Skin2Skin

Which brings up the philosophical question--what is sadder--a popular 70 year old musician who some perceive as having "hit the wall quite some time ago" or an individual expressing that sentiment posting on the fan page of that musician?

It was, I suspect, said in jest, a throwaway line, as you say. Much like, "If (insert name of sports team here) wins, I'll eat my hat." Most people don't actually eat their hats. Or "If I were ever to get (insert disease name here), I'd kill myself." That doesn't mean the disease isn't awful. Just that most people say stuff like this all the time, but it's hard to really make dramatic changes, especially late in life.

You can click follow on the blog itself--go all the way to the bottom and a "follow" pop-up box appears. It's underneath his "Follow me on Twitter." Thanks for your interest. He is very dedicated to his blog and updates weekly. He is much more mellow than I am :), but equally passionate about music.

He writes a blog (The Old Grey Cat) mostly about music, but also memories. His audience is early Gen X-ers and late Baby Boomers, he says

My husband's thoughts and speculations (different from my own): https://oldgreycat.blog/2020/09/12/first-impressions-letter-to-you-by-bruce-springsteen-the-e-street-band/?fbclid=IwAR1GCu1r3EK09VPbCoeDKf4dP12LG-X3hrefs7BeWsydYBNPeKPKfpSwryA

EXACTLY how I feel.

Americana is a very loose genre--as a musical term, it began as a hybrid between rock and roll and roots country, but has now become a catch-all phrase. I think Western Stars is akin to the music I grew up on and listened to on am radio stations that were called rock and roll radio stations. In the 80's, rock and roll became stratified to what I'd call rock music; it became more segregated and more discriminating (in the worst sense of the word). I heard Glen Campbell, James Brown, Carole King, and the Beatles on oldies stations and I guess that's why I listened to oldies stations a lot i

I was thinking it was also self-referential. Mongrel nymphs are now mongrel trees. In the Broadway show, he talks about a particular tree that was his solace. "If he were a mystic," one of his inspirations is now rooted in nature, specifically the nature surrounding him in his home. He never knows which particular tree will make him feel rooted, a part of the ongoing link with the universe. But he also still identifies as a mongrel, not a purebred. Maybe.

Simple does not equal lame. But beauty (and lameness) is in the eye of the beholder.

I wrote "usually." My sense of this album is that will have a unifying thread. Assuming that there will be some political matter (whether specific or more broad), based on this song alone, I think integrity, honesty, truth, and ethics will be themes, overt or subtle.

Because this is a single and not the album, we are listening to it in that context--but Bruce is usually an album guy, aiming for cohesion. It will be interesting to hear it within the context of the album. Which I am also looking forward to doing

A Byrds song.

It also took me a few listens to really like it. Every time I hear it, I like it more. I hear the Byrds, but also the Heartbreakers as someone said earlier. (But then, Petty was very Byrds-influenced.) I also hear echoes of Western Stars, but it seems to me that Western Stars was different personas Bruce was sharing, they were him, but also not him. This is him. Intimately talking to us.

It's a love letter to us.

That is exactly how I heard it. To me, it's an expression of his career, especially in the last few years. It can also be heard as a personal love song. That's called good art.