The year 1984 was a massive one for legendary albums. On June 4 of that year, Bruce Springsteen dropped his super smash Born in the U.S.A. LP. It became Springsteen’s biggest selling album and his most popular. The album catapulted the New Jersey rocker into superstardom, and put him in a rarefied pantheon with the likes of Michael Jackson, Prince, and Lionel Richie. Born in the U.S.A. has sold 17 million units since its release. The seven singles released from the LP all went to Billboard’s top ten chart.
Springsteen became an icon during the run of this album. He also became a sex symbol, due to his then new muscular frame (and his dancing in a certain music video). The most notable song and title of the album, “Born in the U.S.A.”, became an anthem. Springsteen, whether he liked it or not (in the following years, it was a “not”), became a modern folk hero in 1984.
Below are my quick thoughts on the biggest singles from Born in the U.S.A.
- Dancing in the Dark. This is the biggest selling and most popular single from the album. I get it. It’s catchy and upbeat, and the magic video helps to sell it.
- Born in the U.S.A. Commercially not as big as “Dancing in the Dark”. But culturally? This song became a real anthem. The controversy surrounding this single was, who thought it was their anthem? Did it belong to conservatives, or the left? Springsteen himself has said the song is a post-Vietnam war protest hymn. But, did that matter? What did and does matter is that Springsteen’s song is an American super classic.
- Glory Days. Fun, and again, upbeat. You can still hear this cut on adult contemporary radio stations and your local bar.
40 years ago, Bruce Springsteen bet on himself and won. He went from popular rocker to rock star. For a few years, he was the genre’s biggest name, and for years to come, he gave us a fantastic record. The Boss went to work and the result was a classic. I give Born in the U.S.A. and A.
