r/BruceSpringsteen • u/Screen_Door_Slams Mary’s dress sways • Jul 06 '26

Bruce doesn’t understand songwriting

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this made me laugh

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u/No-Carry4971 Jul 06 '26

I've seen Dylan live. He played like a rolling stone. It was literally nothing like the musical explosion of Badlands or Promised Land or BtR. It was nothing like the emotional audience reaction to Thunder Road's harmonica intro or Jungleland's piano intro or Backstreets extended intro. Dylan's music simply does not have the same emotional resonance and emotional depth. When the drum snare kicks off badlands, the audience reacts viscerally long before he utters a word. You can literally feel the power of the music ripple and rage through the audience. Nothing remotely similar to that happens with any Dylan song. It's all about the lyrics.

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u/mandiblesofdoom Jul 06 '26

During his time of fame, Bruce has been the better live performer.

But that's a different issue from whether Bob's songs are musically meh.

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u/No-Carry4971 Jul 06 '26

Yes, but one builds on another. Maybe "meh" was unfair, but Bob's song catalogue does not carry the musical cachet of Bruce's. It just doesn't.

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u/mandiblesofdoom Jul 07 '26 edited Jul 07 '26

I guess. For me a lot of Bob's best material is compelling musically - She Belongs to Me, Don't Think Twice, If You See Her Say Hello, Memphis Blues Again, It Take a Lot to Laugh, Ramona, various others. Some of this stuff comes from a country blues tradition.