Tag: Thunder Road

Can You Hear Me Now? Bruce Springsteen in a New Way

bruce-in-chicago

Classy as ever, Bruce and the band posted their Chicago River Tour concert for 2 days of free download.  It’s so far beyond amazing that I’m back in mourning that we’ll be out of the country when he comes to SFO.  I’d almost recovered but this is a major – if probably brief – relapse.

There’s nobody more capable of evoking super highs, and then tears – as he takes us on a journey with him.  This time though, my journey is different:  Springsteen was born in 1949; I’m a first-year Baby Boomer, born in 1946.  We’re no longer kids, certainly, but still grateful for the music and where it can take us.  For me, Bruce is the number-one tour guide.  Always will be.

Now this next thing is hard.  I listened to this concert a whole new way — my iPhone is paired with me new (hang on) hearing aids!  I was so mortified when I learned I needed them and a nervous wreck when I went to be fitted but they’re great.  I met a woman in the (where else?) ladies room at a big event yesterday and we were laughing at our worries and how surprised we were at what a difference they make.

Nothing – not the embarrassment or the nervousness or the appalling cost of these little things – none of that – comes close to the feeling of being able to walk around without headphones, sit at my desk without headphones — do almost anything without headphones – and still hear Thunder Road and Meet Me in the City and 31 other LIVE performances.

So hearing aids mean aging and I have to face that.  But they also hosted a real party today.

Bruce Springsteen and Thunder Road

I couldn’t sleep and at 2AM, this, Bruce Springsteen on Storytellers, was my reward.  The first time I heard this song, I cried.  Grown up, near 30 with a baby and far from those front porches, I was transported.  The power of the song hasn’t faded.

Anyway, here’s what he said about it:

So this was my big invitation, to my audience, to myself, to anybody that was interested.  My invitation to a long and earthly — very earthly — journey, hopefully in the company of someone you love, people you love and in search of a home you can feel a part of.  Good luck.

Thanks Bruce.

I meant to write about Star Wars, but then The Boss walked in.  Tomorrow maybe.

Tears for the Music (and Cheers too.) So Many Emotions


WHY is it The Girls in Their Summer Clothes?  Of all songs.   My heart is in my throat – I really might cry.  It’s just one of many Spotify ambushes.  Mark Knopfler’s Cannibals.  Nils Lofgren’s Black Book.  About 30 other Springsteen songs including Thunder Road, Jersey Girl (Yes I know Tom Waitts wrote it, but still) and My Hometown ( I just don’t listen to that one anymore.)  Oh and from another end of the universe, of Scarlet Begonias.

Every once in a while Peter Rothberg at The Nation posts Top Ten Songs (from a The Nation perspective of course:) Top Ten Veterans Day Songs, Top Ten Back-to-School Songs, Top Ten Songs About the Environment, Top Ten Labor Day Songs, Top Ten Death Penalty Songs (In Tribute to Troy Davis),Top Ten Songs About Class, Top Ten Songs About Nuclear War, Top Ten July 4th Songs, Top Ten Memorial Day Songs.  They always inspire a lively conversation on his blog, including nominees to join his own ten.  Many of these are offered with deep feeling and conviction, the power of music spread across issues as well as hearts.

Nothing original here; we all know it.  In a stadium, at a demonstration, a party, the beach, the gym, in a car, a crowd or a quiet moment, it’s always there for us when we need it – often taking us places we didn’t mean to go.

 

Sad Music Always Makes Me Cry (Isn’t That a Song?) – Bruce, Jerry, Annie, Patti and Me

Eurythmics1_2 I heard this song on a Charmed rerun – the guilty pleasure that seems to be taking over my mind.  I listened again on iTunes (the link at the beginning)  – and felt my throat tighten and my heart pull.  I had to turn it off  — too sad.  Why?  No idea.

Song lyrics often do that to me.  Thunder Road, Scarlett Begonias, Peaceable Kingdom — I just have to skip the iPod to the next thing.  Lately this is a more frequent occurrence.  Either I’m far more open to emotion than usual or something is making me really sad.  Im struggling to figure out what’s up but suspect I’m avoiding the figuring too.  Sigh.

I thought this was going to be a long pensive post but I think I’m just gonna shut up, get ready for the end of Sukkot and listen to the new Bruce when it gets here today from Amazon.  Besides, I’ve written about music and my moods before so I’m beginning to sound a little repetitive, even to myself.  This was written before sundown Wednesday and will show up on its own Friday morning; I’ll be back after the holiday.