Bruce Springsteen - We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions Review
Posted by Mitch Michaels on 04.26.2006
Springsteen goes folk, but is it as boring as it sounds? (Hint: HELL no!)
My Story
I've been a Springsteen fan since I was a freshman in college, after being introduced through, what else, his Greatest Hits. I love Bruce's classic rock stuff, but I have to say, my favorite album is his acoustic The Ghost Of Tom Joad. Not many recognizable singles exist on that LP, but the feeling of the solo vocal and guitar arrangement is so intimate and urgent, I just couldn't put it down. My feelings have soured on the Boss a bit over the years. The Rising had some great moments, but also some bland ones, and the less said about Devils & Dust the better. Then there's all the political stuff. No thanks. When I heard about this record, a collection of songs written or popularized by legendary folk artist Pete Seeger (another notoriously political musician), I wasn't too excited, but when the opportunity to review the disc for 411 came, I decided to take. Can Springsteen turn me around from my current state of apathy, or will he further my disillusionment with this odd project?
His Story
Bruce Springsteen grew up in southern New Jersey, and even as a kid, music was in his blood. Springsteen spent his formative years listening to rock ‘n' roll and playing in various bands, learning everything from power pop to electric blues. By the time the mid-70's rolled around, Bruce had relocated to famed Greenwich Village in NYC, playing folk music on street corners and in coffee houses.
Springsteen signed with Columbia Records in 1972, and the next year saw the release of his first two records (Greetings From Asbury Park and The Wild, The Innocent & The E Street Shuffle). Neither album caught fire, though E Street Shuffle earned a young Springsteen great reviews. Gearing up for his next release, Springsteen made some changes to his backing band, a group of similar minded Jersey-based musicians Bruce had assembled during his years on the circuit. The E Street Band we know today was now in place. Bruce and the gang toured the country with their wild and energetic stage show, building a fan base and earning rave concert reviews. Despite their growing popularity, the band entered the studio in 1975 knowing that this third album would be Bruce's last chance with Columbia Records.
Born To Run was released in August of '75, and the title track soon became Bruce's first Top 40 hit, propelling the album to the Top 10. Needless to say, Born To Run was not the needed hit to keep Springsteen alive in the bottom of the ninth; it was a fucking grand slam. The hype began. A recently rock ‘n' roll starved radio proclaimed Bruce the second coming of rock's glory days.
Unfortunately, Springsteen was unable to capitalize on the sales of Born To Run with a quick follow-up due to legal problems with his ex-manager. By the time Darkness On The Edge Of Town appeared in 1978, a swelling of similar musicians (Bob Seger, the future John Mellencamp) had saturated radio, not to mention the birth of new wave. Though Darkness sold well, it wasn't near the success that Born To Run had been.
Not one to rest on his laurels, Bruce followed Darkness up with the ambitious double LP The River in 1980. Critics loved the album, and the song "Hungry Heart" became Bruce's first Top Ten single. Through his blue collar work ethic, party atmosphere live shows and working man lyrics, Springsteen was building a massive audience of middle Americans that liked good times and rock ‘n' roll.
Given all this, 1982's Nebraska was a surprising turn, finding Springsteen backed by only himself on acoustic guitar and little else, singing slow ballads. Nebraska went on to become one of Springsteen's best known albums, but at the time, many were wondering what he was thinking. The album didn't even spawn a tour.
To many fans' relief, Nebraska turned out to be a sort of one-off, as Springsteen and The E Street Band reconvened with 1984's Born In The U.S.A., a barn burning LP of pop rock that spawned no less than seven hit singles and sold over ten million copies, no doubt in part due to the band's hard rocking two-year tour behind it. The 5-LP box set Live 1975-1985 followed in 1986 and topped the charts, too.
1987 saw the release of the slower and more tender Tunnel Of Love. Though not hard rocking or nearly as successful as U.S.A., Tunnel Of Love also sold well based on Bruce and E Street's road work. That's why it was surprising that, following the tour, Springsteen announced that he would be parting ways with The E Street Band after 15 years and tons of success. Fans weren't happy, but were excited to see what this new chapter of Springsteen's career would bring.
1992 saw the dual releases of Human Touch and Lucky Town. Apparently, Springsteen had recorded much of Lucky Town, another introspective set a la Tunnel Of Love in 1990, before deciding to axe it in favor of the songs that would become Human Touch, a set of pop rock songs. However, following the completion of the latter, Springsteen decided to just release them both. Both albums sold well, though none drew much critical praise. Nor were they very pleasing for fans. 1993 saw Bruce's infamous "MTV Unplugged" taping, where The Boss decided to plug in after only one song. Many saw the show as a disappointment, as the prospect of Bruce in a solo acoustic setting, like on Nebraska, reworking his best songs was very interesting. Instead, fans were "treated" to the same old same old performances of songs from two albums that were lukewarm at best.
1994 was a good year for Springsteen, as his song "The Streets Of Philadelphia" (from the movie Philadelphia) not only became a Top Ten hit, but also won the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Of all of Springsteen's aspirations, you had to think the label of "Oscar Winner" surprised even the Boss himself. Springsteen followed-up his success by reforming the E Street Band to record a few new songs for their upcoming Greatest Hits set. The CD entered the charts at #1, proving Springsteen still had the market in the palm of his hand.
As was becoming the norm, Springsteen followed up his Greatest Hits success with another low-key effort, the nearly solo acoustic The Ghost Of Tom Joad. The disc of ballads earned rave reviews, and finally delivered Bruce in the intimate setting fans had craved since the "Unplugged" debacle. Springsteen followed the set up with a short acoustic tour, after which he recorded a few songs for the Pete Seeger tribute album Where Have All The Flowers Gone.
In 1999, Bruce Springsteen was inducted into the Rock ‘N' Roll Hall Of Fame, and to celebrate, The Boss reassembled The E Street Band and hit the road for a long tour. The reunion trek was a huge success, and even spawned the successful Live In New York City album in 2000. Happy with their success on the road, Springsteen brought the band into the studio to make 2002's The Rising, a successful set that rocked while still managing to contemplate a post-9/11 America. Springsteen followed with another acoustic set, 2005's Devils & Dust.
Following the recording of D&D, Bruce unearthed his 1997 recordings for the Pete Seeger project. Though only the Seeger classic "We Shall Overcome" had made the CD release, Springsteen had recorded a few songs during the sessions, and he thought they sounded pretty damn good. Bruce reassembled the original band in the studio for 2 more wild 1-day sessions of recording more of Seeger's music. The loose set was put onto disc and set for release in 2006.
The Album
On April 25, 2006, Columbia Records released We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions, the 14th studio album from Bruce Springsteen and his follow-up to the 2005 acoustic set Devils & Dust. The disc is Springsteen's first cover album and is comprised completely of songs made popular by folk singer Pete Seeger. The album is available on CD, DualDisc and vinyl. The DVD side of the DualDisc contains two bonus songs: "Buffalo Gals" and "How Can I Keep From Singing".
The Band: 10.0
Bruce Springsteen: vocals, guitar, harmonica, B3, percussion
Though this is nominally a Bruce Springsteen solo album, much must be said for the backing band, a large ensemble of violin, banjo, tuba, accordion etc. players who Springsteen brought in to specifically make this record because of their ability to make vital and modern "old time" music. And the playing is so excellent on this album, it will nearly blow you away within the first couple of minutes.
The band recorded this album over 3 different days: the original session in 1997 and then two sessions over the last few months. There were no rehearsals, the band literally rolled tape when the first song began to play. What results is a loose feeling album that you just can't help but tap your feet to. Even when backed by The E Street Band, Springsteen has never sounded this fun. The Boss is clearly having a good time, as all involved seem to be aware of the special music they're laying down with each song. Springsteen's vocals are at their fiery best on this record, too, backed by a crack team of singers who perform the music with all the passion and fervency of a black gospel choir.
The album is only loosely produced, most of it sounds live, which is what Bruce was going for. The big band concept is in stark contrast to Seeger's originals, as he was normally a vocals + guitar type folkie, but this album shows that Seeger was merely a jumping off point, much like B.B. King's Louis Jordan tribute album from 1999. Like King, in the end, Bruce makes these songs all his own. And they thrive for it.
In a word, this album sounds great.
The Songs: 9.5
1. Old Dan Tucker
2. Jesse James
3. Mrs. McGrath
4. Oh, Mary Don't You Weep
5. John Henry
6. Erie Canal
7. Jacob's Ladder
8. My Oklahoma Home
9. Eyes On The Prize
10. Shenandoah
11. Pay Me My Money Down
12. We Shall Overcome
13. Froggie Went a-Courtin'
There are two distinct reactions you may have when reading the track list for The Seeger Sessions. If you're not into folk music, you'll probably think "What a boring fucking set of songs". I'll admit, the titles don't sound that interesting. I only knew a couple of songs, really. We sang "Old Dan Tucker" in first grade, and "Froggie Went a-Courtin'" was a joke on "King Of The Hill", and not even very good when Dylan covered it. Not exactly a ringing endorsement. But fear not, non-folkies. These songs are awesome.
For the folk music aficionados out there, the reaction will be different. You're probably thinking "This is supposed to be a tribute to Pete Seeger? Where the hell is "If I Had A Hammer"? Or "Little Boxes"? "This Land Is Your Land"? "Where Have All The Flowers Gone"?" But fear not, my folkie friend. As I said before, Pete Seeger isn't so much in tribute here as he is a jumping off point. The songs that ARE here contain Seeger's spirit no doubt, and some have never sounded so vital. The songs that are here, they're awesome.
The album kicks off with the aforementioned "Old Dan Tucker". I have to admit, I was looking forward to how Bruce would arrange this grade school classic, and even I was surprised at how great he and the band made this song. It sounds so fun and so energetic, you just can't help but love it. It's a knee-slapper, a boot stomper, it's just plain fun. And "Tucker" is just a taste of what's to come on this album. "Oh, Mary Don't You Weep" is a great spiritual that sounds like folk by way of New Orleans. It really swings. "My Oklahoma Home" is an ironically humorous (not to mention catchy) tune about a guy who lost his house in a tornado. "Eyes On The Prize" is a slower spiritual, with a rousing chorus of "Hold on" that will have you raising your arms in praise or at the very least agreement. Springsteen tears through the sea chantey "Pay Me My Money Down", which quickly turns into a hootenanny of epic proportions.
Slower songs on the album work well, though they aren't quite as fun. The quiet "Shenandoah" is a great number about a 19th century pioneers homesickness. "We Shall Overcome" is the only previously available song here, but its inclusion on this stellar set breathes new life into it. Definitely a rousing version of one of the most well known protest songs in American history. The anti-war tune "Mrs. McGrath" is probably the album's only snoozer, but it still has some likeable elements in the background singers' work.
The album ends with a truly rousing version of "Froggie Went a-Courtin'", a really fucked up song about a frog marrying a rat. Somehow, this song has survived for over 500 years, probably because of the hope that, someday, someone will discover whatever drugs the guy who wrote "Froggie" in the 1500s was taking and make a fortune.
Another thing worth a mention is the albums great liner notes (also available online) that give details of the session (by Bruce himself) and each song's history. A nice touch to a hell of an album.
The 411: Bruce Springsteen probably went into We Shall Overcome as a one-off project, almost a vanity thing, recording music by Pete Seeger and from the folk realm in general that he has only recently gained an understanding and enthusiasm for. Luckily for everyone, what came of it was one of Bruce and folk’s greatest albums ever. The loose and fun feeling, the crack band, the vitality injected into these some centuries old songs are surprising and amazing. This is truly what making music is all about, and let’s hope it leads to even more great output like this album, where passion is more important than putting down a tight and slick single.
