"Good Eye" finds Springsteen deep in Rolling Stones' Exile On Main Street territory. A blues stomp similar to that album's "Shake Your Hips," Springsteen fans will recognize the bluesy harmonica and boom mic used from the live versions of "Reason To Believe" heard on the Magic tour. "Tomorrow Never Knows" is a shuffling little country number that recalls "All I'm Thinking About Is You" from Devils & Dust.
As varied stylistically as this album is, the various influences here are all commonly grounded in pop music. For his own part, Springsteen also seems to have once again found his own voice. His vocals here are some of his strongest in years, and there's not a Woody Guthrie influenced "sir" or "mister" to be found anywhere in his inflections. I confess that those have always bugged me, by the way.
Lyrically speaking, Springsteen's Republican fans will be pleased to know that it's okay to come back home after the more politically themed songs of Magic. There's not a single Bush-bashing cut to be found on WOAD. Although, with all the references to the sun, the moon, and the stars found here, you'd be forgiven for thinking that Springsteen may be consulting an astrologer. More than half of the songs here reference the heavens in one form or another.
Sometimes the heavenly lyrics come from dark places, such as with the character who "had my good eye to the dark, and my blind eye to the sun" on "Good Eye." More often however, the references to stars and sky serve as metaphors for relationships. "This Life" urges its lovers on with the line "as you slip into my car, the evening sky strikes sparks" (there's a line straight out of Born To Run if ever I've heard it).
As much as relationships seem to be the common thread winding throughout much of Working On A Dream, there are just as many songs which also seem to be about the often painful circumstances which come with them. The line "here's one for the road, here's one to your health, and one for life itself" from "Life Itself," for example, is one which drips with loss and regret.
![Chicago: Live in Concert [Blu-ray] Starring Robert Lamm, Lee Loughnane, James Pankow, et al. (Nov 1, 2011)](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/5198vHFv5UL._AA115_.jpg)
Article comments
1 - Wesley Mead
Nice review, Glen. Thanks.
I'm really enjoying this album. I've always been a sucker for Bruce's pop songs, so "Kingdom of Days" and "Surprise, Surprise" are early favourites. But there's such a vast array of musical styles on display here that I'm finding it hard to compare them all after just a few listens.
2 - MarkSaleski
nice review glen. i'm still in the 'ingesting' phase.
3 - Paul Roy
Good review Glen. Rolling Stone gave it five stars. I think they got a little carried away.
4 - David Bowling
Thanks Glen. I intend to purchase the album today. I'm glad that you gave it a positive review as the anticipation has been building for months. Now onward to the Super Bowl.
5 - Lisa McKay
Nice, Glen. This is the first review of WOAD that I've read, and I'm looking forward to finding my package from Amazon on the front porch when I get home today.
6 - MarkSaleski
my only quibble is that i don't think the site you linked to has any hardcore fans anymore.
7 - JC Mosquito
I've been listening to the album online, and picked it up yesterday. Not sure what to make of it yet, but the mix of musical styles & songwriting perspectives suggests to me that Springsteen is working out something on a deep, personal level. I don't know - I'm not a mind reader - but perhaps he's dealing with his own mortality and that of his peers in the context of Danny Federici's recent passing. On a few spins, anyway, the album has the sound of someone looking through his personal effects before deciding either to take them along on the next part of the journey, or to pack them away in storage for a while.