Hmmm, so we agree on one thing: It can be difficult to listen to the album in it’s fullness. I have trouble with it, mainly because I’ve heard Born in the USA (the song) so many times now, and so I struggle a bit to get a full listen on it. It’s not a bad song - in fact I think it’s a very good one, it just is a little annoying. And Dancing in the Dark, despite being utterly fantastic and mind-blowing as it is, is not as good as it would have been to discover it when the album came out, rather than hearing it 50 times on the radio before doing the full album. It’s sort of like Full Moon Fever by Tom Petty. I’ve heard all of the best songs on that album, and so once I got around to hearing it, it wasn’t nearly as good had I not listened to those other great songs before doing the album. Usually, when I listen to the vinyl for Born in the USA, I just skip the first half entirely and go straight on to the second side, despite the fact that I think the first half is way better than the second.
I will say though, after hearing Born in the USA 20 times, it does get easier to listen to in it’s fullness. I think this is because once the songs, other than the initial great songs, are liked, then there is more incentive to hear the first half, rather than skip over it entirely.