Bruce Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere

Leonard Woolf was the husband of the great 20th century British writer, Virginia Woolf. He was also the founder of Hogarth Press, which first published most of Virginia’s books as well as the works of other seminal writers.

Virginia Woolf committed suicide in 1941 by drowning herself in the River Ouse near her home in Sussex, England. She filled her overcoat pockets with heavy stones before walking into the river, leaving behind a heartfelt note to her husband explaining her struggle with mental depression and her fears of recurring breakdowns. Her body was not found until three weeks later.

Leonard made a very telling observation a number of years after Virginia’s death. He noted that during her lifetime her second-rate books tended to sell very well. But her really great works for which she is known for today, such as To The Lighthouse, sold very poorly when they were first published during Virginia’s lifetime.

There is an old rhyme that goes like this:

Seven cities claimed the great Homer when dead.

But the living Homer had to beg for his bread.

A new movie, Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere, really touches on the above themes and issues. It also places these conundrums in a very modern and pop culture setting.

John Hammond was the legendary music producer who discovered Bob Dylan and got him started recording records for the Columbia label. In the 1970s Bruce Springsteen was a “complete unknown” (to borrow a phrase from Dylan). His manager was able to get him a tryout with the great Hammond, and this resulted in a three record deal for Springsteen with Columbia.

The first two albums that Springsteen recorded got some very good reviews, but the sales were not great. Springsteen writes in his autobiography that he really felt that the third album would be the “make it or break it” record. If it was a big hit, then Columbia would renew his contract. If it was not a big hit, then Springsteen would fall back into the category of “so long, been good to know ya.”

That third album was Born to Run, which was a grand slam home run for the Boss! So coming into the 1980s Bruce was an A-prime rock star. Everything seemed to be going his way. You think he would be full of contentment and bliss. But somehow “the peace that passes all understanding” was not what Springsteen was experiencing.

It is the early 1980s and the movie opens with Bruce experiencing a surge of memories from his past including:

—The father who spent more time in the bars than with his family.

— The father who was abusive to his mother.

— The time when little Bruce Springsteen hit his father with a baseball bat to protect his mother.

—The reality of living in a part of the world that had better days. While parts of it might really be shabby, there was still the moonlight magic of a town by the sea.

Columbia records wants more and more golden hits from the Brucester. Bruce does a recording session which produces a song called “Born in the USA.” Everybody who hears it believes that “Born in the USA” is bound for number one hitsville.

But Bruce is starting to feel real serious mental depression. He knows that “Born in the USA” could be a multi-zillion dollar money maker. But he feels driven to do something else.

With an engineering buddy, he gets relatively cheap electronic equipment to start recording stuff in his bedroom. What starts pouring out are acoustical guitar songs. The individual songs are quite frankly great, in my estimation. But they sound like—quite frankly—something recorded in a guy‘s bedroom with cheap equipment.

But that’s the point, says Springsteen to his manager. The songs eventually lead to his idea for an album called Nebraska. In this album, he really touches on so many feelings and themes from his childhood.

Bruce feels that it’s one of the best things he has ever done. His manager says that he needs to record these things in a real professional studio. So Bruce goes into a top-of-the-line studio, and the result doesn’t even come close to the sound he got in his bedroom with inexpensive equipment.

Some of the best recording engineers and mixers in the business try to replicate the sound that Bruce wants. But they can’t do it.

Meanwhile, there is a ton of pressure from Columbia records. Studio executives said that Nebraska will never be played on the radio, and it never will sell well. It will just disappoint his fans, and it will be a total failure.

On top of this, Bruce said that he will not do a tour to promote Nebraska. The Boss may be going through waves of serious depression, but he is hanging tough for what he believes in.

For me the movie touched on some really important themes, including:

—Holding true and in integrity for what you really believe. To borrow from Shakespeare: “To thine own self be true.”

— Not going for the easy fix and start people pleasing.

— Doing all of this despite serious depression, and thank goodness that Bruce Springsteen did not go the way of Virginia Woolf, or overdose like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison.

—And last but not least… making peace with, and finding forgiveness for, your parents.

The acting in the movie is superb. The cinematography and direction are wonderful. Yes, I highly recommend this movie for so many reasons.

Spoiler alert: Nebraska was released in the early 1980s, and it went to number three on the charts. After that “Born in the USA” was released… and I don’t have to tell you where that one went to!!

Many blessings,

Rev. Rick