Herr Springsteen ...

[Nocturnal]

Never understood his appeal. Not even a little.

[uwe]

I think he's written and recorded nice songs and is most likely sincere about what he does like only an American can be. And I have seen seventies gig of him and the E Street Band - not the tightest outfit on earth and not Little Feat as regards musicality either - which definitely had something. But in a stadium scenario, crowd pleasing as he is, all nuances of his music are lost. It becomes chest beating do-gooder music. The music tries desperately to be so grand - as if Manowar did a Pete Seeger tribute, except that you can at least laugh about them.

The show reminded me of latter day Elvis sometimes, that mass adulation he soaks up is hard to bear. Give me an ill-tempered Bob Dylan or Lou Reed anytime. This was just too much for my jaded European eyes.

As the concert went endlessly on, I marvelled at how perceptive Ronnie Montrose's interview comment in the late eighties was according to which Springsteen's music treaded a formula as narrow as AC/DC's and how that comment always set people off, but Herr Montrose was in fact right, at least as regards the stadium version of Bruce.

BTW, his wife wisely stayed at home for the tour.

[Pilgrim]

We saw Springsteen a few years ago - with the energy the band put into the show, it was fun. 

[Dave W]

Never understood his appeal. Not even a little.

Same here. And I was nauseated by all the hype about his being the poet laureate of his generation. Even more absurd than Dylan being called the poet laureate of my generation. As if someone with certain political and social views could speak for everyone including people who think the opposite.

[drbassman]

Not a fan.  A noisy Bob Dylan with less writing talent.

[lowend1]

as if Manowar did a Pete Seeger tribute

Hmmm... Where did I put Joey DeMaio's phone number?

[godofthunder]

 In '78 I won tickets to see him. Never a big fan, never bought a album but I do like a few of his songs. I thought his live show was enjoyable and was more than impressed with the energy he puts into it. A few months ago I saw him perform We Take Care of Our Own.............................oy what nonsense it was embarrassing to watch. I could almost feel the gov. reaching into my back pocket, had to check my wallet after that one.

[patman]

My son asked me to listen to the newest album.  I didn't care for it.

[nofi]

boring blowhard.

[drbassman]

In '78 I won tickets to see him. Never a big fan, never bought a album but I do like a few of his songs. I thought his live show was enjoyable and was more than impressed with the energy he puts into it. A few months ago I saw him perform We Take Care of Our Own.............................oy what nonsense it was embarrassing to watch. I could almost feel the gov. reaching into my back pocket, had to check my wallet after that one.

Amen!

[Basvarken]

Wow this place is amazing! I thought I was the only one on the planet that didn't care for The Boss.
In The Netherlands he got raving reviews on the new album, the gig at Pinkpop the other day (and the one in 2009).
I just don't get it.

But now I'm assured I'm not the only one 

[drbassman]

Wow this place is amazing! I thought I was the only one on the planet that didn't care for The Boss.
In The Netherlands he got raving reviews on the new album, the gig at Pinkpop the other day (and the one in 2009).
I just don't get it.

But now I'm assured I'm not the only one 

Just a lot of hype.

[Dave W]

Not a fan.  A noisy Bob Dylan with less writing talent.

Would that be the same Bob Dylan who lifted passages from Confessions of a Yakuza and put them into songs on his Love and Theft album? Or maybe it was the Bob Dylan whose hand written poem from teenage summer camp in the late 50s was about to be auctioned for big bucks until someone noticed it was a word-for-word copy of a Hank Snow song from the late 40s? 

[gearHed289]

Great stuff Uwe, thanks for the review! Bruce definitely falls into the "I don't get it" category for me. I admire his talent as a singer/songwriter/front man, but I just don't like his style, musical or otherwise.