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Born in the U.S.A.
Bruce Springsteen and the American Tradition
Series: Music / Culture
Sales Date: 2005-06-14
288 Pages, 5.50 x 8.25 in
A thinking person's exploration of the cultural significance of Bruce Springsteen.
Moving beyond the biographical and journalistic approaches of most writing on Bruce Springsteen, Born in the U.S.A. was the first major work of cultural criticism to situate Springsteen's work in the broader sweep of American history—the heir of Walt Whitman and Woody Guthrie, Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King. Springsteen is an influential chronicler of our society, says Jim Cullen, a "good conservative" who preserves the traditional values of hard work, inclusive families, and genuine concern for the less fortunate. In the new edition to this landmark work, Cullen also discusses new currents in Springsteen's music since 9/11, notably his 2002 album The Rising. This Wesleyan edition includes a new foreword, introduction, and afterword. Must reading for any serious fan—or anyone who has ever been curious about what all the fuss has been about.
Preface
Foreword – Daniel Cavicchi
Introduction: A Big Country
The Good Conservative: On the Trail of Springsteen and Reagan
Republican Character: Springsteen and the American Artistic Tradition
Visions of Kings: Springsteen and the American Dream
Borne in the U.S.A.: Springsteen and the Burden of Vietnam
The Good Life: Springsteen's Play Ethic
Model Man: Springsteen's Masculinity
Inherited Imagination: Springsteen and American Catholicism
Conclusion: Better Angels
Afterword to the 2005 Edition
Sources and Notes
Selected Discography
A Springsteen Chronology
Acknowledgements
Copyright Acknowledgements
Photography Credits
Index
JIM CULLEN teaches history at the Ethical Culture Fieldston School in New York. His articles and reviews have appeared in publications ranging from Rolling Stone to the American Historical Review, and he has published seven books, including The American Dream (2003). DANIEL CAVICCHI is author of Tramps Like Us (1998).
"Jim Cullen writes with authority and empathy about the blue-collar roots that shaped Bruce Springsteen and gave rise to his music of rebellion. This is a provocative look at one of America's cultural icons."
~Eleanor Clift, Newsweek
""This is a well-written, painstakingly researched, and surprisingly unpretentious book.""
~Asbury Park Press
""Jim Cullen writes with authority and empathy about the blue-collar roots that shaped Bruce Springsteen and gave rise to his music of rebellion. This is a provocative look at one of America's cultural icons.""
~Eleanor Clift, Newsweek
"" offers illumination and thoughtful, discriminating observations about its myriad subjects. And it has aged almost as well as 'Nebraska.'""
~Eric Alterman, The Nation
"Jim Cullen has done something rare in the study of American history and popular culture: he has brought together, through the life and work of Bruce Springsteen, symbols that unite elements of American society beyond the partisan claims and slogans."
~Mari Jo Buhle, MacArthur Fellow, Brown University
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