![]() ![]() “Centerfield” and “Glory Days” boast prominent organ parts, played respectively by Fogerty and Danny Federici, like baseball fans of a certain age would have heard live at the ballpark. Of course, Fogerty and Springsteen couldn’t have known when recording their albums that the American public would keep Ronald Reagan in the White House another four years by one of the largest electoral mandates in history. The Reagan who had misappropriated Springsteen’s “Born in the U.S.A.” was a master at embodying the kind of heroism that turned to blarney after a few seconds’ exposure to sunlight and David Brinkley. He encouraged nostalgia - it was another consumable object like VCRs and sushi. The sudden enthusiasm for baseball in pop songs reflected a longing for times that no one had experienced. In 1985, recall, John Rambo would return to Vietnam to finish the war that the wussies in Washington could not.Īlthough “Walk of Life” is about a Deacon Blues type - Johnny, a musician who plays the oldies and may or may not drink scotch whisky all night long - American baseball has accepted Knopfler’s song like the rest of the country did Princess Di (the video includes a montage of American sports as if for UNICEF purposes). ![]() The organ, mixed to sound like a Reagan campaign rally, is the giveaway. Soaked in Dylanology, Knopfler’s grumpy warble bestirs itself to celebrate a dude whose journeyman virtues can slide into hackdom without effort - a bit like Dire Straits. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
January 2023
Categories |