Word: springsteen
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Wish" is indicative of the more troubling of the new trends in Springsteen's music. Certainly, he has moved away from musicality and towards narrative, but it seems that--in certain instances, most notably his "Secret Garden" hit from the Jerry Maguire soundtrack--Springsteen has also made moves in the opposite direction, towards slickly produced, saccharine songs with depressingly banal messages...
...This is Springsteen at his flawed best, reminding us of our youthful affection: adorable Bruce in his white undershirt, half-shaven. But in the middle of the catchiest tune on the album, "Seaside Bar Song," which shares with the '60s-infused swinger "So Young and In Love" and the second disk's "Where the Bands Are" the same attitude of giggly boardwalk fun that made the early albums special, Springsteen reminds us where he is going: out of the organs and saxophone comes the ancestor of The Ghost of Tom Joad's most recognizeable whispered refrain, "The highway is alive...
...presenting this archive of unused material, Springsteen begs the listener to question the choices made in assembling previous albums. It is difficult to say why "A Good Man is Hard to Find," the second disk's meditative song about the Vietnam War dead, did not make the cut for Nebraska, which included not only several forgettable songs--"Highway Patrolman," "Used Cars"--but also some of Springsteen's most idiotic whooping ("State Trooper"). In general, though, it seems that Springsteen's editorial taste has been very good: the songs on the second disk (1980-83) often feel as if they might...
...song that will attract the most attention in the compilation is the acoustic version of "Born in the U.S.A.," recorded originally for Nebraska, but not included on the final tracklist for that album. Perhaps Springsteen means through its inclusion to indicate that he has always been writing Joad-like protest music, even in composing his most famous arena rocker: but the acoustic version of "Born in the U.S.A." is fierce, bitter and passionate: There is anger in Springsteen's voice and in his inflections anger absent from Joad, where is it replaced by a still, quiet sadness...
With the third album, Tracks takes a downward turn. "This Hard Land" is bright and memorable: It is especially easy to remember since Springsteen also included it--for reasons known only to Springsteen--on his Greatest Hits album. Several songs--such as "TV Movie" and "Part Man, Part Monkey"--are intended to be humorous and satirical, but Sprinsteen has always done best when conveying gentle humor and playfulness not through clever lyrics but through whimsical music, as in Born in the U.S.A.'s "Glory Days." Those who appreciate the hardscrabble optimist Springsteen of Joad will love "The Wish...