Also, I just picked up a copy of your book from my school library (UC San Diego) and I was just reading the section “Stripping the Earth To It’s Bone”, and was curious if you have ever read the book “Amazing Grace: The Lives of Children and the Conscious of a Nation” by Jonathan Kozol? Bruce has said in concert that this book was the main inspiration for the song “Black Cowboys”.

However, I spotted a contradiction. You plea that “Disappointingly, the tour for his latest album, Working On a Dream (2009) was much more nostalgia driven than its predecessors, which focused primarily on the newer material from The Rising (2002), Devils & Dust (2005), We Shall Overcome (2006), and Magic (2007).”

That is true. But the reason is that Working on a Dream is the weakest of Bruce’s album by a distance. That you didnt cite ANY of the songs from this album in your top 15 of the decade tends to affirm that you think that too. I discount the Wrestler as it wasnt really supposed to be on ‘Dream’ (and actually think is is a pretty weak song too, relatively speaking).

For me, the best song Bruce has written in the last 10 years is ‘Leah’. The third verse is a killer.

cheers

Jonny

I have experienced what you mention, going to concerts and being surrounded by people who only want to hear Born to Run or Born in the USA. I love those albums, but the work Bruce and the band have produced since then is incredible. I believe that The Rising is one of the greatest albums of all time, and the albums since then are as good or better than anything he released before.

My biggest disappointment in the last tour was that so little of the Working on a Dream album was played. That is an incredible album! Kingdom of Days is one of the most beautiful songs, and every song on the album is great (par for the course for Springsteen).

Starting with The Rising, and accelerating with We Shall Overcome, I have been delighted by the growing proportion of younger folks in the crowd. It assures me that there are a lot of people that will listen if you have something important to say. And Bruce still does, 40 years down the road. As long has he has something to say, I will be there to listen. When I want to hear about the past I watch the History channel, when I want to hear about today and dream about tomorrow I listen to Bruce.

And I love your list, although mine would (of course) be different. I think that Land of Hope and Dreams is one of the greatest songs ever, and Maria’s Bed is one of my personal favorites.

In short (too late?), I am old, but I ain’t dead yet! In my fifties now, but still so much to learn, to see, to experience. And still a great deal of growing left to do. I am glad that Bruce’s music continues to grow with me.

Really interesting article and I love that you selected the fantastic “Worlds Apart” and “American Skin” songs for your list.

I’m an old-timer fan, fifty years old, and I think that “The Rising” is one of Bruce’s best albums ever. While I see “Magic” as more of a hit and miss record, I do absolutely love several of its songs.

I can’t agree with you on using “The Rising” song for something else, like President Obama’s campaign. To me that song is such a powerful and spiritual tribute to the firefighters who died on 9/11, I find sticking it into another context cheapens it.

The problem with “Working on a Dream” is that it’s simply a bad album, although it contains one of my top ten Springsteen songs ever: “Life Itself”. Of course it also contains the embarrassing “Queen of the Supermarket”, and the less said about that train wreck, the better.

I think Bruce himself realized the weakness of the material fairly quickly into his tour, which was why the new tunes fell by the wayside and he was forced to become an “oldies” act. The only “one-legged dog” I’ve ever seen is Bruce trying to sell these inferior songs.

I don’t think the older fans are the problem at Springsteen shows. I remember when the BUSA stadium tour started. Suddenly there were all of these people talking through songs, milling around, going to the concession stand during “Racing in the Street” or “Independence Day”. But fire up “Darlington County” or “Glory Days” and they were right there. It was awful.

While I understand your point in saying that younger fans have a perspective that lets them be more clear-eyed because they’re not emotionally attached to the older stuff, it still ticks me off.

I am emotionally attached to the older songs. They spoke to me, resonated in me, and they still do. So do some of the newer tunes though, and I’m emotionally attached to them as well. They don’t all carry the same weight, they don’t all impact equally, but then the old songs don’t do that either.

It’s heartening to see younger people on board and passionate about the music. I’m a Springsteen fan to the end and if I’m next to you at the next concert, you can count on me being engaged and slapping a high five with you when “Worlds Apart” starts up. I’ll be thrilled if Bruce debuts a never before heard song, and my request will be something like “The Iceman” or “Frankie” or “Thirty Days Out”, not the done to death “Glory Days” that you newer fans clamor for.

See, I remember a time before you whippersnappers came along when Bruce delved deeply into his catalog and the requests he took were little known tunes. Each tour focused on the current album, supplemented by songs that complemented the message of that specific tour. You could hear a pin drop during the quiet songs, the spoken intros and the breaks, and everybody there knew every song.

But then he expanded his fan base and well, we’re also living in a different world now anyway. I’m old enough to know thems the breaks and I don’t blame you for it; I’d appreciate the same courtesy in return.

Take it from this “live in the past,those were the good old days” fan: in modern times Bruce has put out a recent masterpiece(The Rising)and some great and very good songs. But he has also put out some lesser stuff, and that’s just the way that goes too.

Nobody does it any better or more consistently than the Boss, and my advanced age has given me the wisdom to know that my favorite musician, while oft-times brilliant, can also really stink it up sometimes.

“BTR”, “Darkness”,”Nebraska”, Tunnel of Love”,”Lucky Town” and “The Rising” are flat-out masterpieces.

Can I still appreciate the other stuff? Damn right I can. He’s written plenty of great songs since the old days, just not with the same consistency of the older records.

Doesn’t matter. He’s the Boss and I can’t wait for the next album. I expect a masterpiece every time, and if I don’t get it, I simply enjoy what I can and wait for the next one to roll around.

Looking forward to reading your book,

Bobbi

i’ll offer my 15 best of the last decade, in no particular order:
1) devils and dust
2) american land
3) girls in their summer clothes
4) kingdom of days
5) lonesome day
6) worlds apart
7) you’ll be comin’ down
you’re missing
9) long walk home
10) the rising
11) my city of ruins
12) the wrestler
13) matamoras banks
14) empty sky
15) into the fire

i believe this could almost complete a set, adding a few old ones, new ones? and covers!…i can dream can’t i?….

thanks for your article

Oh, he was being sneaky with that song!

If one browses Springsteen message boards, there’s certainly an epidemic of people who judge every new work by whether it makes them feel like they’re 16 again. Actually, this carries over to most other acts over the age of, say, 25. If you’re going to a rock concert for nostalgia, you’re too old to go to a rock concert.

I, for one, hope he brings the Seeger Sessions band back next – the last tour seemed like it was verging on a merger. Obviously he’ll want to keep playing with Clarence while he still can, but, frankly, the E Street Band hasn’t played with as much spirit and vigor as the Sessions Band since about 1974.

Concert Goers disappointingly get a beer during “The Rising” while they frantically celebrate “Born To Run” for the 12th time in their lives? They seem to deal superficially with what they have payed loads of money for. Last time I have seen Bruce was exactly one year ago in Frankfurt. Going there by train I travelled with quite a lot of “40 plus” people. I expected them to act the same way. I can’t exactly tell you why, but they wouldn’t. If Bruce would have played 15 instead of 8 songs of the last decade, some might have said it could have been better. But they would still cheer as you can see from the DVDs mentioned before. Audience disparities between US and EU is a fascinating thing. And it must be to the artists. I may add U2 to Bruce and the Stones having the same “noble” setlist choice after having made some real fine records in their “Post-Joshua Tree- Era”, too.

What I am trying to say is that nobody but the artists (those who are not their own jukeboxes…) themselves not only realize but care about both, the noble setlist problem and its reception and the cultural difference between US and EU concert goers. Remember: the last three (!) Springsteen DVD-Concert releases are European concerts. Isn’t that a statement? Isn’t that asking the US guys for a/to dance?
Meanwhile we (the EUs) are the dumb ones: partly bad English speakers, no US citizen (which might be a certain criteria listening to Bruce) and in Germany patriotism has still a negative connotation.

I feel that Bruce’s setlists the last tour have been a very conscious compromise for all visitors. He has done a lot in the past years for those who care about his more recent work, doesn’t he? The intimate and introverted D & D-Tour, the musically brilliant Seeger Sessions etc.

Well, talking about Springsteen over here these times is very much about the progressive, politically ambitious, very true-to-himself star. It is not talking about the Born-in-the-USA-bloke to which he was connected to for some ten or twenty years.
In my opinion he has an important impact on EU-audience: especially during the Bush-era, Springsteen’s American success represented that not all US citizen must have gone mad. Don’t get me wrong. But there is always a (dangerous) tendency of lumping together. He brought the important message that there is much more between Bush-Americans and Anti-Americans. And he artificially filled the gap, he represented it.
Doing this he must serve these EU-40plus-Born-To-Run- Jeeres as well as these US-Get-Me-A-Beer-During-The-Rising-Guys, too. He wants them to come. And he tries to convince them from what we think there should be more of. I am convinced that Bruce is very conscious and knowing about this. Maybe this is the fuel in his tank…