Artist: Bruce Springsteen
Album Title: Devils & Dust
Label: Columbia
Bones:
Summary: More songs about Mary or Maria? You bet!
Reviewed By: 'Disco' Stu McPhee

"I got my finger on the trigger, but I don't know who to trust."

So starts the title track and the album called 'Devils & Dust', Springsteen's 13th studio release.

Probably the final parting shot (the epilogue if you will) of the E-Street Band led 'The Rising' album, the narrator in the song is a slightly paranoid U.S. soldier on the lawless streets of Baghdad. If my government botched things up as badly as Springsteen's then I would have good reason to start questioning my position as well.

After the evocative statement of the title track, it is down to business as usual for a solo Springsteen album. However this time he throws up a few twists that unfortunately don't pay off, but more on that later.

Springsteen's strength has always been his powerful storytelling that somehow manages to leave a lasting impression on the listener. Who can ever forget the doomed man in 'Atlantic City' who looks for a better life by 'doing a little favor' for a man he met last night?

On 'The Hitter', the subject is a bruised and battered boxer in confessional mode to a Mother he is too ashamed to even kiss. You can feel every punch to the body as the Boss lays out the man's descent. In 'Reno', Bruce goes a little erotic on us. Apart from feeling like a peeping tom, you at least learn what the going rate is for anal sex these days!

If the previous song is a little hot and heavy for you, then fear not there is something for you. 'Leah' is a gorgeous track about the devotion of a man for a woman. I know what you're thinking: "Very original Bruce." But often the best songs are when you go straight for the heart.

So far so Bruce. But it is a few things that unravel what should have made this a great album in his career. For some reason, he thought that singing in a higher pitch for a few tracks would work well. I'm afraid not. Songs like 'All I'm Thinkin About' and 'Maria's Bed' therefore suffer (especially the former where at times his voice goes on him) as a result.

The other beef is the re-hash of lyrics. Being a trainspotter, one can appreciate the good use of a line that has been used before. It's a pleasant inside joke for the fan and the writer. When entire verses are lifted from previous songs then one has to question the reasoning. The case in point is 'Maria's Bed' (already covicted of poor vocals in the previous paragraph). I don't know if this pre-dates 'Further On (Up The Road)' or vice-versa, but it reeks of laziness and quite frankly Springsteen is better than this.

Like Dylan, The Boss is a University subject all on his own. With 'Devils & Dust' we finally have an album that can be fiercly debated in class. It will be interesting how time will judge this album.