Under the Influence - Bruce Springsteen!

The music world has been rocked by recent "rip-off" scandals, such as Sam Smith/Tom Petty, Robin Thicke/Marvin Gaye, and (after 30 years) Guns N Roses/Australian Crawl.  We here at Legends of Springsteen have previously chided artists for trying their best at aping Springsteen, too.  However, it is in this author's personal opinion that we shouldn't judge music "rip-offs" that harshly, as artists generally wear their influences on their sleeves.

So, today, instead of spotlighting an artist that Springsteen has influenced, we'll spotlight a few artists that have influenced the Boss.  There are obvious ones like Bob Dylan and Van Morrison, but this time, we'll take a look at some Springsteen songs that sound suspiciously like previous hits.  First up, let's take a look at some classics from Born To Run.

Bo Diddley Beat / "She's The One"





In "She's The One", Bruce uses the classic Bo Diddley beat.  This beat has been used in a ton of pop songs, but the ones I hear the most with just the beat are Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away" and George Michael's "Faith".  It's an iconic beat, so it's no shame in Bruce stealing from the best (you can also sorta hear this beat on "High Hopes" as well).

"Tiny Dancer" / "Jungleland"





Specifically, we are talking about the piano introductions on both songs.  I guess I kinda see this one, but it is fleeting.  The songs are just four years apart, so I'll leave it up to you to make the call.

"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" / "Badlands"



The video above is just a small excerpt from Bruce's 2012 keynote speech at SXSW.  The first five minutes is dedicated to his love of The Animals, pointing exactly how they inspired him.  At the end of the video, however, Bruce clearly illustrates how "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" directly influenced "Badlands".  As Bruce says at the end, "Listen up youngsters!  This is how successful theft is accomplished!"

Now, you may be saying, "Hey goober, all these examples are from Bruce's early career!  Of course a young artist is going to rely a lot on his influences."  Fairly noted.  So, let's take a look at some examples from later on down the line.

"867-5309 (Jenny)" / "Radio Nowhere"



Hard to argue with this one - it's one of the more blatant offenders I've heard in the last ten years.  But kudos to Mr. Tutone for letting it go and not lawyer-ing it up.

"I Was Made For Lovin' You" / "Outlaw Pete"



We here at Legends of Springsteen are no fans of "Outlaw Pete", which has come up with a disturbing amount of frequency on this blog.  However, we have previously noted that KISS has taken from the Boss, so turnabout is fair play, I say.

"Small Town" / "Just Like Fire Would"





Ok, let's see if you can follow this one.  You have Bruce Springsteen, who inspired John Mellencamp.  Then, years later, Bruce Springsteen is inspired by a punk band called The Saints.  He covers the band, using an arrangement similar to John Mellencamp.  Can you really rip someone off who has been ripping you off?  Like the KISS example above, turnabout is still fair play.

So, there we have it.  In this humble author's opinion, I believe we need to relax whenever one song sounds somewhat similar to another song.  Often in these scenarios, people like to get on a very high horse.  Sometimes they'll criticize a particular artist mainly because they have an axe to grind against them (which happened a lot with Lady Gaga's "Born This Way").  More often, I've seen this old chestnut - "There's no original music anymore!"  Well, next time you hear some fuddy-duddy complaining about originality in music, please direct them to this post.  As you can see, every artist is guilty of being, let's say, "overly-inspired" by their predecessors.

Great Moments In Springsteen Comic Book History - Hawkeye #7

I've talked about before how rare it is to talk about comic books and Springsteen, but, time and time again, I have been able to unearth numerous examples of Springsteen's presence in sequential art.  Not so rare is finding the band Kiss in comic book form, although with their marketing you can pretty much find Kiss in any form.  However, it is extremely rare finding a moment where the worlds of Bruce Springsteen, Kiss, and comic books intersect.  Yet, that happened in Hawkeye, issue 7:

Click on the image for a larger version

As someone who grew up in New Jersey and currently lives in Brooklyn, I never got the sense of any rivalry between the state and the borough (in fact, many people rooting for the Brooklyn Nets still live in New Jersey).  However, I'm sure that even our local Kiss army member would agree that any Boss-bashing is grounds for expulsion.

That being said, I'd like to lay some praise on this current run of Hawkeye.  I've only recently discovered it, but have already become an addict.  With witty writing by Matt Fraction and dynamic art by David Aja, every issue is packed with strong characters, good humor, and explosive action.  It has enough nods to the past to satisfy long-time comic fans, but is streamlined enough to be perfect for new readers.  If you are a fan of the television show Archer, I'd highly recommend this book (I mean, read the excerpt above, and tell me you couldn't imagine H. Jon Benjamin saying all of Hawkeye's lines).  While the above scene is from an issue in volume 2, it is best to start with the first volume.

Under The Influence of Springsteen: Kiss - "Shandi"

Friends who know me know I am an absolute Kiss fanatic.  Granted, no one will ever top Bruce, and Kiss isn't even my second or third favorite.  I don't know where they land on the list of my top ten bands, but they are definitely on there.  But because of their cartoonish makeup and Gene Simmons' awful reputation as someone who is just in it for the money, Kiss is usually the band I spend the most time defending.

All my other favorite bands need no defense.  Bruce has a 40+ year career that speaks for itself, Guns N' Roses have the greatest debut album of all-time, Metallica, AC/DC, and Ozzy Osbourne are all heavy metal icons that are well respected outside of their genre for their longevity and worshiped in the heavy metal community.

But Kiss fans only have each other.  The Kiss Army was really born out of necessity more than any other reason.  Rock and roll purists disregard Kiss as a novelty act never to be taken seriously, while heavy metal fans see them as soft and phonies.  Pardon the pretentiousness, but it really takes something special for Kiss fans to realize that not only is the band not a novelty act, the band is beyond talented, but the music really is something special.  Author and essayist, and fellow Kiss Army Member, Chuck Klosterman, put it much better, and more detailed, than I ever could.

But this past year, Kiss was vindicated by taking their rightful, long-overdue spot in the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame alongside the E Street Band in the class of 2014.  I thought that would be where the similarities between the two bands ended, but I recently read in an interview with Paul Stanley that their 1980 hit "Shandi" from their album Unmasked was heavily influenced by "4th of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)" from The Wild, The Innocent and The E Street Shuffle.

I can't believe I never noticed this before, as one listen of the chorus to "Shandi" and it sounds practically identical to "Sandy".  Also, "Sandy" and "Shandi"?  Come on, it's basically the same name.  And for the record, outside of the Kiss song, I have never heard the name "Shandi" before or since.  Except of course for the delightful Summer Shandy beer.  So crack open a Shandy, pump some "Shandi" and compare it to "Sandy".

OB's Christmas List: Heavy Metal Songs I wish Bruce Would Cover

So with Christmas only being two days away I came up with my Christmas list of songs that I would love to see Bruce cover.  Keep in mind I grew up listening to heavy metal, and some of my friends are shocked when they know of all the other bands I love (Metallica, Iron Maiden, Black Sabbath etc) that Bruce trumps all of them.  However I did put some forethought and didn't just randomly want to hear Bruce sing "Master Of Puppets", "Run To The Hills" and "Iron Man" as they wouldn't fit with the E Street sound.  So below are songs that I really do think could work for Bruce, but even still I'm well aware there is practically no chance of Bruce ever playing them.  I say practically, because as we all know anything is possible with Bruce.  And without further ado...


5.  Iron Maiden - "Afraid To Shoot Strangers"



Just because I said "Run To The Hills" didn't make it, doesn't mean Iron Maiden isn't on the list entirely.  One of my all-time favorite metal bands, and one of my favorite live acts to see, Iron Maiden has been putting out stellar albums since 1978.  Their lead singer, Bruce Dickinson, has one of the most powerful voices in all of music and probably would give Springsteen a hard time with most other Maiden songs.  But in this song Dickinson's voice is consistently low, almost whisper like, to portray the gravity of the emotion behind this song.  Before "Devils and Dust" questioned the The Second Gulf War with Iraq, Iron Maiden penned this song questioning The First Gulf War.  Like "Devils and Dust", the song is written from a soldier's point of view, who is following orders.  And although he knows there is honor in following orders, his conscience troubles him, as he is "Afraid To Shoot Strangers".

4.  Black Label Society - "Road Back Home"



Fellow New Jersey native, Zakk Wylde's band Black Label Society is known for their brutally hard guitar riffs and Zakk's signature gravelly blues voice.  However on this album, Book of Shadows, their trademark sound is changed for a much more melodic sound with acoustic guitars and pianos.  Of all the songs on this list, this is the one that I think has the most E Street sound - from the opening organ intro, to the pre-chorus and chorus that I could easily see Bruce and Stevie getting into.

3.  Guns N' Roses - "I Used To Love Her"



If Bruce Springsteen didn't exist, Guns N' Roses would be my favorite band.  But he does, so they ain't. Still, I absolutely love them. They were the first band that absolutely captured my attention and imagination.  From their bad boy antics to their legendary live shows, GNR was rock and roll rebellion personified, and I loved them for it.  Although Bruce and Axl Rose have played together before, I still can't imagine Bruce ever singing GNR.  Even though I can easily see Stevie and Nils jamming on this guitar riff like Slash and Izzy, and I can even see Bruce doing his playful laughing while singing the lyrics "I knew I'd miss her, so I had to keep her.  She's buried right in my backyard."  Still, a man can dream.

2. KISS - "Hard Luck Woman"



Much like Springsteen fanatics, KISS fans are as hardcore as they come.  The costumes, the facepaint, but most importantly the music has endeared KISS to their fans for decades now.  For a long time I didn't count myself as one of them, simply because Gene Simmons is probably the biggest jerk in rock and roll.  Stories of his ego and attitude has caused nearly as many headlines as their hit songs have.  However, much like I have with Axl Rose, I simply separate the music from the person.  Just because I don't agree with them personally, doesn't mean I can't like their music.  I even feel that way about Bruce sometimes!  And ever since I've been able to do that, I have become as big a KISS fan as can be.  I love everything about them, their characters, the blood and fire, but above all else their songs.  Oh man, how awesome would it be if Bruce came out in full blow KISS make up and then went right into this opening guitar lick!?  Alright, I gotta calm down.

1.  Motorhead- "I Ain't No Nice Guy" (Featuring Ozzy Osbourne and Slash)



Cigarettes, whiskey, and a lifetime of playing hard music at a blistering fast pace: that's what gave Motorhead their signature sound that has made them icons that they are in heavy metal.  When one first hears that Motorhead is playing with Ozzy and Slash, you can't help but think it's got to be a heavy metal classic.  And it definitely is, but not in the way you might think.  This mostly-acoustic, ballad-like song features an aging Lemmy and Ozzy (and this was over 20 years ago!) contemplating about the mistakes they've made in their life.   I would absolutely love to see Bruce take the stage with this song, solo with only an acoustic guitar, but again, like every song on this list, it is just not going to happen.

So, there you have it.  What do you guys say?  Any metal fans agree or have different picks?  Are their any weird genres of music that you would to see Bruce cover?  Let us know!  Merry Christmas!