Cut Loose Like a Duece
Listen, I like Bruce Springsteen, but I'm ready to be IN-like with Bruce Springsteen, and that's going to take some research. So I'm going to become a superfan by thoroughly contemplating one song per day. Starting.... now.
Song: Blinded by the LIght
Album: Greetings from Asbury Park, NJ
Year: 1973
This is a revelation. Who knew he wrote this song? Probably everyone but me. This project is great so far—I'm already getting smarter! And so many ten-dollar words in the mix here, too. It's like a dictionary threw up all over a factory town.
It's a bold move to start off your debut album with a five minute song, but Bruce is nothing if not bold. He's an inspiration to us all, and looks good doing it. Here is a picture of Bruce in 1973. His facial hair could use some work, but it's hard to find time to trim your mature-teen-stache when you're crafting sheer poetry (if, in fact, phrases like "go-kart Mozart" can be considered poetry).
Overall, it's a little bit ramble-y and Dylan-y, but I'm into it. I like when Bruce acts as an omniscient narrator of New Jersey. He said, she said, shootin' stars in sidecars, etc.
Rating: 7 curly-wurlys out of 10 This song makes me feel: like making out in a beer garden. Bruce Fact of the Day: The Manfred Mann recording of "Blinded by the Light" is Springsteen's only number one single as a songwriter on the Hot 100. Bummer, dude.