"Tropes like us, baby we were born to run!": The song itself is a look back on high school memories.
When Ronald Reagan tried to use the song for his reelection campaign in 1984, Springsteen famously told the President that he couldn't use it.īruce Springsteen is the Trope Namer for: The most glaring example is the song "Born in the USA", which despite its title is not an unequivocal celebration of that country, but rather a condemnation of its treatment of Vietnam veterans. Despite his associations with liberal politics and John Kerry in particular, his songs have sometimes been appropriated by conservative politicians, oftentimes without his permission. Alongside his backing group the E Street Band, the membership of which has remained mostly constant throughout the years, Springsteen is best known for a "heartland rock" style that features themes of Americana, working-class desperation in an age of cynicism, and hope for a better life. Perhaps his most well-known albums are Born to Run (1975) and Born in the USA (1984). He's also the living patron saint of New Jersey speak ill of him in the Garden State at your peril.īorn in Long Branch, Springsteen arose out of the "Jersey Shore Sound" scene of the 1970s, which unabashedly combined rock and R&B elements. Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949), nicknamed "The Boss", is one of the most notable singer-songwriters to come out of the 1970s.