My kid doesn’t get Bruce Springsteen.
Try as I might to interest him in one of my absolute favorite musicians, he turns up his nose, referring to Springsteen as “country.”
Eh, what does a 12-year-old know anyhow?
But rather than let it go, I’ve been determined to prove to my kid just how cool and wonderful Bruce is. I’ve pretty much been unable to sway him Springsteen’s way until a connection snagged me an early copy of “Wrecking Ball,” Springsteen’s new and very political album that comes out on Tuesday.
I’ve been absorbing “Wrecking Ball” slowly, playing it every chance I get, never letting on to my country-hating kid that the new music he’s enjoying is Springsteen’s.
Guess what?
As if he were a 21st century Mikey tasting Life cereal for the first time, my kid likes it!
I am guessing that if you’re even a sorta-Springsteen fan, you will, too.
“Wrecking Ball,” more than makes up for his last album, the lackluster “Working on a Dream.” “Wrecking Ball” is highly political, pointed, described by someone as a soundtrack for the Occupy movement.
It tells the stories of ordinary people struggling to get by, much like Springsteen’s earlier “Nebraska,” but instead of the stripped-down sparseness of “Nebraska,” “Wrecking Ball” reaches for the anthemic heights and bravado of “Born in the USA.”
Most meaningful for me is that “Wrecking Ball” provides a lighted path for aging boomers to continued creativity and risk taking. Most musicians in their early 60s — if they’re still performing — are embarking on geezer tours, reliving their glory days. Springsteen’s path winds through familiar territory with new material, new sounds and new attitudes.
It’s an example I hope inspires my kid like it does me.
