It Ain't No Sin to Be Glad You're Alive : The Promise of Bruce Springsteen [Hardcover]

Eric Alterman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1999

Apart from Frank Sinatra and Elvis Presley, no contemporary popular musician has had the cultural impact that Bruce Springsteen has on America. Since he was anointed in the late 1970s as "the future of rock and roll" and appeared on the covers of both Time and Newsweek, Springsteen has redefined the image of the rock star as not simply an entertainer but a man whom millions of fiercely loyal fans look to as a voice for their own fears and desire.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Eric Alterman is a columnist for The Nation and NSNBC. He is a contributor to Rolling Stone, Elle, Vanity Fair, The New York Times and The Washington Post. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 282 pages
• Publisher: Little Brown & Co (T); 1st edition (October 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316038857
• ISBN-13: 978-0316038850
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 5.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #606,602 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

55 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Springsteen -- A Promise Fulfilled, September 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: It Ain't No Sin to Be Glad You're Alive : The Promise of Bruce Springsteen (Hardcover)

I just finished reading Eric Alterman's brand new book on Bruce Springsteen, entitled "It Ain't No Sin To Be Glad You're Alive -- The Promise of Bruce Springsteen," and I can safely say it is a very solid, well-researched, and thoughtful book. The book is definitely a worthy read.

Alterman's book is not so much a biography (which in many ways it is), as much as it is a substantive and interesting look at Springsteen's artistic work and productive career. As a result, the reader gets an insightful feel for where Springsteen fits in the grand scheme of American history and pop culture, as well as a meaningful human portrait of a rock 'n' roll icon.

Most of the book is devoted to conceptual and thematic interpretations of Bruce's albums and songs. However, to avoid purely subjective analysis, Alterman intelligently talks about the political and social times under which these albums were released. This has the overall effect of bringing Springsteen's work ALIVE for the reader and giving him or her the proper context to more fully understand what Bruce was striving for at that point in his career. All the while, there are biographic facts and stories interspersed which helps put flesh and life on the subject. In other words, when you read about Springsteen in Alterman's book you feel like you're actually reading about another human being, not some aloof and detached celebrity.

Alterman is also very fair in his writing. He talks about the legendary triumphs of Born to Run and Nebraska, as well as the artistic struggles and 2nd-rate nature of much of the Human Touch material.

The best element of this book is the human portrait of Bruce Springsteen that emerges. Springsteen has an amazing and unique gift from God and we are blessed to live during a time in which we can appreciate him and his music, first-hand. In so many ways, he has the amazing ability to inspire an intense personal relationship with his art. For many people over the last 25 years, Bruce has been a tremendous source of hope and inspiration, as well as a "reason to believe" on so many days and nights when we felt not so special or unique.

How many artists in any medium can you say this about? The substance-abuse problems, embarassing movie roles, and just plain crap that so many, if not all other, artists put out during their career is wholly absent from Springsteen's career. It's difficult, if not impossible, for me to think of another artist of any worth who has received so much commericial and critical success while still retaining integrity and credibility.

So, Eric Alterman's book not only reminds us of all of these things, but most of all everything that is human about the artist. In the end, we're left not so much with an account of a singer's career for the last 25 or so years, but in some weird way a guide on how to live a life of worth and meaning. A testament of how to go through the storm and come out with your soul and integrity intact. An inspiration to have the will and faith to believe in yourself, as well as your dreams. How not to lose your innocence and aspirations in the face of the harsh reality called becoming an adult in today's world.

As a Springsteen fan, I've read a number of articles and books on him and his music. Alterman's work is probably my favorite. It's interesting, insightful, and rewarding.

Tom Bernardo

39 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Conscience of America, November 22, 1999

By 

Gary C. Nelson (Alabama) - See all my reviews

This review is from: It Ain't No Sin to Be Glad You're Alive : The Promise of Bruce Springsteen (Hardcover)

Eric Alterman, a Springsteen fan himself, writes with insight and sympathy for Bruce Springsteen, a man who, despite his wealth and success, is still trying to figure himself out and be honest to his core values. Springsteen is trying to be the conscience of America while also it's best concert entertainer backed by the best band in the land. No mean task! No wonder he's such a perfectionist. As other books have implied, Eric Alterman leaves me feeling that Bruce makes all of his fans better for helping them keep in touch with the better angels of their nature. This book will only increase the reader's appreciation for Bruce Springsteen, the man and his art.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent, quick-read for all Bruce fans, November 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: It Ain't No Sin to Be Glad You're Alive : The Promise of Bruce Springsteen (Hardcover)

I was excited when I learned on the internet that this book was going to be released. Eric Alterman does a great job gathering an enormous amount of information, which he uses to put the reader in the room with Bruce. From the John Hammond audition, to the many late nights in the studio trying to perfect an album, to the night Mr. Alterman got to meet his hero, the reader is right in the middle of it all. Along with this, Alterman sprinkles in personal stories of sacrificing anything to get to see Bruce in concert. Any true fan knows what he is talking about and can relate to his love of Springsteen and his music. The book was so well written that it will cause me to research other things that Alterman has done. Feel free to send me your comments, or if you want a Bruce fan to chat with.