There are few artists as consistently strong as Bruce Springsteen. His first album debuted in 1973 and since then, through many style changes, he still has a dedicated fan base and critically acclaimed music with 11 number one albums. He has remained more relevant and popular than most artists from the 70's and 80's due to something that's hard to describe, but I would have to say it is the grand scope he gives to everyday life.
His most important album and arguably greatest achievement, Born to Run, is all about people trying to get out. Get out of what? Their lives, the monotony of a small town. He wrote songs about people dying for opportunity, to make something of themselves. His music embodies a sort of universal angst, the idea that young people have to do something big. His music juxtaposes this feeling with cinematic grandeur that pulls this emotion out and pushes it into something of epic quality. He takes this feeling of angst that feels so unique to all of us, but is actually pretty universal, and instead of trivializing it he makes it important, nostalgic, and meaningful.
Bruce came from small town America and arguably is still there in a way. He may have never really left. To write about this subject kind of in a way requires one to stay there, not physically, but sort of with an eye on the past. This is how most of his music after Born To Run feels. Instead of being about chasing a dream, he starts to write about people and whether they failed or succeeded. He captures the tragedies and triumphs and begins to tell what is really, the realities of the American Dream. He takes the angst from before, and he either shows it to you as dream that has blossomed or has been left to die in a fiery crash, or simply just put to rest. It's harsh and dark (just look at the entirety of Darkness on the Edge of Town), but true to the world around us.
To anyone from small town U.S.A., Springsteen's music rings true. His characters could exist practically anywhere: Mary, Bobby Jean, Terry, Wendy, Candy, or whoever are people that you or I could know. They're caricatures, each representing someone going through the struggle between angst and idealism, and they either celebrate living with it, or deal with losing it. This is Springsteen's universal quality.
Before listening to Springsteen, I strongly disliked my hometown and afterwards I still do for the most part, but I have a newfound appreciation for it. I'm not alone in this feeling, and it isn't something to hate, it's something to admire and be aware of. As it can be seen in Springsteen's older audience and heard in his music, it has a strong nostalgic quality that can really hook you in. So to anyone dying to get out, put on some Springsteen (I recommend starting with the album Born To Run) and appreciate the beautiful moment you are in. Hopefully it doesn't last forever and you are successful in the pursuit of your dreams. If not, listen to Jungleland, because that song alone is one of the greatest reasons to be alive.
