Bruce Springsteen
The Wild, The Innocent and the East Street Shuffle
So somebody had to do it eventually.
He is an american singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums during a career spanning six decades. He is an originator of heartland rock a genre combining mainstream rock music with poetic and socially conscious lyrics that tell a narrative about working-class American life. He is known for his lyrics and energetic concerts, with performances that can last more than four hours.
He is ‘The Boss’. He is Bruce Springsteen.
Bruce has been a major part of the sound track of my life since 1974, when I bought my first Springsteen record. Mrs S is (if its possible) an even greater fan of his work. She has an endlessly played a playlist of every album he has issued on shuffle and can identify every song from the first few bars far quicker than me. What kind of weirdo am I though. My two most loved artists are Kate and Bruce. Very similar musical styles they have.
I can’t remember exactly when I first read the words “I have seen the future of Rock and Roll and its name is Bruce Springsteen”. I suspect it was in an article by the NME. Nick Kent maybe quoting the guy who said those words, an american critic called John Landau (who went on to manage Bruce for many years). Whatever, the article certainly captured my interest big time. When was this? I’m guessing it was in the run up to Born to Run’s release so that would but it sometime in the first 6 months of 1974. Indeed the article majored heavily on Springsteens deteriorating relationship with his label Colombia which was playing out before the issue of BtR.
Living in a small town in the east of Scotland, buying an album presented you with three options:
1). mail order - took too long, 2). train journey to Edinburgh, cost too much, 3).wait until a Saturday morning when a van would park on the bleaching fields and sell albums out of the back.- preferred choice! I remember asking the guy for any Bruce Springsteen album and after much rummaging, this is what I got. Bruce’s second album The Wild, The Innocent and the East Street Shuffle.
I have spoken before of a very few albums that just hit you between the eyes. You fall in love with them after the first play. Pet Sounds, Revolver, Foxtrot, Close to the Edge...... This was another. Forty five minutes of cinematic rock. It drips with imagery, Boardwalks, Cadillacs, Casinos with strongly written characters, Spanish Johnny, Puerto Rican Jane, Billy, Rosalita, Kitty and Sandy, all taken from the New Jersey streets that Bruce Inhabited. Lyrically, its an absolute joy exploring as it does Bruces recurring themes of finding heroism in everyday life, unfulfilled dreams and parental conflict. Musically, although not yet fully formed (or named), the E Street band to me sound like they have already matured into an exceptional band and I know of no other that makes such spectacular use of the saxophone and brass in general. Whilst this early sound is generally a bit looser and jazz orientated than it would become, this album has remained in my favourites of his for decades.
The band is made up of Clarence Clemons who would be part of E Street until he died in 2011 on Saxophone. Vini (Mad Dog) Lopez on drums (Max Weinberg replaced him after this album). Vini was asked to resign - I doubt that was to do with his drumming capability so it must have been his nickname. I must admit to having a soft spot for the looser style on this album as I do find Max a little bish bash bosh sometimes (think Born in the USA). Piano and keyboards is played on this album by David Sancious who also left after this album but has returned to work with Springsteen on a number of albums since. He has also done some cracking work with the likes of Peter Gabriel and Jack Bruce. Gary Talent (Bass) remains a stalwart of the E Street Band to this day. Danny Federici supplied Accordion and Organ on a number of tracks. Bruce played all guitars (no sign yet of ‘Little Stevie Van Zandt or Nils Lofgren), to my ear, very effectively despite his own disparaging remarks about his ability on the instrument. Vocally, this is one of my favourite performances despite his occasional lapses into Dylanesque. His singing voice is engaging and rich.
The album was welcomed by very warm critical reviews but, in terms of sales, it bombed completely. So of all Bruce’s 21 studio albums why pick this? There were a number of favourites I could have picked from his unparalleled body of work. One of his more recent works, Letter to You and Western Stars are both strong albums packed with beautiful songs. I could easily have chosen Nebraska which I considered probably his finest collection of songs but thought its stark acoustic beauty but very dark subject matter might be a little off-putting to some. Born to Run itself? The album that would conquer the world? Too well known.
Bruce has been telling America’s story with truth, sensitivity and humanity for his entire career. But with this album, that story was told through the wide-eyed perspective of a 23-year-old boy from NJ, with a dream and an innate understanding of the hugeness of life’s daily experiences, like the passion of young love, the celebration of relationships, the struggle for survival, and the fireworks on the fourth of July. This album was also pretty unique - firstly it featured a first iteration of the E Street band. David Sancious brought a jazz vibe to the record that doesn’t exist as noticeably in subsequent albums. Above all, I wanted a joyous album, cinematic and rich in texture and one that (hopefully) will make you smile and that you will enjoy.
So to the album itself. In these days of streaming, I still think of it as two sides with side 2 starting with ‘Incident’:
- The E Street Shuffle
- 4th of July Asbury Park (Sandy)
- Kitty’s Back
- Wild Billy’s Circus Show
- Incident on 57th Street
- Rosalita (Come Out Tonight)
- New York City Serenade
The Album kicks off with The E Street Shuffle, a party of brass and guitar funk and showcases some really well drawn lyrics:
'Sparks fly on E Street when the boy prophets walk it handsome and hot,
All the little girls' souls grow weak when the manchild gives them a double shot,
The schoolboy pops pull out all the stops on a Friday night,
The teenage tramps in skin-tight pants do the E Street dance and everything's alright,
Little kids down there either dancin' or hooked up in a scuffle,
Dressed in snake-skin suits packed with Detroit muscle
They're doin' the E Street Shuffle'.
The
E Street Shuffle remains a constant of Bruce’s live show. I love the track from first note to last but there is a particularly nice guitar break about 3 minutes in.
‘Sandy’ describes a romantic incident with the bosses daughter. Its poignant and yearning and introduces what will become a well worn theme of escape to a better place. Sensitive, yearning vocals lay over a simple acoustic guitar and accordion melody underpinned by understated sax and bass. It has a particularly haunting climax, as Bruce softly whispers that a new dawn means leaving behind his “little Eden” on the Jersey Shore: “The aurora is risin’ behind us…This boardwalk life for me is through/ You know you oughta quit this scene too.”
Kitty’s Back would become another long standing live favourite . Bruce goes big band. This studio version still catches the very essence of what he does on stage with this song. The track is all triumph and reconciliation, as Kitty’s ex shamelessly admits he’s powerless to hold a grudge. Fawning over Kitty’s soft skin and sad eyes, the singer playfully groans while warmly receiving her back into his arms: “Oooooooh, what can I do/ Oooooooh, what can I do.”
Wild Billy’s Circus Show - Is there any other song you know with a Tuba intro? This is a song/story full of circus freaks and evokes a darker side. It reeks of sawdust and misdeeds bubbling under the surface.
Incident on 57th Street lays the foundation for a number of Bruce’s classic songs. Without ‘Incident,’ there could not be a ‘Jungleland’ or “Backstreets’ or racing in the streets’….
Spanish Johnny drove in from the underworld last night
With bruised arms and broken rhythm in a beat-up old Buick but dressed just like dynamite
He tried sellin’ his heart to the hard girls over on Easy Street
But they sighed, “Johnny, it falls apart so easy and you know hearts these days are cheap”
His first real epic, where he marries the story, lyrics, imagery and instrumentation into a perfect song. In those first four lines you learn so much. Johnny is a heroin addict gigalo who falls in love with a prostitute. The song is a story of their Romeo and Juliet romance and it's damn near perfect. The use of piano and organ throughout is a joy. As you can tell, this track is one of my all time Springsteen favourites.
this is a very rare and very good live rendition for those interested.
Rosalita (Come out Tonight) - ‘A raucous celebration of desire’ "more lyrical and ironic than you could have dreamed"."One of the great rock'n roll performances, and as close to a perfect song as anyone's ever recorded," "Never mind The Beatles or Stones, this is the best rock'n roll track of all time." The song is one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fames 500 songs that shaped Rock n Roll. Its safe to say that this track has been rightly lauded by rock critics over the years. The song remains constant in Bruce’s live show encores.
Like many of his songs, the story is true and reflects a real life rock n roll romance.
New York City Serenade - a partner piece to ‘Incident’ and to me almost as good. A song Bruce wrote based on his observations of life on he street in 70’s New York. Bruce attributes the musical style to Van the mans Astral Weeks. He draws from local jazzman on the street to create a jazz-infused R&B arrangement to truly capture the mood of what he felt while walking the streets. As a detached bystander from New Jersey, he was able to safely capture what he needs from the streets without getting sucked into the lifestyle. Springsteen has always been an artist who writes for the underdogs, and the underbelly of society.
Thank the lord for Bruce Springsteen. A good guy, on the side of the angels, and for me the most important US artist since Elvis. For me The Wild, The Innocent and The E Street Shuffle is the album where he first turned potential into bona fide genius. Whilst I have followed his career and live shows ever since, it was this album, written by a 24 year old that captured the heart and mind of a 16 year old.
I hope you find something you like.
