By Billy Florio

Here’s a fun game. Put on “Dancing In The Dark” and listen only to Max Weinberg’s drumbeat. Focus in completely on the drums. If by the end of the song you haven’t killed yourself, you win.

Bruce Springsteen fans beware. Born In The USA is not the same kind of Bruce Springsteen album his first six were. The rock energy produced on albums like Darkness On The Edge Of Town and The River is not completely here. Instead, The Boss settled for a more poppy and overproduced sound. Maybe he couldn’t top the excellence and bareness of Nebraska and decided to go in the complete opposite direction. Or, maybe, he just wanted to be a pop star.

The album is not a horrible album; it’s just not a great album. And it certainly is overrated by those who call it one of Springsteen’s best. He released seven singles off of it, and with the exception of “I’m On Fire,” all of them get annoying at a certain point. The title track, while a fan favorite, is one of the most repetitively grating songs he ever did. “Cover Me” could have been one of Springsteen’s best, if it weren’t so slick. “I’m Going Down” (along with the whole album) reduces Clarence Clemons to studio musician status (and rivals “Born in the USA” for the most repetitively grating award). “Glory Days” and “Dancing In The Dark” are the big singles, and while they are nice pop songs, they have no depth. “My Hometown” is The Boss at his most boring, trading in a hook for a “politically conscience” attempt to echo Nebraska.

The gems of this album are mostly in the album tracks. “Darlington County” and “No Surrender” are excellent throwbacks to past work. Along with “I’m On Fire,” they shine as the best songs on the album. The singles, along with the other album tracks all have their moments; they’re just overproduced and represent bad songwriting at some points.

This is probably the album that springs into most people’s minds when they think of Bruce Springsteen, which is a shame. Those who only know Born In The USA are missing out on the greatness Springsteen achieved with his former albums. Do yourselves a favor and pick up a copy of Darkness On The Edge Of Town or Born To Run. That’s how The Boss is supposed to sound.