BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - BORN IN THE U.S.A.

Llançada: 14 d’octubre de 1984  

Llistes: EUA: #9, Regne Unit: #5  

“Born in the U.S.A.” és el tercer single extret de l'àlbum del mateix nom. Amb un ritme enèrgic, va aconseguir entrar al top 10 de les llistes de tot el món, convertint-se en el tercer senzill de l'àlbum que va assolir aquest èxit als EUA. L'àlbum va produir set singles consecutius dins del top ten, igualant el rècord d’un sol àlbum establert per “Thriller” de Michael Jackson.

Aquesta és una de les cançons més representatives de Springsteen, sovint utilitzada com a himne patriòtic per persones que desconeixen o ignoren el seu veritable significat. En la seva gravació, el Boss va estar acompanyat pels membres clàssics de l’E-Street Band: “Little” Steven Van Zandt (guitarra), Roy Bittan (teclats), Danny Federici (piano/glockenspiel), Garry Tallent (baix), Max Weinberg (bateria) i Clarence Clemons (saxofon/percussió).

Tot i el seu ús habitual com a celebració enèrgica de tot allò americà, la cançó tracta una història tràgica sobre com els veterans de Vietnam van ser marginats i abandonats en tornar a casa. El protagonista, nascut en la pobresa, explica com lluitava per sobreviure des del naixement “The first kick I took was when I hit the ground” (La primera bufetada que vaig rebre va ser quan vaig tocar el terra) i com va ser enrolat a l'exèrcit després de tenir problemes al seu poble:

 “Got in a little hometown jam  

So, they put a rifle in my hands.  

Sent me off to a foreign land  

To go and kill the yellow man”.

La resta de la cançó parla del seu retorn de la guerra. Incapaç de trobar feina, visita el representant de Veterans, qui li diu que així és la vida ara. La tercera estrofa parla d'un "germà" (no queda clar si de sang o d'armes) que va morir en combat, i com ell encara porta una foto del seu germà amb la seva promesa.

La cançó acaba amb el veterà, deu anys després, encara perseguit pel seu passat i sense futur:

 “I’m ten years burning down the road  

Nowhere to run, ain’t got nowhere to go”.

“Born in the U.S.A.” s'allunya molt del crit nacionalista que sovint se li atribueix, tant que és un autèntic error que alguns polítics la facin servir amb aquest sentit. El mateix Springsteen ha criticat aquells que utilitzen la cançó com un himne patriòtic.

Bruce Springsteen és una llegenda, un dels compositors nord-americans més destacats. El Boss ha llançat un total de 21 àlbums, des de “Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ” de 1972 fins a “Only the Strong Survive” de 2022. És un pioner del Heartland Rock, un estil que parla de la vida quotidiana de les classes treballadores. Bruce Springsteen és membre del Rock & Roll Hall of Fame i ha rebut vint premis Grammy i un Oscar per la cançó “Streets of Philadelphia,” de la pel·lícula “Philadelphia” amb Tom Hanks.

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - BORN IN THE U.S.A.

Released: October 14, 1984

Charts: US: #9  UK: #5 

 “Born in the U.S.A.” is a song by Bruce Springsteen, the third single lifted from the album of the same name. An up-tempo rocker, the song made the top 10 of charts worldwide, becoming the third single from “Born in the U.S.A.” to make the US top ten. The album went on to produce seven top ten singles in a row, tying the record from a single album set by Michael Jackson's “Thriller”.

The song is one of Springsteen's signature songs, and is often used as a patriotic anthem by individuals either unaware or unconcerned by it’s true meaning. On the recording of the song, the Boss was backed by the classic line-up of his E-Street Band: “Little” Steven Van Zandt (guitar), Roy Bittan (keyboards), Danny Federici (piano/glockenspiel), Garry Tallent (bass), Max Weinberg (drums) and the big man, Clarence Clemonds (Saxophone/percussion).

Despite its constant use as a bombastic celebration of all things American, the song is a rather tragic story of how Vietnam veterans were vilified and abandoned after their return from service. The protagonist of the song cuts a tragic figure. Born into poverty, he states how he was fighting to survive since birth (“The first kick I took was when I hit the ground”), and was subscripted into the army after getting into trouble in his home town:

 “Got in a little hometown jam

So, they put a rifle in my hands.

Sent me off to a foreign land

To go and kill the yellow man”.

The rest of the song deals with his return from the war. Unable to get a job, he goes to his Veteran's Association representative who tells him that’s just how it now is. The third verse tells of a “brother” (whether a blood brother or a brother in arms, it isn’t said) who fell in battle, and how he still carries a photo of his brother with his fiancé.

The song ends with the veteran, ten years later on, still haunted by his past and with no future to look forward to:

 “I’m ten years burning down the road

Nowhere to run, ain’t got nowhere to go”.

The song is so far away from the raucous call-to-arms that it’s so often used as, that it’s truly an embarrassment to any politician using it as a backdrop. Springsteen himself has been known to criticise those using the song as a nationalistic anthem.

Bruce Springsteen is a legend, and one of America's finest all-time songwriters. The Boss has released a total of 21 albums in his lifetime, from 1972’s “Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ”, through to 2022’s “Only the Strong Survive”. He is a pioneer of Heartland Rock, which talks of everyday life of the working classes. Bruce Springsteen is a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the recipient of twenty Grammy Awards and an Oscar for the song “The Streets of Philadelphia”, from the Tom Hanks film, “Philadelphia”.