Almost one year after being blown away by the film Blinded by the Light, I’ve read Greetings from Bury Park: Race, Religion and Rock ‘n’ Roll (2007), which is the memoir that inspired the film. The title is, of course, a play on words based on the part of Luton, north of London where Manzoor... Continue Reading →
Bruce Springsteen’s exploration through the lives of working class people has been a frequent theme throughout his musicianship. He has become a storyteller of characters struggling to find their place in the world. In honour of International Worker’s Day 2020, check out my list of six Springsteen tracks that feature their protagonist actually working. I’m... Continue Reading →
My first contact with the song Be True was in 1988 when I bought the Chimes of Freedom EP in 1988, a special 4-Track 12" containing live recordings of: side A: Tougher Than The Rest and Be True, side B: Chimes of Freedom and Born To Run (acoustic). The EP was released for the benefit... Continue Reading →
One Step Up off the album Tunnel of Love (1987) is a melancholy song that illustrates a troubled relationship/marriage. The song begins by describing a house with a broken furnace and a car that doesn't start, both of which can be seen as metaphors for the relationship that isn't working properly. Already in the first... Continue Reading →
At this time of year as the rain is pouring down, the days grow shorter and darker and my mind grows weary, I need music to lift my spirits. One of the songs I turn to is Sherry Darling. Sherry Darling is a summer song in its character. There's a "hot sun beating on the... Continue Reading →
Springsteen began performing the song This Hard Land live in 1993. It was originally written and recorded for the album Born In The USA (1984), but was left off. Later it was re-recorded and became one of five previously unreleased songs on the 1995 Greatest Hits album. In 1998 the official 1982 studio version was released on... Continue Reading →
One thought haunts me when I hear Bruce Springsteen's latest album, Western Stars: The young protagonist who, in the beginning of the breakthrough album Born to Run, takes his car and leaves his hometown (a city of losers) has not yet reached the end of the (Thunder) Road. He has been looking for a home... Continue Reading →
Ein Gedanke verfolgt mich, wenn ich Bruce Springsteens neuestes Album Western Stars höre: Der junge Protagonist, der am Anfang des Durchbruch-Albums Born to run das Auto nimmt und seine Heimatstadt (eine Stadt der Verlierer) verlässt, hat noch nicht die Endstation der Straße "Thunder Road" gefunden. Sein ganzes Leben hat er ein Zuhause gesucht und er wandert... Continue Reading →
I'll hand it to you directly, Waitin' on a Sunny Day is not one of my favourite Bruce Springsteen songs. What ruined this song a little bit for me is the live show arrangement, where a child is (reluctantly) pulled up on stage to sing the simple chorus with mr Springsteen himself. However, it wasn't... Continue Reading →
Stolen Car is one of the more serene songs off the River (1980), but it's quite heavy lyrically. It tells the story of a man who seems miserable and forlorn. He once had a little house with a little girl on the edge of town, but something has gone wrong and the relationship has failed.... Continue Reading →
Stray Bullet 