Bruce!

I took this photo of Bruce and Southside Johnny at the Meadowlands in 1993.

Year Six - Week 19 – October 6, 2003

I attended the first of the three Bruce Springsteen shows at Shea last week. Not many concerts take place there, so it was fitting to end the tour where the Beatles once held court. I wrote about Bruce here in July after seeing a Giant’s Stadium performance in the pouring rain, so you know what he means to me; but with all the emptiness at the house now, nothing could top going to see the Boss.

The show began with audio clips of George Bush speaking about weapons of mass destruction, war and peace, responsibility. The first song was ‘Souls of the Departed;’ it's about war and urban violence. It was a powerful beginning to what was an evening of political statements.

My divorce seems insignificant in light of the larger issues humanity faces and I was impressed at Springsteen’s effort to remind us. Of course you can turn on the TV and get bombarded with news, but the coverage is such that it feels more like another reality show. It’s so easy for Americans to forget, even with the specter of 9/11 hanging over us. With convenient access to twenty-four-hour diners, sunny beaches, and endless aisles of consumer goods, what’s really changed?

And yet, from the reaction of those sitting around me, not everyone was thrilled to receive Springsteen’s political agenda. This was surprising given the predisposition toward awareness of the human condition a Springsteen demographic should exhibit. But a stadium show attracts all kinds, and there were lots in the crowd that came only to hear the hits and raise their fists in the air when ‘Hungry Heart’ was played.

When the band started ‘Forty-one Shots,’ the yahoos ran to the beer line, some made phone calls, others turned around and yapped to their drunk buddies. Annoying is an understatement.

It’s hard to believe that only a few years ago this was a controversial song. The NYPD got so bent out of shape, some actually refused to provide security for Springsteen’s Madison Square Garden shows. The press also jumped on the Boss – how could he write such a song? But no one had bothered to read the lyric. When word got out on what the song was really about, a lot of people looked stupid. It’s not the first time Springsteen had been misinterpreted.

When the first chords of ‘Born in the U.S.A’ rang out Wednesday night, those beer swillers jumped out of their seats and danced. I am willing to bet most of them still don’t realize this is a protest song. Ronald Reagan certainly didn’t get it when he adopted it for his ’84 campaign. Although I am proud to be an American, too many times I am embarrassed by my fellow citizen’s ignorance.

Toward the end of the show Springsteen spoke about the homeless and the need for each of us to help. A guy with beer belly stood up and screamed – Born to Run. Several others echoed the sentiment. I looked at my friend and we just shook our heads.

Last week, the 2003 Nobel Prize for Literature was also announced. It went to South Africa’s J.M. Coetzee. He often writes about the personal consequences of apartheid. You’d expect the Nobel to recognize such an effort, but at least the coverage of the award will spread the word about Coetzee’s work.

It was yet another Monday morning for me, alone. I read in the paper that Israel attacked a target in Syria. It’s the first time in thirty years that’s happened. As most Americans head off to work this week, how many will even think about what our leaders are doing overseas? Springsteen was right to bring his political agenda to his audience, and as long as artists continue to have the courage to take on the world’s difficult issues, we still might have a chance.

As I sit in my home office now, trying to clear my mind of a personal tragedy, I realize there’s much more at stake than my broken heart. It’s time to get back to work.