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And now I want to tell you about the album that most marked me during the past decade.
Okay, I can already see the comments with a copy and paste of this statement along with the comment "you must have listened to very few albums in the 2000s". And yet I will tell you that over the past decade, I listened to so much music, exploring so many genres that you'd call me schizophrenic. And yet this was the album I listened to every single day of my life for two consecutive years, whenever I found a spare moment to dedicate to the music I love.
The album in question is "Magic" by Bruce Springsteen, released in Italy on September 28, 2007. I started getting into the music of the American singer-songwriter in 2001, thanks to my middle school English teacher who had us translate "Tougher Than The Rest" from the album "Tunnel of Love" from '87, and at the end of the year, she left us a note with a verse from "No Surrender", a song from the "Born In The U.S.A." era. Since then, I got more and more into the music of the best living rocker. I remember the joy in 2004 of buying his historic albums, as long as a student's allowance allowed it. The first album whose release I fully experienced was the acoustic "Devils & Dust" from 2005, but the following "Magic" has something more, and it's not an insignificant detail.
In this album, the whole E Street Band plays; something that hadn't happened since "The Rising" in 2002, but there the presence of the band was secondary. Here the band is felt, indeed. An album like this hasn't been heard since "Born In The U.S.A.". It starts with the first single "Radio Nowhere", Bruce's most radio-friendly track since "Brilliant Disguise" from '87. A song expressly designed for concerts as the chorus repeats "Is there anybody alive out there", a phrase Bruce often joked with fans during concerts in the past.
The second song is a blow to the heart. From the very beginning, I realized I was in front of something magical: "You'll Be Comin' Down" is surely one of the best songs from Springsteen in the 2000s. His most underrated song ever. Out of 103 dates of the "Magic Tour," it was played only once. What a pity. The song has a sumptuous sound, a real beautiful sonic background. And after the second chorus, a magnificent sax solo begins with a vaguely sixties flavor. A track that still gives me chills to listen to and always reminds me of the emotion I felt the first time I heard it. In the song, those celebrity gossip divas who flood the papers and gossip for a period, only to end up forgotten, are targeted.
With "Livin' In The Future", the E Street Band from the "The River" era returns, that mix of guitars-sax-keyboards that made old fans so happy. A harsh and slightly pessimistic text contrasts with the cheerful and carefree music, eventually resulting in a collective vocal chorus that concerts had the entire audience screaming at the top of their lungs. "Your Own Worst Enemy" is the album's first experiment. It introduces a genre Bruce seems to want to orient towards, or at least explore, as shown by the subsequent album "Working On A Dream". A soundscape that recalls the best Phil Spector wall of sound. It will leave especially old fans perplexed. Initially, I was indifferent. Now I love this song. The lyrics analyze the current era of fear and hostility towards others.
"Gipsy Biker" sounds like a song from "Nebraska," just full band. It tells the story of one of the many soldiers who, once deceased, is considered nothing more than "one less" by those in power (To them that threw you away, you ain't nothing but gone). Perhaps the powerful sound flattens the vocal performance a bit, but it's still a great piece. And now the album's masterpiece. The track that alone is worth the price of admission. Bruce Springsteen's best of the 2000s. The song that most marked and inspired me in recent years. Ladies and gentlemen, "Girls In Their Summer Clothes". Bruce Springsteen's pop masterpiece. I can't explain why this song is perfect. But everything here flows perfectly. The vocal range, worthy of the best Roy Orbison, the sonic backdrop, the lyrics, which for me are pure poetry full of evocative images. Surely it's a song I highly recommend you listen to over and over. The album's second single, it got quite a few radio plays. Something that hadn't happened in a long time. Maybe since "Tunnel of Love."
The A-side closes magnificently; opening the B-side, we find a very lively "I'll Work For Your Love". And here the first thing that comes to mind is "The River". Or at most, one thinks of one of those beautiful outtakes from "Tracks (cd3)". It starts with Roy Bittan's piano, then presents a pure E Street sound. The lyrics associate a girl's actions with biblical references. Despite its excellent live potential, it didn't appear very often in the Magic Tour setlists. Following is the song that gives the album its title, "Magic". From the title, I honestly expected a pure rock ‘n' roll where the band was explosive. That's not the case. The song, besides being the album's shortest, offers acoustic music where the violin stands out. A melody faintly reminiscent of the musical structures of "The Ghost Of Tom Joad" or the more recent "Devils & Dust". Not bad, nonetheless.
"Last To Die" had a steady presence at concerts, but frankly, it's not very exciting. It is inspired by a speech Obama gave before becoming president: "Who'll Be The Last To Die For A Mistake?". It has a driving rhythm, where I would have omitted the violin placed at the opening to give it a completely electric outfit. Now for the song that for many is the rock manifesto of this album: "Long Walk Home". Here we face the most classic Springsteen. Electric guitars and a sax solo just when you expect it. Many have judged it similar to "My Hometown" on a lyrical level, but for me, it's not. It was the third single, and it got sporadic airplay even in Italy. Closing the album is "Devil's Arcade". A very distressing and dark song, which seems too formulaic to be counted among the album's best. The album also features a hidden track: "Terry's Song", dedicated to a collaborator of Bruce who passed away after the album's completion, added at the very last moment. A beautiful text and acoustic music worthy of the best "Nebraska". Played by Springsteen alone.
This 2007 album was a real blow to the heart for me. Even now when I happen to take a car trip, I put it in the stereo and listen to it with the same enthusiasm I had at the first hearing. An album that is worth listening to. Surely longtime fans will have something to say, but I think that's normal for those who lived through the release of masterpieces like "Born To Run" or "Jungleland". If you forget the glorious past and focus on listening to the album with the current musical landscape as the only frame of reference, then "Magic" approaches a masterpiece.
Meanwhile, I'm giving it five stars all the way.
Until next time...
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Radio Nowhere (03:19)
I was trying to find my way home
But all I heard was a drone
Bouncin' off a satellite
Crushing the last long American night
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
I was staring at a dead dial
Just another lost number in a file
Dancin' down a dark hole
Just searching for a world with some soul
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?
I just want to hear some rhythm
I just want to hear some rhythm
I just want to hear some rhythm
I just want to hear some rhythm
I want a thousand guitars
I want pounding drums
I want a million different voices speaking in tongues
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?
I was driving through the misty rain
And just searching for a mystery train
Bopping through the wild blue
Trying to make a connection with you
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
This is radio nowhere
Is there anybody alive out there?
Is there anybody alive out there?
I just want to feel some rhythm
I just want to feel some rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
I just want to feel your rhythm
(fade)
03 Livin' in the Future (03:56)
A letter come blowin' in on an ill wind
Somethin' 'bout me and you
Never seein' one another again
Yeah, well I knew it'd come
Still I was struck deaf and dumb
Like when we kissed, that taste of blood on your tongue
Don't worry Darlin', now baby don't you fret
We're livin' in the future and none of this has happened yet
Don't worry Darlin', now baby don't you fret
We're livin' in the future and none of this has happened yet
Woke up Election Day, skies gunpowder and shades of gray
Beneath a dirty sun, I whistled my time away
Then just about sundown
You come walkin' through town
Your boot heels clickin'
Like the barrel of a pistol spinnin' 'round
Don't worry Darlin', now baby don't you fret
We're livin' in the future and none of this has happened yet
Don't worry Darlin', now baby don't you fret
We're livin' in the future and none of this has happened yet
The earth it gave away, the sea rose toward the sun
I opened up my heart to you it got all damaged and undone
My ship Liberty sailed away on a bloody red horizon
The groundskeeper opened the gates and let the wild dogs run
I'm rollin' through town, a lost cowboy at sundown
Got my monkey on a leash, got my ear tuned to the ground
My faith's been torn asunder, tell me is that rollin' thunder
Or just the sinkin' sound of somethin' righteous goin' under?
Don't worry Darlin', now baby don't you fret
We're livin' in the future and none of this has happened yet
Don't worry Darlin', now baby don't you fret
We're livin' in the future and none of this has happened yet
Don't worry Darlin', now baby don't you fret
We're livin' in the future and none of this has happened yet
None of this has happened yet
None of this has happened yet
None of this has happened yet
None of this has happened yet
Na na na na. . .
05 Gypsy Biker (04:31)
The speculators made their money on the blood you shed
Your momma's pulled the sheets up off your bed
Profiteers on Jhames Street sold your shoes and clothes
Ain't nobody talkin' because everybody knows
We pulled your cycle up back the garage and polished up the chrome*
Our gypsy biker coming home
Sister Mary sits with your colors, but Johnny's drunk and gone
This old town's been rousted, which side you on?
They would march up over the hill, this old fools parade
Shouting victory for the righteous for you must hear the grace
Ain't nobody talkin', but just waiting on the phone
Gypsy biker coming home
Whoa!
[Guitar solo]
We rode into the foothills, Bobby brought the gasoline
We stood around the circle as she lit up the ravine
The spring hot desert wind rushed down on us all the way back home
[Harmonica bridge]
To the dead, well it don't matter much 'bout who's wrong or right
You asked me that question, I didn't get it right
You slipped into your darkness, now all that remains
Is my love for you brother, life's still unchanged
To him that threw you away, you ain't nothing but gone
My gypsy biker's coming home
And now I'm out countin' white lines
Countin' white lines and getting stoned
My gypsy biker's coming home
Whoa!
[Guitar solo]
La la la la
La la la la
La la la la
La la la la
La la la la
La la la la
La la la la
La la la la
[fades]
08 Magic (02:45)
I got a coin in my palm
I can make it disappear
I got a card up my sleeve
Name it and I’ll pull it out your ear
I got a rabbit in my hat
If you wanna come and see
This is what we’ll be
This is what we’ll be
I got shackles on my wrists
Soon I’ll slip 'em and be gone
Chain me in a box in the river
And I'll rise singin' this song
Trust none of what you hear
And less of what you see
This is what we’ll be
This is what we’ll be
I got a shiny saw blade
All I need’s a volunteer
I’ll cut you in half
While you're smilin’ ear to ear
And the freedom that you sought's
Drifting like a ghost amongst the trees
This is what we’ll be
This is what we’ll be
Now there’s a fire down below
But it’s coming up here
So leave everything you know
Carry only what you fear
On the road the sun is sinkin’ low
There’s bodies hangin' in the trees
This is what we’ll be
This is what we’ll be
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Other reviews
By jackpizzello
Expectations are thus rewarded by this 'Magic', which brings back to our ears the fantastic sax solos of Clarence Clemons.
An album that maintains a certain mediocrity from start to finish, pleasant, but not extraordinary, without peaks high or severe drops in style.
By Sacerdozio
Magic is therefore part of the lineage that connects Born in the U.S.A. to the underrated Tunnel of Love and Human Touch.
No one doubts that the album will be a success. For me, however, an 'owed' and transitional album.
By primiballi
The Boss is back, and moreover with the E Street, in one of those periodic comebacks that excite, annoy, bore, outrage, making people shout about both miracles and scandals.
Rock is dead but they forgot to tell Bruce Springsteen.
