Wings for Wheels: Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run at 50

Released in 1975, Springsteen’s third album transformed his artistic reputation, elevating him from a regional Northeast sensation into a musician and songwriter of global renown. With hit singles releases in the form of “Born to Run” and “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out,” the album catapulted his emergence as a mainstream artist that continues into the present day. In contrast with his previous two LPs, Born to Run enjoyed considerable radio airplay, with virtually all the album’s tracks becoming FM radio staples.Meanwhile, album cuts such as “Thunder Road” and “Jungleland” would become vaunted entries in Springsteen’s setlists across his career. Born to Run also marked the first formal release associated with the E Street Band. Although the group had been in existence since October 1972, the musicians did not assume the name until September 1974, during Born to Run’s production. The E Street Band took its name from E Street in Belmar, New Jersey, where keyboard player David Sancious’s mother, Stelma, lived. She often allowed the band to rehearse in her garage. The song “Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” commemorated the band’s origins, although Springsteen mistakenly located Stelma Sancious’s home on Tenth Avenue, when in fact her residence was located at 1107 E Street. In the ensuing years, the corner of E Street and Tenth Avenue has emerged as a popular tourist attraction on the Jersey Shore.For the recording sessions associated with Born to Run, the E Street Band experienced several transformative personnel changes. In February 1974, Springsteen asked drummer Vini “Mad Dog” Lopez to resign from the band. Ernest “Boom” Carter replaced him, though Carter and Sancious then left the E Street Band to form the jazz fusion group Tone. Sancious and Carter were replaced, respectively, by keyboard player Roy Bittan and drummer Max Weinberg, who joined original members Clarence Clemons on saxophone, Garry Tallent on bass, and Danny Federici on keyboards and accordion. In 1975, guitarist “Miami Steve” Van Zandt, who had known and played with Springsteen intermittently since 1966, joined the E Street Band. Violinist Suki Lahav would briefly join the lineup during the Born to Run sessions before emigrating to Israel in March 1975.As we reflect on the LP’s fiftiethth anniversary, Born to Run’s legacy shines ever brighter. The signal decisions associated with the E Street Band’s makeup would establish the musical bedrock for one influential album after another. The articles that comprise this special issue address Born to Run’s impact from a variety of sociocultural vantage points. Of particular note is the issue of Springsteen’s wide-ranging audience. While Springsteen’s fanbase is a diverse collective ranging in age and ethnicity, his female fans have formed a special bond with his music. In “Born to Run, Then and Now: The Magic in the Night for Women Fans,” Donna Luff and Lorraine Mangione examine the trends in women’s perspectives on Born to Run and why the album has held a special place in the hearts of women fans for over fifty years.Since Springsteen established his proud New Jersey lineage, fans have argued for his music to officially represent the state. Richard Lee’s “Is ‘Born to Run’ Destined to be New Jersey’s Official State Song?” revisits the long-standing debate of whether “Born to Run” should be the official state song for New Jersey. Joe F. Albert’s “Eudaimonic Perspective on Bruce Springsteen and His Album Born to Run” explores the disparate ways in which an artist is perceived by the public. Drawing on Aristotle’s concept Eudaimonia in terms of studying an artist, Albert applies this ideology to Springsteen and examines the moral and intellectual virtues inherent in Born to Run’s musical tapestry. In addition to Born to Run serving as the kickstart to Springsteen’s national stardom, the Born to Run tour launched Springsteen as an international artist with his first shows outside of the United States. In “‘And Finally, London is Ready’: The 1975 European tour of Born to Run,” Christopher Kenneth Spinks provides a close study of the 1975 London concerts, analyzing Springsteen’s brand identity associated with Born to Run and the corresponding CBS press coverage. Next, in “Born to Last: How Springsteen and Clemons Changed Rock ‘n’ Roll Saxophone,” Brian Wansink does a deep-dive into the unique way the saxophone was used on Born to Run. He shows how this had a lasting legacy on songs, style, and symbolism of rock ‘n’ roll sax over the past fifty years. Finally, Carlee Migliorisi’s “Wendy Let Me In: The Unknown Story of ‘Born to Run’” addresses the title track’s role in solidifying its place in rock history as a career-defining anthem for Springsteen. Migliorisi demonstrates that the inspiration for the song has been overlooked for almost fifty years. Focusing on Springsteen’s life and times in the mid-1970s in Long Branch, New Jersey, she reveals the central influences behind “Born to Run,” particularly regarding the narrator’s love interest Wendy.