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Bruce Springsteen
A few days ago, my wife told me that she heard a radio d.j. promoting his upcoming program, called ‘Is Springsteen over-rated?’ I couldn’t help but think that this d.j. was hopelessly uninformed and out of touch. Nearly forty years into his career, and Bruce Springsteen still needs to suffer fools like this? From his very first album, he had to deflect the ‘next Dylan’ hype, then the simultaneous Newsweek and Time magazine covers, while naysayers wondered if he deserved it. In later years, fans bemoaned that he ‘lost it’ simply because he refused to rewrite (fill in your favorite Springsteen song here). If nothing else, Bruce has been tenacious, and reasonably consistent as a songwriter. Few people know their way around populist ideals as well as Springsteen does, and maybe that is exactly why there will always be someone who resents his innate ability to reach into the heart of a crowd.
“Working On a Dream” will give the skeptical plenty to squawk about. It is also one of Springsteen’s most interesting albums. Superficially, it is easy to criticize much of the material. “Queen of the Supermarket” sounds like a near-mindless concept, while “Outlaw Pete” is so deceptively dumb that it could start a bar fight. Since it is also the opening track, it is virtually impossible to ignore, as he sings, “He robbed a bank in his diapers and little bare baby feet, all he said was “Folks my name is Outlaw Pete.” A more auspicious beginning to a major album would be hard to imagine. As the song unfolds, it grows in grandeur until it becomes cinematic in scope, but doubters will remain perplexed, or even dumbfounded. Cinematic? “Screen door slams. Mary’s dressed waiting. Like a vision she dances…” That is cinematic. “I’m Outlaw Pete, can you hear me?” Puh-lease. “Thunder Road” is widescreen, surround sound huge. Comparably, “Outlaw Pete” is a kinescope. So, I understand why people will criticize and nitpick at this song, but they ought to stop and think that Springsteen wrote it, fully aware of his own catalog, and that there is something playful and ironic at work here. He knows what the expectations are, and by leading off with this track, he deflects pre-formed opinions, and subsequently, the album proves itself to be as rich in imagery and melody as anything he has ever done.
For starters, “Working on a Dream” is much less dense than 2007’s”Magic,” allowing the instruments to breathe. There is spaciousness where there previously had been claustrophobia. Perhaps the difference is political in its essence - “Magic” captured Springsteen’s impression of the Bush years, while “Working on a Dream” portrays a cautious optimism, as implied by the title track and “My Lucky Day.” Springsteen is undoubtedly in love, and he is fully capable of tapping into that vein for rich material that expresses the joy of living in the moment. On “This Life,” he unabashedly expresses that thought, singing “A bang then stardust in your eyes, a billion years or just this night, either way it’ll be all right,” while the gorgeous arrangement suggests Brian Wilson at his finest. “Tomorrow Never Knows” (not the Beatles song, but a beautiful country rocker with strings), and “Life Itself” further develop this theme, and it reaches its apotheosis on “Kingdom of Days,” where he sings, “I count my blessings that you’re mine for always. We laugh beneath the covers and count the wrinkles and the grays…this is our kingdom of days.”
“Working on a Dream” is an album you could grow old with, but listeners need to let its beauty reveal itself. If you’re a Springsteen fan, you might as well brace yourself for the usual uninformed negativity that often accompanies his latter-day work. Some people will hear a song or two, then toss off “Working on a Dream” by saying that he lost it, or some such thing. The truth, though, is exactly opposite that. The album demands you to listen beneath the surface, and if you are willing to try, the pay off is extraordinary. Some time in the future, “Working On a Dream” is destined to reveal itself as a masterpiece, one of Springsteen’s finest albums, but meanwhile, the debate is sure to rage on. Loudmouths and ignorant d.j.’s will continue to spew nonsense, but I’ll drown them out by listening to “Working on a Dream.”
Grade: 
 
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