Greetings from E Street: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band [Hardcover]

Robert Santelli (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 28, 2006

Greetings from E Street celebrates the passionately loved group that has been entertaining the world for 35 years. Written with their cooperation, this fully illustrated informal biography combines rare photographs with 30 removable facsimiles of E Street memorabilia, including Bruce Springsteen's first business card and hand-written set list, and even two fabulous posters. Longtime band intimate Robert Santelli captures the ecstatic highs and devastating lows on the E Street Band's roller coaster ride to stardom. He follows the band from the early days in Asbury Park, New Jersey, to the critical acclaim of Born to Run, the mania of Born in the U.S.A. and international touring, and each member's unique projects. Throughout, the band's signature combination of friendship, humor, and stellar musicianship is revealed in stories, snapshots, and the ephemera of life of the road. Warm and personal, Greetings from E Street is a postcard from the most famous address in rock and roll.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robert Santelli has written extensively about Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band since the early 1970s. The author of nearly a dozen books, he is a frequent contributor to magazines such as Rolling Stone and Backstreets. He is currently the artistic director of the Experience Music Project in Seattle.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 98 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books (September 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811853489
• ISBN-13: 978-0811853484
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 9.6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #344,010 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very unique book that i highly recommend if you're a Bruce fan, October 7, 2006

By 

T. Scarillo "music snob" (Studio City, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Greetings from E Street: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (Hardcover)

i concur with the first reviewer - i too thought i had just about every book i could want on Bruce, but this one surpassed my expectations. Don't let the low page count deter you - this one is definitely worth the money. There are a ton of pictures i had never seen before (ones that very likely came from the band members themselves or members of their inner circle) and there are a lot of reproductions of interesting chachkies, clippings, documents, itineraries, setlists, etc. that are in little pockets throughout the book (akin to the inserts you got in the LP of The Who - Live at Leeds). The book begins with Bruce's first bands and goes all the way up to the latest reunion tours. The presentation is excellent - quality printing, binding, and beautiful thick stock slipcase. I paid around $24 for it and i'm extremely pleased - while not a narrative-heavy book like some others that run much longer, i'd rate this as one you'll want to add to your Bruce collection. Hats off to the author.

23 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Stroll Down The Boardwalk in Asbury Park and E Street, October 5, 2006

By 

HagFan (Uniontown, PA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Greetings from E Street: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (Hardcover)

I'm going to try to make this as helpful as I can without going on excessively. I don't know about you, but I sometimes become belabored by long reviews.

If you are a Bruce Tramp like myself for 34+ years, you must purchase this book. I know that's what the people trying to sell the book always say, but in this case that's the best I can tell you. I don't care if you are like me and have nearly everything that has been printed on Bruce and The E Street Band, and Bruce's other bands, this book is absolutely like no other. When you initially open it you will go "Wow!". First of all, it comes in a slipcase,(the editorials about the book didn't tell you this) is so great that you think you're holding an old-time vaudeville type trunk in your hands. Then, when you open it and start looking at the pictures(I haven't had a chance to read any of it yet-I just received it today), you will laugh at alot of the pictures you've never seen before, and alot of them will bring back so many memories. A couple of the the ones on the front cover are so funny - it's like Bruce is saying, while posing for these pictures, "Man, I'm so bored with this whole thing". But, they are so great. The facsimile pullouts are priceless, to say the least. In closing I have to tell you that if I'd have passed on buying this book, then saw it, and let's pretend that you couldn't get it anymore, I'd have felt that my Springsteen collection had a huge hole in it. Please, do yourself a favor. Order this book if you haven't already. You won't regret even one penny that you spent on it.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Irresistable for any fan of rock history, December 13, 2006

By 

Paul Allaer (Cincinnati) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Greetings from E Street: The Story of Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band (Hardcover)

I like Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band. I've seen them in concert a number of times, and have several of their albums. But I wouldn't call myseld a die-hard fan. That said, when I saw this book, I couldn't resist it.

"Greetings from E Street" (91 pages) is a loving look back to how Bruce and the E Street rose from very humble beginnings in New Jersey to the world stars they'd eventually become, both in text and pictures, but also with lots of faithfully reproduced artifacts such as early programs, back stage passes, setlists (handwritten by Bruce), a coctail napkin from the Stone Pony, newspaper reviews, concert programs, stickers, 2 fold-out concert posters (one from the very early days when they toured as Steelmill), and on and on. The pictures are outstanding, and of course most intruiging from the early days.

This book is not similar to "The Beatles Anthology" or the more recent "U2 by U2" books. It's not meant to be the definitive account of Springsteen or the E Street Band. Yet it brings a lot of insights, and the artifacts are irresitable. Fun and recommended not just for Boss fans, but for all rock history buffs.