Mellencamp vs Springsteen (1 Viewer)

[superchuck500]

Here is my sizzling hot take of the day…. John Mellencamp is every bit as great a songwriter as Bruce Springsteen EVER was……. I have heard Mellencamp called ‘Springsteen Lite’.. i disagree with that.. i think Bryan Adams is Mellencamp Lite, but i think that Mellencamp is easily on par with Bruce.. i wont even get into the Dylan thing since he’s not my cup of tea, but i know that a lot of people put him in a class by himself.


Discuss.





.

You could have just posted this here. Merge?

Controversial music takes

Maybe get something off your chest? Maybe end up in a fight?I'll start.I like Jane's Addiction. A lot. I can still listen to their albums - they're killer. But "Jane Says" is a lame song. Don't ever need to hear it again.

saintsreport.com

 

[Mr. Blue Sky]

You could have just posted this here. Merge?

Controversial music takes

Maybe get something off your chest? Maybe end up in a fight?I'll start.I like Jane's Addiction. A lot. I can still listen to their albums - they're killer. But "Jane Says" is a lame song. Don't ever need to hear it again.

saintsreport.com

Absolutely not, becuase JM vs BS is worthy of its own thread.

 

[superchuck500]

Absolutely not, becuase JM vs BS is worthy of its own thread.

Everyone who posts merged threads thinks that theirs is special.

 

[SystemShock]

I’m on Fire

Is that you, Matt ?

 

[SystemShock]

Did Springsteen ever fight with authority, and did he ever win? If he did, there's that.

 

[where yat brah]

Bruce Springsteen – Drive All Night

[Verse 1] / When I lost you, honey / Sometimes I think I lost my guts too / And I wish God would send me a word / Send me something I'm afraid to lose / Lying in the heat of the

genius.com

 

[kansast]

I find comparisons like this pretty useless. Been a Springsteen fan since the very beginning. Very much got into John Cougar Mellenhead sometime back in the mid to late 80's or so. Been to numerous concerts for both artists. had tons of fun at Mellencamp concerts. But when I would walk out of a Springsteen 3+ hour long concert.. nothing short of amazing. The music I listen to has always been and continues to be a very big part of my life. And I'm particular about what I listen to. I have noticed over the past 10+ years or so, I don't think either artists has created any new tunes that has really caught my interest however.

 

[superchuck500]

Did Springsteen ever fight with authority, and did he ever win? If he did, there's that.

He never actually did - he just wrong songs about fictional characters that did and then took on that persona.

 

[kansast]

Born to Run isn't even the best song on the Born To Run album. In my humble opinion

 

[Saintman2884]

You’re a lawyer, for Chrissakes…. Thanks for providing such compelling evidence to back up your statement.


Find me a Springsteen tune , not named Born to Run, that is better than any of the following:




Pink Houses
Lonely ol Night
Small Town
Jack & Diane
Cherry Bomb
Key West Intermezzo

Oka

You’re a lawyer, for Chrissakes…. Thanks for providing such compelling evidence to back up your statement.


Find me a Springsteen tune , not named Born to Run, that is better than any of the following:




Pink Houses
Lonely ol Night
Small Town
Jack & Diane
Cherry Bomb
Key West Intermezzo

Okay, I'll try and give a few examples of the "Boss" songs that I think are better or have more existential or philosophical merit/deeper intellectual quality than you're aforementioned Mellencamp songs:

Dancing in the Dark
Thunder Road
I'm on Fire
Badlands
The Promised Land
Darkness on the Edge of Town
Independence Day
Hungry Heart


Strangely enough, I'm not that big of a fan of Springsteen's mid-late 80's work or material because I think he got way too commercialized, over-hyped and became a MTV casualty which led to his songs and albums sort of getting dulled down and less intriguing. From Born to Run to Nebraska, from mid-70's--early 1980's, thats Springsteen at his creative musical and lyrical peak when he was more introspective, less hammy, lyrics and thematic content were more articulate, existential and thought-provoking before MTV's glossy, visual slick ruined him eventually.

 

[Saintman2884]

^ good list
And while I said Dylan was the godfather of the genre I’m referring to Heartland Rock or Americana Rock or whatever its Dylan’s inclusion of rock into folk that Springsteen and JCM are heirs too
But obviously Pete Seeger is the forebear to all that, and Springsteen’s best work might be the Seeger Sessions - he really shows his bona fides there

There's a famous American folk singer/songwriter from the 1930's and 40's who actually worked as a satirical popular culture columnist for the American Communist Party's propaganda organ, the Daily Worker, who then went on to serve as a Merchant Marine during WWII and playing his music as OSS shows around the same time called Woody Guthrie who might be more deserving of the "godfather of modern American folk music" of the 20th century or co-share it along with Pete Seeger.

 

[Saintman2884]

i fight authority, authority always wins

You can only bang your head against the wall so many times until you become just another brick in The Wall.

 

[Mr. Sparkle]

It's not really much of a competition, but when you factor in Bruce's success as a pure songwriter and the number of hits he wrote performed by other artists, they're not really in the same ballpark.

 

[Goatman Saint]

There are really 2 sides at work in their music. You have popular success and what people like. That can be argued back and forth on personal taste. I’m a Springsteen fan, and feel that he is by far not only the better performer, but also the better commercial success.
Now as far as writing music with meaning and a message, there is really no comparison. JCM has written some good things with some good messages, but when Springsteen is at his best, it’s very hard for anyone to match his emotion and message in his music. I mean how many artists could have made Nebraska? Maybe Dillon, but that’s about it.

 

[MajorLamont]

Can I include this into the debate?