Down to the river with The Boss (again)
“Is a dream a lie if it don’t come true?”
I first fell in love with the music of Bruce Springsteen in my late school days of the mid 1980’s and after first flatly refusing to listen to and indeed appreciate his behemoth 5 album box set of live recordings (1975–1985) kindly on loan from my golden hearted friend Gareth. The legend I tell is a true one: I simply returned his kind gesture with a flat “no thanks” before reluctantly agreeing to listen to each and every album again and even then, I returned the box set to my friend with a firm “not for me”. The legend continues that Gareth refused to take back his own property, stating “you simply have to listen to them again!” and listen I did, and as well as finally falling in love with The Boss and particularly “Bobby Jean” and “Racing in the Street”, it was “The River” that captured my teenage imagination and a lifetime of adoration duly followed.
Suffice to say I have every album Bruce has released, before or since my teenage school days, “Racing in the Street” still reduces me to a sobbing mess, “Bobby Jean” is THE perfect rock’n’roll song (even for this curmudgeonly old Radiohead fan) and “Thunder Road” has long since surpassed Bruce’s tale of love, life and escape down by the riverside in my obsessive affections. “A screen door slams”, my Mum’s darling Roy Orbison is “singing for the lonely” and before yet another tale of love, life and escape reaches its glorious denouement via the “ghosts” and “skeletons” of a life soon to be forgotten, we’re winners from a “town full of losers” and I seem to be crying again.
Shall we just listen to “Racing in the Street” and have a damn good cry or shall I instead refer you to a more in depth and loving analysis of the songs of Mr Springsteen and we can all then depart this reverie beside the riverside safely and for the real reason why we’re all here today?
Although the promise of warm sunshine was replaced by a dour blanket of white cloud I’d bribed my very own Boss with the exciting prospect of feeding some hungry ducks before fish and chips on the riverbank and the kid in the Ghostbusters t-shirt was only too willing to “go down to the river” once more. He indulges me in my regular returns to a toy town and spiritual home that for as long as you’re within the sound of the sweet bells of St Luke’s Church well, you may as well be in a different world, a different time, riding the reverie river of friends and memories, love and cherished songs amid the sight and sounds of a little piece of heaven here on earth.
The kid’s favourite Springsteen song is “Born to Run”.
The kid has immaculate taste!
My spiritual home of Ironbridge, 1st June 2024.
I hope you enjoy.
Thanks for reading, and I hope the world is spinning and turning in your favour. Here are some books I’m rather proud of. They’re all available via Amazon and they will all no doubt be winners of a Pulitzer Prize one day so get them while the going’s good. Alright?
Peace.
"Or is it something worse?...."