Song:Dancing In The Dark
Album:Greatest Hits
It took a few years and an almost career killing lawsuit for Bruce Springsteen to turn critical acclaim into commercial success. But once he did, he became the biggest rock star in the world with the 1984 album Born In The USA his biggest success. It might surprise fans to know that Springsteen has never had a number one single. Dancing In The Dark reached #2. He was born Sept. 23, 1949 in Long Branch, NJ. In the mid-60s he was lead singer of The Castiles and then the power trio Earth. Then he was in Steel Mill with future E Street Band members Steve Van Zandt and Danny Federici. He got some positive reviews and for a couple of years in the early 70s, he led several versions of what eventually would be The E Street Band. His manager Mike Appel got him an audition with legendary Columbia Records talent scout John Hammond and Springsteen was signed. His first couple of albums were critically acclaimed but didn't sell. The turning point for Springsteen came when music critic Jon Landau approached him about becoming his manager and producer. The result was his 1975 breakthrough album Born To Run. Though it didn't have any hit singles, the album became a fixture on classic rock radio. Born To Run reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 200. Unfortunately Springsteen was unable to follow this up immediately as a lawsuit by former manager Appel kept him out of the recording studio. His 1978 album Darkness At The Edge Of Town, his 1980 album The River and 1982 album Nebraska weren't as commercial as Born To Run so he lost some momentum. Nebraska was a glorified demo tape. So Landau decided that the 1984 album Born In The USA would be more commercial. The album sold 15 million copies and is one of the best selling albums of all time. It had seven top ten singles. Dancing In The Dark was the biggest hit and reached #2 on the Billboard Hot 100. It was the last song recorded for the album. Landau wanted a sure fire hit single. Of course the video featured a pre fame Courtney Cox coming on stage to dance with Springsteen. It probably helped her career more than Springsteen's. Of course like any other recording artist who has been around for a long time, Springsteen has had his ups and downs. The bottom line is he is still touring and his new CD Wrecking Ball will be released next month. This budget CD is a good intro to his music. Here's the video for Dancing In The Dark by Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.
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