Last week, I finally received my copy of the new Bruce Springsteen album, Working on a Dream. The excitement of there being a new CD being released had long since disappated, since I had expected it now for a couple of months. The last month or so has been a fun time to be a Springsteen fan, with him singing at the inaugural cermonies, playing the half-time show of the Superbowl, getting a Golden Globe for “The Wrestler”,announcing his new tour, and of course, his new album coming out. I had heard and digested a few of the tracks already, and was looking forward to hearing the rest. It feels odd to have new material so quickly; Magic came out less than two years ago, and his tour just ended. That being said, I’m not complaining.
A new Springsteen CD is a significant landmark in my life. As wierd as it may sound, I can measure much of my life by Springsteen albums. As far as pop music goes, Springsteen was one of the first singers I really listened to, after Billy Joel, when I was in elementary school. I grew up to pop music in the mid-80’s, and after the Thriller phenomena died down, there was the Boss, being heralded as an American hero and pop icon, which mirrored my young (and jaded) Reaganesque views of what America was, and how we all should be. Springsteen was something that Andrew and I shared, and I still remember the first pop album I actually owned…a copy of The River, which was given to me for Christmas by my Dad in 1985. Interestingly enough, turning me on to Springsteen was one of the best things my Dad ever gave me in my life, and it is this love that has endured longer than our own relationship has. Getting my copy of Live 1975-85 for Christmas in 1986 was a major turning point, as it exposed me to a catalog which included some of Springsteen’s best, and certainly a writing error which has never really been matched. Every album since, from Tunnel of Love, through the Human Touch/Lucky Town duo, to the different Ghost of Tom Joad recording, and into the Bush years of The Rising, Devils & Dust, into the folksie Seeger Sessions and back into Magic, I can trace my life, my view of America, and my evolution of my person and to a lessor extent, my politics. Springsteen has said that he speaks about people by speaking to them. He is not trying to simply tell his story, he is trying to connect to his audience by telling them their stories. I have seen him devolve as a pop icon, and simply retreat into his shell as a songwriter and self-satisfying musician, only to return to his roots onstage, and suddenly, as a “classic” writer, he has started to matter again in the 21st century. He may not get much play on the radio, but as he puts it, his shows are amongst his best, and his writing matters to the pepple. I have always remained a Bruce fan, as are his legions out there…it makes me wonder why some people suggest that he is past his prime, when all he has done has stripped himself of the trappings which come from being the stereotypical rock star, and just being a musician.
As for Working on a Dream, I have read a number of different reviews, some good and some a bit more critical. As for me, I rate this album on the Bruce scale, which for me automatically gives an album two more stars than the average album. I’ll save my ratings of his catalog for another day, but lets just say that a “bad” boss album would still be ahead of 95% of what is popular out there today. Having given myself now two weeks plus to really digest the album, I give it 3.5 stars on the Springsteen scale, with the potential to move up to four. A five star Springsteen album is reserved for Born to Run, the River, Darkness on the Edge of Town, Born in the USA, and Nebraska. This isn’t there. I consider this to be a B+ album. I put it just behind The Rising and Tunnel of Love in terms of greatness, and perhaps on par with Magic. This is just, because alot of it was written at the same time.
I don’t consider the writing on many of the songs to be amongst Springsteen’s best, but the cuts are definitely catchy. One of the critics for Magic said that that album sounded like Springsteen in 2007 was trying to sound like Springsteen of 20-30 years ago. In the end, it sounded really good, but wasn’t particularly original in its lyrics. I think Working on a Dream is a fun album, and I am looking forward to see how it links into his live show. I was instantly drawn by Working on a Dream, which definitely has a classic Springsteen feel to it, along with the pop-rocker, My Lucky Day. Both are cool to listen to, and stick in my head….both are good traits.
In reading Springsteen’s interviews, he seems to be very drawn to the 4th track, Queen of a Supermarket. Taking away the obvious sexual undertones of the song, it is an interesting view of someone with a secret crush on the neighborhood checkout girl. I can’t say that I personally identify, but I thought it was an interesting take on someone else’s experience, particularly crafted from what might be a smaller town experience. I will say that I also particularly like the catchy rhythms of Tomorrow Never Knows and Surprise, Surprise. Neither are lyrically deep, but have a fun sound to them that brings me to mind of certain Beatles songs or Turn, Turn Turn by the Byrds. When I think of music for music’s sake, not every song has to have a deep message, or even tell a story, like the 8 minute mini-opera of Outlaw Pete.
I think Springsteen hits his peak, though, at the end of the album. It is important to note that this was Danny Federici’s last album, having died last year of cancer. He did not see the end of the project, and his absence can be felt. That being said, I think that the most important song on the album is The Last Carnival, a song written about the death of his bandmate, his friend, his brother. Images of adventures past, and of a future without Danny are portrayed in this piece. It reminds the listener that the E Street band is not simply a rock group, but a brotherhood, and a family. He was quoted as saying that he was proud of the bands longevity as a whole, and this just goes on to show that he really does refuse to leave anyone behind, and that Danny Federici is going along for this ride, too.
The Wrestler was a bonus track, not really fitting into the overall theme of the album, but given that it just won a Golden Globe for original song for the movie of the same name, it was worth putting on. On the surface, it sounds like other movie tracks he has written in recent years, Streets of Philadelphia and Dead Man Walking. He talks about the pain of another character struggling to get by, a brooding reminder of struggle and loneliness….”Tell me, can you ask for anything more?” I’ll tell you what, listening to the song a few times made me want to see the movie, and having done so, I can see why it was so good. The Boss captured the Mickey Rourke character dead-on, and summed up the movie and it’s lead character in a solid 3:50.
For now, I will continue to digest the album, while it basks in its own fame. It went right to #1 on the charts, despite the fact that Springsteen will never promote it with singles or videos like most pop-stars. This isn’t Born in the USA revisited, with Boss-mania out in full, but it is strange to see the Boss come full-circle, as if he suddenly matters again. He is clearly a happy man, content in his family, with his band, and with the changing of the tides on the American landscape. It would be foolish and naive for me to thingk that these great albums will keep coming forever…after all, he is close to 60, and it makes me cherish each one all the more so. I am looking forward to seeing him come to DC and Charlottesville in May, and hoping that his shows this time around match the energy and joy from last summer. Most of all, though, this represents another landmark in my life, and with Working on a Dream released, I will forever make the connection of where I am in my own life, with what I was doing when this was released. It is the same sort of connections I have made now for 24 years, every couple years when a new album has been released. Just a bit of a reminder of what is real and what is true to me, and another chance to thank Springsteen forhelping make my world a bit brighter by sharing the world through his eyes, and into my ears, mind and heart.
