Bruce Springsteen never stopped believing in the goddamn power of rock and roll.
He knew that any kid with a guitar in his hand had the potential to move people the same way that he was moved hearing Chuck Berry or The Rolling Stones in their prime, and all it took was a little bit of fucking heart for it to work. But for as much great rock and roll to come out of America, ‘The Boss’ knew that a few artists could have had their faces on Mount Rushmore for their musical impact alone.
Given how long his music has been in the public consciousness, though, Springsteen has etched himself into the story of the American dream in many regards. There might be a lot of people out there convinced that the entire concept of the ‘American dream’ is dead and gone, but as long as there are people like ‘The Boss’ willing to stick their neck out on the line and come out on the other side, there will always be that fighting spirit that makes the country beautiful.
But a lot of puzzle pieces had to be put into place before Springsteen ever heard of rock and roll. Keep in mind that rock and roll was considered fucking taboo in most circles when it first debuted, and even though it was a descendant of genres like the blues and R&B, hearing someone like Chuck Berry and Little Richard struck fear in the hearts of sheltered and often still-racist suburban homes.
Most parents couldn’t fathom any of their kids listening to anything other than the true tastemakers like Frank Sinatra or Bing Crosby, but the minute that Elvis Presley arrived, the air felt a little bit different. Presley was far from the first to sing rock and roll, but hearing him take the building blocks that Berry and Little Richard had started with turned the entire world of pop music inside out.
Does he deserve all the credit as ‘The King of Rock and Roll’? Probably not compared to Berry or even the true originators like bluesman Robert Johnson, but Springsteen was mesmerised when he first saw Presley. He may not have had the same kind of swagger in his delivery that ‘The King’ had whenever he shook his hips, but the fact that he managed to get on television felt within Springsteen’s reach.
Whereas Springsteen got by on being a bit more charismatic when playing off the other members of the E Street Band, there was no sense in trying to replace what Presley had done, saying, “He was as big as the whole country itself, as big as the whole dream. He just embodied the essence of it, and he was in mortal combat with the thing. Nothing will ever take the place of that guy.”
And given how much hype he stirred up, it seems like nothing ever will, either. The closest single artist who could claim to have that kind of power all on their own is probably Michael Jackson during his prime, but even by the standards he had set in the 1980s, it’s hard to think of any of the doors being open for him without Presley setting the standard for what a golden age pop star was supposed to be.
So while Springsteen stands as one of the greatest examples of an artist living out what it means to be an American, Presley represents more about America than simply waving the flag aloft. Anyone can sing about their country, but Presley encapsulated the idea that if anyone runs like hell towards their dream, there’s a good chance that they’re going to end up catching it after a while.
