Born in the U.S.A. is Bruce Springsteen's seventh studio album, released on June 4, 1984 on Columbia Records and produced by Springsteen, Jon Landau, Chuck Plotkin, and Steven Van Zandt. The album generated seven Top 10 singles — "Dancing in the Dark," "Cover Me," "Born in the U.S.A.," "I'm on Fire," "Glory Days," "I'm Goin' Down," and "My Hometown" — tying Michael Jackson's Thriller for the most from a single album at the time. The E Street Band's performances are bolstered by synthesizer-driven production that gave the album a bigger, more polished sound than Springsteen's earlier work. Clarence Clemons's tenor saxophone solos are featured prominently, particularly on "Bobby Jean," "Cover Me," and "Dancing in the Dark," where his playing provides melodic counterweight to the synthesizer textures. The title track's thundering drums and anthemic chorus were widely misread as patriotic celebration, though Springsteen's lyrics describe a Vietnam veteran's disillusionment. Born in the U.S.A. sold over 30 million copies worldwide and spent 84 weeks in the Top 10 of the Billboard 200, making it one of the best-selling albums in American history. The accompanying Born in the U.S.A. Tour ran for over a year and established Springsteen as a stadium-level performer.
