Bruce Springsteen - Classic or Dud ?

http://www.gstatic.com/tv/thumb/movieposters/5362/p5362_p_v8_aa.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/e/e6/Badlands_movie_poster.jpg

I do like the bit in the doc where Bruce concedes he still doesn't know what a "Tenth Avenue Freeze Out" is. Love this on wiki:

The song tells the story of the formation of the E Street Band. However, when asked, most Springsteen fans cannot answer the question, "What is a Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out?" The meaning of the phrase is still a mystery. Even Springsteen himself says, laughing, in the Born to Run documentary Wings for Wheels: The Making of Born to Run: "I still have no idea what it means. But it's important."

perhaps he was familiar with the Visions of Johanna working title "Freeze Out"?

I was excited to hear the news that he was writing this until I realized I have no interest in learning more about him

I am doing the opposite approach, going to try to read this thing right away before I know too much from interviews and reviews.

Reason to Believe

perhaps he was familiar with the Visions of Johanna working title "Freeze Out"?

― niels, Sunday, September 25, 2016 4:14 PM (one hour ago)

There are also lots of reoccurring images and phrases in his lyrics. "Killing floor," "darkness on the edge of town/other things," "promised land," "debts no honest man can pay,"(used twice on Nebraska), "Got on a dead man suit and smilin' skull ring. Lucky graveyard boots and a song to sing.," etc. The "Darkness" outtake "Spanish Eyes" begins "Hey, little girl, is your daddy home?" Lots of repetition I imagine is due to his rewriting songs and lyrics over and over again, finding the right place for the right phrase in the right song. In the case of "Nebraska," it's no doubt because the songs were more or less demos to begin with.

Not that I think it's this, but as the song talks about the early days of the band, I always think Tenth Avenue Freeze Out means not being able to crossover from NJ to NY, as 10th avenue is one of the western most streets in the city.

i was listening to his new years 1980 show where he played songs with similar titles in suites and i thought that was hilarious and smart

I was excited to hear the news that he was writing this until I realized I have no interest in learning more about him

― calstars, Sunday, September 25, 2016 12:54 PM (four hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

same, i probably wouldn't have read Peter Ames Carlin's (very good) five hundred page bio if i'd known Bruce had his own thick tome on the way so soon after

Carlin's book was great, I have a feeling the Bruce book will be pretty different. Maybe almost like a collection of chapter-long essays.

yeah you're prob right, i just won't personally have won't have the appetite to read 1000 pages about Bruce in the space of like 3 years.

Seems like Carlin had a lot of access for that book as well so perhaps not so much left to be revealed. B-b-but The Boss's unique storyteller's voice!

yeah...the occasional times BS has penned an essay or whatever he's seemed pretty capable as a writer

this is the most excited i have been about a memoir in recent memory

i love his writing & i think he's a v good storyteller, just keen to see what sorta visual tapestry he weaves idk

Spoiler-free takeaway on that point from the Richard Ford review:

It helps that Springsteen can write — not just life-­imprinting song lyrics but good, solid prose that travels all the way to the right margin. I mean, you’d think a guy who wrote “Spanish Johnny drove in from the underworld last night / With bruised arms and broken rhythm and a beat-up old Buick . . .” could navigate his way around a complete and creditable American sentence. And you’d be right. Oh, there are a few gassy bits here and there, a jot too much couch-inspired hooey about the “terrain inside my own head.” A tad more rock ’n’ roll highfalutin than this reader really needs — though the Bruce enthusiasts down in Sea-Clift won’t agree with me. No way. But nothing in “Born to Run” rings to me as unmeant or punch-pulling. If anything, Springsteen wants credit for telling it the way it really is and was. And like a fabled Springsteen concert — always notable for its deck-clearing thoroughness — “Born to Run” achieves the sensation that all the relevant questions have been answered by the time the lights are turned out. He delivers the story of Bruce — in digestibly short chapters — via an informally steadfast Jersey plainspeak that’s worked and deftly detailed and intimate with its readers — cleareyed enough to say what it means when it has hard stories to tell, yet supple enough to rise to occasions requiring eloquence — sometimes rather pleasingly subsiding into the syntax and rhythms of a Bruce Springsteen song.

I liked in the Colbert interview how he described his songs as the blues during the verses and gospel during the chorus, and I thought that was a brilliant way of getting at why his music can be so anthemic. Hard times in the verses, transcendence, redemption, hope and escape in the choruses. "The Promised Land" is possibly the best example of this. In one verse he declares "take a knife and cut this pain from my heart" (one of the best lines of Bruce or any writer, ever), but by the chorus he still believes in a promised land.

Interesting. Must have missed that part of the Colbert interview.

Noticed recently that he tends to "borrow" song titles: "Party Lights," "Mansion on the Hill, "All Or Nothin' At All" to name three that come to mind, don't know how many more there are

half his catalog. quite possibly literally half his catalog. it's one of his basic songwriting tools.

I always think Tenth Avenue Freeze Out means not being able to crossover from NJ to NY, as 10th avenue is one of the western most streets in the city.

more likely, it's where the band used to rehearse in the early days: corner of 10th avenue and -- drum roll -- e street in belmar, new jersey.

I always like to sing it as "Tenth Avenue Freak Out" and imagine the song is about the E Street Band having a bad acid trip.

I figured it was about his favorite ice cream vendor.

Wonder what Jonathan Schwartz thought about "Dancing in the Dark"?

Bought my copy at lunchtime & read the first chapter...he's the best, basically <3

I read the R Ford review and whoever did the NYT daily review, that's as far as i go unless he discusses John Ford movies much in the book.

i lol'd that he didn't drive until "well into his 20s" tho

v weird family setup, parents & grandparents shared a house but his grandmother basically annexed him as her son as soon as he was born & spoiled him rotten & his parents begrudgingly rolled with it. his parents moved him out with them when he started school but it was almost too late he spent most of his childhood thinking of his grandmother as his mom

Bought my copy but am trying to finish something else before I start.

Presumably some of those pre-signed copies are going to turn up on eBay when the book tour is over, I'm planning to spring for one of those as long as the price isn't too outrageous.

Good evening! It's an honor to be here with President and Mrs. Obama, President Clinton and Chelsea, and if we all do our part tomorrow, President-elect Clinton.

The choice tomorrow couldn't be any clearer. Hillary's candidacy is based on intelligence, experience, preparation, and on an actual vision of an America where everyone counts: men and women, white and black, Hispanic and Native, where folks of all faiths and backgrounds can come together to address our problems in a reasonable and thoughtful way.

That vision of America is essential to sustain, no matter how difficult its realization.

Hillary sees an America where the issue of income distribution should be at the forefront of our national conversation, where the progress we've made in reducing our unemployment is not enough — we must do better. She has a vision of universal health care for all that will build on the work of President Obama. She sees an America that needs to be fairer, where our highest courts look to protect the rights of all of our citizens and not just the privileged. She sees an America where the issue of immigration reform is dealt with realistically and compassionately. And she calls for an America that participates in the welfare of our planet — both in world affairs and in global science — and where the unfinished business of protecting the rights of women is not an afterthought, but a priority.

That's the country where we wil indeed be stronger together.

Now, briefly, to address her opponent: this is a man whose vision is limited to little beyond himself, who has a profound lack of decency that would allow him to prioritize his own interests and ego before American democracy itself. Somebody who'd be willing to damage our long-cherished and admired system rather than look to himself for the reasons behind his own epic failure. That's unforgivable. Tomorrow that campaign is going down.

Let's all do our part so we can look back at 2016 and say we stood with Hillary Clinton on the right side of history. That's why I'm standing here with you tonight, for the dream of a better America.

His "Dancing in the Dark" tonight reminded me a lot of late-period Nick Lowe: direct and almost disengaged, highlighting the lyrics and the melody.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRA7hyYbTf0

His protest song with Joe Grushecky is about as generic as they come, but I'm happy he did it anyway.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtkVkbVxpjc

Reminds me a bit of ... a corny Zevon?

Worth it for comments like

UN AMERICAN PRICK BRUCE SPINGSTEen👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼👎🏼😤😤😤😤😤😤😤😤

Never listened to Human Touch or Lucky Town, assumed from the singles they were pretty heavy on the production. But then this came up on a shuffle this morning, and I like it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EAkzIg27ob4

http://brucespringsteen.net/broadway/

Sounds amazing, I suspect the clamour for tickets will be unedifying though.

some of the comments on this are p great

This is like seeing a photo of Babe Ruth holding a basketball. pic.twitter.com/Npou58dy8y

— Jon Wurster (@jonwurster) August 9, 2017

haha indeed

Weird, I was wondering what the Broadway shows would be. I guess I am surprised it seems like an actual show, with a script of sorts. I've seen him perform solo a few times, they were great, tons and tons of different songs every night. This seems almost like a VH1 Storytellers sort of scenario.

Would watch, but only if Roy is in the pit

god I would be willing to commit major crimes to get a ticket to this

anyone want to go on a Brooce Crime Spree with me? :D

Variety:

Being verified, however, doesn’t guarantee you’ll manage to get a ticket. It’s still being determined how Springsteen ... hopefuls will score a place in the virtual line, whether by random lottery or by measurement on some sort of engagement metric.

"Engagement metric"? Does this mean they would scour your social media to see how excited you are? How much you have posted about the Boss? Kind of a weirdly invasive idea.

i think "engagement metric" means we are now officially living in the world of this "black mirror" episode.

Is this his bid for a "T" in EGOT?

"Engagement metric"? Does this mean they would scour your social media to see how excited you are? How much you have posted about the Boss? Kind of a weirdly invasive idea.

Ah, sounds like what they did with Depeche Mode earlier this year -- yeah you pretty much have to give into social media gamification. Pretty obnoxious.

Yeah this was the bunch behind it

https://www.americaninno.com/boston/techstars-demo-day-preview-strobe-is-palantir-for-events/

And yes, that comparison is not only in the article, but they said so themselves on at least one of their websites. Great.

so do i have to delete that tweet i wrote in 2009 about "outlaw pete"?

What if I'm just saying really nice things about my boss all the time?

What if I've been typing "Bruuuuuuuuuuuuuce" but they think I'm booing?

cool so i posted about him every day while i was reading his book that shd help my numbers

I registered to try to get a code for the sale tomorrow (because why not?) and got an email tonight that I am on "standby." It says it's due to demand. Or is it because I didn't post about Springsteen enough on Facebook or Twitter? Is it because I almost never buy tickets through Ticketmaster? Who the fuck knows or cares. They haven't even clarified if tickets, once purchased, are easily transferable. Oh well, I think my hoop jumping experiment has come to an end. Still love you, Bruce, and I understand.

(And the sour grapes: not sure I'd even want to see a 2-hour Bruce show that has a set setlist and that also includes readings and stuff, especially since I have seen him solo before in a more rollicking, free ranging format.)

Now, swap out 'Springsteen' for 'Swift'...