First things first did y'all see Adam Lambert on Capital's Summertime Ball? Oh.My.Gods. You guys! That makeup! I honestly wanted to toss my laptop aside and go draw him ASAP. It's insane and I absolutely will go draw him right after this. I'd draw the same makeup on myself but believe me, my family does not appreciate creativity or independence. Oh my god what will the people say? Jesus fuck the people who cares. Also Adam changing Chers ''Believe'' into ''Do you know the muffin man?'' it's kinda totally hysterical and I'm so here for it. I only saw him with Queen, but he seems like a great preformer on his own, even if I'm not all into his solo stuff. Allergic to pop music and all that. Second thing is that while I'm here rubbing my hair with a towel because it never stops fucking raining and filling out my book wishlist (I am telling you guys book reading and book buying are two separate things) let me just say how desperatelly I'd need a glass of Chardonnay (or make that a bottle od Hamptons Water, got a taste to it now) to finish up this lengthy post that follows.
Alright I'm really here for a record review for a change. Y'all know I love everything Bruce puts out right? Like there aint his music that I wouldn't like, but what does it say about me, if I say that I absolutely adore this album, and songs aren't even his? I mean...gods. Everything he does is perfect, but guys this is so flawless. It's just...oh my god. Like...I can't. I can't put it into words, from the first second you put that record on...and it starts with him just talking which softly trasits into a song...my god. What the hell is going on with this man? How can each album he puts out top the one before? I tell you what, if you were to look up the definition of music? This is it. He is it. This album is IT. Look no further, it's perfection on a freaking ginger vinyl.
Alright lets start with this, if you don't like this album we can not be friends. Literally that's it. Game over. Because that's the negativity I don't need in my life. I need friends that understand and appreciate perfection. Second thing not me turning this up, while washing the car outside in my bikinis and howling along (mostly to the dog, nobody else will listen). Yes summer is back in the Balkans and it seems like we're all either melting or drowning. Second is more like it though because in between smothering heat there's so much rain (or frozen rain) you'd not believe.
This album is a cover album I already mentioned above, and it's a volume 1. apparently a part two follows. Oh! So exciting! Also side note but the original songs we all know I hope? I mean...nothing but mad respect to the original musicians, writers, singers, etc, but y'all know this is better right? First song I heard was ''Nightshift'' and I knew this is going to be huge. These are soul songs but somehow Boss manages to put even more ''soul'' into them. A whole new meaning, life, vibe...every single smallest detail, in the band, in the music (that guitar in ''When she was my girl''? Lord have mercy I need to fan myself, it's so perfect), and the voice? The voice! Orgasm material. The crooning, the growls, the bluesy sound. The fact that you hear rain in ''I wish it would rain''? Jesus take the wheel I can't take it.
Here's the deal there's only two ways Boss does things, first it's hours upon hours in the studio, perfectionism and endless nights, doing things over and over till they are perfect (don't I understand that). Or he gets a sudden flash of creativity and basically does an entire album in a week, without going back and doing anything again, like he did ''Letters to you''. Then you got this one ''Only the strong survive''. He created this album in the early days of the lockdown (who said lockdown was useless? I did many times I know but still.), when he had too much time on his hands and went to do covers of his favourite songs. Let me point out that my man has flawless music taste, not that I'd expect anything else.
I know what y'all are thinking though, that Springsteen just pulled a Rod Stewart with this album but it aint that way. Boss doesn't just do a static cover, he takes a song and makes it his own, stadium song, he shows us how the song makes him feel not just telling us he likes a song by making a cover of it. Also there's been covers on his concerts forever. I remember he did a cover of ''Shout'' on my first concert of his (OH MY GODS! Concert nr. 3 fast approaching and I don't know what to do with myself, about jumping out of my skin from excitement here, lol).
Maybe what's surprising the most, the begining ''Only the strong survive'', modified a little (I love that little chuckle in between), but else just note per note the same, a wonderful tribute to Jerry Butler. But also the selection of songs on it's own, ever thought about that? Probably you have, but let me tell you how I feel about it regardless, aside from having multiple orgasms while listening of course. Lol. You got some serious classics on here like ''Turn back the hands of time'' but you also have something more ''modern'' like ''Soul days'' which is funny I was just raving about Dobie Gray or better Joe Elliott singing few lines, or better the title of the blog below is Gray's song. Imagine Boss covers that song, my mind might actually explode, or should I say implode? A little submarine joke for y'all. Then there's also 80's gems like ''Nightshift'' and ''When she was my girl'' (fun fact I actually love the Four Tops). And honestly it's not even surprising Boss is drawn to these songs is it? We both love that minor to major uplift, the soft build up, the gospel, the blues, the soul, the hope and the dreams you hear in the songs. God. And songs about lost love, and summer nights, and backroads and tragedy. I get that. I know that. I relate to that. I love that.
To be honest even if he'd wanna modify the songs to make them his own, what would he even have to do? These songs are him in the end. This is him. Should we also point out how the music sounds like there's a 20 piece orchestra behind him, the entire freaking E Street band at least, but really it's just one man? Mr. Ron Aniello. WHAT?! How?! This is...woah. Mind blown up like that one emoji. You know which one. I mean okay, he's been a collaborator for ''Wrecking ball'' and ''High hopes'' both amazing albums, and it seems to me that with him there's this...how to put it, style? Perhaps that's the word. Style of music, or rather sound, that they've been exploring together. Maybe Ron was a push out of the comfort zone to do more exploring with his sound. A bloody brilliant push out of the comfort zone too.
I heard someone say that this is a very feelgood album about feeling bad. Fair point. Vulnereability is a common streak in this album, but it's presented in a more positive way, instead of everything being doom and gloom. If I understood it right though Rob and Bruce started recording this album and they named themselves the ''Night Shift'', probably working into late nights and that naturally progressed into the song ''Nightshift'' which is and will remain my fave on this album. Though, honestly, picking a favourite is so hard because all songs are fantastic.
It's been some memory lane type thing if you look at it that way, wasn't it? Like the last couple of years, there's been old classics on tour, which he always shakes up a bit so not many concerts are totally identical. Picture me jealous over how he played ''The River'' the other day but he surely won't on my date. It's going to be GN'R all over again you guys. Then you got his entire life story in a book, which btw audio book in this case is a hell of a lot better, purely because he's reading it ddd. Then this hit Broadway, anothe thing to paint me jealous over. Can y'all imagine the Boss on Broadway? I'd sell my entire family for that. Not that anyone'd wanna buy them. Any of y'all went to see him btw? I'd not be against a full report. There were songs about old friends, songs about lost friends and of course ''Letter to you'' for which they used some old seventies material to make happen.
Given that this album in many ways is nostalgic to Boss, revisitng his favourites, songs that mean something to him. It's kinda like...the album starts with the words ''I remember''...and it's a Seventies style album tbh, now think in the Seventies Bruce would of been that fiften yearold kid that just started playing, that just got his first electric guitar and started exploring his sound and place in the world. And now add that line he once said to that ''if you played in a bar on the central New Jersey shore in the sixties and seventies, you played soul music'' that's what this is. Soul. But then again if you think about it Bruce has always been a soul musician, he just never let that voice through, except on specially reserved projects, but here that's a different story. I just love how his phrasing draws out that quiet nostalgia of Dobie Gray (Bruce if you ever sing Drift away, I will die at your feet, just sayin). And the falsetto in the Temptations song, I love it, it's not only him celebrating his own favourites but a celebration of soul music in general.
Like, are y'all aware just how difficult creating cover albums is? There's a thin line between making the album sound like a complete copy, or too far fetched from the original sound and song. You need that right balance to make it perfect, and catching that balance sure isn't easy. At least it wouldn't be easy for me. I look at it from my artistic point of view. I constantly worry about originality of my work. Like the world is so full of music and arts and poetry and everything, it's so hard to be completely original. You're constantly inspired by something and it's bound to bleed into your work. But where is that line where something is inspired and something is copied? That's the tough part. With music it's even more difficult, I think it's safe to say people always prefer the original over the cover. I could probably list about 5 songs that I prefer covers of but that's about it, not me recently discovering a cover of ''Girl got rhythm'' by AC DC that is absolutely one hundred percent better than the original. Lol. Anyone got any good Scorpions covers? It's a recent thing that I despise them but also still love their songs and would rather not listen to them them? Does that make sense at all?
Anyways back to the point, I don't even think this album was set out to be a cover album, I think it was made as a resurrection, as a way to celebrate old classics that we somehow forgotten or just don't hear much of, but to be fair these are some of the strongest vocalists and songwriters of all time and the songs, covers if you will, or better tributes, they're heartfelt, they're not just static songs, you can tell, and you can feel he loves these songs. You know these are his songs. And what an amazing way to bring a new light to these songs, to make sure they survive, to make sure new generations hear them.
There's a moment in a song, I don't know if you're paying that close attention but on the ''Don't play that song'' by Aretha and Ben E. King, Boss goes off the charted teritory. He adds ''I remember those summer nights down by the shore, as the band played, with you in my arms, and we moved across that floor''. I mean these are such SUCH Bruce lines, and such a Bruce thing to do, adding up, making things a bit different than the original, saw him do it live twice, and if you think about it just how freaking genius and perfect he is, he is adding a piece of himself, a piece of who he is, essentially a piece of his own soul into something that's already considered living history. I love that. A couple of the greatest, entertwined in history forever.
Now a couple of words on the album design. Firstly I love the clean black look. Absolute perfection. The man looks sexy as hell, the hand porn? Yeah I die. Did y'all notice the reoccuring car theme? Chapter and Verse, Western stars (back cover and my favourite photo of him, obvious reasons) and now this one? Let me point out that the man and I have absolutely matching car taste. I LOVE all of his cars, well him as well so it kinda fits. Did you notice how many details are put into his records? The inner sleeves, the whole gatefold, the gatefold actually has a car printed on the inside, the entire car theme bleeding on all components? I abolutely adore it. The picture inside the gatefold? Lord have mercy. I love how they added a poster that's a fun detail and I actually have another one from Born to run but that's that. It's funny in a way I'd love a Bruce poster probably framed on my wall, but it's not like I'd ever take it out of the vinyl. And I LOVE the neon orange and the etching of a speed meter. How freaking clever is that. Do you know any other artists with etched vinyl? Let me know, I'd love to hear it. Also the sound quality on this vinyl? It's actually fantastic, dynamic, rich, you can hear each instrument and you can hear his voice perfectly, a completely different experience than digital.
Guys! Oh my god! The next post might actually already be the concert review given by how much I actually write lately. I am SO excited you have no idea! It's been far too long from the River tour which was my favourite tour to date. Another local concert tomorrow, we all know how much I love those right? Nothing like drunk kids and being spilled on and walked on. Fun times. But ya know, free tickets that come with a free drink coupon? This girl has her priorities sorted and knows you do NOT turn that down. Now if y'all excuse me I have about 13 drawings to finish up, poor time managing skills and simply putting things off each time there's a little sunshine outside (can ya blame me though?) led to that. Here's to early weekends! Enjoy guys.
No comments:
Post a Comment