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Hernando Today

Bruce Will Rock, But Will It Be Appreciated?

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TONY HOLT Hernando Today

The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 1, 2009

I didn't see it coming.

Even when fan sites and the local media were reporting it, I didn't believe it.

There was no way Bruce Springsteen would agree to play the Super Bowl halftime show.

Nothing could be more non-Bruce than that. I realize he's not Sly Stone. He doesn't hide from the limelight for decades at a time, but he still instinctively knows how to ward off the "sell out" label.

Sure he flirted with Beatlemania-level popularity in the 1980s and sure he's made the cover of Rolling Stone a zillion times, but that because of his music - not any deliberate quest for more fame.

The Super Bowl is for those artists who think singles are more important than albums. It's for those who prospered more because of MTV rather than earning it the old-fashioned way - playing rollicking concerts in bars before theaters, and filling those theaters before moving to arenas and stadiums.

Bruce at the Super Bowl? It doesn't feel right.

He's done a lot in the last month - including perform at the inauguration, put out another critically acclaimed album and win a Golden Globe for "The Wrestler."

In the midst of all that recent success, the Boss caved. Not once, but twice.

First, the world's best-known blue collar rocker - who penned "Badlands," "The Ghost of Tom Joad," "Johnny 99" and other stark, edgy songs based on the harshness of capitalism - stood by as his record company chose to release a greatest hits package and sell it exclusively through Wal-Mart.

You know, the retail behemoth that has successfully subverted all things working class and all things Springsteen holds dear.

Maybe he didn't have a choice, but it appears he didn't put up a fight.

Today he will perform the Super Bowl - after more than 20 years of spurning offers.

Part of me sees it as a great thing. Maybe that intentional costume tear/peep show (I still refuse to call it a wardrobe malfunction) from five years ago turned out to be a blessing. Many legendary rock stars have since graced the stage - from Mick Jagger to Tom Petty.

Since Janet Jackson blatantly (!) exposed herself, the National Football League, the Federal Communications Commission, the major television networks and countless religious groups have insisted the show be grand - but sans any sort of titillation (which makes Prince's appearance a few years ago seem hilariously ironic).

U2 played in 2002. They happened to play great (as usual). But most people didn't realize it. That's really the problem. So much gets lost from the stage to the TV screen.

Prince played in 2007. His song selection was questionable, but his voice and ripping guitar solo (in the rain no less) should have delighted and impressed the masses - even garnered him a few younger fans.

A former co-worker told me a few days later she thought Prince was "a terrible performer" based on what she saw during that performance. The "Purple One" might be the only person (other than Bruce) who could wow an audience as much as Elvis Presley in his prime or Jimi Hendrix.

She didn't think so. She positively trashed him. Although after considering the source, she probably would've trashed Hendrix, too.

Mostly everyone who knows me is aware of my Bruce fanaticism. I've seen him perform 14 times (which is modest compared to some).

I'm afraid his energizing performance won't translate from the stage to the living room. I'm also afraid I will get e-mails and calls from friends telling me "he wasn't that great."

One friend told me last month "he'd better not suck" at halftime. I think I caught myself glaring at her the way my mom used to glare at me whenever I stood on the furniture. "It's Bruce, OK?" I thought. "Don't be ridiculous."

Maybe that's the reason part of me was disappointed with the news Bruce would play the Super Bowl.

So many times I have taken non-fans to a Bruce concert and they walk out thinking, "OK, I see why people like this guy." They were there. They saw the waves of devoted, screaming fans. They experienced the magic of the E Street Band.

I don't know how many non-fans will give Bruce a chance today. I hope most of them do.

I hope they bob their heads a few times to the familiar chords of "Born to Run" or take a hard listen to a song they hadn't heard before - maybe something from the new album ("My Lucky Day" would be a great choice).

Why am I worried? Bruce is going to knock it through the uprights. He always does.

I just hope my former co-worker declines to offer me her opinion the next time I see her.

Reporter Tony Holt can be reached at 352-544-5283 or wholt@hernandotoday.com.

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