The Boss is nothing less than a force of nature, howling tales of America as the powerhouse that is the E-Street Band races behind him.

And their influence can be seen even today, from the aforementioned War on Drugs to Arcade Fire. And it’s easy to see why: Springsteen pretty much invented the American rock anthem with all its fury and pathos.

​From the opening strains of Thunder Road, painting pictures of screen doors and dirt roads, to the title track’s passionate refrain (the title track is worth the price of the whole record, by the way. Pure gold), the Boss takes Dylan’s mantle upon himself and adjusts it to suit his context, and he does so without hubris or insincerity.

​And while Bruce Springsteen may have spent time some time dabbling in self-parody over the years, his breakthrough record is still, even over thirty-five years later, the stuff legends are made of.