Hard to Be a Saint: Bruce Springsteen

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IT'S BEEN MORE than 40 years since Bruce Springsteen was born to run. As a teenager, he started playing shows around the Mid-Atlantic region with groups like The Castiles and Steel Mill — forebears of what would become one of the greatest backing bands in rock history. His popularity grew gradually for 20 years until it exploded in the mid-1980s with "Born in the U.S.A.," and since then he's had up and downs but has managed to stay not just popular, but increasingly relevant.

Such longevity, fueled by a string of strong late-career albums and an almost nonstop touring schedule, is impressive not only because many of his early contemporaries and followers have either fallen into obscurity (Southside Johnny, Tommy Conwell) or irrelevance (Tom Petty, John Mellencamp), but more crucially because the Boss has made some bold career choices that could have sent his career south time after time.

To celebrate his 16th studio album, "Working on a Dream," and to mark his umpteenth D.C. show, we take a look at some endeavors that seem, at least in retrospect, like make-or-break moments. Sometimes they made, sometimes they broke, but Springsteen soldiers on.

1. Dr. Zoom & the Sonic Booms
Springsteen paid his dues in a number of bands during his teenage years, including Dr. Zoom & the Sonic Booms.
» Why it was risky: Did you see that band name?
» Fallout: None. As a nickname, Dr. Zoom never caught on the way the Boss did. Thank goodness.

2. "The River"
Not the album, which gave him his first Top 10 single ("Hungry Heart") and gave fans a ton of album tracks to yell at shows, but the song, a slow, dark, sobering tale of a teenage dad whose dreams of getting out of his dead end mining town are squashed when he gets his girlfriend pregnant.
» Why it was risky: Sequenced at the end of the first half of the double album — following an upbeat track called "I Wanna Marry You" — the song capped a series of upbeat numbers like "Jackson Cage," "Sherry Darling," and "Out in the Street" with a song that essentially undercuts all that rock-and-roll romanticism with the line "Is a dream alive that don't come true, or is it something worse?"
» Fallout: None. "The River" shows Springsteen's understanding of his characters' hard realities as well as their dreams, and the song remains a live staple 30 years late and has appeared on one of his greatest hits albums (see #6 and #9).

3. "Nebraska"
For his follow-up to "The River," Springsteen dropped the E Street Band and released a batch of mostly acoustic demos with a dreary photograph on the cover. It sounded about as far away from Asbury Park as the title implies.
» Why it was risky: "Nebraska" is Springsteen's first album without the E Street Band and his first album without the rock. Would anyone really want to hear the Boss sing austere folk songs about serial killers and ne'er-do-well brothers?
» Fallout: None. "Nebraska" was only a modest success at the time, but has grown in stature and reputation over the decades, becoming one of his most beloved and influential albums.

4. Marrying an actress
In 1985, after a whirlwind romance, Springsteen indulged the one of the greatest rock cliches and married Julianne Phillips, best known for "Fletch Lives" and the Howie Mandel vehicle "A Fine Mess."
» Why it was risky: For an artist who had based his career on turning blue-collar dreams into exultant rock songs, marrying an actress seemed like an abandonment of his roots.
» Fallout: The marriage lasted barely a year, as Springsteen shacked up with back-up singer Patti Scialfa. They've been married more than 20 years.

5. "Tunnel of Love"
Following the success of "Born in the U.S.A." and the subsequent world tour with the E Street Band, Springsteen opted for a collection of low-key, mature love songs inspired by his marriage and its break-up. Essentially a solo album, "Tunnel of Love" used the E Street Band only sparingly.
» Why it was risky: Springsteen without the E Street Band! Without the E Street Shuffle! Wearing a bolero tie on the cover! Say it ain't so!
» Fallout: Depends on who you ask. The singles did well, but "Tunnel of Love" remains arguably the most divisive album in Springsteen's catalog. Some fans argue that it showcases a new aspect of his songwriting, while others claim it signals the beginning of a fallow period in the late '80s and early '90s.

6. Two albums on the same day
Taking a page from the Guns N' Roses playbook, Springsteen released two separate albums — "Human Touch" and "Lucky Town" — on the same day in 1992.
» Why it was risky: Five years after "Tunnel of Love," Springsteen exhibited either rock-star vanity or creative overconfidence.
» Fallout: Lots. Instead of arguing which of these albums was better, most listeners continue to argue which is worse. Out of 24 tracks, only a few are keepers ("Lucky Town" and "If I Should Fall Behind") and too many are just generic rockers. "57 Channels (And Nothin' On)" remains one of his crummiest songs, as if anyone believed Springsteen was a couch potato.

7. "Greatest Hits" (1995 edition)
For his first hits package, Springsteen compiled 14 old tracks and four new ones featuring a newly reunited E Street Band.
» Why it was risky: Only 14 tracks?!
» Fallout: Not much. Certainly a greatest hits without "Rosalita" or "Johnny 99" or "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out" or you-name-it isn't living up to its billing, but if you think of the older tracks as lead-ups to the new tracks (which weren't greatest-hits quality but also not the typical reunion embarrassments), it's not a terrible compilation.

8. "American Skin (41 Shots)"
During his late-90s reunion tour with the E Street Band, Springsteen added to the setlist a new song inspired by Amadou Diallo, a 23-year-old Guinean immigrant who was unarmed when he was gunned down by New York City police officers.
» Why it was risky: Springsteen's music has always been more closely associated with the white underclass, but speaking out on behalf of an African immigrant stirred up considerable controversy, especially in New York, which spiked when Robert Lucente, president of the New York State Chapter of the Fraternal Order of Police, called the Boss a "fucking dirtbag" and a "floating fag."
» Fallout: Not much. Just a few years later, Springsteen would release "The Rising," based on conversations he had with 9/11 survivors, and would be hailed as an American hero.

9. "We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions"
Following up the lackluster "Devils & Dust," a dull acoustic album in the vein of "The Ghost of Tom Joad", Springsteen recorded a full album of public domain songs made famous during the 1950s and 1960s by folk singer Pete Seeger. Instead of the E Street Band, he was backed by a large group of session musicians and recorded the whole thing in two one-day sessions.
» Why it was risky: The concept behind this covers album sounds artistically self-indulgent, like his rambling between-songs monologues about "The Grapes of Wrath."
» Fallout: None. While "We Shall Overcome" didn't sell as well as "The Rising" or even "Devils & Dust," it remains one of his best and most rewarding late-career albums, and songs like "Oh Mary Don't You Weep" and "Erie Canal" contain some of his most spirited performances in years.

10. "Greatest Hits" (2009 edition)
To promote his Super Bowl half-time performance, the Boss signed a deal to release a second greatest hits disc exclusively through Wal-Mart.
» Why it was risky: The practice of releasing albums exclusively through big-box stores has grown increasingly common over the past few years, with mixed results. For every strong performer like AC/DC's "Black Ice," there's a flop like Guns N' Roses' "Chinese Democracy." But integrity, not sales, was the main issue, as many considered it hypocritical for the pro-union Springsteen to ink a deal with the anti-union Wal-Mart. Also, only 12 tracks?!
» Fallout: Did anyone actually buy this thing? The uninspired tracklist and that dreadful cover art didn't help, and Springsteen issued a public mea culpa via The New York Times: "It was a mistake. Our batting average is usually very good, but we missed that one. Fans will call you on that stuff, as it should be."

» Verizon Center; 601 F St NW; Mon., May 18, 7:30 p.m., $68-$98; 202-628-3200. (Gallery Place-Chinatown)

» RELATED: "Born to Write: Bruce Springsteen's Top 20 Character Studies" [Express, Jan. 2009]
» RELATED: "America's Troubadour: Bruce Springsteen, 'Working on a Dream'" [Express, May 2009]

Written by Express contributor Stephen M. Deusner