The book 'The Boss' hoped would never be published — an explosive unauthorized biography written with the help of Mike Appel, Springsteen's former producer/manager. Based on exclusive interviews and previously unreleased material, including depositions from the lawsuit that prevented him from recording for over a year, Down Thunder Road traces Springsteen's rise to fame and reveals the man behind the myth. Originally published in 1992, this title is now available for the first time in the United States.
In an interview at the end of the audio version of Down Thunder Road, author/reader Marc Eliot refers to Bruce Springsteen as a Hamlet. Despite the implicit range of this literary reference, the boundaries of Eliot's own work are much narrower. Forsaking any real examination of Springsteen's work itself, Eliot instead traces the rise and fall of former manager Mike Appel's relationship with Springsteen. Eliot's narration is straightforward and well-executed. He jumps nimbly between protagonists with the simplest changes of inflection and intonationŠno small feat considering the large amount of directly quoted material, including a highly effective dramatization of court transcripts. While limited in scope, Down Thunder Road proves to be entertaining. R.W.B. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine