Mister I ain’t a boy, no I’m a man 
- “The Promised Land”

The Bruce Springsteen who wrote and recorded Born To Run was a ghost by the time his fourth album, Darkness on the Edge of Town, was recorded and released in 1978. The wide-eyed virtue previously found on tracks such as “Night”, “Born To Run” and “Thunder Road” was long gone. In its place was no longer a boy but a man who had seen the true darkness life and adulthood had to offer. While despair played a part on Born To Run, its dreamy imagery and roaring accompanying music were streamlined on Darkness. After Born To Run, Springsteen was thrown into the limelight in a way that he wasn’t comfortable with and ultimately, he no longer saw eye to eye with his manager Mike Appel. What followed was an ugly lawsuit where Springsteen learned the callous realities of the music business and Appel managed to keep Springsteen out of the studio during this time. It wasn’t until the summer of 1977 when Springsteen and the E Street Band were able to record again.