Mary Climbs In

Bruce Springsteen has been cherished by his fans for decades, from his early days playing high school gymnasiums through globally successful albums and huge stadium shows to solo performances in intimate theaters. As his long and illustrious career has evolved, the legendary devotion of his fans has remained a constant. Springsteen fans have become worthy of study in their own right, with books, memoirs, and even a movie documenting their passion and perspectives. But his fans are not monolithic, and surprisingly little attention has been paid to why so many women from across the world adore The Boss.
 
Mary Climbs In illuminates this once overlooked but increasingly important and multi-faceted conversation about female audiences for Springsteen’s music. Drawing on unique surveys of fans themselves, the study offers insight into women’s experiences in their own voices. Authors Lorraine Mangione and Donna Luff explore the depth of women fans’ connection to Springsteen and the profound ways this connection has shaped their lives. Reflections from fans enliven each page as readers journey through the camaraderie and joy of concerts, the sorrow and confusion of personal loss and suffering, the love and closeness of community, and the search for meaning and for the self. Viewed through a psychological lens, women fans’ relationship with Springsteen is revealed in all its complexity as never before. Mary Climbs In is an important interdisciplinary contribution to the growing field of Springsteen studies and a must-read for any fan.
 

Mary Climbs In illuminates the once overlooked but increasingly important and multi-faceted conversation about female audiences for Springsteen’s music. Drawing on unique surveys of fans themselves, the study offers insight into women’s experiences in their own voices. Authors Lorraine Mangione and Donna Luff explore the depth of women fans’ connection to Springsteen and the profound ways in which it has shaped their lives. Reflections from fans enliven each page as readers travel a journey through the camaraderie and joy of concerts, the sorrow and confusion of personal loss and suffering, the love and closeness of community, and the search for meaning and for the self. Viewed through a psychological lens, women fans’ relationship with Springsteen is revealed in all its complexity as never before. Mary Climbs In is an important interdisciplinary contribution to the growing field of Springsteen studies and a must read for any fan.
 

LORRAINE MANGIONE, professor of clinical psychology at Antioch University New England, focuses on women in many aspects of who they are; creativity and artistry; group therapy; spirituality and religion; aging, loss, and grief; Italian American culture; mentoring; and #MeToo in her clinical and research work and publications. She is the coauthor of Daughters, Dads, and the Path through Grief: Tales from Italian America, as well as articles integrating Springsteen and psychology.

DONNA LUFF is a British-born writer and sociologist, an educator at Boston Children’s Hospital, and faculty at Harvard Medical School. She has published on gender, sexuality, and health care innovations and taught widely on qualitative research practice. She is author of several personal essays, as well as articles on Springsteen, and coauthor of a prior chapter on Springsteen’s women fans.

 

Introduction 1
1 Women Fans of Bruce Springsteen: Why Listen to Them and What Might They Tell Us? 5
2 "The Ties That Bind": Becoming and Staying a Fan 21
3 "Hey Little Girl": Women on Springsteen and Women 47
4 Springsteen as Friend or Family Member 71
5 Teacher of Life, Guide of the Spirit 95
6 Walking the Path Together through Darkness: Springsteen as Therapist 119
7 From New Jersey to the World: The Guy on the Boardwalk Becomes a Cultural Icon 151
8 Twenty-First-Century Legacy: What Does the Gypsy See Now? 175
9 "Further on up the Road" 199
Acknowledgments 209
References 215
Discography 225
Permissions 227
Index 000

“Mary Climbs In offers an important entry in rock music scholarship. In addition to providing a contribution to the burgeoning arena of fan studies, Mangione and Luff afford readers a vital window into the female experience vis-a`-vis rock ‘n’ roll.”

"In their book Mary Climbs In, Lorraine Mangione and Donna Luff – a professor of psychology and a sociologist, respectively – make the case that Springsteen’s music has deep appeal to women, speaking to them on a number of levels and about different subjects…The overall devotion of Springsteen’s fans is also worth noting…[, and] many of the first-person testimonials from fans in Mary Climbs In speak to the depth of this connection."