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This is fresh air. I'm Terry Gross. The now classic Bruce Springsteen album Born to Run will have its 50th

anniversary August 25th. It was a turning point for rock and roll and for Springsteen in his life

and in his songwriting. Before he recorded that album, his record label, Columbia, was on the verge of

dropping him because his first two albums were critically acclaimed

but had pretty feeble record sales. The making of Born to Run is the subject of the new book

Tonight in Jungleland. Jungleland is the title of Born to Run's final track. My guest is the book's

author, Peter Ames Carlin. One of his earlier books is a biography of Springsteen called

Bruce. He's also written books about R.E.M., Brian Wilson, Paul McCartney, and Paul Simon. Let's

start things off with this.

Music In the day we sweat it out on the streets of a runaway American drain.

At night we ride to mansions of glory

and suicide machines

sprung from cages on highway

nine chrome wheeled fuel and check it

and stepping out over the line

Oh

Maybe this town rips the bones from your back.

It's a death trap.

It's a suicide rap.

We've got to get up while we're young.

...