉🎆🎇🎉💥🎇🎆🎹 🎉💥🎇🎆🎉🎆🎇🪄 whoooooaaaAAAAAAAAAAHHHH 🎉💥🎇🎆🎉🎆🎇🎉🎆🎇🎉💥🎇🎆... 🎹

All time classic.

Terrific

Great album from start to finish. The title track is one of tbe best songs ever, in my opinion. 5 stars

This is a terrific album, and I what I think is the start of one of the best runs of albums in rock history. He really develops the heartland rock sound he'd be best known for, and records some classic songs in the process. Having "Thunder Road" and "Born to Run" on the same album is an achievement in itself, plus you get "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", "Backstreets", and the epic to end all epics, "Jungleland". 5 stars

What can you say about the boss that hasn't already been said before? Truly unique, America to its core. Honesty in songwriting that is hard to come by. Possibly his best album. all of his music is great. so it's hard to pick the best one.

I'm not one to put on a Bruce Springsteen album. But when this is beautiful, it's -so- beautiful. Couple that with the influence this album has had on so many of my favourite artists and it's an obvious five stars, as well as one of the few albums that actually seems to have earned its place on the list.

The album that made him famous and it's a dynamite one. Jungleland is a street poem deluxe. Born to Run a rock n roll classic hit. Back Streets a glimpse of teecity life. Awesome LP.

Almost perfection. My favourite Bruce album, nothing else to say really but brilliant!

Fifty years old this year.. time flies. Springsteen is forever.

A masterpiece.

Bruce makes me wish my Dad worked in a coal mine in a dead end town and expected the same from me. I would drive late at night dreaming of a future that might be mine. I’d pull over at the outskirts of town and I’d blast Born to Run and feel like Bruce were running for the both of us. Bruce has stood these past 50 years as a pillar to rock music and powerful songwriting. Personally, he has the widest gap between how much I listen and how much I love. That is to say I’ve listened to a lot of other artists WAY more and have WAY deeper knowledge but I’ll still rank Bruce above them. I think what sets him apart is conviction. Whenever I hear Bruce I believe him, and believe in him. I think he’s a guy who is playing into a mythos of his own creation and I believe what he believes in. I talk about charisma a lot when it comes to the rock singers. Part of it is that I’m really searching for connection and an invitation into the music. Bruce feels like he puts an arm around you, hands you a beer, thanks you for coming, then jumps on stage and performs specifically for you. I love how big the sound is. It’s got Phil Spektor wall of sound type of feel without the layer of cheese and glitz. The song Born to Run is in my top 10 favorite songs that exist. I think there is legitimate magic in that song. It’s like he bottled yearning ambition, love, and power into 4 and a half minutes. Again, it makes me believe. In what? Who the fuck knows. But I’m ready to fall in love and run off into the sunset even if the world is trying to hold us back. I think the presence of this song makes it 5 stars. Whatever they payed the sax player isn’t enough. There’s a whole other rant I could go on about how Bruce represents a the “greatness” of American working class and all that stuff but I’ll focus on the fact that this album fucking rips.

One of the best albums ever made.

Classic! All tracks are enjoyable!

One of my fav albums of all time

Classic for a reason! Nate’s parents were probably 5 when this album came out and watched their older brother dress up as Bruce Springsteen

Fantastic album, 2 all time great songs. a really great mix of anthems and ballads with the fantastic story telling by the boss

A fucking classic!

Until starting this list I was never a fan of Springsteens but this is my third album of his and all three have gotten the full five stars. This doesn’t come close to Nebraska but it’s still a brilliant album, can’t find anything bad to say about it. Top Track - Backstreets

I'm not a huge bruce fan but this is a heck of an album. Moves quick and has some real interesting moments. Issa 5

I hadn’t listened to this since the 80’s. I owned it on 8 track, album and cassette. Had forgotten how there was so much unique instrumentation on each song. Enjoyed this a lot more than I could thought I would.

Bossed it

Moi aussi je suis comme Guillaume et je donne sans hésitation des 5 étoiles à Bruce. Juste pour Thunder Road c'est mérité...

Je vois bruce, je donne 5. Facile Blague à part ce n’est pas mon préféré mais c’est quand même celui qui l’a catapulté au superstardom et qui contient une des chansons les plus iconiques des 70s avec Born to Run. J’aime aussi beaucoup Tenth Avenue Freeze-out et la longuette Jungleland. Mais bon je peux comprendre la réticence de Félix sur les thèmes redondants!

wowzers

All timer. Incredible. 10/10

Liked this way more than i thought i would. Makes me happy im doing this project now to (1) have a reference point for BRUUUUUUCE and (2) to know that ive grown some: i listened to nebraska years ago on thomas’ recommendation and just was like ehhhhh but now i feel id get it more. FYE! FIVE! Also im doing fours again bc this shit is too overly simplified

Best to ever do it.

This was a fun one! His voice takes some getting used to, but I loved the variety of the songs. I honestly don’t know why I haven’t listened to more Springsteen, I listen to this genre and this era a lot!

This album was everything I want in music. Chaotic, rebellious, youthful, quite literally gas. Bruce Springsteen is just the Zach Bryan of the 80s'. Born to Run will be played over and over and over again. Bruce Springsteen is so much more than an Old Head.

Outstanding! A classic in every regard with masterfully arranged music, creative lyrics and unparalleled vocals.

I haven't listened to more than the title track and Thunder Road in ages but it's still very good.

It’s Bruce nuff said.

I have a friend who's a massive Bruce fan. In college, at house parties, at some point in the evening, he would inevitably find a perch on a chair, stoop, or a hood of a car and singing at the top of his lungs, would lead the party in a sing-along of Born to Run. Good times. Take that, Mr. Brightside. Anyway, truth be told, I've never listened to this album from start to finish. Shame on me.

The soundtrack of my youth. My mother is a huge Bruce fan, so his albums were always playing on the record player.

No brainer! Top 5. Perfect album. Jungleland is an all time favorite song. Knockout! 10.0!

Дуже люблю і поважаю Боса, колись читав його автобіографію й в той момент якраз переслухав всю дискографію. Born To Run, мабуть, найвідоміший його альбом, чи принаймні один з. Сподіваюсь в цьому списку ще буде, наприклад, nebraska або the rising, але не можна не віддати належне Брюсу на цій класиці. І звісно ж саксофон Кларенса Клемонса, який став такою саме фірмовою фішкою саунду Спрінгстіна, як і його телекастер.

Oh Man, The Boss! I like being rewarded with great albums as I seem to wade through the Swamps of Dagabah with some of these albums.. Thunder Road, 10th Ave (so many great memories seeing the band live finishing off with this one) Born to Run and Jungleland. brilliant writing, brilliant album.

YUPPPP

Amazing lyrics with amazing music. The songs are very narrative and packed with imagery, it really accomplishes Springsteen’s goal of making an album where all the songs take place over a long summer day. Impeccable songwriting and arrangements, played by great musicians.

I listened to this on headphones in the office, and realised during Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out that I was grinning like an idiot at my desk. It's not my favourite Springsteen album (Darkness on the Edge of Town slightly edges it out), but it's still a really good time.

Classic stuff!!!! Incredible album that everyone should listen to at least once.

Seminal album. Life-affirming, epic, euphoric, emotional, pretty everything all in one place. It's actually surprising how much this grew on me ever since I first heard it. The every-so-slight call back to 60's pop in the production is just... *chef's kiss* Key tracks: Thunder Road Night Backstreets Born to Run

The boss!

It's a constant classic. The intro to "Night" is one of my favorite guitar riffs.

Very solid, 8 tracks that slips, lots of cool sax and a very successfull album. I guess meeting accross the river is the weakest, but barely

man some of these songs just sound so BIG. bigger than life.

I didn't need to listen to this album because every note is ingrained in my mind and have seen most of the songs on it dozens of times as a huge Springsteen fan. That said, it was great to just sit down in front of my record player and listen to it through which I don't do that often. This one is notable for Springsteen for being one of his few (only?) albums where the songs don't sound meaningfully better live...not that they are worse live, but the work in the studio here paid off to create a huge wonderful sound.

When it comes to classic great albums this is one that is perfect from beginning to end. She's The One, the title track. and Backstreets are stone cold classics.

Love this. Heard it 200 times

Great album, but I think Darkness at the Edge of Time is better.

Day573 - iconic. lyrically one of my favorite artists. this is just about a perfect album

I listened to this in the most optimal setting I an imagine: driving to work at 3am. It hit all the right notes. On a deeper level, I love how much musicianship is on the recording. Little trills and flourishes which points to the kind of creative collaboration that is necessary for a great album.

One of the best

The best

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

niente da aggiungere. cinque su otto di queste canzoni sono tra le mie preferite di sempre.

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

a defining rock album that broke Springsteen out of his commercial failures in the first 2 albums and sought to emulate Specter's Wall of Sound production. It incorporated broader, more pop-centric musicality and also sought to encapsulate broader and more accessible feelings of feeling trapped and wanting to escape to a better life.

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

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

It is hard to write about Born to Run because it means so much to me. This album is incredibly important in my life and I genuinely listen to it every single week. It is perfect. It is also almost impossible for me to choose between this and Born in the U.S.A.. On different days either one could be my favourite. They both sit right at the very top for me. This record has everything. It builds with intent and power. The sound is huge and cinematic, yet deeply personal. The lyrics are heartfelt, romantic and full of longing. Every song feels like it is chasing something bigger. And then there is Thunder Road. I absolutely adore that song. For me it is the greatest song ever written. From the opening piano to the final line, it is hope, escape, love and belief wrapped into five perfect minutes. It moves me every single time. There is not a single thing I would change about this album. Every track matters. Every track is five stars. Favourite song: Thunder Road. The greatest song ever written. Least favourite: None. Every song is flawless. Album artwork: Iconic. Even better on vinyl when you open the sleeve and see The Big Man standing tall beside him.

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

An old favorite that I always enjoy.

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.

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.