Meet The Old Boss

by Andrew

The connection between Bruce Springsteen and Brian Wilson may not be immediately obvious, but if one puts a bit more thought to it, they do represent in many ways the hopes and dreams of the two coasts of America. The connection was brought a bit closer when Bruce Springsteen performed with Brian in May 2007. The early work of Bruce Springsteen probably reflected most closely the romanticism and idealism of Brian’s work, and his latest album, Working On A Dream, seems to bring that back.

I must admit that I have lost touch with much of Springsteen’s more recent work, but reading reviews of this album indicating touches of classic pop, Brian Wilson and even Scott Walker piqued my interest, and I went off to my local to get a copy. And although there are nods to folk and blues (The Last Carnival, Good Eye), there is definitely a bias towards pop, harmony and a sophisticated production approach. For my money, this works out best on This Life, which sounds like something Brian could have done, and works very well as a romantic ballad. However, much of the rest also takes this approach, and the overall feel does take me back to the yearning fantasies of his first three albums, as opposed to the gritty reality of much of his later work. Overall, this was a nice surprise for me and deserves the success it has been getting.