{"id":20322,"date":"2026-02-06T13:31:37","date_gmt":"2026-02-06T05:31:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/artgardenhub.com\/?p=20322"},"modified":"2026-02-06T13:31:38","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T05:31:38","slug":"the-motown-legend-bruce-springsteen-declared-pop-musics-master","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/artgardenhub.com\/?p=20322","title":{"rendered":"The Motown legend Bruce Springsteen declared pop music\u2019s \u201cmaster\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

As a songwriter, there\u2019s no topic that\u00a0Bruce Springsteen\u00a0is frightened of approaching. However, occasionally, it can become taxing on the mind to constantly write about subjects of such hefty weight, and sometimes, Springsteen needs to provide himself with a moment of relief by taking on the lighter side of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While he\u2019s used his voice to highlight oppression, from the mistreatment of Vietnam War veterans by the establishment and his own personal struggles, Springsteen also specialises in making anthems to make listeners feel good. Not every song he releases needs to make a grand statement about the world\u2019s plight, and \u2018The Boss\u2019 has successfully collated an eclectic back catalogue by varying his body of work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Springsteen will always be intrinsically linked with the world of rock \u2018n\u2019 roll, he\u2019s a soul boy at heart. In recent years, the New Jersey native has revisited these influences on his 2022 album\u00a0Only<\/em>\u00a0The Strong Survive<\/em>, which saw him reconnect with a set of songs which helped him become the artist he is today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said to Edith Bowman of the record: \u201cI said well, maybe I\u2019ll orient myself towards soul music, because it\u2019s how I grew up, and all my great mentors were soul men that came, Sam Moore and, of course, James Brown, Smokey Robinson as a writer. I mean, just so many. And the great singers, David Ruffin, Levi Stubbs, all masters. They were all my masters, and I said well, let me try and sing some of this material.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While\u00a0Only The Strong Survive<\/em>\u00a0didn\u2019t include any covers by Smokey Robinson, Springsteen still viewed him as an inspiration for the project. He\u2019s a figure who Springsteen has mentioned in the past as one of his musical idols, including when he appeared on VH1 Storytellers to discuss the story behind his track \u2018Waitin\u2019 On A Sunny Day\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Smokey<\/a>
The gifted Smokey Robinson. (Credits: Far Out \/ Motown Records)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThat\u2019s pretty simple, that\u2019s what I write these for, y\u2019know. I write to hear them come back at me like that. It\u2019s fun, just pure pop songwriting is a lot of fun, it\u2019s fun to play with the words simply,\u201d Springsteen said of the track before performing a snippet of the creation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Springsteen continued: \u201cThe master of this of course was Smokey Robinson, and when I write these, I tend to think of him singing them, and it gives me an idea of the phrasing.\u201d Springsteen then sang part of the song again, but this time in the style of his hero.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Springsteen wasn\u2019t the only lover of Robinson, he was a massive influence on another musical legend: John Lennon. \u201c\u2018There\u2019s A Place\u2019 was my attempt at a sort of Motown, Black thing,\u201d Lennon explains in the book\u00a0All We Are Saying<\/em>. \u201cIt says the usual Lennon things: \u2018In my mind there\u2019s no sorrow\u2026\u2019 It\u2019s all in your mind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It wouldn\u2019t be the band\u2019s only attempt at approximating Motown. \u2018This Boy\u2019, written and recorded shortly after \u2018There\u2019s A Place\u2019, was intended to be a take on Smokey Robinson, as the band had only just recorded \u2018You Really Got a Hold on Me\u2019. \u201cJust my attempt at writing one of those three-part harmony Smokey Robinson songs,\u201d Lennon claims. \u201cNothing in the lyrics; just a sound and harmony.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harmony and musical nuance are what set Motown apart. It wasn\u2019t for a particularly crowd, it was a universal sound that seemed to hum lik the city itself and drive the public wild much like their cars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s not much else to say about those,\u201d he added. \u201cThey speak for themselves. They\u2019re fun to write, \u2018Hungry Heart\u2019,\u00a0\u2018Dancing in the Dark\u2019; you get out on the stage, and it happens. Also, they are songs that free my mind from the interminable bullshit I put myself through on a lot of the other stuff and allows me to go, \u2018It\u2019s raining\u2019, like I\u2019m Smokey Robinson\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although Springsteen has many strings to his bow as a songwriter and takes influence from many different subsections of the musical spectrum, when it comes to the deceitfully difficult task of crafting simple pop songs, there\u2019s nobody he admires more than Smokey Robinson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/hVAygYAbOlo?list=PLJ3gKh8Ty5paM5xf3_yZM1agDxaMC_2Xu<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As a songwriter, there\u2019s no topic that\u00a0Bruce Springsteen\u00a0is frightened of approaching. 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