Bruce Springsteen Talks ‘Road Diary,’ Marriage and ‘Pure Torture’ of Songwriting in Howard Stern Interview

Bruce Springsteen opened up about his marriage, his new Road Diary documentary, and handling songwriting dry spells during the singer and the E Street Band’s Howard Stern Show interview.

On the subject of songwriting — which Springsteen called “pure torture” — the singer revealed he’s endured extended periods of non-productivity. “Writing is really hard, and you’re failing. Ninety percent of the time, you’re writing stuff that’s mediocre or worse,” he told Stern.

“As I’ve gotten older, one of the things I’ve learned to recognize is what’s mediocre and worse sooner… I’ve gone two years without writing a song, and then written an entire album in three weeks.”

Springsteen likened songwriting to “soul mining” and noted that only once in his entire catalog has music come to him in his sleep, with Working on a Dream’s “Surprise, Surprise” the “only song I’ve actually dreamt and then woke up, got up, and written.”

Also in the lengthy interview, Springsteen and wife/band mate Patti Scialfa talked about their marriage and how the couple balances their domestic and musical lives. Springsteen admitted that Scialfa is “the Boss’ Boss” and that her opinion weighs heavily when making new music. Springsteen also revealed the origins of his “Red Headed Woman,” an ode to Scialfa that he penned for her solo album before it was added to the E Street catalog.

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Springsteen and company stopped by SiriusXM’s Stern Show to mark this Friday’s release of their new documentary Road Diary, focusing on the E Street Band’s recent world tour, on Disney+ and Hulu:

Springsteen and the E Street Band will return to the road next week for a Canadian tour, while the current Rolling Stone cover star himself will play a pair of Kamala Harris swing state events this week.