Reviews
"Nebraska"
Bruce Sprintsteen’s new
album “Nebraska” (Columbia)
will be quite a surprise to many
of his fans. Springsteen was in
a very dubious position prior to
the release of “Nebraska.”
Each album Springsteen releas
ed in past years has received
more critical acclaim than his
last. His previous effort, “The
River” was hailed by many as
his “masterpiece.” Springsteen
was under a lot of pressure to
produce another “Classic”
album of high-spirited rock ’n’
roll.
Instead of delivering what
was expected of him, he took an
alternate route and released
“‘Nebraska”--an imaginative
and risky album that is neither
high-spirited nor rock ‘n’ roll.
In this era of digital multi
track studios, Springsteen chose
to record Nebraska in his New
Jersey home on a track cassett
recorder. The songs are strip
ped down to just Springsteen’s
vocals, acoustic guitar, and
harmonica. Gone is his backup
group, the “E Street Band,”
with the jingle-iangle guitars,
honky-tonk keyboards, and
wailing saxophone.
The songs are sparse, un
complicated portraits of win
ners and losers in American
culture, written in typical
Springsteen commonman
language. Side one starts with
the title cut “Nebraska.” The
sad lyrics and haunting vocals
are as grim as die subject-
Nebraska mass-murderer
Charles Starkweather. The song
doesn’t pass judgement, stating
that “a meanness in this world”
prompted the murders.
“Atlantic City,” the album’s
strongest cut, tells of a man
deep in debt who is “tired of
cornin’ out on the losin’ end”
and resorts to being a hired gun
for the mob. Springsteen
assumes the voice of the hit
man and rationalizes his work:
“Everything dies baby that’s a
fact, but everything that dies
someday comes back.”
The monotone vocals on
“Highway Patrolman” set the
mood of the song, expressing
the fraternal love between an
honest cop, Joe Roberts, and
his no-good brother Frank. Joe
manages to look the other way
when Frank causes trouble in
town, showing that their blood
runs thicker than the law.
Side two is more optimistic
and carefree, depicting honest
characters, but fails to arouse
the emotions as side one does.
“Used Cars” tells of a dreamer
who vows to buy a new car the
day he wins the lottery. “Open
Ail Wight” toYlows, the liveliest
song on the album, sounding
like a stripped-down “Cadillac
Ranch.”
If you’re expecting the free
spirit rock ‘n’ roll of Springs
teen’s earlier albums, then
“Nebraska” will be a radical
change of pace. It is a state-of
the-Union message that will
rate among his best work.
Heroes' Debut
Robert Hazard and the
Heroes’ debut album (R.H.A.)
is proof that the powers that be
in the music industry can’t keep
a good band down. Unable to
find any major record compa
nies 10 oack him, Hazard
recorded the album in a small
independent studio in his native
Philadelphia. The album was
heavily promoted by both
Hazard and influential
Philadelphia rock stations. As a
result, Hazard got the last
laugh on the major labels,
who are not approaching him
with offers.
The E.P. (extended play)
album consists of five cleverly
crafted new wave dance songs.
The killer cut on the album is
the ‘Escalator of
Life’-Hazard’s national anthem
for all the shopping mall con
sumers. The song opens with
ethereal synthesizer notes that
are bottomed-out by a droogy
techno-pop bass riff. The
monotone chorus sets the
futuristic tone of the song, tell
ing of the fun times spent in
consumer America.
“We’re riding on the
escalator of life
We’re shopping in the human
mall
We’ve dancing on the
escalator of life
Won’t be happy till we have it
all.”
“Change Reaction” follows~a
spirited romp expressing the
importance of being young and
free, with a keyboard hook that
symbolizes the optimism of the
song. Song two contains a cover
version of the old Bob Dylan
standard, “Blowin’ in the
Wind.” Hazard takes the
easygoing song and converts it
into a protest song complete
with angry vocals and the hot
test guitar solo on the album.
The remaining songs, “Out of
the Blue” and “(I Just Want to)
Hang Around With You” are
the album’s weakest cuts with
innocuous lyrics and a familiar
dance beat.
Hazard’s impressive debut
album, while not breaking any
new ground, has set him apart
from the crowd of new wave
bands in Philadelphia and
should soon see him as a major
national act.
Dire Straits
On their 4th and latest album,
“Love Over Gold,” Dire Staits
make it known that they’re not
interested in being a
“commercial” band. The
average length of the songs is
well over seven minutes, which
will prohibit much radio
airplay. They are content to re
ly on their loyal fans to give the
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album a chance. Indeed, Dire
Staits does not produce
“background music”- their
songs require full concentration
by the listener.
The focal point of the album
is “Telegraph Road,” a
14-minute epic which takes full
advantage of Mark Knopfler’s
unique guitar style (plucking
guitar strings with his fingers
instead of guitar picks). The
song parallels the growth of a
coal mining town with the
growth of a young man who is
alienated by the complexity of
the town. The young man
becomes disillusioned with the
“six lanes of traffic” full of
people “driving home from the
factories” and discovers that
there is no work to be found. He
longs for days gone by when the
economy was stronger and “life
was just a bet on a race bet
ween lights.” The song often
builds to a climax and then
allows Knopfler to relax the
listener with his mellow
pyrotechnics.
“Private Investigations” of
fers the plight of a District At
torney and his thankless job.
The song begins humbly enough
but quickly gets bogged down
by the overblown production
and depressing lyrics.
“Industrial Diseases,” con
trary to it’s gloomy title, is a
playful satire on how industry
“hushes up” the reports of
work-related illnesses. The song
is driven along by a buoyant syn
thesizer riff and brightens up
an otherwise dull side two.
The title cut “Love Over
Gold” and “It Never Rains” fill
out the remainder of the album.
Both songs are overproduced,
containing rather obscure lyrics
and nondescript melodies.
The end result is that “Love
Over Gold” is a good album
that, with a less self-indulgent
approach, could have been a
great one.
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