Springsteen: Point Blank

by Christopher Sandford

Book Overview

Bruce Springsteen turned fifty in 1999--the same year he was inducted into both the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He remains one of the last true rock stars and nothing... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0306809214
• ISBN13: 9780306809217
• Release Date: October 1999
• Publisher: Da Capo Press
• Length: 480 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 10.0" x 5.0" x 1.0"

Customer Reviews

I liked it

This is one of those books that people seem to either like or dislike...I have been a huge Springsteen fan since 1974, and I enjoyed every page. This books does a great job of taking you closer to Springsteen than any other book out there. Is Springsteen an narcissist? Probably...A few years ago I wrote down 10 things I wanted to do before I died and one of those ten things was to meet Bruce Springsteen...After reading Point Blank...I don't want to meet him anymore...But I will always carry his music in my soul for the rest of my life.

An effective devolution of the demolition man

The most widely accepted version of Bruce Springsteen has it that abstract objects are distinguished by their causal inefficacy, is he? Concrete objects (whether mental or physical) have causal powers; numbers and functions and the rest make nothing happen. There is no such thing as Bruce not being Bruce. Or maybe causal commerce with the game of chess. And even if impure songs do in some sense exist in space, it is easy enough to believe that they make no distinctive causal contribution to what transpires, the only bruce matters theory of music. Peter and Paul may have effects individually; and they may have effects together which neither has on his own. But these joint effects are naturally construed as effects of two concrete objects acting jointly, or perhaps as effects of their mereological aggregate (itself a paradigm concretum), rather than as effects of some set-theoretic construction. (Suppose Bruce's band tip a balance. If we entertain the possibility that this event is caused by a gig, we shall have to ask which set caused it: the set containing just Peter and Paul? Some more elaborate construction based on them? Or perhaps the set containing the molecules that compose Peter and Paul? This proliferation of possible answers suggests that it was a mistake to credit causal powers to sets in the first place.)

brilliant book

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It is the most complete work today of the life, music and times of Springsteen. Sandford does an excellent job of illustrating how Springsteen's musical journey reflects his growth and personal development. The closing paragraph poetically reflects the theme carried on throughout: "Above all, Springsteen kept faith with both his conscience and his constituency. 'Rock can offer a transcendent moment of freedom,' he'd told fans. 'A promised land.' He let them glimpse it fleetingly through the fog." I found the writing incisive and extremely well crafted. However, it does make the reader think -- which may be the downside -- after reading several of the reviewers who imply that Springsteen hard core fans lack the capacity or ability to comprehend a complex sentence. I disagree!

Misunderstood

Point Blank gets flamed by most of the Springsteen fans. The book doesn't deserve this. It is true, Sandford uses a lot of anonymous persons and it would be better if we knew who they are. Sandford doesn't paint a bad picture of Springsteen. The summary of the book could be: Springsteen ain't a saint, but he's a good and honest man who has come a long way to become what he is today. A must read for fans

Brilliant study of the Boss

This book is a fabulous read -- not only do you get a great insight into the life and songs of Springsteen -- but the writing itself "sings". I highly recommend to fans or to anyone with an interest in American rock culture over the past several decades. As an added bonus -- the color photographs are terrific.