Off Topic Threads, Springsteen, Score

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Hi,

  Firstly, I'd like to say that I think there should be a category here for "Off Topic" threads. People here seem to be down to earth and perhaps one would like to hear their opinions on other things besides from Thrift Stores.

  That said, I got a question for BDA or anyone else who is into music and moved from the east coast to the western part of the country.  How would you relate/explain the difference between the East Coast's interest in Bruce Springsteen compared to the West Coast's?

  So that I won't transgress anything. I picked up for a total of $21 yesterday at a TS - 3 black fedoras (2 of them Borsalinos), 2 Vintage Trilby hats (but when I got home saw they were stained),2 NWTs white dress shirts 1 Tommy Hilfiger and 1 Joseph Abboud, a bunch of older Nintendo games, a few ladies silk scarves and a Hamilton Beach food processor that was a dollar.

[Big Daddy Audio]

In the western USA, there is much less "regional love" for Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel - two NY/NJ area stalwarts.

It's not that they are not liked, but they don't get the "local boy makes good" type of airplay that both these REALLY GREAT ARTISTS enjoy in the tri-state area.

You also have to keep in mind that Phoenix is a constantly changing city (people-wise) - 95% of the inhabitants come from somewhere else, and 95% (not the same 95% mind you) wind up moving away.  This isn't the same as in New York and New Jersey, where there is far greater inertia.  With this in mind, tastes are going to be far reaching and constantly changing as well.  You also have a larger section of the population with Country/Western tastes, Tejano/Salsa tastes, and very strong religious views (There are no less that 8 Christian radio stations in PHX and the immediate surrounding area, for example).

You also have to keep in mind that Springsteen lost a bit of his audience when he stopped being the "working guy making an  escape" and became more politically overt.  Springsteen isn't Midnight Oil, truth be told.

And Billy Joel, who had a long string of rock and pop hits, really isn't moving in that direction at this point.  I think he's moved towards classical, but modern classical repertoire is as played on the few classical stations as obscure Joan Baez tracks are covered at Ozzy Osbourne concerts.

FWIW

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Thanks for the reply Paul.  However, I didn't understand what you were trying to convey by your comment, "Springsteen isn't Midnight Oil, truth be told"?

[Big Daddy Audio]

Midnight Oil is an overtly political band, having developed a following with that exactly in mind.

Bruce was a workingman's troubadour, singing about a better life just down Route 9, or west on Route 22.  He became political later on, and lost a lot of his fan base.

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Somehow I sense some resentment in your tone.  I also think Brucey should have stuck to music. His 22 shots crap was ridiculous.  furthermore, I thought that if he must voice his opinion about politics he'd have been more cool if he were a republican, it would have fit better with his American persona.  Did he actually loose his fan base or did they just stick with his vintage material?

[Big Daddy Audio]

Not so much resentment as being disillusioned.  I liked Springsteen, but the causes he chose to champion just seemed to ring out with the tone of a guy whose waning popularity is going to get a boost by recording songs filled with politically correct propaganda.

He didn't need to do that, but some A&R guy somewhere probably put the bug in his ear that this would be a way "to reach a whole new generation of fans."  He didn't, but what he DID manage to do was lose/alienate his existing base.

I still listen to his stuff up to the tune "Tunnel of Love," but nothing really any newer than that, and when I listen to newer stuff I listen to selected TRACKS rather than albums.  Of his earlier works, (Greetings From Asbury Park, Born to Run, Darkness of the Edge of Town - you know) I listen to ALBUMS.

He was a great singer-songwriter (still is) but I feel he sold out in an effort to continue his career.