BOSS AND CO. CONCERTO LEGGENDARIO, ALLMUSIC.COM

Bruce Springsteen‘s social and political activism is well known enough in 2021 that many forget he seemed largely apolitical in the early stages of his career. That began to change with 1978’s Darkness on the Edge of Town, which didn’t confront specific issues but delivered a powerful portrait of blue-collar malaise in a nation where the working class was being forgotten. His deep dive into singing for a cause came in 1979, when Musicians United for Safe Energy, a coalition of artists and music industry figures campaigning against nuclear power, persuaded Springsteen to take part in a series of concerts being held at New York’s Madison Square Garden to raise funds and awareness for their work. In most respects, Springsteen was the odd man out at the MUSE shows (which were recorded and filmed for an album and documentary, both titled No Nukes), where, with the exception of Bruce and Tom Petty, the bill was dominated by soft rockers like Jackson Browne, James Taylor, and Crosby, Stills & Nash. Springsteen didn’t do any anti-nuclear speechifying in his two sets at the MUSE shows, but he gave his performances a force, conviction, and passion that outstripped every other act on the bill and made him the highlight of No Nukes.  allmusic.com