Bruce Springsteen - We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions Review [2]
Posted by Tim Johnson on 04.26.2006
Can "The Boss" overcome another release without the E-Street Band?
April 25, 2006 marks the release of Bruce Springsteen's twenty-first album, We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions. The compilation consists entirely of cover songs associated with legendary folk musician, Pete Seeger.
The album was recorded live and unrehearsed with an assembly of over fifteen musicians. Each of the thirteen tracks has the traditional Springsteen sound you've come to expect for nearly forty years now.
The songs are light and joyful. This is a drastic departure from Springsteen's previous issue driven release, Devil's & Dust.
The Seeger Sessions simply captures a group of extremely talented musicians playing and having fun.
While the record focuses on folk music, practically every song has a modern, high energy feel to it. Horn and string ensembles add a jazzy, New Orleans quality to the majority of the selections, and there is no shortage of choral singing throughout. This is the kind of music you'd expect to hear in a barn somewhere in the Deep South.
In theory, cover albums are a record company's dream. They attract fans of both the current, and the original artist. You don't have to be a Pete Seeger fan to enjoy We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions. The music stands on its own.
If there is a disappointing overtone to any of this, it's that Springsteen has gone another year without an "E-Street Band" follow-up to the critically acclaimed 2002 release, The Rising. Bruce is not getting any younger, and if he has another "E-Street" run in him, it should probably be soon.
Track List
1) Old Dan Tucker
2) Jessie 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'
Following suit with the current musical trend, We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions, comes in DualDisc format. The DVD side contains two additional bonus tracks, "Buffalo Gals" and "How Can I Keep from Singing."
Bruce Springsteen and the Seeger Sessions Band will launch a short tour of the U.S., beginning in New Orleans on April 30th.
The 411: We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Sessions is everything you’d expect from “The Boss.” The songs are light, fun, and full of energy. This is a welcome change from the solemn and serious material Springsteen has focused on for the past couple years. While the album is solely an interpretation of traditional folk music, it shows the potential Bruce Springsteen has for another promising original release.
