Fun, a bit of nostalgia and a lot of respect for the original sources that marked his awakening to music in his teens: the new album by Boss, which will be released this Friday the 11th, offers a vitalist menu of versions prepared hand in hand with its producer , Ron Aniello, who plays most of the instruments and who is joined by brass, strings and choirs. Repertoire rooted in the 60s that Springsteen tackles by invoking figures like Ben E. King, Jimmy Ruffin or The Temptations. We review the 15 songs.
‘Only the strong survive’
“I remember my first love story / One way or another it all went wrong / My mother had great advice / I thought I’d put words to it in this song / I can still hear her saying it & rdquor ;, the Boss begins singing, recalling remote life lessons on account of this ‘hit’ by Jerry Butler in 1968. Only the strong survive. ‘No surrender’. Pure Springsteen.
‘Soul Days’
Cordial compadre with Sam Moore, guest voice, bathed in melancholy and in tribute to soul music itself. “I want to hear a little bit of Wilson Pickett & rdquor ;, he recites at the end. And Joe Tex, and Sam & Dave, and Aretha Franklin… Unbeatable naturalness, as if it were his own song and he performed it surrounded by an audience.
‘nightshift’
This is not a sixties, but an eighties issue of The Commodores, and Springsteen takes it with heartfelt conviction. Song in memory of two soul myths, Marvin Gaye and Jackie Wilson, both of whom died in 1984. “I’m going to miss your sweet voice, that soulful sound, on the night shift.”
‘Do I love you (indeed I do)’
Motown sound at will in an impetuous ‘uptempo’ released as the first ‘single’ from the album, with a sax solo and overwhelming choral reinforcement. Original from Texan Frank Wilson in 1965.
‘The sun ain’t gonna cry anymore’
A solemn turn in this song ‘bigger than life’ by the duo Crewe & Gaudio (the ones from ‘Can’t take my eyes off you’), which in the 60s first Frankie Valli and then The Walker Brothers made their own (and which Clarence Clemons recorded on his own in 1985). Sound reminiscent of Phil Spector, notorious influence on ‘Born to run’.
‘Turn back the hands of time’
The Boss roars loud and angry here, cursing himself for the mistakes he’s made and praying that the hands of the clock can turn backwards. Powerful milestone by Tyrone Davis in 1970, which halfway fits a change of tone on which Bruce rides at will.
‘When she was my girl’
More remorse and ill conscience in this assault on the silky theme of The Four Tops, intoned with power and subtlety, to match the clear guitar solo.
hey western union man
“Tell him I’m down and I think he avoids me / and if a telegram doesn’t work / send him a box of sweets too and maybe some flowers & rdquor ;, begs Bruce putting himself in the shoes of Jerry Butler, wrapped in a refined string arrangement.
‘I wish it would rain’
Heartbreak, abandonment and a metaphorical invocation of healing rain as an amendment to the cliché of masculinity: “Everyone knows that a man is not supposed to cry / But hey, I have to cry / because crying relieves the pain & rdquor ;, sings Springsteen in this stirring classic from The Temptations, from 1967, guided by a distinctive piano phrase.
‘Don’t play that song’
One of the hottest spots: Bruce takes over Ben E. King’s landmark 1962 hit (composed by his wife, Betty Nelson, and Atlantic Records handyman Ahmet Ertegun), tweaking the lyrics and adding some spoken winks to the end. views of lost youth, of “summer nights & rdquor; and to forgiveness. “I don’t care if you lied / we’re going to dance & rdquor ;.
‘any other way’
Among the many minor milestones, this ‘top 10’ theme in 1962-63 in the versions of Chuck Jackson and Jackie Shane, original by William Bell, which Springsteen solves by injecting more fiber and emphasizing the brass section.
‘I forgot to be your lover’
Bruce in torrid mode, paying tribute to Stax Records in this sixties soul ballad that, in the 80s, Billy Idol would take to cyber-rock with the title of ‘Be your lover’. Floating feelings of guilt: “I have worked for you as much as I could / but working all day does not make me a man / I forgot to be your lover / and I’m sorry, but somehow I’ll make it up to you & rdquor ;.
‘7 Rooms of Gloom’
A roaring assault on this dark number by the Holland, Dozier & Holland triumvirate, which the Four Tops took to number 14 on the US hit parade in 1967. It inherits the rhythmic power of Motown, in bittersweet contrast with lyrics sprinkled with empty rooms and disconsolate waiting. Raw Bruce, soul without hubbub.
‘What becomes of the brokenhearted’
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Another high-octane classic, on account of the fate of broken hearts, a disconsolate ‘power ballad’ to which Springsteen does not dare to contribute novelties beyond a heartfelt performance with an orchestral apparatus. Praise to Jimmy Ruffin, who first brought him to life in 1966.
‘Someday we’ll be together’
To say goodbye, the Boss turns to the song that closed the 60s, the last number one of the decade on ‘Billboard’ (December 1969), and in turn, the final release of Diana Ross with The Supremes. As the climax of the album, he tastes like the ultimate tribute to that era, perhaps to a certain purity of spirit, leaving the doors open.