I love Bruce. He releases an album of songs inspired by Pete Seeger, one of the greatest writers of protest music in the country's history, (it's great, by the way) and when he's asked if politics has anything to do with that, this is how the conversation goes:
One thing Mr. Springsteen seemed reluctant to address, except in the abstract, was the political side to the material on "The Seeger Sessions." Mr. Seeger, who turns 87 next month, is of course a hero of the left, a musician, songwriter and song collector-historian who helped spur the politically tinged folk music revival of the 50's and 60's. He spoke out against the Vietnam War and has remained an activist, notably on environmental issues.
"That's there," Mr. Springsteen said of the political element. "But I approached the entire thing musically. I didn't come to it with any ideological perspective, or idea of showing this or that. I just took the songs that I liked from Pete's records."
...
While Mr. Springsteen claims to have approached the material on "The Seeger Sessions" without a political agenda, he acknowledges that context can color things, and suggests that ideology is in the ear of the beholder. "What makes these songs vital, and catch fire now," he said, "is all the connections you're making, in your head, to this moment."
And then he dedicates Mrs. McGrath to Cindy Sheehan. And then he performs at NOLA's Jazz & Heritage Festival:
Decrying what he called "criminal ineptitude" in Hurricane Katrina's wake, Springsteen jabbed at the political powers he deemed responsible for New Orleans' slow recovery.
Perhaps the most pointed moment came as he prepared to sing an old song that he had rewritten lyrics to for New Orleans. Noting that he visited the city's ninth ward, perhaps the most devastated area in the city, Springsteen said: "I saw sights I never thought I'd see in an American city," and added: "The criminal ineptitude makes you furious."
With that, he launched into a song titled "How Can A Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live?" and dedicated the song to "President Bystander." Its lyrics included the lines: "There's bodies floatin' on Canal and the levees gone to hell ... them who's got out of town, and them who ain't got left to drown, tell me, how can a poor man stand such times and live?"
Those are the connections in his head.
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