Bruce Springsteen - Classic or Dud ?

I can't get worked up and annoyed about Bruce in the way I can about some other rockers. He has an ear for a great line (the opening of "Hungry Heart" for instance) and I can forgive him a lot for that. He doesn't resonate with me and like the Replacements I think that's a cultural thing.

I also - and this is totally subjective - never get the impression Bruce ever thinks he's particularly cool. Which is not something I can say of most other 'real rock'n'roller' types, mainstream or otherwise.

File under yet to be discovered. I was listening to an apologetic defence of his work from Sean Rowley on the radio the other day, and it got me wondering again. People of my generation's first real exposure to him was the 'Born in the USA' air-punching era and that obviously wasn't likely to engender much interest. Yes, I know it was all ironic.

What I have heard of his 70's stuff sounds like I might grow to love it. That midwest blue-collar world his songs inhabit seems harder to relate to than any other, but even in 1988, I had the feeling Paddy McAloon was missing the point with the song 'Cars & Girls'.

At the moment, I'm afraid the song of his I like best is a 90s one - 'If I Should Fall Behind', which I only know from the Grant McLellan cover version.

Badly Drawn Boy is a Springsteen obsessive, which I thought was quite cute.

N.

And yes, Tom, he's got a very good ear for a line.

I heard the version of "Santa Claus Is Coming To Town" when I was young and that is pretty spiff, I freely agree. Circa 1984, liking El Bruce was unsurprising for me as that was a pretty damn good radio year -- Chuck Eddy specifically called it as such in _Stairway to Hell_, and he was goddamn right. Thus liking all that stuff he made was a matter of course alongside all those singles from _Purple Rain_ and _Like A Virgin_ and etc.

Time went on and I proceeded to not care. I never cared enough to buy an album anyway, and the 'classic early singles' only made sense in my classic rock phase, which lasted about nine months in senior year.

Then I ended up in LA and encountered the first of Robert Hilburn's 345,234,843 printed sermons on How Bruce Springsteen Heals the Sick, Raises the Dead and Means More to Human Existence Than the Combined Efforts of Louis Pasteur, Billie Holiday and Charles Schulz. I encountered other blowhards. The music touched me with the impact of a dying flea. A roommate was obsessed with him to the point of near mania. I cried.

The end.

Frankly, the Walkabouts any day of the goddamn week, month, year, decade, century, etc. If the relative fame levels were reversed, I would cling to this assumption with even more deep, abiding passion because then I would have The People on my side. Even alone, though, it's comfy. And Frankie Goes to Hollywood's version of "Born to Run" is my fave.

i actually liked born_in_the_u.s.a when it came out at age 7, but later, i found it to be an obstacle in getting to love bruce, and i'm sure there are a ton of artists out there whose work at that time has kept people away from them.

as sterling said, it's funny what driving a car can do, especially when it's another dark and lonely night out on an empty anonymous new jersey highway and "born to run" comes on the highway. but i've been there, so i'll move on.

you can get by on the first five or so albums on the music and production alone -- unless of course you hate phil spector and are, therefore, destined to spend eternity in hell -- and the later stuff will stick if you find something in the lyrics that rings far too true. sure, he mines the same territory in a lot of his songs, but so do belle & sebastian and so did the smiths; except the kids in bruce's songs could kick the ass of their counterparts in the aforementioned.

ned, i think you have the same problem as tom: it's a cultural thing. ;)

It's not a cultural thing; I mean for god's sake Motorcycle Emptiness might as well be Bruce Springsteen on a literacy trip in terms of subject, and I know Tom likes the song, and I believe Ned does too. Whether that particular statement was tongue in cheek or not, it's a tired excuse and reasoning, one usually used by the saddest of Bruce Springsteen fans, the ones who "identify" with his sentiments, seemingly losing track of the fact that BRUCE'S CHARACTERS NEVER ACTUALLY MAKE IT OUT. Some positive role models to rock out to.

The thing is, I think it's the voice and the earnestness, which was already said. The stylistic values of it....the basic cultural and escape sentiments, lyrically, of Motorcycle Emptiness and Born to Run might be very similar in tone, but the style and vocalisings are entirely, 100% different. Bruce has a very sarcastic bent, a very dark bent, lyrically, but his style of music softens the blow and sometimes people just don't like it.

And those people are wrong, incidentally :P

Nebraska is half good but doesn't deserve the plaudits it gets as the Springsteen album it's cool to like.

The rest is pretty much DUD.

Nevermind that Born in the USA was my first record not meant to be played on the Fisher Price record player (with the STEEL NEEDLE)

Nevermind Tracks Nevermind the fact that Born to Run is one of the best driving albums ever when your top is down and it's summer and the road between Ventura and home stretches out and empty at night with no cops...

Nevermind he has out Dylan-ed Dylan

Nevermind that he can outrage The Man as he pushes the dark side of life. (41 Shots)

Nevermind the line "The record company Rosie, JUST GAVE ME A BIG ADVANCE!"

Nevermind the Live box set, reminding us just how powerful he was

Nevermind Time and Newsweek

Nevermind Thunder-Fucking-Road

Nevermind The cover of Jersey Girl

Nevermind Tracks

Nevermind the MTV Unplugged set where he scrapped the entire notion of an acoustic show and just plugged in and tore down the house

Nevermind everyone on this list who called him a dud.

well, Bruce isn't *that* bad! ;)

La Bruce just collectively calls to my mind a stunted bastard vision of music that presumes he was the sole carrier of the 'spirit of rock and roll truth' that the Beatles and Stones 'started' in the sixties. A CLAIM I HAVE ENCOUNTERED MORE THAN ONCE, though thankfully not here, and happily never from the man's own lips either, at least to my knowledge. Without that rhetoric I would just shrug and ignore him for somebody more interesting, but with it, frankly, he becomes a very very useful target to kick against. Perhaps only a straw man, but one I wouldn't mind seeing go up in flames.

The boy has fallen off of late, but... I'm reminded of the Bangs article where he describes how he dismissed this Maoist band as sounding like Bruce, and the band replied "oh, good, the working class like that stuff" or something of the sort, and I'm reading this thinking -- no. no. no. The correct answer is "oh, good. Bruce fucking rocks!"

What I appreciate about Bruce is how he can capture the majesty of a major chord. How so many of his songs have the same progression, but you don't realize it 'till you try to play 'em yourself. How he can take gospel music and write it to a girl instead. And yes, more of them damn anthems.

I mean.. I know that anthems aren't an alien concept to the UK -- after all, The Who were full of them. But maybe British anthems are a different type a "get off of my cloud" or "sod off" type, more cynical and pissy than dreamy and wide-eyed. Maybe this is, after all, because America is The Big Country, The Great Bitch, et cet. Maybe to get America you have to get just how there's always somewhere you might go, maybe.

Along these lines, "Not Fade Away" which is a novel by Jim Dodge is a great rock road story, sort of like the lighter side of Richard Hell's "Go Now" or the more earnest(?) side of Bruce McCullough's "Doors Fan" sketch (on his album, Shame-Based Man). Yes. Get that spirit of the open highway.

I will say, though, that I do lack a car and have never had one. That might serve as a better explanation. ;-)

I wish I wasn't misinterpreting.

Inspirational in some ways. I have often felt that England needed a Springsteen, albeit not just a a copycat 'rocker'; I mean, someone who would write about all the lost and found small-town lives. But to be fair, I suppose there is already a UK tradition here: the probably Jarvis Cocker is a case in point.

1. they don't understand that he's actually not as "pro-america" as they might think he is

2. they don't have as close a connection to "old school" code (which includes "old school" rock)

3. they are mostly college kids on their way up to some office job or whatever that is removed (if not far removed) from the "underworld" (the "blue collar" or "real" world) to get the lyrical sentiments

4. well, and...sometimes people just don't like something 'cause they just don't like it

I, however, do not apply to any of those 4. For I actually do "get" some of the appeal of Bruce (albeit, it took my until my mid or late twenties to get there). Sure, his overly sentimental (downright broadway or maudlin) look at the working class can be a bit (or a bunch) too much. And sure, his music can be too simple and/or too derivitive. But, that's a part of the whole. Familiarity in both music and lyrics, is a large part of the appeal of his stuff (and those like him, ala Mellencamp, etc). He just had the concept to put nearly a whole career on the working class/blue collar life like no other has (not in such a wide reaching broad sense, at least - other than Mellencamp, but Bruce did it a bit better and first).

Classics:

Having said all that, 'Nebraska' and 'Ghost of Tom Joad' are the only two full albums that I would declare anywhere near a "classic" state of existence (with 'Nebraska' being the one clear-cut vote). Many of the rest of his 70's and 80's albums have some good solid worthy singles on them, but. I can't go so far as to get 'The River' (for example) anywhere near a "classic" nod. That one, in particular, I find to be overrated (though still having the wonderful track "Stolen Car" and the title track deserving of 'Nebraska'-like attention).

Anyways, I forgot to mention to huge (to the point of shadowing) element as to one of the why's (or why not's) of enjoy/appreciating Bruce. Which is: DRIVING. Cars and driving is such a central and/or reoccuring figure/subject in his work that...I can't believe I forgot to touch upon that (only after reading some of the others posts, darn it). But yea, I do LOVE to drive. Which also helps to explain the appeal of Springsteen (to me, at least).

*By the way, I do own that McCulloch album 'Shame Based Man' and...love it (some really funny stuff and one of the very rare comedy albums worthy of many plays - if not it's own discussion here on "I Love Music"...anyone?). Every single one of my girlfriends (one present, others past) hated it. "And if (after torching the stolen car) you can still hear the Doors playing...then you have become...a DOORS...FAN!" I'm not a Doors fan, however.

I hadn't listened to this record in a couple of years, but god, it still sounded great. Actually, I kept getting shivers down my spine when it was playing and it had me close to tears a few times (mostly on "Thunder Road" and "Backstreets.") Listening to this today finally settled an ILM debate for me: Music can never affect me quite as much now as it did when I was a teenager. No record I've heard in the last few years, including Loveless, has had as much affect on me as Born to Run did this morning, and I know it's not just because Born to Run is such a great album. This is a record that got to me when I was young and emotionally vulnerable in a way that I'm not anymore, at the age of 32. I still feel music very deeply and appreciate and enjoy a wider range of music than ever, but music doesn’t completely overpower me the way it did when I was 15. Oh well.

Springsteen is still a big classic, by the way, despite all the incredibly corny lines on Born to Run.

"candy's room" is the grebtest song ever written about being in love w. a prostitute when you sound a bit like david bowie

Is this a new genre? Cos that'd be fucking incredible.

I still love Bruce Springsteen. Put on Rosalita and you will see me go insane.

Excellent post Lily. And tipsy makes an excellent point how Joad "feels more like journalism than imagined memoir" - I've grown to like that album, but it's probably no coincidence that the best songs (at least for me) were based on stories already written in detail elsewhere. I supposed "Nebraska" can be described as such but IIRC a lot of what's memorable and haunting in that song are Springsteen's own creation. A large part of the title track of Joad translates and even transcribes what Steinbeck wrote for his novel. Then there's "Galveston Bay" which is all drawn from a real-life story - I'm not sure if any particular lyric stands out for me, but it's a great story where all the details add up to something that's left a stronger impression than anything else on the album.

Yeah, the narratives on Nebraska feel deeply inhabited in a way they don't really on Tom Joad. Like whatever he'd tapped into on Nebraska wasn't quite there anymore, artistically, so he had to use other tools.

When more details about his depression came out in his memoir, it kind of suggested that Nebraska could only be a one-time achievement. IIRC, 1982 was about the time he really hit the breaking point with his depression, and a lot of that album really sits "comfortably" in the mindset of someone who's in a really dark place. If that's what it took to get him there, I don't hold it against him if he doesn't ever reach the same harrowing depths again.

I hear a lot of depression on Tom Joad, but I agree that Nebraska was the kind of risk that he could only take once and didn't dare try for again. It was written iirc before Springsteen had his big breakdown on his cross-country drive, and I get a sense from it of Springsteen sliding into depression almost deliberately, not trying to break his fall because to him, at that moment, depression feels like creativity. There's a kind of dark energy to Nebraska, a black light of empathy that feels very seductive. You listen to a song like "Reason to Believe," which is imo the darkest song on the whole album, and it's so charged with that feeling that can accompany the beginning of depression, that the world has been revealed to you as it really is, and that there is something special, something meaningful, about this revelation. Once Springsteen has his big breakdown, I think he stops leaning into the depression in the same way, but I do think it's very much there on Tom Joad - it just has a duller, more exhausted, more lived-in quality by then.

My favorite songs on Joad are the ones that feel as if they were written out of a depression that's if anything more entrenched than that of Nebraska. "Highway 29," "Straight Time," "Dry Lightning," even "My Best Was Never Good Enough" - there's a kind of dull, nihilistic noir voice to all of them that feels like it's probably picking up something very real about Springsteen's state of mind. I agree about the working-class Social Problem songs on Tom Joad - they feel like journalism to me rather than something felt from the inside. But then there's this other side to Joad which is Springsteen writing noir, with that classic noir theme of being so isolated from normal society that all your moral/ethical landmarks disappear and you become monstrous because there is nothing around you to keep you human.

Which can also happen in the deeper journalism, like In Cold Blood. Steinbeck doesn't go deep/isolated in the same way, but he tracks bunches of Grapescharacters, and not just the Joads, through hellacious migration---all those camps, communities of night and day, strange weather, that the reader becomes familiar with, never accustomed to (interesting to compare Woody G.'s "Tom Joad" with Bruce's: Woody had more experience along the Joads' lines, although, like Bruce, he wisely got his ass to NYC and least the fringes of show biz, through he spurned some opportunities there).
I wanted Bruce to drop the Popular Front approach and write about his and my father;s generation, The Greatest Generation as for instance Reagan Democrats, who had benefited at least in part from New Deal, Gi Bill, Eisenhower's construction of the Interstates, Military-industrial Complex boosting of economy------all that, and and then they turned against Big Government, in further contradiction, very selective "conservatism."
He eventually addressed some of that in the monologues-with-piano of his Broadway stint, I think, but maybe not in songs? I haven't kept up, sorry.

I meant, *proceeded* in further contradiction, very selective "conservatism," *through the rest of their lives and in the legacy/encouragement of some descendants.*

But there's a period in between Ghost of Tom Joad and Western Stars where Springsteen is still trying to be the writer of the working class, and imo you can tell that his heart isn't really in it

this may be true but it also gives me an excuse to bring up my favorite(????) springsteen song, “long time comin” from devils & dust. i mean he was doing a lot of character work at the time, it doesn’t all work or feel grounded in its setting but that one reaches in pretty deep imo

sorry that is a totally distracting sidepoint from lily's (as usual) excellent springsteen scholarship

No, it's not! and thank you!

Springsteen just cancelled some European gigs due to voice issues after having done UK gigs. Some tweets are saying he has Covid again (but that could be just twitter x)

2024 marks the 40th anniversary of Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Born In The U.S.A.’ Although it would become his biggest selling album with seven top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, Luther Dickinson of North Mississippi Allstars says “any of those songs could be played with acoustic guitar alone and still be great.” Taking this idea as its premise, ‘Dead Man’s Town: A Tribute to Born in the U.S.A’ strips the album’s twelve indelible originals to the core, with contributions from Jason Isbell & Amanda Shires, Low, Nicole Atkins, Justin Townes Earle, Blitzen Trapper, Joe Pug, Trampled by Turtles, and more.

Rolling Stone described Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires’ Dave Cobb-produced cover of “Born In The U.S.A." as “reimagining ‘Born inthe U.S.A.’... with a reduced approach more influenced by that of the acoustic ‘Nebraska.’” Isbell says of his cover, “”Born In The U.S.A.” is one of my favorites because so many people have seemingly misunderstood the lyrical content and the song’s overall tone. When you listen to the demo, the dark, minor key
arrangement makes it clear that this is not strictly a song of celebration. We wanted to stay true to that version.” Amanda Shires adds, “I love that the song paints a picture of struggle in the face of the American dream, and the irony in the chorus is delivered with such force that it nearly transcends irony altogether.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5AEqTSwtmms

RACKLIST:

Side A -

Jason Isbell & Amanda Shires - Born in the U.S.A.
Apache Relay - Cover Me
The Quaker City Night Hawks - Darlington County
Blitzen Trapper - Working On The Highway
Joe Pug - Downbound Train
Low - I'm On Fire

Side B -

Holly Williams - No Surrender
Ryan Culwell - Bobby Jean
Trampled By Turtles - I'm Goin' Down
Justin Townes Earle - Glory Days
Nicole Atkins - Dancing In The Dark
North Mississippi Allstars - My Hometown

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KuQweCkWUe0

That's on Lightning Rod Records.

I don't know. Doing a downbeat version of BITUSA because people misunderstand the lyrics kind of misses the point. The song was a huge sounding anthem with downer lyrics. The collision of patriotic fantasy and harsh reality.

Springsteen could see that that song needed a different approach than he used on the demo.

This reminds me of when Sub Pop did that Nebraska tribute and Son Volt made "Open All Night" suck.

https://www.subpop.com/releases/various_artists/badlands_a_tribute_to_bruce_springsteens_nebraska

Springsteen could see that that song needed a different approach than he used on the demo.

Was gonna say, we already have a stripped down version of BITUSA.

Backstory of the album, and spotlight on Arthur Baker's remixes (Bruce picked him, some true believers haated) https://www.npr.org/2024/07/02/nx-s1-5017760/bruce-springsteen-born-in-the-usa-remixes-arthur-baker"> https://www.npr.org/2024/07/02/nx-s1-5017760/bruce-springsteen-born-in-the-usa-remixes-arthur-baker includes some w vid, also this link to all of 'em, if you want to go dancing in the dark right now:

...the only way you can hear the remixes these days is if you own the vinyl or find a carefully digitized upload from a dance music historian

Damn--sorry, don't know what I did with duplication of the npr link, but the second one works.

That Cover Me remix absolutely rules. Thanks!

See, if they could collect up the remixes, all the B-Sides and relevant outtakes, throw in a new documentary and maybe even a new live video of Bruce & Co. doing the songs... that's enough for a box set. Nobody will miss the vintage live audio/video, which seems to be the thing holding such a collection back.

Collect up the music videos too, and add in all the Nebraska stuff too--this isn't hard, Bruce Reissue Team!

“Streets of fi-yah!”

what are the odds i was just practicing that on guitar!

Collab

Are you practicing the solo I assume ? Or the composition

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLK-Z9QilVk

Bruce Springsteen covers Jessie Malin “She Don’t Love Me Now” from 2015 for benefit album for Malin who got temporarily (?) paralyzed from waist down and is now trying to regain usage of legs .

Bruce gives song a blue eyed soul flavor plus nice Jake Clemons sax near end . Jesse’s band is on this also

Bruce's rescheduled Orioles Park show in Baltimore finally happened Friday night. He opened with "Hungry Heart" so as to get a reaction quickly from the crowd to "got a wife and kids in Baltimore" line. Good show. I found myself very moved by all the spoken bits and songs about mortality. Between news about his wife's blood cancer, his own status as last man standing from his teenage band, these portions of his live show clearly resonate with him. His intro bit for Backstreets with him saying
he holds audience members in his heart , and then softly sings in a melancholy voice "to the end" touched me. It had me also thinking about my dad's death in 2020 & my Mom's in 2023, and this year a high school friend who I had seen Springsteen with in 1978. Bruce was also demonstrating his resilience in the face of aging and loss. Other songs also fit the theme-- "Atlantic City," "Youngstown," "Nightshift," "Last Man Standing," "Wrecking Ball," and of course the final show encore with Bruce alone on acoustic guitar on "I'll See You in My Dreams." I know he's been doing this for awhile but I just wanted to say how emotional resonant it still is.

Nitpicks- Musically Springsteen transformed "Reason to Believe" from Nebraska into a John Lee Hooker meets blues rock number that lessened it. It was done right after "Darlington County" that felt a bit too 70s southern rock at times. Encore "Twist & Shout" didn't rock like Mitch Ryder and Detroit Wheels medley once did (I get that Bruce is older but he rocked other songs well enough )

One other thought - Seeing him do "E Street Shuffle" and "Rosalita" and the Commodores "Nightshift" with this touring band with the added percussionist, and backing Black singers, had me thinking about Greg Tate's thoughts and ILXOrs also addressing how in an alternate world Springsteen could have gone in a more funky direction rather than a more stripped down rock direction.

Softy me had tears in my eyes for some of those songs .

relatable!
sounds like a fantastic show <3

Last night's Asbury Park show sounds pretty amazing - Patti Scialfa even made an appearance.

Yes ! Bruce had a busy day w/ his own show plus sitting in with other acts . The review notes: "The format of the show did not follow the rocking mortality format of the current tour."

Live from Roberto's Freehold Grill:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DArLPGnIJD3/?igsh=ZWx5cWZyeHI3ZGNt

hahaha as usual I love seeing the comments from so-called "fans" completely furious at his political stances

https://preview.redd.it/only-the-strongest-lungs-will-survive-v0-228bezyqwj531.jpg?width=1080&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=a77cc42dd48c59d34bc4bdf471bfa29c79c960a2

The rocker Bruce Springsteen will perform at a rally on Thursday in Atlanta, appearing alongside Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Barack Obama, as Democrats seek to energize voters with a series of concerts before Election Day.

Mr. Springsteen will also join a rally on Monday in Philadelphia with Mr. Obama.

Just when you think you’ve seen it all…. @springsteen and the #estreetband open up Montreal with….. GHOSTBUSTERS!! 👻 #springsteen #springsteentour2024 pic.twitter.com/c7nd4sFpXy

— Spring-Nuts (@SpringNuts_) October 31, 2024

Brucin' makes 'em feel good!

awesome

what a world

love!

I love that he's still so goofy.

dear boss, never stop being a huge dork xx

I ain't afraid of Tom Joad

hats off to Ray Parker Jr for smuggling "bustin' makes me feel good" into a song to be sung by children for the rest of the existence of humanity

Thereby succinctly summing up the gist of the rest of his oeuvre

I like him adding this to his live songs, in part because similar bubblegum 1960s songs have the sheen of Smithsonian history to them, but this one musically and lyrically fits with those. And who better to do the horn parts?

I only needed to hear this song once, which was at the end of the movie as they drive away down Central Park south

ooh ...

We Take Care of Our Own traces the evolution of Bruce Springsteen's beliefs, beginning with his New Jersey childhood and ending with his most recent works from Springsteen on Broadway to Letter to You. The author follows the singer's life, examining his albums and a variety of influences (both musical and nonmusical), especially his Catholic upbringing and his family life, to show how he became an outspoken icon for working-class America--indeed for working-class life throughout the world. In this way, the author emphasizes the universality of Springsteen's canon and depicts how a working-class sensibility can apply to anyone anywhere who believes in fairness and respect. In addition, the author places Springsteen in the historical context not only of literature (especially John Steinbeck) but also of the art world (specifically the work of Thomas Hart Benton and Edward Hopper). Among the themes explored in the book include community, a sense of place, America as the Promised Land, the myth of the West, and, ultimately, mortality.

About the Author: Born in Glasgow, Scotland, June Sawyers is the author or editor of more than thirty books, including Racing in the Street: The Bruce Springsteen Reader (Penguin), Reading the Beatles (Penguin), Tougher than the Rest: The 100 Best Bruce Springsteen Songs (Omnibus), Long Walk Home: Reflections on Bruce Springsteen (Rutgers)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpiqHxz8soM

The latest doc, "Road Diary," is essentially a glorified EPK, but it's OK. There were little details here and there that were somewhat illuminating, though there was other stuff that seemed kind of self serving in a particularly labored way. For example, a pretty thorough if imo still unconvincing defense of the static setlist, as well as the insistence that said setlist tells a specific story, at least beyond the obvious beats of a handful of related songs spread throughout. Bruce is and always will be the focus, so he will always be the theme and story, and I'm not sure this tour is any more or less effective/affecting than any past tour, especially since Danny and Clarence died.

A couple of other odd things I caught: Stevie insisting, proudly, that the setlist Bruce brought to the first rehearsal was the one they picked and stuck with (I caught "Tucson Train" in passing on one of the prototype setlists, but they never played any "Western Stars" stuff); this unconvincing argument that the live performance of "Night Shift" (as lovely as the song is) is a successful showstopper tribute to his fallen band members; or this real insistence that Barcelona is a uniquely enthusiastic stop in the already enthusiastic European market (I always heard Dublin was the place to be, or places in Italy, or ... yeah, all of those Euro stadium stops seem like a blast).

There are some inevitable nods toward immortality, but as my wife alluded to as we watched it, I'd like to see a doc about what it takes for this guy to look, play and perform so well in his mid-70s - his diet, his exercise regiment, his routine - but I suspect Bruce is too private, despite all the other secrets he's slipped out over the years. We might have to wait for a doc packed with real revelations, though the omerta may be too strong. For example, I've always heard that Garry Tallent may be a squeaky wheel in the band, and that his place these days is kinda transactional, but who knows? I'm also always a little dubious when the (many) band members insist that the gigs these days are still spontaneous, anything can happen situations; I saw three dates this tour, and they were all solid but more or less interchangeable, so I suspect it's just the band puffing up Bruce and his vision.

I dunno. It's a testament to the man and his music and story that there have been so many docs and behind the scenes looks and books and interviews and yet I still feel he and the band are keeping a lot of secrets close. Which is their prerogative and probably in no small way a part of keeping the myth and mystery alive. Same probably goes for any big still-active act. Anyway, doc was effective enough in that I started eyeing some 2025 dates. (Canada in October?)