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August 5, 2012
The Boss is a Queen
The musical decline of Bruce Springsteen has been obvious for decades. The sanctimony, the grandiosity, the utterly formulaic monumentality; the witlessness;the tiresome recycling of those anthemic figures, each time more preposterously distended; the disappearance of intimacy and the rejection of softness. And the sexlessness: Remnick adores Springsteen for his “flagrant exertion,” which he finds deeply sensual, comparing him to James Brown, but Brown’s shocking intensity, his gaudy stamina, his sea of sweat, was about, well, fucking, whereas Springsteen “wants his audience to leave the arena, as he commands them, ‘with your hands hurting, your feet hurting, your back hurting, your voice sore, and your sexual organs stimulated!’”, which is how you talk dirty at Whole Foods. -- Washington Diarist: A Saint In The City | The New Republic
Posted by gerardvanderleun at August 5, 2012 2:32 PM. This is an entry on the sideblog of American Digest: Check it out.
Your Say
Wow. I thought people who wrote that badly only worked at Lancaster Newspapers, Inc.
Posted by: Jewel at August 5, 2012 3:07 PM
I was never a fan of Springsteen, for exactly reasons described. As a surfer growing up on beaches of California, I was always reminded of Lt Col Bill Kilgore's (Robert Duvall)words in "Apocalypse Now": "What do you know about surfing, you're form goddamned New Jersey!"
In my head, same always applied to Sprignsteen's approach to rock and roll.
Posted by: stephen b at August 5, 2012 4:01 PM
his last good work ?
The Wild, the Innocent and E-Street Shuffle
ever since it's been fake intensity, fake emotion, but real mediocrity
Posted by: ohiodude at August 5, 2012 4:22 PM
Ohiodude, that is my fave Springsteen album. It captures a time & place so beautifully, you would think he filmed scenes and then wrote the lyrics while watching the play back. Good musicianship, guys who cut their teeth on the Jersey shore bar scene & just fun guy/girl stuff.
One of the best rock and roll songs of all time is on Born To Run, called Meeting Across The River. I highly recommend it to all. You will not be disappointed.
He just screams now. Like so many others, he failed to realize his best performances are behind him, and that retirement and/or moving on to something else would be prudent. I can't watch him now, too embarrassing. But when he was good, he was untouchable.
"Hey, Spanish Johnny, you wanna make a little easy money tonight?"
Posted by: Kerry at August 5, 2012 7:10 PM
Someone said he knows the guitar...that same someone said 'Born In The USA' is not pro-American, I could have researched the lyrics to verify, but lost interest...
Posted by: Rocky at August 5, 2012 7:40 PM