“Springsteen on Broadway” has returned to Broadway - the first show to open since the pandemic shuttered the theater district. The show is based on Springsteen’s bestselling memoir “Born to Run.”
What You Need To Know
- Frank Stefanko has photographed Bruce Springsteen for more than 40 years
- Springsteen originally saw Stefanko's photographs of Patti Smith and thought they had the right feel for what he was looking for
- Stefanko's work is known worldwide, from the album covers of "The River" and "Darkness on the Edge of Town," as well as Springsteen's memoir, "Born to Run"
- Stefanko says working with Springsteen is always a collaboration
Springsteen chose a photograph by Frank Stefanko for the cover of the book. Stefanko says the image, Corvette Winter, was shot during the "Darkness Sessions," referring to the photography sessions for the “Darkness on the Edge of Town” album in 1978.
Stefanko has been photographing ‘The Boss’ for more than 40 years, and shared some of his experiences and favorite images with us.
"I have been working with Bruce on and off for over 40 years of his life,” Stefanko said. “I have seen him grow and mature and become an American icon.”
Stefanko got on Springsteen's radar after he'd seen Stefanko's photographs of musician Patti Smith.
Springsteen felt Stefanko’s work had the kind of raw, intimate, grittiness that he was looking for.
Stefanko's work soon graced the album covers of “The River” and “Darkness on the Edge of Town.”
Some other favorite images of Stefanko's include Nebraska #12.
"This was shot in 1982 for the Nebraska session. Shot in a carriage house in Monmouth County. I like it because with the 'Pink,' the paint by number 'Gainsborough' hanging over the bed and the simple floor lamp it evokes an old roadside motel, perhaps on Route 66, or most recently the “Moonlight Motel from his Western Stars album," Stefanko said, referring to the image and a recent Springsteen album.
"Staircase Portrait #1 was shot in an old farmhouse at Colts Neck in 2004. It was during the “Devils & Dust” session, but to me it evokes a classic Rembrandt feeling,” said Stefanko, of the Springsteen album shoot for “Devils & Dust.”
Another favorite is “Hard Land.”
"This was shot in 2017 for photographs that I needed to complete my massive book “Bruce Springsteen. Further Up The Road,” a signed and numbered special giant coffee table book that spans my working with Bruce for 40 years,” Stefanko said. “I especially like the feeling of this image shot at Colts Neck because it evokes a scene from an old Western movie.
And as far as whether or not Bruce is ‘The Boss’ during the sessions, Stefanko says it's always been an incredibly creative collaboration.
Frank Stefanko's photographs can be seen by request at the Morrison Hotel Gallery in Manhattan.