Born to Run
Born to Run is the third studio album by the American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on August 25, 1975, through Columbia Records. Co-produced by Springsteen with his manager Mike Appel and the producer Jon Landau, its recording took place in New York. Following the commercial failures of his first two albums, the album marked Springsteen's effort to break into the mainstream and create a commercially successful album. Springsteen sought to emulate Phil Spector's Wall of Sound production, leading to prolonged sessions with the E Street Band lasting from January 1974 to July 1975; six months alone were spent working on the title track.
The album incorporates musical styles including rock and roll, pop rock, R&B, and folk rock. Its character-driven lyrics describe individuals who feel trapped and fantasize about escaping to a better life, conjured via romantic lyrical imagery of highways and travel. Springsteen envisioned the songs taking place over one long summer day and night. They are also less tied to the New Jersey area than his previous work. The album cover, featuring Springsteen leaning on E Street Band saxophonist Clarence Clemons's shoulder, is considered iconic and has been imitated by various musicians and in other media.
Supported by an expensive promotional campaign, Born to Run became a commercial success, reaching number three on the US Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart and the top ten in three others. Two singles were released, "Born to Run" and "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", the first of which became a radio and live favorite. The album's release generated extensive publicity, leading to backlash from critics who expressed skepticism over whether Springsteen's newfound attention was warranted. Following its release, Springsteen became embroiled in legal issues with Appel, leading him to tour the United States and Europe for almost two years. Upon release, Born to Run received highly positive reviews. Critics praised the storytelling and music, although some viewed its production as excessive and heavy-handed.
Born to Run was Springsteen's breakthrough album. Its success has been attributed to capturing the ideals of a generation of American youths during a decade of political turmoil, war, and issues facing the working class. Over the following decades, the album has become widely regarded as a masterpiece and one of Springsteen's best records. It has appeared on various lists of the greatest albums of all time and was inducted into the National Recording Registry in 2003 by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". Born to Run received an expanded reissue in 2005 to celebrate its 30th anniversary, featuring a concert film and a documentary detailing the album's making.
Development
's first two albums, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. and The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle, were released in 1973 through Columbia Records. While the albums were critically acclaimed, both sold poorly. By 1974 his popularity was limited to the East Coast of the United States, and the label's confidence in him began to wane. Management at Columbia had changed and they began to favor the then-upcoming artist Billy Joel. Low morale plagued Springsteen's team, including both his manager, Mike Appel, and his backing group the E Street Band. After Springsteen rejected CBS Records' suggestion to record in Nashville, Tennessee, with session musicians and a brought-in producer, the label agreed to finance one more album on the agreement that if it failed, they would drop him. Appel successfully negotiated a slightly larger budget for the album but limited recording to 914 Sound Studios in Blauvelt, New York, the studio Springsteen used for the recordings of his first two albums.The phrase "born to run" came to Springsteen while lying in bed one night at his home in West Long Branch, New Jersey. He said the title "suggested a cinematic drama I thought would work with the music I was hearing in my head". Inspired by the musical sounds and lyrical themes of 1950s and 1960s rock and roll artists such as Duane Eddy, Roy Orbison, Elvis Presley, Phil Spector, the Beach Boys, and Bob Dylan, Springsteen began composing what became "Born to Run". He later wrote: "This was the turning point. It proved to be the key to my songwriting for the rest of the record." He anticipated that sound he was seeking would be a "studio production". The album became the first time Springsteen used the studio as an instrument rather than simply replicating the sound of live performances.
Production history
914 Sound Studios
The recording sessions for the album began at 914 Sound Studios in January 1974. Springsteen and Appel acted as co-producers; Greetings and Wild producer Jimmy Cretecos had departed Springsteen's company in early 1974, citing low profits. Louis Lahav, the engineer from both albums, returned for these sessions. The members of the E Street Band were Clarence Clemons, Danny Federici, David Sancious, Garry Tallent, and Ernest Carter ; Carter had replaced Vini "Mad Dog" Lopez, whom Springsteen fired in February over poor personal behavior. The band went back and forth between studio recording and live concert performances. Springsteen used the latter to develop new material, and he spent more time in the studio refining songs than he had on the previous two albums. The album's working titles included From the Churches to the Jails, The Hungry and the Hunted, War and Roses, and American Summer.Recording for the song "Born to Run" lasted six months. Springsteen's perfectionism led to grueling sessions: he obsessed over every syllable, note, and tone of every texture, and he struggled to capture the sounds he heard in his head on tape. His aim for a Phil Spector-type Wall of Sound production meant multiple instruments were assigned to each track on the studio's 16-track mixing desk; each new overdub made the recording and mixing more difficult. As he kept rewriting the lyrics, Springsteen and Appel created several mixes containing electric and acoustic guitars, piano, organ, horns, synthesizers, and a glockenspiel, as well as strings and female backing vocalists. "Born to Run" reportedly had up to five different versions. According to Springsteen, the final song had 72 different tracks squeezed onto the 16 tracks of the mixing console. Springsteen was pleased with the final mix, completed in August 1974. CBS/Columbia refused to release "Born to Run" as an early single, wanting an album to promote it.
The same month "Born to Run" was completed, Sancious and Carter left the E Street Band to form their own jazz-fusion band, Tone. They were replaced by Roy Bittan on piano and Max Weinberg on drums. Bittan had a background in symphony orchestras while Weinberg had experience with various rock bands and Broadway productions. Bittan had previously known of Springsteen's music but Weinberg had not. The two meshed well with the rest of the band, offering new musical insights and relaxed personalities that eased tensions that had built up over years of recording and performing. On the album Bittan mostly replaced Federici, whose sole contribution was the organ part on "Born to Run". Bittan later said he believed this was due to both men's different performing styles and Bittan wanting to "prove himself" as a new member of the group.
Recording at 914 continued into late October 1974. The band made attempts at "Jungleland", "She's the One", "Lovers in the Cold", "Backstreets", and "So Young and in Love", but faulty equipment and Springsteen's lack of direction halted progress. The music critic Dave Marsh suggested that Springsteen remained at the subpar 914 Studios because studio costs built up, even though superior ones were available. In November, Appel sent "Born to Run" to various radio stations around the United States, which CBS executives viewed as professional misconduct. The stunt generated interest in the track and anticipation built toward the album's release, prompting Columbia to fund further sessions. "Born to Run" became frequently requested on radio and at shows.
By January 1975, the band had been working for over a year with one finished track. Production continued to be plagued by faulty equipment, false starts, and Springsteen's desire for more takes. A new track, "Wings for Wheels", debuted live in February. Springsteen felt he lacked direction, and he requested production advice from the writer and producer Jon Landau, who had criticized the production on Wild in an article for The Real Paper. The two met in Boston in April 1974 and developed a close friendship after. In February 1975, Landau was invited to a session, where he suggested moving the saxophone solo on "Wings for Wheels" to the end rather than in the middle. Springsteen liked the change and hired Landau as co-producer of the album.
Record Plant
In March 1975, Landau moved the recording sessions from 914 to the superior Record Plant in Manhattan. Landau helped Springsteen regain focus and direction with a fresh perspective. Springsteen told Rolling Stone in 1975: " came up with the idea, 'Let's make a rock and roll record.' Things had fallen down internally. He got things on their feet again." Appel and Landau had disagreements on production choices, which Springsteen had to resolve. Like the band, the two helped Springsteen complete already devised ideas, not think of new ones. Louis Lahav was unavailable due to family commitments so these sessions were engineered by Jimmy Iovine.Sessions at the Record Plant lasted from March to July 1975. Apart from a few live performances, Springsteen spent most of these months working on the album. The sessions were grueling, dragging on despite increased professionalism brought by Landau and Iovine. While the backing tracks and vocals were recorded with little difficulty, Springsteen struggled with his overdubs and completing the writing of the lyrics and arrangements. Springsteen obsessively labored over and sometimes spent hours revising single lines or taking days to figure out the song arrangements. Springsteen later said: " turned into something that was wrecking me, just pounding me into the ground." Weinberg called it the hardest project of his career, and Federici said " ate, drank, and slept ". Work was mostly done between 3 p.m. and 6 a.m. the following morning.
"Wings for Wheels", now called "Thunder Road", was finished in April. Springsteen reportedly took 13 hours to complete his guitar parts. "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" and "Night" followed in May. For "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out", Springsteen hired the Brecker Brothers, David Sanborn, and Wayne Andre to play horn parts. Springsteen and Bittan failed to write proper horn parts by the time the players arrived to record, so Springsteen's friend and former Steel Mill bandmate Steven Van Zandt conceived them on the spot in the studio. Van Zandt joined the E Street Band shortly after. Springsteen used lyrical ideas from "She's the One" to complete "Backstreets", originally "Hidin' on the River". "Meeting Across the River", originally "The Heist", featured Richard Davis on double bass. Davis had previously contributed to "The Angel" on Greetings. "Jungleland" featured violin from Suki Lahav, wife of Louis Lahav, and a long saxophone solo from Clemons, which he spent 16 hours replaying to Springsteen's satisfaction; the latter dictated almost every note played. Clemons played several different solos, bits of which were then edited together into one piece; he then reproduced the final result.