The Long Whistle: A Journey Through the Bruce Springsteen Discography, Vol. 5
Long time comin' and now it's here
A Dream of Life: The Rising (2002)
Produced by Brendan O’Brien
Standout Track: ‘My City of Ruins’
By the dawn of the new millennium, the E-Street Band had reunited behind Bruce Springsteen for a brand-new tour that yielded a fresh live album, Live in New York City, celebrating all the work they had done together over a career spanning thirty years. A new record of original material was inevitable, and then… the dawn of September 11, 2001. Smoke billowed from both towers of the World Trade Center, and nearly 3000 Americans were killed seemingly in the blink of an eye. In the aftermath of this national tragedy, Springsteen was approached by a fan who cried out to him from the window of his car, ‘Bruce, we need you!’ The album that Bruce served up the year after was The Rising, which isn’t just a rock and roll album. It’s a gospel album, where people of all stripes are welcomed from all corners of the country and feel union and fellowship with one another. With a modern flair courtesy of Pearl Jam producer Brendan O’Brien, the writing is cryptic and often hopeful (‘Waiting on a Sunny Day’) while not dismissing the supreme loss felt on that day (‘You’re Missing.’) The title track stands as one of Springsteen’s most powerful anthems, telling the story of one of the firefighters climbing the steps of the World Trade Center who ultimately sacrifices himself, but is comforted in his last moments by ‘a dream of life,’ a profound hope that his efforts will not be forgotten and will not go to waste. The Rising concludes with ‘My City of Ruins,’ a song that could bring the staunchest of Republicans and the most cynical of Democrats together in love for America and its people. Springsteen emerged as the dean of rock and roll, respected by his contemporaries and lauded as a beacon of hope in an America where hope seemed to dwindle more and more every day.
Tracklist:
1. Lonesome Day
2. Into the Fire
3. Waitin’ on a Sunny Day *
4. Nothing Man
5. Countin’ on a Miracle
6. Empty Sky
7. Worlds Apart
8. Let’s Be Friends (Skin to Skin)
9. Further On (Up the Road)
10. The Fuse
11. Mary’s Place
12. You’re Missing *
13. The Rising *
14. Paradise
15. My City of Ruins *
With This Hand I’ve Built, and With This, I’ve Burned: Devils & Dust (2003)
Produced by Brendan O’Brien and Bruce Springsteen
Standout Track: ‘Long Time Comin’’
Following up the anthemic comeback that was The Rising, Springsteen’s second album of the 21st century offered another set of stories in the vein of Nebraska, this time set to more driving alt-country production. Though it does contain moments of sorrow and despondency, Devils & Dust is decidedly more upbeat than it’s two predecessors, with songs that deal more with fatherhood, such as on one of his all-time best songs, ‘Long Time Comin’,’ as well as the responsibility of marriage (‘Silver Palomino’). It’s most infamous cut, ‘Reno,’ a sexually charged acoustic track backed with a snappy dobro, tells in graphic detail an encounter with a prostitute. This got the album banned from Starbucks, so there is that. These songs are a hodgepodge of more recent material, such as the title track, which is sort of a modernized ‘Born in the U.S.A,’ as well as a bunch of older material, much of it scraps from The Ghost of Tom Joad, such as the eclectic ‘Black Cowboys,’ as well as the excellent closer ‘Matamoros Banks,’ which stands as one of the most evocative and powerful songs in his catalogue. Devils & Dust is another solid addition to Springsteen’s vast discography, and the country-tinge to it separates it from anything else he’s done.
Tracklist:
1. Devils & Dust *
2. All the Way Home
3. Reno
4. Long Time Comin’ *
5. Black Cowboys
6. Maria’s Bed *
7. Silver Palomino
8. Jesus Was an Only Son
9. Leah
10. The Hitter
11. All I’m Thinkin’ Bout
12. Matamoros Banks *
Too Late to Get Your Supper: The Seeger Sessions (2006)
Produced by Bruce Springsteen
Standout Track: ‘John Henry’
The Boss had dabbled with folk music before by this point, but he had never fully immersed himself in it in the form of an album. The Seeger Sessions is a collection of covers of classic American folk standards, ranging from Woody Guthrie’s prototypical ‘John Henry,’ to the protest and union anthems of the 30s through 60s (‘We Shall Overcome,’ ‘Pay Me My Money Down’), as well as a few gospel spirituals (‘Jacob’s Ladder’) and Celtic tunes (‘Mrs. McGrath’) thrown in there for good measure. It is a celebration of America and American music, and a recognition of the tradition of working-class songs that Springsteen had spent his career carrying on, broadcast with fire and brimstone from the comfort of his own kitchen. It boasts a rootsy, stripped back production, and feels like you’re on some back porch in the 1930s, listening to the American spirit come fully alive through the power of song. While this release is wholly inessential, it is an immensely fun and at times truly beautiful side-project that pays respect to the folks who paved the way for both rock and roll and America as we know it to exist, with their blood, sweat, tears and song.
Tracklist:
1. Old Dan Tucker *
2. Jesse James (Just Ask)
3. Mrs. McGrath *
4. O Mary Don’t You Weep
5. John Henry *
6. Jacob’s Ladder
7. My Oklahoma Home
8. Eyes on the Prize
9. Shenandoah *
10. Pay Me My Money Down
11. We Shall Overcome
12. Froggie Went A-Courtin’