Taking a page from the recent bluegrass revival, the Boss is back. Assembling a group of merry musicians, Springsteen has created a boisterous album filled with rollicking tunes that roll where they should roll and swing where they should swing (and twang where they should twang).
We Shall Overcome is a collection of cover songs. Better yet, it’s a collection of cover songs of cover songs! That is to say, Springsteen decided to record an album full of songs once covered by folk singer Pete Seeger. This is such a departure from recent Springsteen work – wait, I take that back… This is such a departure from any previous Springsteen work that one can only be skeptical when first pressing play.
Inevitably, it’s hard to escape the jubilant festivity with which the album is so deeply engrained. Kicking off the album with a drumbeat and a stereotypical “1, 2, 3” shout, “Old Dan Tucker” sets the mood at fun and one can only but wonder if the momentum can be sustained. Banjo does not make frequent appearances in Springsteen’s extensive oeuvre, but here it almost takes front seat and it does so beautifully. It feels like the beginning of a good ol’ American hoe-down.
“Jesse James” comes up next laced with horns and a rollicking drive that is unstoppable. The musicians are up for the challenge of maintaining the pace, it seems. “Jesse James” leads into the slow ballad “Mrs. McGrath”, which is layered with strings and reveals the origins of traditional folk ballads – one would be hard-pressed not to identify this song as celtic in origin with its “too-rah-yay” chorus and beautifully melodic string lines.
The album’s real showpiece is the fourth track, “O Mary Don’t You Weep”. The iTunes download of the album comes with a seven-minute video of the recording of this particular song – the video reveals what one can hear in the album at large: the joy the musicians were experiencing despite the sometimes sorrowful themes being touched upon. “O Mary” has a sung chorus that wouldn’t sound out of place as a Springsteen-composed song, which only makes it evident why Springsteen felt he could cover these songs.
The hoe-down picks up again during the next track, “John Henry”; this song is where my wish of being trapped in a barn with Bruce and His Merry Band and a few dozen dancers is only made more longingly strong. Making sure to keep the pace interesting, the album slows down with “Erie Canal” next, which sports a wonderful bridge filled with horns and a New Orleans-inspired groove.
It’s hard for most to really get into a genre so blatantly country, but the soul and spirit of the music and the musicians involved only help to make it easier. “Jacob’s Ladder”, a traditional gospel-tinged ditty comes blaring out of the gates with its’ chorus of “higher and higher/we are brothers and sisters all” is infectious and laden with the soul missing from so much of today’s mainstream (or even indie) rock.
The album never really loses its’ momentum, I’m pleased to say. Covering such elementary school choir classics as “We Shall Overcome” and “Shenandoah” as well, Springsteen manages to expose the raw nostalgia embodied in decent folk music, the way only a true American artist can make it feel. Springsteen has cobbled together a collection of musicians who were destined to have a good time and the result is evident – hopefully, he’ll be able to tour with a similar band of merry folk and bring this barn-stomping music to the populace at large. It’s a good time and it’s hard to ignore.
GRADE: A