JONATHAN D. COHEN received his PhD in history from the University of Virginia. He is the managing editor of BOSS: The Biannual Online-Journal of Springsteen Studies and the coeditor of All In: The Spread of Gambling in Twentieth-Century United States (2018).

JUNE SKINNER SAWYERS has published extensively on Bruce Springsteen, including Racing in the Street: The Bruce Springsteen Reader (2004) and Workingman: The Faith-Based Politics ofBruce Springsteen (2014). Born in Glasgow, she currently teaches humanities courses at the Newberry Library in Chicago.

Introduction: Why Springsteen?
Jonathan D. Cohen and June Skinner Sawyers

Part I Springsteen Stories
1 Growing Up with Bruce Springsteen
Eric Alterman

2 How Bruce Springsteen Made a Middle-Aged Woman Believe in the Magic of Rock and Roll
Nancy S. Bishop

3 From the Backstreets to the Badlands: My Springsteen Journey
Deepa Iyer

4 The Ripple Effect
Frank Stefanko

Part II Springsteen, Politics, and American Society
5 The Role of the Popular Artist in a Democratic Society
Jefferson Cowie and Joel Dinerstein

6 Starting a Fire: Bruce Springsteen’s Political Journey from “Born in the U.S.A.” to “American Skin (41 Shots)”
Gillian G. Gaar

7 Springsteen’s American Dream
Louis P. Masur

8 At the River
Paul Muldoon

9 The Ties That Bind
A. O. Scott

Part III Springsteen Live
10 Live at the Roxy
Greil Marcus

11 The Magic Circle
Wesley Stace

12 Twist and Shout
David L. Ulin

Part IV Springsteen the Artist
13 Brilliant Disguise: The Completely True Fictional Adventures of Bruce Springsteen
Peter Ames Carlin

14 Interview with Martyn Joseph by Irwin H. Streight

15 This Train: Bruce Springsteen as Public Artist
Colleen J. Sheehy

16 Born to Write: Bruce Springsteen, Flannery O’Connor, and the Songstory
Irwin H. Streight

17 Ten Great Springsteen Moments (and Five Iconic Concerts)
Kenneth Womack

Part V Springsteen, Sex, Race, and Gender
18 Our Butch Mother, Bruce Springsteen
Natalie Adler

19 Springsteen’s Women: Tougher Than the Rest
Gina Barreca

20 Shackled and Drawn
Lauren Onkey

21 American Skin: Springsteen and Blackness
Elijah Wald

Part VI Springsteen and Aging
22 Summer’s Fall: Springsteen in Senescence
Jim Cullen

23 Work and Play: Mid-Life Music
Daniel Wolff

Part VII Springsteen beyond Borders
24 Bruce Springsteen’s River in Dublin
Dermot Bolger

25 The Boss in Bulgaria
Richard Russo

26 We Take Care of Our Own
Wayne Swan

Acknowledgments
Notes on Contributors
Index