[HHFi]

I used to like Bruce, back in the period from "Darkness on the Edge of Town" through "The River" and parts of "Born in the USA," but then he lost me. Sadly, he started listening to all the worshipful "intellectuals" writing the gas bag pieces about how he was the bard of the poor, oppressed common man, and he fired the E Street Band and turned out a string of mumbling, tuneless ballads about how tough it is to live in Amurikah, hoboin' around and sleepin' under train trestles (apparently, from his $10 million mansion, America in the 1980s was indistinguishable from America during the Depression).

One thing these stories never mention is that all those albums like "Nebraska" that were supposed to encapsulate the experiences of the downtrodden workers (according to the rave reviews from the effite, Ivy League magazine writers) were his worst sellers because the average American didn't buy them. For some reason, when Joe and Jane Sixpack forked over their hard-earned money for concert tickets or CDs, they didn't want to hear draggy ballads about how badly their lives suck. They wanted to hear "Pink Cadillac" and "Rosalita." So if Bruce really gave a damn about helping and uplifting the masses, he'd give them some songs they could dance to.

It all reminds me of the scene in "Stardust Memories" when Woody Allen asks some space aliens what he should to do to help mankind. They reply, "You're a comedian. If you want to help mankind, tell funnier jokes."

[Mr. Mojo]

Great post, and I completely concur.

[secret garden]

I agree with a previous poster in that your thoughts are similar to mine. His best stuff was done years and years ago. Now it's just one whiny drone after another. And Nebraska? I can sum it up in two letters - P U.