Ringside Report Book Review: For You

[AdSense-A]

By Anthony “Zute” George

Bruce Springsteen is a religion. Mike Appel said as much. Countless other fans would concur. If you belong to that religion, you get it. All of it. Being a Springsteen fanatic is a different experience. It just is. Because Bruce is a different kind of cat. He has made a promise to his fans and takes that promise very seriously. Therefore, his work is set to a higher standard. In lamest terms, Bruce never has and never will sell out.

Bruce knows he would be nothing without his fans. Without his supporters, Bruce would not be able to have it all, a goal he set early for himself. Without his fans, he could never have remained true to himself and his work all these years. Without his fans, he would never be able to keep working and be brave enough to try new things.

Conversely, fans of Springsteen would not be as whole without his music. How many of us has he saved or inspired? How else would the daily chores of life, the grind, be manageable? Indeed, Bruce is with me on my train ride every day to work, he is with me when I clean the dishes after a wonderful vegan meal made by my wife, he is with me when I vacuum my rug, and he was with me during some very dark days where nothing else seemed to make sense.

Fans of Bruce Springsteen get this. And we all know listening to the music is just not quite enough. Reading a book written by Bruce Springsteen, or about Bruce, is an exciting way to get our Bruce fix. And there have been so many books for fans to enjoy. For You: Original Stories and Photographs by Bruce Springsteen’s Legendary Fans, is a unique book published by Lawrence Kirsch, and a must-have for all Springsteen fanatics.

For You takes us on a journey through our favorite Bruce topic, Springsteen in concert. Every fan remembers the first time they saw Bruce live. It is truly an event that will change your life forever. With For You, not only do you get anecdotal accounts of ‘My First Bruce Experience’ fans also express what Bruce Springsteen has meant to their life. The book also recounts the task of securing concert tickets, a dynamic that has indeed changed over the years. Verified fan, anyone? We also learn that sometimes being lucky enough to secure tickets is not the most significant obstacle, such life obstacles as pregnancy could jeopardize your Bruce experience. Or not. How about work? Can work get in the way of going to see our beloved rock star? Some fans have made sure that, through shrewd negotiations, work hours will not prevent them from going to a concert.

There are so many great, informative accounts from fellow Bruce fans in For You. If that were not enough, the book is saturated with gorgeous photos of Bruce and his bandmates performing. Both color and black and white photos.
Even though there is an over-representation of Bruce Springsteen books, they never get stale. Fans will never get tired of listening to Bruce’s music, attending his concerts, reading about Springsteen, looking at his photos, or reading about the experiences of fellow fans. For You puts that all together in such a unique way.

Bruce Springsteen has spent his life connecting with his fans and reminding us just what a grind that life could be. We lose loved ones, we lose our jobs, some of us lose the desire to live, some of us no longer have the ability to make sense of their life and turn to violent action as a mode of catharsis. The cruelty of this world is real, and we have all been tested by it. Bruce Springsteen has provided us with the tools to handle it a little better. For You focuses on all that is right in the world. To put it another way, it is all that is Bruce. When you have something in your life that brings you pure joy, you want to experience it any way you can and share it with everyone who is indeed on the same page as you. For You is a book that provides us with that opportunity. A viable combination of print and pictures. For You is by you, the fans, and indeed for all of us.

It should be part of every Springsteen Memorabilia collection.

To order you copy of For You, click HERE.

[si-contact-form form=’2′]