Born to Run: Biography

Carl “Tinker” West, the band’s “misanthropic genius” manager, sees promise in Springsteen’s work ethic. The two are kindred spirits, both devoted to their passions (Tinker’s is surfing), undeterred by the distractions of booze or drugs. The band lives in Tinker’s surfboard factory near the Jersey Shore and rehearses in a back room. Springsteen lives the bohemian life, and the band is uncompromising in creating music and surviving on raw talent. Unlike many of his fellow musicians, he doesn’t touch drugs or alcohol, afraid of losing his focus and because partaking is too oppositional to his working-class roots.

Last of the Bar Bands

Child begins playing at a new venue, The Pandemonium Club. There, Springsteen witnesses how the social and cultural diversity of the crowds—truckers, preppies, hippies—often leads to bar fights.

One Giant Leap for Mankind

Child is booked for a lucrative gig at The Pandemonium the same evening as the Apollo 11 moon landing, and the crowd is split between fans wanting to hear music and those wanting to observe the historic moment in silence. The band decides to play, but bassist Roslin disagrees with the decision and walks offstage. Drummer “Mad Dog” Lopez, fed up with the television’s distraction, argues with the club owner, and the band is fired. While upset about the income loss, the band is ready to leave the Jersey Shore bar circuit and begin touring.

The band changes its name to Steel Mill and plays larger venues, attracting dedicated fans, including in Richmond, Virginia. They open for big-name bands like Grand Funk Railroad, Chicago, Iron Butterfly, and Ike and Tina Turner. To prevent overexposure, however, they must perform only once every few months in their base towns. They’re caught in a strange limbo: too big for the bars but too small for national exposure.

Go West, Young Man

Tinker has a few connections in San Francisco and books the band some gigs in California. Confident in their musical ability but unsure how they might be perceived in the middle of the country along the way, the band carries guns in Tinker’s truck. Tinker can speak the “gearhead” language of potentially unfriendly truckers and acts as a cultural mediator as the band journeys west. In Nashville, however, his truck (with Springsteen as passenger) becomes separated from the station wagon carrying the rest of the band. With only three days to make the drive and Springsteen as his only traveling companion, Tinker must share driving duties despite Springsteen’s never having driven in his life.

West

The journey across the plains and the Southwest is revelatory for Springsteen, the beginning of his “love affair” with the desert. They cross into California and head north to their destination in Big Sur: the Esalen Institute ensconced in the coastal redwoods and hills of Northern California.

Gopher’s Palace

They stay with Tinker’s friend Gopher, who lives in a treehouse. Eventually, the rest of the band shows up, and they all cram into Gopher’s tiny eucalyptus abode. Big Sur is an awe-inspiring place, though the Esalen Institute, a New Age meditation and “human potential” facility, strikes them as strange and pretentious.

On New Year’s Eve, the band plays for an eccentric mix of hippies, “earth mamas,” locals, and Institute patrons, many tripping the night away on acid. The show goes well, but the vibe is different. Musicians aren’t merely entertainers to this crowd but mystical, conscious-raising shamans. The next morning, sitting by Highway 1 and admiring the view, Springsteen reunites with his parents.

Promised Land

California is a positive change for Springsteen’s parents. They live in San Mateo, both have jobs, and his father has even taken up creative hobbies—painting and music. Steel Mill auditions at the Family Dog, a San Francisco venue, but lose out to another, more “sophisticated” band. Springsteen realizes that here, they’re no longer the best band in town but one of many solid, creative bands “fighting over a very small bone” (133). The next gig fares better, and the San Francisco Examiner gives them a rave review. Their next stop is Bill Graham’s iconic Fillmore West.

In the Hall of the Gods

The Fillmore gig is another success. Compared to the “laid-back San Francisco style” (134) of many of the other bands, Steel Mill rocks the house and is invited back the following week. After their second gig, they’re offered a demo session at the Fillmore’s recording studio. Between gigs, Springsteen hears an exciting young guitarist igniting the crowd: Nils Lofgren.

Although the Fillmore doesn’t offer them a recording contract, they have a semi-steady gig at a club called the Matrix as well as a growing coterie of new fans. However, financial reality sets in—the West Coast has too much solid competition for them to earn a living, so they head back to New Jersey.

Six Days on the Road

On the return trip, the station wagon breaks down two days outside of Richmond, Virginia, and Springsteen and Roslin squeeze into the plywood box on the back of the truck alongside the equipment and ride the next two days in the cold and dark. While riding in the crate, Springsteen reflects on his time in California. Seeing real competition firsthand pushes him to work harder, to use every reserve of his talent and showmanship to reach that same first-class level. In addition, he thinks changes are necessary.

After a paying gig in familiar territory, Springsteen fires bassist Vinnie Roslin and replaces him with Steven Van Zandt. The change, while difficult, injects new life into the band.

Rock ‘n’ Roll Riot

After a gig at the University of Virginia, the police show up to quell the racket. An altercation erupts between an officer and one of Steel Mill’s roadies. “Mad Dog” Lopez joins the brawl and is arrested, spending a month in county jail. When the band plays a “Free Mad Dog” concert to raise bail money, the Middletown police show up. The crowd fights back, and reinforcements arrive in SWAT gear, storming the stage and making arrests. Because Federici pushes a stack of amps onto several charging police officers, a warrant is issued for his arrest. He hides until the band’s next big show. They sneak him onstage five minutes before showtime, play the gig, and sneak him off again. Eventually, the warrant matter is resolved, but Springsteen is tired of the “[o]utlaw days.” He takes more creative control, assuming all singing duties and forging a new direction: “a ten-piece horns-and-singers-augmented rock and soul band, playing nothing but new original material” (145). In addition, he recruits David Sancious, a gifted young Black keyboardist, to play in the new Bruce Springsteen Band.

After a few idyllic summers of surfing, a near-fatal encounter with a big wave ends Springsteen’s surf bum days. Fulfilling his new vision for the band, he hires two backup singers and wants to incorporate a horn section but can’t afford to pay them. Steel Mill had a reputation and drawing power, but The Bruce Springsteen Band is unknown. Nevertheless, Springsteen, as the sole songwriter and unequivocal leader, wants creative control, so the band carries his name. The band takes a financial hit because of its new direction, and the reliable venues prefer Steel Mill’s old, hard rock sound; a few express displeasure over the inclusion of Black backup singers. Nevertheless, the hierarchy is in place, and the band members know their roles and who’s boss. Additionally, Tinker’s misanthropic personality begins to wear thin, so he and the band part ways; and the Upstage Club closes after its owner, Tom Potter, moves to Florida.