२५ ऑक्टोबर, २०२४

"I'm dying for some action... I need a love reaction...."

Bruce Springsteen has been dying for that action for so long. "This gun's for hire," he sings to us, in that puzzlingly straining voice he's been foisting upon us since the 1970s.

And here he is, last night, at the Democratic Party rally....

 

"You can't start a fire/Worrying about your little world falling apart...."

Now, there's a political slogan.

But who's the best candidate for those of us who do worry about our "little world" falling apart?

९१ टिप्पण्या:

Jaq म्हणाले...

I think that passing a law for states where I don't live to make them do abortions is more important than the wars that the Democrats support, which have pushed us to the edge of WW3 in a desperate quest to maintain US world domination, because I care about people.

BUMBLE BEE म्हणाले...

But who's the best candidate for those of us who do worry about our "little world" falling apart?

'"There is not a thing that comes to mind".

wendybar म्हणाले...

Bruce is a hasbeen. Nobody cares what Mr. "NOT" a working man has to say anymore. He should retire with Obama and live happily rich and famous on their yachts with the other elites, and leave us alone.

Inga म्हणाले...

Except for the Ukrainians, Timofey.

lonejustice म्हणाले...

"in that puzzlingly straining voice he's been foisting upon us since the 1970s."

People say the same thing about Bob Dylan's voice, but they both have sold millions and millions of records, so obviously a lot of people really like it.

Leland म्हणाले...

In the front row, they are advocating the use of violence to secure victory in this election.

"We fight, We win!"

Inga म्हणाले...

The same thing sprung to my mind, Dylan’s voice.

michaele म्हणाले...

Interesting that Trump is way wealthier than either Springsteen or Obama but he has chosen to be in the full time fight (fight, fight, fight) of his life so that our little worlds do not fall apart.

rehajm म्हणाले...

…and just like that, with Kamala and Barack in attendance, the number of black people who have witnessed a Springsteen show moved from zero to almost one…

Captain BillieBob म्हणाले...

That was really, really bad there Bruce. Time to go sit on the porch on the old rocking chair.
"But who's the best candidate for those of us who do worry about our "little world" falling apart?" Trump of course.

BUMBLE BEE म्हणाले...

One is a poseur, the other, a poet. Not surprising that you can't differentiate.

rehajm म्हणाले...

Nothing does more to draw the brothers to vote for you than a Springsteen convert…

rehajm म्हणाले...

…more evidence they just plan to steal it…

Dave Begley म्हणाले...

Totally overrated.

rhhardin म्हणाले...

Springstein had one good song - Jersey Girl. Imus used to use it as a bumper.

Meade म्हणाले...

lol

Ann Althouse म्हणाले...

"People say the same thing about Bob Dylan's voice, but they both have sold millions and millions of records, so obviously a lot of people really like it."

No. Bob Dylan has famously changed his voice repeatedly. It's more like he comes up with a new way to sing on each album. But Dylan impersonators rarely use, say, the "John Wesley Harding" voice.

I'm talking about the style of singing. Springsteen uses this urgency which made some sense when he was young and struggling but is weird half a century later.

Mike (MJB Wolf) म्हणाले...

Hadn’t realized he’s transitioned to being a talk-singer but having two past their prime old dudes open for a politician who has never been in her prime kinda summarizes this campaign in a sloppy little package.

gspencer म्हणाले...

The whole objective of the left is NOT to leave you alone. You WILL participate in the NWO, like it or not.

"It is the common fate of the indolent [*] to see their rights become a prey to the active [**]. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude [***] is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt." John Philpot Curran (1750- 1817).

In other words, fight-&-defend or all those hard-earned rights will be taken without a moment’s notice. And as recent evidence, look at how governors and their staffs acted during the COVID-19 lockdown.

* The indolent - those who may complain but yet won’t take action

** The active - experience has taught that the left has a never-ending list of stupid, freedom-depriving ideas; the left will NEVER leave us alone. Green New Deal; elimination of 1st Am., 2d Am., mail-in voting, shut-down orders, and on and on

*** Servitude - comes in a variety of forms, from detention (jail, stay-at-home orders) to economic deprivation via regulations (which always result in bigger government, higher prices for goods/services and greater unemployment) to increased taxation

Mike (MJB Wolf) म्हणाले...

Dylan was a Willbury, automatically placing him as one of the top rockers of all time. Bruce was never even considered for that honor.

Kevin म्हणाले...

Probably not the one dancing in the dark.

Two-eyed Jack म्हणाले...

To he Mrs watched this live. "Dollar-store Dylan" I said, as I was getting a cup of tea, hearing "The Boss" wheezing through The Promised Land." I heard Tyler Perry cite "the fine people" liable, and went upstairs. Later I heard Obama's voice. It has lost its silkiness. Too many cigarettes I guess. Too much distaste for half the American people.

Heartless Aztec म्हणाले...

I liked Bruce a lot more when he was a skinny Jersey surfer and long haired car greaser. That he knew his way around
a Strat fret board was just icing. That person is a long time gone now. Say good night Brucie.

Big Mike म्हणाले...

But who's the best candidate for those of us who do worry about our "little world" falling apart?

You have two weeks to make up your mind, lady.. Harris calls Trump a fascist? The woman who was selected, not elected, and foisted on the public by the likes of Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi s a hard core Marist, like her Daddy used to be. And outside of Madison people aren’t ready for that just yet. In fact ever

William50 म्हणाले...

Bruce usually plays a Tele not a Strat.

Gusty Winds म्हणाले...

Did the Boss wink at Kamala when he sang, "Just wrap your legs 'round these velvet rims, and strap your hands 'cross my engines"?

Eric the Fruit Bat म्हणाले...

I remembered these TV commercials as someone (ridiculously) imitating Bruce Springsteen (it's just fucking beer for Christ's sake) but having just given a listen it might be somebody imitating Richie Havens. What do I know?

Eric the Fruit Bat म्हणाले...

Esquire/Tele hybrid, some say.

Eric the Fruit Bat म्हणाले...

In re: The puzzlingly straining voice.

guitar joe म्हणाले...

It's a Fender Esquire with a Telecaster neck and a lot of modification to the electronics. The pickups were custom made by the shop Bruce bought it from in 72.

AMDG म्हणाले...

Bruce started to ad the twang to his voice in 1980. I never found it appealing.

Adrian म्हणाले...

I don’t take my music recommendations from economists and I don’t take policy recommendations from musicians. Milton Friedman and Elvis Costello are two of my heroes, for very different reasons. And Bruce hasn’t done great work in 40 years, but he did some very good work at the beginning of his career. “Backstreets” is a fantastic song. His memoir is fun too. I prefer to remember him before his equestrian era.

guitar joe म्हणाले...

Springsteen has endorsed every Democratic presidential candidate since...well, as a far back as I can remember. Means as little to me as the fact that Ted Nugent endorses Trump. As for Springsteen being washed up: He still fills stadiums and arenas. His records still hit the charts, although he, like every other recording artist these days, sells far fewer records. Everybody streams.

donald म्हणाले...
ही टिप्पणी लेखकाना हलविली आहे.
donald म्हणाले...

There is no bigger hack and fraud than Springsteen.

Peachy म्हणाले...

A parade of rich celebrities - propagandizing the vote.
They have no connection to the Americans who see everything shrink - all while politicians get richer and richer.

donald म्हणाले...
ही टिप्पणी लेखकाना हलविली आहे.
guitar joe म्हणाले...

While I can't say you're wrong, you can argue that both adopt affected voices to serve their purposes. I saw Dylan a couple months ago, and he's singing in a different voice from the one he's used since Time Out of Mind--even on the three releases of songs from the American Songbook. I loved Bruce's first two LPs and saw him perform 4 times during those years. He has a couple of singing voices himself. I do think the Woody Guthrie/dust bowl survivor one he's used for his acoustic albums might not stand the test of time.

walter म्हणाले...

Get Obama up there to sing Born in the USA.

Mark म्हणाले...

Musk and Tucker Carlson are really 'men of the people'. Both born with a silver spoon.

Wince म्हणाले...

There are no stage right/house left images of the audience that I've been able to find.

Peachy म्हणाले...

Hillary (never gonna be president) is on TV screeching Trump is a Nazi! Kamala is hanging with the ultra rich.

Trump is with the people.

Birches म्हणाले...

Springsteen in Atlanta? That's really odd. Is the Harris campaign acknowledging that their appeal lies with white Boomers? Because that's what Springsteen in Atlanta says to me.

Butkus51 म्हणाले...

I hear Kajagoogoo is playing at the next Dem Rally.

Have Joey introduce them.

Ann Althouse म्हणाले...

"You have two weeks to make up your mind, lady.. "

It's not going to be decided by one vote. Don't worry about me.

Danno म्हणाले...

rehajm wins the interwebs for today!

Peachy म्हणाले...

Mark- Elon works for a living. You loyal leftists want him in a gulag. Tucker works for a living.

Birches म्हणाले...

I'm thinking about this more. It's kind of mind boggling that Beyonce is playing in Houston tomorrow. Texas? Seems like Bey wasn't interested in traveling for the campaign. Which is saying a lot. Because Bey wouldn't go to ATL, they had to drag Bruce in.

tommyesq म्हणाले...

She picks the dude whose biggest hit, Born in the USA, is about how much he hates America. Appropriate.

tommyesq म्हणाले...

Being black is her policy!

Rusty म्हणाले...

Derve. Suppose you tell us what Harris' policies are so we can discus them.
"You guys are voting Trump for the wrong reasons, " Tell us what those reasons are.

Jaq म्हणाले...

I care about Ukrainians so much that I want they to fight to the last man for the sacred principle of forcing people who have lived as Russians for centuries, speaking Russian in their ancestral homes, to stop speaking it. It was an insult to the "dignity" of Ukrainians, that's why they had their "Revolution of Dignity." The shame of being neutral would have been too much for all of those men to live with, I am sure. So pouring gasoline on that fire was the kindest thing. You see, I care about people.

AMDG म्हणाले...

This is no secret. In the first minute of his Broadway show he says the following:

“I’m a fraud. I’ve never held an honest job in my entire life. I’ve never worked nine to five. I’ve never done any hard labor, and yet it is all that I’ve written about.”

He is, however, a great story teller

AMDG म्हणाले...

In the 70’s the people that Springsteen was singing about were going to discos and listening to The Bee Gees and Chic. Springsteen’s fan base was suburban and college educated.

A prototypical Springsteen charachter would have to be Tony Manero from “Saturday Night Fever”. Manero would not have had a clue as to the existence of Springsteen.

The theatre where Jon Landeau proclaimed Springsteen the future of rock and roll was literally across the street from Harvard Yard.

AMDG म्हणाले...

In 2020 I saw Springsteen give the Freshman convocation address (via Zoom) at Boston College. Watching that, along with the Broadway show, one can only reach the conclusion that Springsteen loves America. I disagree with man politically, but he is not anti-American.

AMDG म्हणाले...
ही टिप्पणी लेखकाना हलविली आहे.
AMDG म्हणाले...

I find it ironic that most of the people Springsteen champions are probably Trump voters.

Shoeless Joe म्हणाले...

Poor Bruce. When he was campaigning for Obama and Kerry his heart was in it, but with Kamala you can tell he'd rather stick needles in his eyes. I've attended something like 150 Springsteen shows and listened to hundreds (maybe thousands) of his performances over the last 50 years and I don't think he ever sounded worse than last night. Unfortunately for Da Boss he's now a hostage of the Democratic Party so even when they're running a retard like Kamala he's obligated to take the stage. Wonder if it all was worth that billion dollars in his bank account?

Leland म्हणाले...

No one is holding their breath for you to crack open a book nor seeking to see you in a pose. Don't be envious.

Jaq म्हणाले...

"There are over 31 million active bloggers posting at least once per month in the United States"

Kakistocracy म्हणाले...

My concern is that lots of people want a tyrant and others are kind of indifferent to whether we have a tyrant as long as the tyrant hates the people they hate and says he’ll make the economy better.

Kakistocracy म्हणाले...

Thank goodness Trump had Kid Rock and Lee Greenwood and Ted Nugent to counter program this event…🤣

n.n म्हणाले...

Springsteen is singing the merits of the fascist platform, hoping that he will be the nurse wielding the machete. The African continent just got a little lighter in relative performance.

n.n म्हणाले...

Yes. #HateLovesAbortion
Say no to class-disordered ideologies.
Stop parading, celebrating albinophobia.
Summer after ethnic Springs.

AnotherJim म्हणाले...

I liked him, back in the day. This was really pretty sad, though. There was no resonance of any kind--not musical, not cultural, not political. Trump would have rocked the place with a vintage recording of the same song. He might even have made Springsteen seem hip. When "The Boss" was walking off, I had to imagine what gen x, y or z was thinking about this sad boomer shuffling off the stage. That's so emblematic of the whole Biden-Harris-Walz campaign.

Iman म्हणाले...

Swerves ran out of shim’s Tucks. Film @11pm

Lazarus म्हणाले...

Did you ever think you'd see the day when Bruce Springsteen would come in last in a Bruce Springsteen imitators' contest? Maybe he should have spent more time working on his singing and less time working on his accent. Anyway, he and Kamala could definitely bond over the accent thing.

Is Bruce's endorsement "gun" really for hire? Probably not, but would he make worse political decisions if it were? The lyrics are interesting if you think of them in terms of Bruce's 30-year vegetative state. I suppose he does get up in the evening and have nothing to say. He probably is tired and bored with himself, but his is a particularly privileged existence, so there's an ironic edge. Most people would love to live in a dump like his and they'd wonder why Bruce is so frustrated when he has all that money.

Bruce got after Reagan for not understanding what "Born in the USA" was really about, but if he thinks this song about being stuck in a frustrating, static, inertial state was appropriate for the occasion, maybe he's not the Springsteenologist out there.

William म्हणाले...

Springsteen reached such a level of fame and success that it is impossible for him to be a has been. His fans will follow him to the grave, and in every city he has enough fans to fill up a stadium. He's an old man with a heart condition, and his fans aren't any too spry either, but they're there......I've sort of accepted the fact that all the singers and actors I like have different political views than mine. I don't really hold it against them. Jane Fonda is the only one I consciously avoid. Still, it's depressing that show biz is such a mono-culture. They need more diversity.

Narayanan म्हणाले...

was 16 tons sung by coalminer?

Iman म्हणाले...

Too loud and undeservedly proud. The frantic fanaticism rears its Propecia-marinated head.

Iman म्हणाले...

Tweeter meets Monkeyman

Iman म्हणाले...

And Blue walls came down
All the way to Hell
Went and saw him as a young man
Before “out” the coot did sell

Yancey Ward म्हणाले...

"Dancing in the Dark" was released the day after my last day in high school- May 9th 1984.

Yancey Ward म्हणाले...

How has the Biden Administration helped the Ukrainians, Inga? How many Ukrainian men have died because Biden "helped" them?

Luke Lea म्हणाले...

How to loose your populist, working-class creds.

Yancey Ward म्हणाले...

I don't like his politics but I have been a huge fan of Springsteen since I was 12 years old. I have seen him in concert on three occasions widely separated in time and the shows were all outstanding in every respect.

walter म्हणाले...

You should be working on your franchise of AInga's Not So Happy Hostel in case Kamala wins. More "migrants" to yoke into your Richweed farming enterprise. Team Kamala wants to quash pesky "disinformation", so your grifts will be safe.

Tom T. म्हणाले...

Bob Dylan has famously changed his voice repeatedly.

"Sometimes he sings out of his left nostril, and sometimes he sings through his right." ;-)

guitar joe म्हणाले...

Got it backwards. Telecaster, Esquire neck

Former Illinois resident म्हणाले...

Anyone who has a daughter who does dressage horseback-riding competitions is no "common man". Springsteen sold out in the 1980s; he's now just another aging rock-star valiantly trying to remain relevant. His singing voice is vocal fry.

Former Illinois resident म्हणाले...

Every dead Ukrainian soldier is beyond "help" from Americans. We have zero national security interest in Ukraine. Our country also had zero financial benefit to subsidizing Ukraine; only the defense industry benefited, the military-industrial complex which could recycle its attic-stock of old military equipment and demand contracts for new military equipment. Biden insisted on this war which was bought and paid for by financial gifts to Biden Family during Obama administration.

Iman म्हणाले...

Born down in a Jersey town
The first smack I took was when I hit the ground
They asked me to pimp for that Harris and Walz
I did my best but got a kick in teh ballz
Leavin’ the U.S.A
I am leavin’ the U.S.A
I am leavin’ the U.S.A
Leavin’ the U.S.A

Aggie म्हणाले...

Who prints a rally poster with anybody's name but the candidate's? Really ?? Obama in second billing, Bruce Springstein in third? Really ?? Serious flop-sweat vibes with this one.... what was the 'ackshual' crowd turnout, then?

loudogblog म्हणाले...

"...he sings to us, in that puzzlingly straining voice he's been foisting upon us since the 1970s."

Springsteen severely damaged his vocal cords in the 1960s and 1970s by doing all those marathon club gigs. He simple didn't know how to sing correctly and spent too much time shouting instead of actually singing.

What hit me as disingenuous about Springsteen when he decided to go from being a gritty, New Jersey, city boy to pretending that he was some country folk singer. (And put on that phony folk singer accent) That was when his acoustic album, Nebraska, came out. He made it at home on a four track cassette player. It was like he only had two modes: Big E Street band mode or small Bob Dylan mode.

Aggie म्हणाले...

Whew..... the Toxic Avenger makes an appearance today.

loudogblog म्हणाले...

Merle Travis never worked in a coal mine, but he grew up in a coal mining town and his father worked in a coal mine.

loudogblog म्हणाले...

"It's not going to be decided by one vote. Don't worry about me."

That's what I have to keep telling all my Democrat friends. ("of which I have none.") I live in California where Harris will, literally, win by millions of votes. That's why I always vote third party when that is an option. (It's just that California changed the primary system a few years ago so that third parties always get eliminated from the final ballot for state offices. Heck, sometimes I only have the choice of voting between two Democrats for state offices, since only the two highest vote getters are allowed on the final ballot. Talk about one-party rule!)

JaimeRoberto म्हणाले...

To be fair, Clarence Clemmons saw quite a few of them.

JaimeRoberto म्हणाले...

And that was originally from Tom Waits.

GingerBeer म्हणाले...

Oh, I'm pretty sure that the Left can, and will start a fire when their when their little world falls apart.

Clyde म्हणाले...

Recommended Springsteen playlist for a Kamala rally, in alphabetical order:
Countin' On A Miracle
Man's Job
My Best Was Never Good Enough
Trouble In Paradise
Wages of Sin
Your Own Worst Enemy
You'll Be Comin' Down