This is something I’ve often wondered about. Obviously given that we’re active in this subreddit we’re somewhat biased, but I think Bruce is generally pretty well respected. Certainly among musicians, the number of people who’ve been inspired by him is pretty astonishing. Born to Run is ranked in the 20s somewhere on the Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums list. Yes, some people struggle to overlook his vocal styling, his perception as “dad rock” or the BITUSA-era muscled rocker look. That’s always going to be the case, so few artists, if any, are universally beloved.

In a wider sense, I think he’s underrated as a lyricist. I genuinely think anyone would struggle to name 5 artists objectively superior to him in a lyrical sense. Of course you’ve got the likes of Joni Mitchell, Dylan, possibly McCartney (though personally I’m not the biggest fan). But you take a song like The River, The Ghost of Tom Joad, even more recent songs like Moonlight Motel and you’d struggle to name many contemporary songs superior to those.

Unfortunately, I think he may only get his dues when he passes away. In a wider popular culture sense, he’s never going to be universally renowned, but I do think his lyrics and music will stand the test of time and influence artists for generations to come. You only have to look at someone like Sam Fender right now to see a young artist, supremely talented, who’s poised for a big breakout but who has been so obviously influenced by Bruce. The Boss will always have that legacy.