Springsteen’s mistake

A couple of friends have mentioned this to me, on Facebook and other areas, so I figured I should blog about my reaction to Springsteen’s mistake.

First, some history: I’ve been a Bruce fan since 1981.Senior year in high school, I was driving myself around… and I remember getting up at 3 or 4 AM to get dressed and go stand in line at the Carolina Colisseum for tickets to my very first rock concert – Bruce Springsteen’s tour for “The River.”

The concert was on a Sunday night. I had to sneak out of church to meet my friends and take my seat for the show. I did not stay in my seat once the show started, and I came home hoarse from singing along to ‘Hungry Heart,’ ‘Independence Day’ (which resonated thru my teenaged heart and my relationship with my father), and, of course, ‘Born To Run.’ Actually, hoarse is not quite right – I couldn’t talk for a couple of days afterwards, simply because I blew my voice out singing along with Broooooce!

Fast forward a few years – I take my best girl (whom I’m still friends with, I’m glad to say) to see Bruce’s ‘Born In the USA’ tour. We had nosebleed seats. It was awesome. My ears rang for days!

In the years since I last saw Bruce live, I’ve had about eight different jobs, most of which at the same company, moved to northwest Arkansas, gotten married to my best friend (and the most patient woman I know), had major open-heart surgery, gained fifty pounds, owned my first dog, got older, lost dogs and cats to illness and old age, listened to a lot of music, and continued to admire and support Mr. Springsteen thru his music.

Now, I don’t know how I compare to other fans; I love Bruce for all the music and I’ve read a lot about him, trying to understand the motivations, the mystery, and the man behind the music. I like to think I have somewhat of a grip on his background and his understandably liberal politics; his family life, his two marriages, etc. I’m not saying I’m any kind of expert, but I’d like to think I know a little of the man behind the guitar.

So when it was announced that Springsteen had a new greatest hits package that was going to be exclusively at Walmart, I was surprised. Didn’t think Bruce would be doing exclusive deals, but I guess I really didn’t know what to think. (Long time readers, i.e. my close friends, already know that WM saved my life, so I’m pretty biased about the company and the people in it. Just so ya know – full disclosure, eh?) I was not surprised that there was some fan backlash on that.

Now, I’ll be the first to tell you, there’s nothing special about the greatest hits package. In fact, it looks like a record company kinda thing -  a quickie package (no unreleased tunes, no demos, nothing special about it at all) that’s for the folks who see Bruce on the Superbowl and want a single disc of his hits. (My inner Lewis Black is screaming at this – “WHAT!?!?!? YOU WANNA DISTILL BRUCE TO ONE DISC? YOU MIGHT AS WELL DO A READER’S DIGEST VERSION OF THE BIBLE! OR MAKE A RINGTONE OUT OF DVORAK’S NEW WORLD SYMPHONY! OR MAYBE BAKE A FOURTEEN COURSE MEAL INTO A HOT POCKET!”)

So I’m not surprised that Bruce distanced himself from the package in a recent interview. He’s been a friend of the unions and working people for a long time, and he’s got a rep to protect. That, and WM’s rep in that area could use some improvement, which I know they’re working on. (I’m not saying that they don’t do most of their people a solid, but the rest of the world doesn’t realize it. Then again, there are some folks who have a vested interest in stirring up trouble, but theirs is a different agenda, and that would be a whole ‘nother discussion.)

Basically, Bruce said he made a mistake with the exclusive package. He implied that the mistake was with the venue, not the product (though, truth be told, it could be both). I can understand that, given what I know of the man.

So, what does this come down to? I think that Bruce signed off on something he really didn’t understand – and find me a rock star that hasn’t done that. (Again, I'm willing to bet it was some half-assed idea that the record company came up with rather than Bruce.) A certain group of fans took him to task for that, but the majority of America could care less. Bruce realized his mistake, too late to do anything about it. Instead of denouncing it or getting up in the record company’s face (or WM’s face) about it, he answered as honestly as he knew how when the question was put to him. No love lost, but nothing said that he’d regret in the morning.

Some have asked me how I felt about all this, since they know about my longtime fandom of both Bruce and Walmart. Well, the product disappoints me – the greatest hits package, as I’ve said, is nothing to write home about. I don’t feel like there’s anything wrong with the venue; I suspect most of Bruce’s problem with Walmart comes from what he’s been told about the company (most likely by folks who are biased against Walmart). Then again, Bruce isn’t pulling any of his music out of Walmart, so I don’t think he’s hatin’ the place. The rest of it is kinda like ‘inside baseball’ – only of a concern to a handful of the truly obsessed (fans of Bruce or otherwise).

Meanwhile, tickets for the Bruce’s Tulsa visit go on sale February 7th, and I’m taking my Sweetie to her first Springsteen concert. I can’t wait! And if you’ve never seen Bruce in concert, put it on your to-do list this year; it’s the complete spirit of rock and roll, a revival of optimism and positivism, and one of the most joyous events you’ll ever experience.

And the new record is really quite wonderful. It’s a product of the road, a more unfocused work than the previous “Magic,” full of energy and life and a bit more wildness and unpredictability, and not without some blemishes and flaws. It's real and it breathes. Also, Bruce has taken to doing some crooning (that’s what I’m callin’ it – I know, some folks don’t like his voice, big deal) and here he’s singing more fully than just yellin’ and hollerin’ (as my dad would say). You really oughta check it out.

And that's all I've got to say 'bout that.

Cartoon of the week

Here it is, gang, your cartoon of the week!

courtesy of Truthdig.com

You've Got To Be Taught

Our new president was sworn in Tuesday, and again Wednesday night.

Because of an "abundance of caution," the Chief Justice administered the oath of office again to Barack Obama just a little while after I began working on this blogpost.


We're gonna see a bit more of that "abundance of caution" for the next four years, because Mr. Obama is a pioneer. Just like Jackie Robinson and Arthur Ashe. Just like many before him, of all creeds and colors, who happened to be the "first" in a job or elected office, there will be those critics that will find fault with the least inadvertant look, any unmeasured gesture, or an unguarded reaction. Of course, there will be enough out there that will freak out at the measured gestures, guarded reactions, etc.

I don't believe it will be any more of an issue with President Obama than it was with the others I've mentioned, because I believe he (like Jackie and Arthur) has the quality of character to serve under such duress and scrutiny and exceed our expectations. That said, I don't expect it is going to be a cakewalk for him or his family.

As I was growing up in SC, I was taught that there were people who were different than me. There were people who were not of "my caliber," folks whom I shouldn't associate with because of some fault found in their background or their lineage. Some of those folks were of a different race. Some were from a different economic background. Some were just folks who had an accent, or weren't part of my family's religious beliefs, or were different in so many, many other ways.

I was a pretty hard-headed kid and really didn't listen to my parents (and, in quite a few cases, I probably should've). I made friends with, dated, kissed, hugged, played with, hung out with, got drunk with, partied with, jammed with, and lived with more than a few of the people that might not have passed my parents' inspection. (I wouldn't be surprised if some of my best friends now wouldn't pass inspection.) Back then, I used to worry about things like that; now that I'm older and more aware of who I am, I know that I'm the one at the wheel of my own ship.

When I do look back, I do have some regrets about opportunities that I missed in regards to not getting to know someone, but never because I got to know someone.

Now, I'm not putting all this out there 'cause my parents were bad racists or something. That's not the case. Their biases were usually more subtle than that. And I know that what they taught me was meant to protect me, but I now know that kind of protection leads to a very narrow kind of thinking. The kind of thinking that says a young man of mixed race could never be elected to the highest office in our country. The kind of thinking that says anyone with an Arabic middle name could not be elected to the highest office in our country.

As big of a fan as I am of theater, one of my favorite characters I've ever played was in South Pacific: the French plantation owner, Emile de Becque, who falls for the Army nurse from Arkansas, but is rejected by her when she finds he's fathered two children by a previous wife of a different race (Polynesian). My own struggles overcoming my biases and prejudices gave me a bit more understanding of the depth of this show, and hopefully informed my interpretation of the character.

I'm not saying that I've overcome all my biases, either. Though I look past skin color and family background and accent and sexual orientation and mannerisms and all, there is still a part of me that holds one thing a bit higher than others, and I'm sure you can figure it out by my closing comment: I love that the SMART guy won!

New Year's Resolution

Ya gotta love xkcd, who provides links for all this lovely wonderfulness!  

If you aren't already enjoying webcomics, here are a few of my favorites (in no particular order, I promise!!):

Least I Could Do

Basic Instructions

Diesel Sweeties

The Joy of Tech

 xkcd

... and I would be cast into a lake of furious anger if I didn't mention the Lord/God/King of all webcomics: Dilbert!

To the Batmobile!

Just back from a long trip over the holidaze, and I stumbled across an article on real-life superheroes.

Whoa - people really do this? Kewl!

If you ever fastened a towel around your neck with a clothespin [as a kid, eh?], you'll get a charge outta this. And don't miss the additional info that Joshuah didn't have room for in his original article.

from the blog of Joshuah Bearman

Just in case you were looking for the Batmobile, based on my title, I hates to disappoint. Enjoy!

Hear anything good lately?

Sorry I've not posted much this month, my time seems to slip away faster during this season than any other. I did script a guest post Sunday on Nate's blog and you can read it here.


In other news, there was a helluva good article last week by Bob Lefsetz, as he casts his eagle eye on the music biz. While I'm a big fan of Bob's blog anyway, this quote pretty much boils down the problem with the music industry, and it really stood out for me:

We don’t have a theft problem. We’ve got a MUSIC problem.

This business is too long in the tooth. It used to be run by renegades, now it’s controlled by major corporations, only interested in the bottom line. It’s all about the money, baby.

And then, as I'm cruising thru the days that follow, someone pointed out an older NYTimes article about Walmart's deal with AC/DC in selling their new disc, "Black Ice." And in that article was a very interesting quote from the head of Columbia Records:

“If you want to be a physical band, you better make an alliance with a strong physical retailer,” said Steve Barnett, chairman of Columbia Records. “It’s a great way to sell the new album, the catalog, the game, merchandise and DVDs.”

By the way, when ol' Steve says AC/DC is a physical band, he means they're not available on one of the digital download stores, not even at walmart.com. In other words, their music is currently being pirated because there isn't an option to buy it online. (Yep, I said it, and I wish someone could prove me wrong, but that's not gonna happen.)


And then, I'm on the treadmill this morning, finishing out the Sound Opinions podcast (Best of 2008, yeah!) and into the podcast from the groovy gang at Buzz Out Loud (#873, 12/16/2008) when they bring up this juicy bit of info - a recent study suggests that people are listening to music LESS. And these folks are also listening to TV less as well, but not quite as much.

Overall audio consumption – whether music (73 percent), television shows, news or information sources (68 percent) – is a large part of consumers’ day-to-day lifestyle. But, the study found that consumers appear to be listening less than they were three years ago. The percentage of consumers reporting daily consumption of music has fallen to 73 percent from 91 percent while TV show audio listening has dropped to 68 percent from 81 percent since 2005. Only audio from playing games has remained stable at 34 percent.

“Gone are the days when consumers purchased a single type of content, to play on a single type of device, exclusively for dedicated audio listening,” stated Steve Koenig, CEA’s director of industry analysis

Now, let me tell you where I'm coming from and where these things lead my thoughts...

I listen to a LOT of music. I hear between three and five different CDs a week, plus a couple dozen different singles, and all of these are in all different styles. (For instance, just a few weeks ago I listened to Kayne West “808’s and Heartbreak,” the Killers “Day & Age,” Trace Adkins' “10,” and Tom Jones “24 Hours” and found enjoyable moments in all of these, as well as some less-enjoyable moments. Let's just say I have a voracious appetite, which is helpful considering the demands of the job.)

But when I ask folks that I meet [or just run into] what they're listening to, it's a lot of humming and hawing (unless they're just as music-crazy as I am), finally mumbling "whatever's on the radio." Really? You don't change the station when a commercial comes on, or when a song that you don't like comes on? "Ummm, yeah, sometimes." Or they just say that they listen to everything, which is a load of crap - and I know, 'cause I do listen to damn near everything (more recently, it was the soundtrack from “Cadillac Records,” Panic at the Disco “Live In Chicago,” Brandy “Human,” Fall Out Boy “Folie a Deux,” the All-American Rejects “When the World Comes Down," and Britney Spears “Circus” - I listen to Britney so YOU don't have to!). But they sure can tell you what their score on Rock Band was last night! (Ye gods... yes, I know it's a fun little videogame, but playing an actual instrument is MORE FUN. Trust me on this.)

Getting back to where this all leads - Bob's right. People just don't care about the music anymore. The product is dead. Thanks, all you bean counters that have run the music biz into the ground. 'Preciate that. Because the worse that the music biz gets, the more greedy and corrupt cesspool/black hole of a moneypit that it becomes, the more it will alienate the public from the product it so mercilessly dispenses. And the public will turn away and shuffle off after poking the dead corpse with a stick once or twice to see if it's really dead.

(Sorry, I get that way even after limited exposure to Britney's "music.")

Then we can go out and listen to some real music, made by people who are driven to create because they can't imagine not creating; there will be wandering minstrels again, who spread their tales thru their own little cults of followers, invisible to the indifferent masses but able to make a living - not a rockstar living, mind you (the days of Led Zep and the Beatles are long gone, baby) - but be comfortable and do what they love to do for people who love them for doing it.

Music will flourish again as the business crumbles, and if you want proof, look at this year - the death spasms are becoming more evident and there was a metric shitload of great music that you won't ever hear on the radio (unless you get Sound Opinions or Musicheads on your NPR station, right?). Fans will pass USB drives to their friends, downloaders will scour music sites such as Largehearted Boy, 3Hive, Fluxblog, Passion of the Weiss, Word the Cat, Fluokids, Pinglewood, or Stereogum to feed their need for tunes that resonate, fans will hold virtual meet-ups on Facebook, and shiny happy people will hold hands and laugh.

So - heard anything good this year?

FLAME bait

Really? Burger King cologne?



You WANT to smell like meat?




Oh yeah, THAT's going on the gift list.