Table of Contents
Introduction: Why Springsteen? Jonathan D. Cohen June Skinner Sawyers 1
Part I Springsteen Stories
1 Growing Up with Bruce Springsteen: A Fan's Notes Eric Alterman 11
2 How Bruce Springsteen Made a Middle-Aged Woman Believe in the Magic of Rock and Roll Nancy S. Bishop 30
3 From the Backstreets to the Badlands: My Springsteen Journey Deepa Iyer 36
4 The Ripple Effect Frank Stefanko 44
Part II Springsteen, Politics, and American Society
5 The Role of the Popular Artist in a Democratic Society Jefferson Cowie Joel Dinerstein 49
6 Starting a Fire: Bruce Springsteen's Political Journey from "Born in the U.S.A." to "American Skin (41 Shots)" Gillian G. Gaar 60
7 Springsteen's American Dream Louis P. Masur 66
8 At the River Paul Muldoon 73
9 The Ties That Bind A. O. Scott 74
Part III Springsteen Live
10 Live at the Roxy Greil Marcus 81
11 The Magic Circle Wesley Stace 86
12 Twist and Shout David L. Ulin 90
Part IV Springsteen the Artist
13 Brilliant Disguise: The Completely True Fictional Adventures of Bruce Springsteen Peter Ames Carlin 105
14 "The Welsh Springsteen": An Interview with Martyn Joseph Irwin H. Streight 119
15 This Train: Bruce Springsteen as Public Artist Colleen J. Sheehy 128
16 Born to Write: Bruce Springsteen, Flannery O'Connor, and the Songstory Irwin H. Streight 135
17 Ten Great Springsteen Moments (and Five Iconic Concerts) Kenneth Womack 143
Part V Springsteen, Sex, Race, and Gender
18 Our Butch Mother, Bruce Springsteen Natalie Adler 155
19 Springsteen's Women: Tougher Than the Rest Gina Barreca 163
20 Shackled and Drawn Lauren Onkey 170
21 American Skin: Springsteen and Blackness Elijah Wald 176
Part VI Springsteen and Aging
22 Summer's Fall: Springsteen in Senescence Jim Cullen 189
23 Work and Play: Midlife Music Daniel Wolff 200
Part VII Springsteen beyond Borders
24 Bruce Springsteen's River in Dublin Dermot Bolger 209
25 The Boss in Bulgaria Richard Russo 217
26 We Take Care of Our Own Wayne Swan 227
Acknowledgments 235
About the Editors 239
About the Contributors 241
Index 249