Today is my birthday, and what an excellent gift this was to wake up to.
Bruce Springsteen has just released the first single from his upcoming record with the E Street Band, Wrecking Ball, their first since 2009. Springsteen’s post-Tunnel of Love output has been spotty: an obvious high point was 2005’s haunting Devils & Dust, and a particular low point was the cringe-worthy “57 Channels (and Nothin’ On)”. This new track, titled “We Take Care of Our Own,” falls somewhere in between. It’s got the Boss’s signature anthemic growl over a fist-pumping chorus, but the melody, lyrics, and production are kind of cheesy and forgettable. Hey, they can’t all be “Sandy.”