A track from his debut album, Greetings From Asbury Park, N.J., "Growin' Up" is about Springsteen's adolescence. We learn that he was a rebellious kid, very self-assured, and good with words. His primary adversaries were his high school, where he wouldn't conform; his home town of Freehold, New Jersey, where he felt stifled; and his father, a factory worker who wanted him to get a real job instead of pursuing music.
"Growin' Up" is a live favorite that Springsteen performed at most of his concerts in the '70s and '80s. As his discography grew, it often got bumped for other songs, but he still squeezed it in from time to time. Bruce would often lead into the song with stories of his youth that got more florid over time. In the early years, he would sometimes stop in the middle of the song and tell a story relating his life to Peter Pan, the boy who wouldn't grow up.
This was one of the songs that convinced Columbia Records to sign Springsteen. In 1972, he got an audition with John Hammond, who had also signed Bob Dylan to Columbia. What was supposed to be a short meeting turned into a two-hour audition, with "Growin' Up" as one of the highlights.
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