Post by ledvedderman on Jan 29, 2009 14:21:53 GMT -5
Well, it sure has been a while since I've posted here. I've been browsing on a fairly regular basis, but there isn't that much Lifehouse news to comment on.
My first review in quite some time is on the new Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band album, "Working on a Dream". Initial reviews of the album have been mixed. Some truly hate it. Others think it is a masterpiece. I think it falls somewhere in between. While the previous record, "Magic", was a fairly dark and rocking album about living in the USA under George W. Bush, "Dream" seems to be an uplifting album of love and hope. Anyone that is a fan of Roy Orbison or the Beach Boys may really enjoy this album. There are little hints throughout the album of a retro sounding pop sound that first showed up on "Magic" with "Girls In Their Summer Clothes". If I had to sum up this album in one thought it would be, "If "Tunnel of Love" was the Bruce heartbreak album, "Working on a Dream" is the Bruce in love album.
The album opens up with the eight minute long epic "Outlaw Pete". 2007's opening track, "Radio Nowhere" asked the question "is their anybody alive out there?", and now "Pete" offers another question "can you hear me?". The song tells the story of a fictional (I hope!) chap named Pete who by "six months old had done three months in jail" and who "robbed a bank in his diapers and his little bare baby feet". The song has a very western feel to it. In the end we find out the Pete found love in a native american woman and changed his ways, and then one day encountered a bounty hunter looking to bring Pete into justice. I won't do any spoiling for you, but the song begs the question if evil is always within someone or if you can change.
Next up is "My Lucky Day". This is the song that upon first listen I knew that Bruce could pull off two albums in 16 months. It's your typical E Street rocker. Some of it reminds me of "No Surrender" from Born in the USA, and some of it reminds me of "Radio Nowhere" from Magic. In either sense, comparing it to either of those songs is a good thing. Following "My Lucky Day" is the title track to the album. "Working on a Dream" is the acoustic driven ESB song we've come to expect in the Brendan O'Brien era of producing Bruce albums. Lyricially, it is nothing special. However, it is a fairly uplifting song. It has a nice mood and melody. Who could resist a song with a sweet whistle solo?
Next up is one of the more controversial tracks on the album, "Queen of the Supermarket". This song seems to sum up the album in about 4 minutes. If you love this song, you'll love the album. If you hate it...well, you might want to dust off "Magic" or "The Rising". "Queen" is pure late-60's pop. Lyrically the song is about Bruce lusting after a woman who works at (you guessed it) the supermarket. Lyrically, the song is silly and you normally would expect more from Bruce. However, this song is silly in somewhat of a cute way. Before it gets too cute though you hear the first time on an ESB album that Bruce drops the f-bomb. The only other time he has done this is on his solo album "Devil's and Dust" on the track "Long Time Coming". Following "Queen of the Supermarket" is "What Love Can Do". This is another typical Bruce and ESB rocker. I think this song should get some consideration to being a single. Not that radio is a format that would give Bruce another big hit, but this song really shows some strong Bruce lyrics, the range of his voice, and is fairly catch upon first listen.
Now we come to what I consider the elite track of the album "This Life". This is another retro pop song. Anyone who passes on "Queen of the Supermarket" might want to stick around long enough to hear this gem. It falls in line with recent tracks like "Waiting on a Sunny Day" and "Girls In Their Summer Clothes" as the sunny pop songs Bruce seems to be able to crank out on demand. Next up is "Good Eye" which features harmonica and Bruce using the bullet mic for his vocals. This is probably my least favorite track on the album. Don't get me wrong, it is a nice experiment, but it just doesn't mesh well with the rest of the album. Bruce used this same harmonica/bullet mic combo on his Halloween release "A Night With The Jersey Devil". "Good Eye" should have taken a place along side "Devil"...of of the album.
Next up are two quiet numbers. "Tomorrow Never Knows" seems like it would have been appropriate for "Devil's and Dust", and "Life Itself" follows in the steps of "Nothing Man" from "The Rising" and "Magic" in the acoustic driven ESB type of folk song. The highlight of the song is the great reverse guitar solo by Nils in the song. I'm always a fan of this style of playing, and it really adds something to the song.
"Kingdom of Days" follows in the lines of "Queen of the Supermarket" and "This Life" as the sunny "Bruce in love" tracks on the album. They all seem to follow the same formula and have been cut from the same cloth, but Bruce and the band do an amazing job making each song their own and giving them a distinct sound. "Surprise, Surprise" is a pure Roy Orbison or The Byrds type of sound. It is hard to not hear "Turn, Turn, Turn" during this song, and coming out of the bridge you can hear some real Roy Orbison coming through.
The final track of the album is a farewell to Danny Federici, the E-Street Band organist who passed away this year from cancer. The song is a follow up to the song "Wild Billy's Circuis Ride" from "The While, The Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle". The song reflects the feeling of the E Street Band continuing on without Danny.
"Hangin' from the trapeze my wrists waitin' for your wrists
Two daredevils high up on the wall of death".
While this song didn't have the immediate impact on me as "Devil's Arcade" from "Magic", once I was able to sit down and read the lyrics it really showed the true beauty of this song. I've always been a fan of epic closing tracks from albums. "Carnival" doesn't fit in that category. It's a simple acoustic track with a repetitive melody. The lyrics are the beauty of the song.
Where "Magic" had "Terry's Song" as a bonus track, "Dream" has the Golden Globe winning song from the movie with the same name, "The Wrestler". If there's one thing that Bruce knows, it is folky tunes like this. He struck gold with capturing the mood of that film, and I'm glad he decided to include the track at the end of the album. While many bonus tracks feel out of place at the end of an album (I'm looking at you Stanley Climbfall bonus tracks), "The Wrestler" picks up where "Carnival" left off. It's the perfect way to close an incredible album.
My verdict: While this album won't go down as a "classic" Bruce album, it still is a fine album from one of the greatest bands on the planet. After some truly dark albums in "The Rising", "Devil's and Dust", and "Magic", it was about time we heard some music of Bruce being happy. This is it. While I wish there was some more sax from the Big Man Clarence Clemmons, I know that the sax will be there on the live versions of the songs on tour.
8.5/10