"Deliver Me From Nowhere" by Warren Zanes

I decided my next read would be "Deliver Me From Nowhere: The Making of Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska" by Warren Zanes, in advance of the new movie of the same name, based on the book, that's being released later this week  (Oct. 24th). (We haven't been to a movie since early 2020, before the pandemic began -- something we always loved to do! -- but Bruce has been a constant presence in our lives and our relationship since we first met -- and I always like to read the book before I see the movie version -- so...!)  

As the subtitle points out, the book focuses on a particular era of Springsteen's life, the making of the 1982 album "Nebraska," which marked a profound shift in Springsteen's life and career. It also delves into the events and circumstances, in Springsteen's personal life and career, and in the American culture of the time, that led up to it and shaped it.

I had been aware of Springsteen when I was a teenager (I loved "Prove It All Night" when it was on the radio, summer 1978), and my pre-dh boyfriend had "The River" album, but I hadn't REALLY listened to his music until I met dh, who was a big fan and had the nickname "BRUUUCE" lettered on the back of his residence floor T-shirt (lol).  I bought a couple of his albums and they were a big comfort to me when dh went to graduate school the next year in a different province. 

"Nebraska" came out in the fall of 1982, when I was 21 and starting my fourth and final year of undergrad, without dh on campus. It was starkly different from the Springsteen albums that had come before, or the ones anyone else was making at that point. But the more I listened, the more it grew on me. (I especially liked "Atlantic City" and "Reason to Believe.") 

What became "Nebraska" -- and parts of the subsequent "Born in the U.S.A." album -- began as a cassette tape of demos recorded by Springsteen in early January 1982, on a simple four-track home recorder, sitting on the bed in the bedroom of the farmhouse he was renting in Colts Neck, New Jersey. He'd just concluded a hugely successful tour to promote "The River" -- but he was struggling with what it all meant and what direction he wanted to take next. Around the same time, he was mulling over several things he'd been watching and reading, including Terrence Malick's 1973 movie "Badlands," based on the Starkweather murders in Nebraska during the late 1950s, starring a very young Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek;  a book about Starkweather's teenaged girlfriend/accomplice, Caril Fugate;  and the short stories of Flannery O'Connor. 

When he brought the demo tape into the studio for the E Street Band to work on, some songs came together very quickly, and would form the nucleus of the "Born in the U.S.A." album, including the title song. These songs formed an almost complete album, with the markings of a huge hit (which it would eventually become).  But the other songs kept calling him -- and he struggled with how they sounded when augmented by the full band.  Eventually, he decided to release those songs as a solo album -- exactly as recorded. No interviews, minimal advertising. He did authorize one promotional video ("Atlantic City") that was shown on the fledgling MTV network -- a series of black and white film clips of Atlantic City in all its gritty glory. No Springsteen or E Street Band in sight. 

"Nebraska" was critically acclaimed when it was first released, and still is today. It was a milestone in Bruce's career and in the music world generally, for many reasons that Zanes delves into here. 

There's probably a whole lot more detail here than most of us probably need or want to know about this album. But personally? I loved it. It was a great reminder of that time in my life, of what Bruce meant and still means to me & dh, and what a brilliant artist he is. Of how sometimes it pays to take risks, even when they seem crazy. (And how it helps to have people who believe in you and what you're doing, as Springsteen's manager, Jon Landau, and the record company did.)  There was a lot here that I already knew about this time in Springsteen's life, but I enjoyed the insights provided here (by Bruce, and by others) that put Bruce's music, and this album, into the context of the times.  If you love Bruce, and enjoy learning more about his creative process, especially if you love the album "Nebraska," you will probably enjoy this book. 

I haven't listened to "Nebraska" in full in years, and reading this book makes me want to pull out my CD and give it a spin. (I did have the vinyl album originally, but it now belongs to Older Nephew.  : ) ) 

4 stars on both Goodreads and StoryGraph.  

This was Book #31 read to date in 2025 (and Book #4 finished in October), bringing me to 69% of  my 2025 Goodreads Reading Challenge goal of 45 books. I am (for the moment, anyway...!) 4 books behind  schedule to meet my goal.  :)  You can find reviews of all my books read to date in 2025 tagged as "2025 books."