Alright kids. Here we go. I am not promising to do a long winded story about every single piece of vinyl I own but they should at least all get mentioned at some point or another. Maybe not. I'm not sure. There are alot of pieces of vinyl behind me. I technically started listening to Bruce Springsteen around the mtv video era. Probally dancing in the dark or born in the usa videos. I didn't really care what the songs were about as I was too young. I didn't really follow that. All I comprehended was that somebody had put out an album that alot of people gave a crap about for one reason or the other. Whether you worked in a factory and felt like he was speaking for you, you felt like it was a hogwash or if you happened to be female and just liked looking at the cover of Born in the USA, you had an opinion one way or the other. It might have been the biggest release of my youth that I could remember after Michael Jacksons Thriller. As it turned out Springsteen became somewhat of a folk hero of sorts. People who saw him in the 70's whispered about the shows to the people in the 80's and from there (despite some missteps along the way) he is now a certified baby boomer rock star draw and consistently fills stadiums almost purely on his live show reputation. I think thats what draws my interest. He just draws on the legend of being himself. How does one deal with that on that level. Is it a construct or is it genuine? I picture him as being pretty humble for the status that he has. I think this is the line you walk on whether or not you listen to Springsteen at all. You either buy into that whole image or you think its ridiculous that a millionaire writes songs for the working man. Upon listening to this album I get a big Woody Guthire vibe and I can't decide if its a genuine progression from the Pete Seeger sessions he did or a calculated shot at the anniversary of Woody Guthrie. I like the general feel of the songs as they have a protest feel but at some points I don't feel like the songs go anywhere. It's just the intial flash of the pan idea and then it fades. If it is supposed to be protest song feeling then that makes sense, but the work that makes Sprigsteen super interesting is when there is another layer beneath the surface. I feel that occupy wall street super influenced this record. Then the million dollar question becomes can a milloniare write a protest song about millionaires. I think they can. It just depends on how they use thier money. I never hear about how Springsteen spends his money so until then I just listen along until something strikes me. I haven't been super stricken by this record yet but it might grow on me. We'll see.