What Motivates Us to Work? For Bruce and Me, It’s ‘Abandonment of the Self’

Read more about the article What Motivates Us to Work? For Bruce and Me, It’s ‘Abandonment of the Self’

At a show at New York's legendary Apollo Theater a few months back, Bruce Springsteen joked that he was the "hardest working 'white' man in show business." Bruce made this remark in homage to one of his idols, the late James Brown, the soul-funk sensation long known as the "hardest working man" in the business. James, the Apollo apostle, often performed up to 330 one-night shows per year, in extravagant bop-till-you-drop style. Growing up in extreme poverty may have driven James Brown to work till exhaustion, but what inspired a middle-class white boy from Long Branch, New Jersey, to rock his heart out onstage for four hours, night after night, from beach bars to coliseums? "His love of his fans" is one easy answer. But it goes much deeper than that, as I was reminded after reading a fascinating profile of Bruce in the July 2012 issue of "The New Yorker" magazine.

Continue ReadingWhat Motivates Us to Work? For Bruce and Me, It’s ‘Abandonment of the Self’

Bruce: Dancing in Debris

Read more about the article Bruce: Dancing in Debris

According to Bruce Springsteen's security man, Jim McDuffie, here are some of the items thrown onstage at The Boss's Madison Square Garden concert on December 18, 1980. McDuffie reported that a dozen pairs of women's panties were thrown onto the stage at Bruce's Pittsburgh show that month. I was there, but kept my undies on.

Continue ReadingBruce: Dancing in Debris

Southside Johnny Lyon: Foot Soldier of the Jersey Music Mafia

Read more about the article Southside Johnny Lyon: Foot Soldier of the Jersey Music Mafia

When tickets went on sale this past spring for the Rod Stewart/Stevie Nicks July 28 "Heart and Soul" show at Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center, I took pause. I've adored Rod since his earliest days in the music biz, when he sang his heart out with Brit bands like Long John Baldry's Hoochie Coochie Men, The Jeff Beck Group and The Faces. But as much as I love Rod The Former Mod, was I really willing to fork over $150 to sit half a mile from the stage of a 19,000-seat arena to hear him sing "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" from his sad disco days, or croon old standards with faded gypsy queen, Stevie Nicks? No, I decided to spend my concert cash to see another vocally endowed white boy who also performed here last night: "Southside" Johnny Lyon. Johnny brought his 7-piece Asbury Jukes band to the Palace Theater in the small town of Greensburg, PA, and delivered his usual rousing show. He's been performing since the mid-1970s and is considered a pioneer of the famous Jersey Shore sound that emerged when Bruce Springsteen put Asbury Park on the musical map 40 years ago.I've long considered Johnny Lyon to be the finest white rock-soul singer in America.

Continue ReadingSouthside Johnny Lyon: Foot Soldier of the Jersey Music Mafia

My Wild and Innocent Days Loving Bruce Springsteen

Read more about the article My Wild and Innocent Days Loving Bruce Springsteen

Jimmy Cagney, hat brim low over his eyes, talking wise to Joan Blondell. Soapy and Bim picking pockets in Hell's Kitchen. Platinum angels with arched, pencil-thin eyebrows, sipping bathtub gin and waiting in vain for their square-jawed mugs to return from the hoosegow. Sharpies named Ace and Lefty. Dames named Ruby and Peaches. Those were the cinematic heroes of my youth. So, it's no surprise I'd fall hard for the denizens of Bruce Springsteen's second LP, "The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle." To this day, it's the most romantic "life on the street" album I've ever heard.

Continue ReadingMy Wild and Innocent Days Loving Bruce Springsteen