9 Fun Facts About Bruce Springsteen That Will Shock You

9 Fun Facts About Bruce Springsteen That Will Shock You: He Owns A Planet Called Springsteen 

Bruce Springsteen is a rock superstar known for his gritty vocals, honest lyrics, and electrifying live performances. Hes has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originator of heartland rock, combining mainstream rock musical styles with narrative songs about working class American life.With a career spanning over five decades, Springsteen has released numerous hit songs, including Born to Run, Thunder Road, Badlands, Promised Land.

His influence on the rock genre has been significant, inspiring a generation of musicians with his raw, passionate performances and socially conscious lyrics.

Here are nine fun facts about Bruce Springsteen that you may not know.

1. The first song he learned to play on guitar is not what you’d expect.

“The first song I ever learned was a song called ‘Greensleeves,’” Springsteen told Jimmy Fallon in a 2020 interview. “It was a folk song, and the first thing I had was a big book of American folk music,” he continued. “And so I learned that first because it only had two chords, and eventually I made my way to the third chord, which allowed you to play ‘Twist and Shout’ by The Beatles.”

2. Springsteen is famous in space, too.

A minor planet in space has been named after Springsteen. Planet 23990 was officially named “Springsteen” in honor of the singer in 2001. The planet was first discovered in 1999 by New Zealand astronomer I.P. Griffin. Further, the name announcement was marked with this description by the Minor Planet Center (MPC): “Bruce Springsteen (b. 1949) is a singer and songwriter whose music has provided a social commentary upon late-twentieth-century America. On the night this minor planet was discovered, his music entertained the observers.”

3. Bruce Springsteen’s major fans.

Bruce Springsteen has fans in high places. Barack Obama has said that there are “a handful of people who enter into your lives through their music and tell the American people’s story. Bruce Springsteen is one of those people.” Obama also said that he ran for President because he couldn’t be Bruce Springsteen. Another major Springsteen fan was the late Joe Strummer. The Clash frontman was asked about the Boss for a TV documentary in the mid-1990s and responded with a fax that said, among other things, “Bruce is great … If you don’t agree with that, you’re a pretentious Martian from Venus” and “The DJ puts on ‘Racing in the Streets’ and life seems worth living again.”

4. Springsteen is also an amazing photographer.

According to Frank Stefanko, a photographer and friend of Springsteen’s, The Boss is a pretty talented photographer. “Riding in my car he’ll notice unusual things—weird Jersey billboards, funny signs on the sides of diners—and it’s all registering,” Stefanko said. “A [nonphotographer] will just walk by and never see it. Bruce travels all over the world, taking pictures—it’s quite a collection of work. Will he ever show it? I don’t know. He doesn’t make a fuss over it. But I know he has that artist’s eye—his eyes, his brain, they’re always working.”

5. He is an avid supporter of LGBT rights.

Springsteen has made it clear on several occasions that he is a strong believer of gay marriage. In a certain post on his website, he is quoted saying that he has always believed in and supported the rights of same gender couples. He stated that the marriage equality matter should be acknowledged as a civil rights affair that should be approved in order to ensure every citizen is treated equally according to the law. In fact, in April of 2016, he canceled a gig in Greensboro, North Carolina at the last minute to protest the newly approved Public Facilities Privacy and Security Act, aka the “bathroom law”. This law prevents gay citizens from using any human rights infringements in the workplace and dictates which restrooms are designed for transgender people. On hearing this, Springsteen posted a statement on his official website condoning the act, which was received ceremoniously by the Human Rights Campaign.

6. The first rock star to cover two magazines at the same time.

Springsteen is the first rock star to ever appear on the covers of both Newsweek and Time magazines at the same time. This was in 1975, when two detailed articles were written on the tremendous success of Springsteen’s Born To Run album, subsequently introducing the rock star to the world.

7. E Street is an actual road.

Most people believe that Bruce Springsteen’s band got their name “E Street band” from the assumption that either Springsteen or most of the members of the band lived or were born on E Street. But this is not quite true. However, E Street is an actual road where the band first assembled together to rehearse. The guys would practice at the house of David Sancious’s mom, who was the band’s original keyboardist. The band would garner up to twelve official members through the years, but it was only Sancious who actually resided on E Street. What’s more, although the band was formed in the fall of 1972, the E Street Band name was only adapted in the fall of 1974, when Springsteen had already released two albums.

8. Springsteen also wrote for other musicians.

Springsteen wrote Blinded By The Light, but was not really thrilled by the song. In turn, he opted to give the song to Manfredd Mann’s Earth Band, which went on to become a number one hit. Similarly, he gave the track “Fire” to The Point Sisters, who made it a massive success.

9. The story behind his one of the most iconic songs “Thunder Road”.

Thunder Road is considered one of the most iconic songs Bruce Springsteen has ever produced. It is the first song in his 1975 magnum opus album “Born to Run,” which truly ensured Springsteen’s mark as a legend in rock n roll. The song has been ranked one of the greatest rock songs in history, grabbing the number #86 spot of the greatest songs of all time in the 500 Greatest Songs list on Rolling Stone. What most people don’t know is that writing the song was a lot of pain, and Springsteen had to make several changes before the final version was released. In particular, coming up with a name for the song was rather difficult. The first proposal was “Wings for Wheels,” which was later dropped in favor of the current title that was derived from a Robert Mitchum movie with the same name. The funny thing is that Springsteen hadn’t really seen the movie, and was simply captivated by the name.