Like most parents, Doug and Adele Springsteen were concerned about their only son's future.
The crowds that filled venues like Philly's Spectrum or Vet's Stadium would be hushed, like a huge group of friends gathered to listen to New Jersey's most famous storyteller recount his tale. "My father used to tell me, "Son, be a lawyer, be a lawyer, get a little something for yourself," " Springsteen would tell them.
And while Doug must have been looking out for his son financially, Adele sensed Bruce's creative side. "And my mom, she would say, "No, be an author. You can get a little something for yourself," " he'd recall.
Springsteen would smile at the crowd before delivering the goods. "But what they didn't know was, I wanted everything." The crowd would roar in approval and Bruce would continue.
"So I tell my parents, one of you wanted a lawyer, one of you wanted an author; well, tonight you're just going to have to settle for rock and roll."
It's no secret that I am a fan of Bruce Springsteen. (And "fan" is, of course, the root of "fanatic"). It's a rare day that goes by without me quoting Bruce for some reason, and his lyrics have always provided the words for things I couldn't say. Coming from the shore slums of Freehold, Bruce is the ultimate hometown boy made good, and he never forgot where his roots are.
He may speak for the nation (or sometimes mis-speak - remember the Republicans using "Born In The USA" as a rallying cry instead of the indictment it was?) but the voice I heard was always pure Jersey. The masses may love him, but they could never know him in the way that we did. After all, there aren't many of us that understand those "swamps of Jersey." We aren't just settling for rock and roll; we're reveling in it and celebrating it, our hero and, through his lyrics, our lives.
Recently there was a plethora of reasons for Bruce fans to celebrate. The long-awaited boxed set "Tracks," which follows the singer/songwriter's 25-year recording career from the first notes he sang in a Columbia recording studio through the hey-day of the E Street band to more recent B-side and unreleased material, was released. Then the news came that Bruce had been selected - in his first year of eligibility - for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. "Songs," the ultimate Springsteen yearbook of lyrics, essays, and career-spanning photographs, also hit the stands in November. And the first E Street Band tour in 10 years will open its stateside leg on July 15 right here in New Jersey.
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