Daniel Reviews...
Bruce Springsteen
Despite trying hard to peg him down, Bruce Springsteen refuses to settle in one category. This is partly due to his many influences, but also from careful calculations and watching his steps. Obviously he has made some missteps, but he is also so aware of his audience and his legacy that he seems to shift shape and and turn to different ways of expressing concerns and emotions. He will never stay long enough as the energetic entertainer, just as well as he won’t remain the grumpy old storyteller.
Without knowing Springsteen personally I believe that he simply is a music fan. He takes the joy and happiness from the soul, r’n’b and rock and roll. Sam Cooke, Al Green and Wilson Pickett mixed with Motown, Atlantic and Elvis Presley together with an up-to-date sound will make it hard to fail. Yet, he also holds a different side. He clearly has the uttermost respect and facsination for storytelling and the old American folk tradition.
I am sure that Springsteen has had times when he imagined to be Bob Dylan, Robert Johnson or Johnny Cash who all appears to have made profound impressions. To fully understand and be able to bring across an honest performance of one of these different styles is impressive. To be able to do both ought to be impossible. Bruce not only easily drifts between these two extremes, but also has the talent to combine them. And that is what seperates him from other artists in either category. When he fully does this, he is not only a storyteller. He tells the story with energy and ambitious music. He can blend the contrasts and take full advantage of them. Yet, as mentioned above, he is smart enough to realize when to simply stick to one of the styles to fully make his point.
He also has one of the best bands of all-time to back him up; The E Street Band. They are a band who manages to follow their leader through his motions. They can do some simple good old rock and roll one minute, just to be quite advanced in the next, pulling off huge arrangements with various shifts in tempo and energy. That makes one hell of a show.
THE STORYTELLER
THE RECOMMENDATION GUIDE
THE ROCKERS
Nebraska
Highlights: Nebraska, Atlantic City
Darkness On The Edge
of Town
Highlights:
Badlands, The Promised Land
Born In The USA
Highlights:
Dancing In The Dark, My Hometown
The Ghost of Tom Joad
Highlights:
The Ghost of Tom Joad, Youngstown
Devils & Dust
Highlights:
Devils & Dust, The Hitter
THE BIG STATEMENTS
Born To Run
Highlights:
Thunder Road, Born To Run, Jungleland
The Rising
Highlights:
Mary's Place, My City of Ruins, Nothing Man
THE CONFESSION
Tunnel of Love
Highlights:
Brilliant Disguise, One Step Up, Thougher Than The Rest
PERSONAL FAVORITE
The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle
Highlights:
Kitty's Back, New York City Serenade