Mike Appel

American music industry manager and record producer

Not to be confused with Mike Apple.

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Mike Appel (born October 27, 1942)[1] is an American music industry manager and record producer who served as manager and producer for Bruce Springsteen early in Springsteen's career.

Appel was born in Flushing in Queens, New York City, of three-quarters Irish and one-quarter Jewish heritage and was raised Roman Catholic.[1] His father was a successful real estate broker on Long Island.[1] Appel began playing the guitar at age 14.[1]

Appel was a guitarist and songwriter for several obscure groups during the 1950s and 1960s. He was a member of The Balloon Farm, and co-wrote their 1967 hit "A Question of Temperature". He also was a producer and songwriter for the early metal band Sir Lord Baltimore.

In 1971, Carl 'Tinker' West, the manager of some of Springsteen's early bands - Child, Steel Mill and The Bruce Springsteen Band - referred Springsteen to Appel. Springsteen auditioned for Appel in 1971; Appel told him to come back when he had written more songs. When Springsteen returned in 1972, Appel signed Springsteen to a production contract, and got Springsteen the audition with Columbia Records' John H. Hammond that led to Clive Davis signing Springsteen. He produced Springsteen's first two albums, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. and The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle, both released in 1973. He also co-produced Springsteen's third and breakthrough album, Born to Run.

Appel gradually alienated Springsteen during the recording of Born to Run and Springsteen sought to replace Appel as both manager and record producer with Jon Landau. By 1976 a lengthy legal battle between Appel and Springsteen ensued, which was eventually settled out of court.[2] Appel, who was not able to find further success in the industry, subsequently co-wrote, with Marc Eliot, the 1992 book Down Thunder Road about his experiences with Springsteen.

Appel is generally credited for his aggressive tactics in getting Springsteen's career started, although his production abilities have often been criticized. However, Appel is also sometimes credited with fostering the looser, more musically adventurous and lyrically romantic approach of Springsteen's first two albums. After Landau took over, Springsteen's work became more tightly focused in musical terms and more political in content.

With producer and songwriter Wes Farrell and Jim Cretecos, Appel co-wrote five songs recorded by the Partridge Family: the chart hit "Doesn't Somebody Want to Be Wanted" (US no. 6, 1971) and the album tracks "I Can Feel Your Heartbeat" and "Somebody Wants To Love You" (both 1970) and "Umbrella Man" and "Rainmaker" (both 1971).

## References[edit]

1. ^ a b c d Eliot and Appel, Down Thunder Road, p. 45.
2. ^ Heylin, E Street Shuffle, pp. 113-143.

## Bibliography[edit]

* Eliot, Marc with Appel, Mike. Down Thunder Road. Simon & Schuster, 1992, ISBN 0-671-86898-5.
* Heylin, Clinton, E Street Shuffle: The Glory Days of Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Viking, 2012, ISBN 978-0670-02662-3.

## External links[edit]

* Allmusic.com profile by Richie Unterberger

* v
* t
* e

Bruce Springsteen

* E Street Band

* Bruce Springsteen
* Garry Tallent
* Roy Bittan
* Max Weinberg
* Steven Van Zandt
* Nils Lofgren
* Patti Scialfa

* Soozie Tyrell
* Charles Giordano
* Jake Clemons

* Clarence Clemons
* Danny Federici
* Vini Lopez
* David Sancious
* Ernest Carter
* Suki Lahav

Studio albums|

* Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. (1973)
* The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle (1973)
* Born to Run (1975)
* Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978)
* The River (1980)
* Nebraska (1982)
* Born in the U.S.A. (1984)
* Tunnel of Love (1987)
* Human Touch (1992)
* Lucky Town (1992)
* The Ghost of Tom Joad (1995)
* The Rising (2002)
* Devils & Dust (2005)
* We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions (2006)
* Magic (2007)
* Working on a Dream (2009)
* Wrecking Ball (2012)
* High Hopes (2014)
* Western Stars (2019)
* Letter to You (2020)
* Only the Strong Survive (2022)

Live albums|

* Live 1975–85 (1986)
* In Concert/MTV Plugged (1993)
* Live in New York City (2001)
* Hammersmith Odeon, London '75 (2006)
* Live in Dublin (2007)
* Springsteen on Broadway (2018)
* The Legendary 1979 No Nukes Concerts (2021)

Bruce Springsteen
Archives|

* Apollo Theater 3/09/12 (2014)
* The Agora, Cleveland 1978 (2015)
* Tower Theater, Philadelphia 1975 (2015)
* Nassau Coliseum, New York 1980 (2015)
* Brendan Byrne Arena, New Jersey 1984 (2015)
* LA Sports Arena, California 1988 (2015)
* Schottenstein Center, Ohio 2005 (2015)
* Ippodromo delle Capannelle, Rome 2013 (2015)
* Arizona State University, Tempe 1980 (2015)
* The Christic Shows 1990 (2016)
* HSBC Arena, Buffalo, NY, 11/22/09 (2016)
* Scottrade Center, St. Louis, MO, 8/23/08 (2017)
* Olympiastadion, Helsinki, July 31, 2012 (2017)
* Palace Theatre, Albany 1977 (2017)
* Auditorium Theatre, Rochester, NY 1977 (2017)
* The Summit, Houston, TX December 8, 1978 (2017)

Soundtracks|

* Western Stars – Songs from the Film (2019)

Compilations|

* Greatest Hits (1995)
* 18 Tracks (1999)
* The Essential Bruce Springsteen (2003)
* Greatest Hits (2009)
* The Promise (2010)
* Collection: 1973–2012 (2013)
* Chapter and Verse (2016)
* Best of Bruce Springsteen (2024)

Box sets|

* The Born in the U.S.A. 12" Single Collection (1985)
* Tracks (1998)
* The Collection (2004)
* Born to Run: 30th Anniversary Edition (2005)
* The Collection 1973–1984 (2010)
* The Promise: The Darkness on the Edge of Town Story (2010)
* The Album Collection Vol. 1 1973–1984 (2014)
* The Ties That Bind: The River Collection (2015)

EPs|

* Live Collection (1987)
* Chimes of Freedom (1988)
* Blood Brothers (1996)
* PBS Exclusive (2007)
* Magic Tour Highlights (2008)
* American Beauty (2014)

Songs|

| Singles|

* "Blinded by the Light"
* "Spirit in the Night"
* "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)"
* "Born to Run"
* "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out"
* "Prove It All Night"
* "Badlands"
* "The Promised Land"
* "Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)"
* "Hungry Heart"
* "Fade Away"
* "Sherry Darling"
* "The River"
* "Cadillac Ranch"
* "Point Blank"
* "Atlantic City"
* "Open All Night"
* "Dancing in the Dark"
* "Cover Me"
* "Born in the U.S.A."
* "I'm on Fire"
* "Glory Days"
* "I'm Goin' Down"
* "My Hometown"
* "Santa Claus Is Comin' to Town"
* "War"
* "Fire"
* "Brilliant Disguise"
* "Tunnel of Love"
* "One Step Up"
* "Tougher Than the Rest"
* "Spare Parts"
* "Human Touch"
* "57 Channels (And Nothin' On)"
* "Better Days"
* "Streets of Philadelphia"
* "Secret Garden"
* "The Ghost of Tom Joad"
* "Sad Eyes"
* "The Rising"
* "Lonesome Day"
* "Waitin' on a Sunny Day"
* "Devils & Dust"
* "Radio Nowhere"
* "Girls in Their Summer Clothes"
* "Working on a Dream"
* "My Lucky Day"
* "The Wrestler"
* "We Take Care of Our Own"
* "Death to My Hometown"
* "High Hopes"
* "Just Like Fire Would"
* "Hello Sunshine"
* "There Goes My Miracle"
* "Tucson Train"
* "Western Stars"
* "Letter to You"
* "Ghosts"
* "Do I Love You (Indeed I Do)"
* "Nighshift"
* "Don't Play That Song"
* "Turn Back the Hands of Time"

|

Charting songs|

* "Be True"
* "Ramrod"
* "Nebraska"
* "Johnny 99"
* "No Surrender"
* "Bobby Jean"
* "Stand on It"
* "Trapped" (live)
* "Because the Night" (live)
* "Chimes of Freedom" (live)
* "Youngstown"
* "American Skin (41 Shots)"
* "Pay Me My Money Down"
* "Long Walk Home"
* "My City of Ruins"
* "Rocky Ground"
* "The Power of Prayer"

Other songs|

* "Growin' Up"
* "For You"
* "Incident on 57th Street"
* "The Fever"
* "Thunder Road"
* "Night"
* "Backstreets"
* "She's the One"
* "Meeting Across the River"
* "Jungleland"
* "Adam Raised a Cain"
* "Racing in the Street"
* "Darkness on the Edge of Town"
* "Stay"
* "The Ties That Bind"
* "Independence Day"
* "Out in the Street"
* "Stolen Car"
* "Wreck on the Highway"
* "Highway Patrolman"
* "Darlington County"
* "Working on the Highway"
* "Downbound Train"
* "Pink Cadillac"
* "Jersey Girl"
* "Light of Day"
* "The New Timer"
* "Land of Hope and Dreams"
* "Hunter of Invisible Game"
* "Chinatown"

Video releases|

* Video Anthology / 1978–88 (1989)
* In Concert/MTV Plugged (1992)
* Blood Brothers (1996)
* The Complete Video Anthology / 1978–2000 (2001)
* Live in New York City (2001)
* Live in Barcelona (2003)
* VH1 Storytellers (2005)
* Wings for Wheels (2005)
* Hammersmith Odeon, London '75 (2005)
* Live in Dublin (2007)
* Magic Tour Highlights (2008)
* London Calling: Live in Hyde Park (2010)
* The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town (2010)
* Springsteen & I (2013)
* Born in the U.S.A. Live: London 2013 (2014)
* A MusiCares Tribute to Bruce Springsteen (2014)
* Bruce Springsteen's High Hopes (2014)
* High Hopes in South Africa (2014)
* Hunter of Invisible Game (2014)

Concerts|

* Born to Run tours (1974–77)
* Darkness Tour (1978)
* The River Tour (1980–81)
* Born in the U.S.A. Tour (1984–85)
* Tunnel of Love Express (1988)
* Human Rights Now! (1988)
* Bruce Springsteen 1992–1993 World Tour (1992–93)
* Ghost of Tom Joad Tour (1995–97)
* Reunion Tour (1999–2000)
* Rising Tour (2002–03)
* Vote for Change (2004)
* Devils & Dust Tour (2005)
* Seeger Sessions Band Tour (2006)
* Magic Tour (2007–08)
* Working on a Dream Tour (2009)
* Wrecking Ball World Tour (2012–13)
* High Hopes Tour (2014)
* The River Tour (2016)
* Summer '17 (2017)
* Springsteen on Broadway (2017–18; 2021)
* 2023 Tour (2023–24)

Related people|

* Jessica Springsteen
* Pamela Springsteen
* Jon Landau
* John Hammond
* Mike Appel
* Phil Petillo
* Marie Castello
* Southside Johnny
* Brendan O'Brien
* Ron Aniello
* Toby Scott
* Bob Clearmountain
* Chuck Plotkin
* Jimmy Iovine
* Dave Marsh
* Eric Meola
* Frank Stefanko
* Lynn Goldsmith
* Annie Leibovitz
* Danny Clinch
* Thom Zimny

Related articles|

* Discography
* Songs
* E Street Band
* Steel Mill
* The Sessions Band
* The Miami Horns
* Born to Run autobiography
* E Street Radio
* Little Steven's Underground Garage
* Outlaw Pete
* Columbia Records
* 914 Sound Studios
* Record Plant
* Power Station
* The Hit Factory
* The Max Weinberg 7
* Badlands: A Tribute to Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska
* Greetings from E Street
* Backstreets Magazine
* The Upstage Club
* The Stone Pony
* Fender Telecaster
* Freehold Borough, New Jersey
* Asbury Park, New Jersey
* "Because the Night"
* "Jersey Girl"
* "Springsteen"
* Blinded by the Light (film)

* Category

Authority control databases

International|

* FAST
* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* United States

Artists|

* MusicBrainz

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